RPGs that support co-op gameplay aren’t exactly common, but they’re not rare either. Plenty of developers cater their games to the co-op crowd by allowing for up to 4-player co-op, the standard party size in most games.
But those looking for an RPG that can accommodate at least 6-player co-op multiplayer will find such games extremely hard to find. This is not only because such games are rare, but also because, even if a title that perfectly matches these requirements does exist, the servers to support online co-op may not. Luckily, the gaming landscape is vast, and there are options for every style of gamer. Here are the best picks for 6-player co-op games that are in a playable state today for prospective adventurers to jump into.
5 Core Keeper
Top Down Sandbox Adventure Deep Underground
Core Keeper is a mining sandbox game that allows for up to 8-player co-op in a shared world. The gameplay loop involves mining for resources in a vast cave system filled with valuable ores, secrets, and enemies and bringing those resources back to a home base.
Core Keeper has an in-depth farming system that encourages players to create automated farmlands near their home. It also has a robust base-building system with complete player freedom in how they want to set up and decorate their game world. While Core Keeper can be enjoyed solo, playing with friends is incredibly rewarding, as the game world is absolutely massive, and having more hands on deck to distribute the workload can speed up growth exponentially.
4 Stardew Valley
Cozy Farming Simulator To Share With Friends
Stardew Valley is a title that needs little introduction. A farming simulation game inspired by Harvest Moon, it offers a cozy, heartwarming experience that can be enjoyed by up to 8 players in the same save file. While the game is balanced around a single-player experience, multiple players inhabiting the same farm won’t break the game.
To start a co-op game in Stardew Valley, one player creates a home world and invites others to join, either through split-screen, LAN, or via IP address. The host takes up the role of the main inheritor of the farm while the rest remain helpers. The host also has the ability to continue the save file, regardless of whether their co-op partners are present or not. This ensures there are no hiccups if one or two participants decide to drop the game midway through a run.
3 Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader
Brutal Dive Into The Underbelly Of The WH40K Universe
Owlcat Games has a history of making some of the most brilliant CRPGs in the past decade in the form of Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous. With Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, they’ve also implemented a never-before-seen 6-player party co-op mode in their game in a frankly ingenious way.
Players can join the host, called the Lord Captain, as crewmembers with limited permissions. In combat, crewmembers control only their own character—either custom or permadeath—whereas the Lord Captain controls the rest. In dialogue, the host decides which options to choose, though the crew can vote. This creates a cohesive environment that allows a party of 6 to experience the game in its entirety as a group without any major drawbacks. If someone does decide to drop out mid-way through, the host can continue the campaign with the rest of the players or even continue onward solo.
2 Project Zomboid
Harcore Zombie Survival With Up To 100 Players
Project Zomboid is a permadeath hardcore zombie survival game in the truest sense of the word. It puts players in the shoes of a character smack dab in the middle of a zombie apocalypse and asks them one thing and one thing only: survive. The characteristic that sets Project Zomboid apart from other survival titles is the harsh enforcement of the death mechanic. If a player gets bitten by a zombie once, they die. No ifs, ands, or buts.
Up to 100 players can occupy a single server at a time inside a shared world, making Project Zomboid one of the largest-scale multiplayer games of all time. Players who want to play together can join a single server to play with others or create a local server to avoid PvP of any sort. The only caveat to this is that a locally hosted server only works if the host is online.
1 Terraria
2D RPG With A Surprising Amount Of Depth
Terraria is a 2D sandbox RPG that stands as one of the most prominent indie success stories in gaming. Players find, craft, and build by harvesting resources from the world map. Terraria doesn’t offer players a set goal to achieve or a specific enemy to defeat. It puts them in a world filled with wonder and secrets and lets them do their own thing. This complete freedom can seem paralyzing at first, but once the initial hurdle of understanding what the game has to offer is overcome, the rest becomes one of the most enjoyable adventures available to gamers today.
In co-op, Terraria can host up to 32 players, meaning those looking for a 6-player co-op adventure will find their needs more than met. The underground world is absolutely massive, and co-op partners in a shared world can easily do their own thing for hours on end without disturbing anyone. With multiple participants, distributing the workload also becomes possible, allowing some people to head down into the depths while the rest remain above ground, giving players a chance to do what they like.
