Highlights

• Co-op gaming has taken a backseat, but titles like It Takes Two are reviving the dying art beautifully.
• Open-world co-op games like Valheim and Sons of the Forest provide deep, interactive experiences for teams.
• Engaging in teamwork in games such as Deep Rock Galactic and Sea of Thieves elevates the overall gameplay experience.

In recent years, co-op has been left behind by the gaming industry. There was a time when split-screen gaming was an essential part of any game's design, but lately, it has been treated less like a feature and more like an addition, an afterthought for once the single-player campaign and online multiplayer components have been completed. While some games like It Takes Two have made co-op their selling point, overall, cooperative play has become a dying art.

Open-world co-op is even harder to come by. While Battle Royale games like Fortnite, Apex Legends, and Warzone are designed around the idea of squads (which lend themselves to party play), they take place in enclosed arenas. Granting players the freedom an open world provides while still allowing them to team up with their friends to explore it is a tall order, especially when those games typically need to use perspective tricks to hide their loading screens. That's a hefty task when dealing with more than one perspective. Some games have pulled it off though, and on occasion, it's been a huge success.

Updated on March 21, 2024 by Evan Regan: This List has been updated to include a video version of the article. The video version details the top ten entries from the piece, showing off each game for readers who have never seen the gameplay in action. Adding on to that, while the best open-world co-op games haven't changed, a couple have been released since this article's publication that deserve a spot on this list, and so a few extra entries have been added on to give players even more options in their search for cooperative games with huge, open maps to explore.

13 Minecraft

Crafting With Friends

While not exactly a "traditional" co-op experience, it's hard to rank the best open-world co-op games and not include Minecraft in the discussion. The game's procedurally generated worlds make for the perfect playground for a group of friends to dive into.

While it's not as deep from a co-op perspective as some of the games coming up, a few friends being able to tackle Survival mode together certainly makes it stand out. Or, get a couple of people together who know what they're doing, and the things they can create from scratch are nothing short of magical.

12 Dying Light

Open-World Parkour Is Better As A Team

Zombie survival and co-op have gone hand in hand for ages, dating back to the original Left 4 Dead and Dead Island games. However, few games capture the feeling of surviving (and thriving) in a zombie apocalypse quite like the Dying Light series.

The parkour mechanics are what truly elevate this franchise, and they do the same for the co-op gameplay. Players can take on missions together and approach them from vastly different angles. They can race up tall structures or through the streets, try to rack up a kill count or see who can survive the longest at night. The variety of builds offered makes combat different for every player that approaches it and allows for some cool synergies between teammates.

11 Valheim

2021's Hit Survival Sandbox Features Up To 10-Player Co-Op

It's been a minute since Valheim took the world by storm in early 2021, but while the hype may have died down, the game itself remains as excellent as ever. The Norse-inspired world is deeply engrossing, the combat is surprisingly satisfying despite its outward appearances, and the settlement-building component places an urgency on teamwork that few other games can mimic.

While word of mouth may not be as strong as it was in the beginning, Valheim has maintained a consistent player base throughout the last few years. It's seeing more monthly players now than ever before. With co-op baked into its very bones, whether they're building a settlement from the dirt up, charging into Purgatory, or tackling one of Valheim's terrifying bosses, Valheim is an experience best enjoyed with friends.

10 Sons Of The Forest

The Sequel To An Iconic Survival Game Features More Horror And More Co-Op

The Forest was one of the better indie releases to show up in 2014 and developers have been hard at work to bring its sequel to life. Sons of the Forest is the game that many hopeful cooperative open-world fans have been waiting for. The release takes the gritty, horror-inspired survival overtones of the original game and amps them up to eleven by adding even more monstrous beings and creepy areas to explore.

Players will be forced to contend with cannibalistic creatures as they monitor their food and water supplies, building structures to keep out of harm's way while simultaneously exploring a large island teeming with all sorts of hidden gadgets and useful items. Sons of the Forest greatly improves on the original game while still maintaining the same feelings and gameplay that made the original such a cult classic. Those that are looking for a good Horror-survival-style title will find a lot to enjoy with Sons of the Forest, which will let them build bases together, survive cannibal onslaughts, and explore freely as a team.

9 Dead Island 2

Zombie Bashing With Friends Has Never Been Gorier

The original Dead Island was a huge hit right at the apex of the zombie craze in the early-2010s. The visceral first-person melee combat and array of campy-but-brutal weaponry fed into the zombie survivalist fantasy that so few games had managed to capture. Dead Island 2 was announced three years later at E3, and then vanished without a peep for eight years before resurfacing at Gamescom in 2022.

While it was a long time coming, the game that eventually found its way into player's hands was the perfect sequel. All the campiness and brutality were there, but both were given a healthy jolt by the power of modern hardware. Kills are more gory, zombies are more decayed, and the open world is more detailed. Just like the first game, Dead Island 2's campaign is 99% co-op friendly. Players just have to unlock it by reaching Emma's mansion, about 20 minutes into the game.

8 Sea Of Thieves

Build A Pirate Crew Of Friends And Sail The Seas

While Sea of Thieves' launch may not have gone exactly to plan, developer Rare stuck to their guns, and in short order, the game was succeeding at exactly what it set out to do. While this seafaring pirate sim can be tackled solo, it's no substitute for sailing the high seas with a crew of friends.

It's hard to convey the feeling of tension players feel when an enemy crew boards their ship while a hoard of treasure sits just below decks, or the joy of surviving a battle with the devilish kraken. The game's art style and unique combat mechanics are what make it stand out, but players who dive in will quickly learn that it's island-hopping treasure hunting, and naval warfare that will keep them coming back.

7 Deep Rock Galactic

Teamwork Is Essential In This PvE Sci-Fi Extraction Shooter

Rock and Stone, brother! Rock and Stone! Sci-fi dwarven mining sims aren't exactly a common sight in the gaming sphere, and Deep Rock Galactic stands out for that reason alone. As a team of up to four, players descend into a procedurally generated alien mine, using weapons far more potent than Minecraft Steve's pickaxe to blast away the surrounding rock and find valuable minerals.

While there is certainly some cathartic joy in blowing through the walls of a level and raking in loot, the real fun comes when players decide to extract. The team will have to make a wholesale sprint back to the entrance of the mine while being chased by alien monsters and goaded by a rapidly decreasing countdown. They all have access to class-specific gear that will make the ascent go more smoothly, but teamwork is still essential in beating out the clock.

6 Forza Horizon 5

Explore Open-World Mexico With Some Racing Buddies

Co-op doesn't always have to be about teaming up with friends to take out the strongest enemies. Sometimes, the best times are had by diving into a vast, open playground and having all the toys necessary to make the most of it. That's Forza Horizon 5.

Players can race each other across the wide expanse of open-world Mexico, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Try to hit the longest jump, knock that hot air balloon out of the sky, scale a volcano, or discover a hidden city. What makes the game special is that it's not just a racing sim, it's a racing playground, one best explored in a group.

5 Borderlands

This Iconic Looter-Shooter Just Isn't The Same When Played Solo

The franchise that pioneered the looter-shooter genre also continues to stand atop that genre, in large part because of just how fun it is to play with friends. Borderlands at its core is a first-person shooter with a bit of style and a ton of customization, but it feels like so much more when playing it.

What may look like a regular shooter from the outside is elevated by the variety of its playable characters, the uniqueness of its world design, and most of all, the freaking guns. Millions of them, of all shapes, sizes, and varieties. The loot in Borderlands is so expansive that no two players will ever have the same experience playing it. Which entry in the franchise is the best comes down to the dealer's choice. They're all good, all for the same reason. Lots of crazy guns.

4 Diablo 4

Some Of The Best Co-Op Integration In The Industry

Fresh in the gaming market, there is little doubt about where Diablo 4 stands in terms of the co-op pantheon. Diablo 2 was already one of the better co-op RPGs around, but its modern-day sequel takes things to a completely new level.

What makes the game sing is its level scaling, which adapts perfectly to each player in a party regardless of their character's level. A level 20 Druid and a level 60 Rogue can take on a boss together and both feel equally challenged. Add to that the synergy between classes, and the effortless skill respec system, and Diablo 4 is an almost perfect co-op experience.

3 Monster Hunter World

Monsters This Big Require Multiple Hunters To Take Down

For a long time, Capcom struggled to get their Monster Hunter franchise to catch on in the West the way it had in Japan. That all changed with Monster Hunter World. Finally, gamers around the world saw what a small, vocal group had been raving about for over a decade.

The game's combat retained the steep learning curve that existed in previous entries but brought with it several massive open biomes for the player to explore where monsters roam free. There are few feelings more exhilarating than working with a friend to lure a Bazelgeuse into a trap, or wearing down an Anjanath with an Insect Glaive before stunning it with a slam from a friend's Charge Blade.

2 Elden Ring

Exploring The Lands Between With Friends Is Unlike Anything Else In Gaming

To be completely fair, every game in the Soulsborne series besides Sekiro has fantastic co-op, but since Elden Ring is the first fully-fledged open-world game in the "series," that elevates it above its peers. From Software's unique take on co-op can be a bit hard to parse for newcomers, but the wealth of information online should get them started, and the extra effort is so worth it.

Exploring The Lands Between with friends is a transcendent experience. There's just so much to do, and all of it is drenched in the feeling of mystery and danger that permeates every aspect of the game. Take on a dungeon or a boss wandering in the open world, fight through the game's extensive main campaign, track down new gear and items, or farm for Runes. There's an endless list of things to do, and all of it is an absolute joy to dive into.

1 Grand Theft Auto Online

The Most Robust Open-World Co-Op Ever Made

There's no other choice here. As far as "robust open worlds" go, Grand Theft Auto Online has been around for almost a decade and still nothing compares. The game's online component is just as popular now as it was when it launched, if not more so, and players can jump into it with their friends occasionally, or every day, and still have a great time.

The longevity of this game alone speaks volumes, but it's the ease with which players can create their gang and quickly solidify their place in the game's world that's truly remarkable. Take on a Criminal Career, tackle missions, or just mess around in the endlessly responsive open world; it's all a blast. Rockstar continues to release substantial updates to the game, which just confirms how active their player base still is after all this time.