What is the most reliable way to connect two PlayStation 4 consoles over LAN?
I am going to be playing some local multiplayer with a buddy. The game is Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, and it supports local multiplayer. What is the most reliable way to set up a LAN session between two consoles?
I've heard that I can plug both consoles into a router with ethernet cables, but since we only need to connect two consoles, is it at all possible to link the consoles directly with an ethernet cable?
I will not have internet access, if it makes a difference.
22 Answers
I've set up various large LAN parties involving multiple consoles (once with ~12 Xboxes for a Modern Warfare 2 party).
If you're only hooking up two consoles, you can generally get away with a "crossover" Ethernet cable hooking between them. A crossover Ethernet cable is wired differently than a standard CAT5/6 Ethernet cable, and is designed to directly connect two devices. This is probably the cheapest solution, a quick trip to Amazon or Monoprice will score you one of these cables for a couple of bucks.
That said, you could try hooking up the two consoles with a standard Ethernet cable - some Ethernet hardware is capable of detecting and auto-switching internally to a crossover mode. There's no risk to your hardware - if it fails, the network just won't work.
If you've got a router, even if you don't have internet access, it's still worthwhile to hook both consoles up to it. Routers have built-in services (DHCP, chief among them) that make setting up a small network much easier. There's no need for crossover cables here, just use standard Ethernet cables instead.
3The PS4 has Gigabit ethernet ports. As part of the requirements for that spec, they have to support auto-crossover. You should not need a special crossover cable. To add a third console or more, you would only need a network switch. A router is only needed if you are connecting to the Internet with them.
