30 Outstanding Online Co-Op Games to Play With Faraway Friends

If you spent hours playing any of the Left 4 Dead games years ago, then there's a strong chance you'll thoroughly enjoy this modernized version from the same developers. The mechanics are similar—you work in a team of four and advance through a map while completing various objectives and fighting off zombie hordes until you reach a safe house. Each map you complete progresses the narrative. 

Back 4 Blood spices things up with a variety of special zombies that are terrifying, and downright near-impossible to kill without teamwork in Nightmare difficulty mode. There's also a system of cards you can collect and add to your deck to give your character and team certain perks and upgrades. The game might not be as addicting as the original series, but it'll for sure make you relive the glory days. 

Up to four players can take on the zombie hordes online.

Satisfying gunplay, versatile weaponry, and excellent multiplayer maps make the Call of Duty series a fun first-person shooter to play with friends. You get multiplayer modes like Invasion (team death match), Ground War (extra large domination), and Prisoner Rescue. The two-player Spec Ops cooperative missions offer different scenarios, throwing stealth, vehicles, and waves of enemies into the mix; it’s just a shame there are only three. But the first three-player co-op Raids mission just dropped, and more are in the works.

Up to 32 soldiers can enter the fray online.

Absolver is a meditative martial arts experience that teaches you to make friends through fisticuffs. You can team up with one or two pals to conquer the game's small open world and bonus dungeons, all of which encourage teamwork. And if you don't have friends to play with, you can meet other players in the open world and try to initiate spontaneous friendships through simple in-game hand gestures. Absolver is about communicating as much as it is fighting, and that makes it a cooperative adventure-brawler like no other.

2 to 3 players can team up online.

Teaming up with friends to hunt ghosts in spooky locations is a smart, original premise that will get your blood pumping. Phasmophobia is like being dropped into an episode of Ghost Adventures, but the phantoms and poltergeists here are all too real. You must investigate using classic paranormal gear from Spirit boxes to electromagnetic field readers, try and work out what you’re dealing with, and gather evidence. Communication is vital if you expect to make it out alive, but beware, because the ghosts are listening!

2 to 4 paranormal investigators can team up online.

Bursting with loot, this cel-shaded, action-packed roguelike hooks you into shooting and slashing your way to ultimate power. Leaving the 2D platforms of the original behind, this sequel is a third-person shooter with an elegant focus on loops of frantic combat. There’s a good mix of classes with distinct play styles and upgrade paths, interesting maps with secrets to uncover, and some seriously challenging boss battles.

2 to 4 players can blast aliens online.

Weave a rich medieval tapestry as you attempt to guide your dynasty to power and hold onto it for as long as possible in this grandest of strategy games. Characters, complete with personality traits and narrative arcs, are the heart of this game. Tinker with politics and religion to stay on top. Play with friends, and you can form alliances to conquer the world together. Multiplayer is also a good way to take new players under your wing, as the learning curve can be steep. 

Up to 12 players can fight for the throne online.

Warframe gives players things to shoot at and offers rewards once they've done enough shooting. That's the experience. It's simple but fun. Up to four players cooperatively gun down enemies, use superpowers, and parkour around a wide variety of exotic, interstellar maps, all in a quest to accrue more "stuff." It's easy to get lost in the game's hypnotic, grindy rhythm for hundreds of hours at a time, thanks to its well-executed mechanics and gameplay. It's also free.

2 to 4 players can team up online.

Chaotic and extremely silly, Gang Beasts is a melee brawler with wonky rag-doll physics. Set in a series of insanely hazardous locations across Beef City, you pile into brutal slapstick fights to the death. It is rough around the edges and shallow, but with the right group of friends facing off in gangs, it can be hilarious. I can tell when my 9-year-old daughter and her pals are playing this by the screams and laughter.

2 to 8 gelatinous characters can brawl online.

Scavenging abandoned moons to sell scrap to an evil corporation called “The Company" is all the setup you need for a fun co-op horror. Time is money, so you’ll need to pull together, strategize, and act fast if you want to bring home the bacon. Terrifying creatures and hidden traps can quickly reduce your best-laid plans to screaming chaos. The paper-thin premise and basic graphics detract somewhat from this Early Access game, but the monster variety and atmosphere lend it some depth, and it’s very moreish.

2 to 4 players can go scavenging online.

Hunting and slaying monsters is more fun with friends. An action RPG with a medieval Japanese feel, this game boasts some gorgeous monster-filled maps to explore. Each beast has its own set of behaviors, so you must do your homework, get the right weapons for the job, and work together to take them down. There's a bit of a learning curve, but once you get the hang of it, you'll be raring to get out there and hunt. Read our Monster Hunter Rise review for more.

Up to 4 monster hunters can team up online.

Motorheads will enjoy this open-world racing game set in a gorgeous, stylized Mexico. It features more than 500 customizable vehicles, rendered in all their shiny glory, with enough custom parts, modifications, and rims to satisfy any auto enthusiast. You can play all the campaign races in co-op mode, enlisting up to five pals to form a convoy. You can also design maps, try creations from other players, and tackle stunt-based challenges.

Up to 6 players can form a convoy online.

Mash Minecraft and Left 4 Dead together and throw in space dwarves intent on exploring procedurally generated destructible cave systems full of dangerous aliens, and you get Deep Rock Galactic. This first-person co-op shooter is exciting, funny, and creepy by turns. It takes some strategic planning and solid teamwork to beat each mission, and there’s a ton of guns, armor, and gear to upgrade as your coffers swell.

Up to 4 dwarves can mine and fight online.