As the PlayStation 5 continues to make its way into homes across the world, there comes a need, as with any new technology, to show it off to your friends and to justify its place in your living room to your loved ones. Luckily, there exists a stellar catalog of the very best PS5 co-op games to help you do just that.
The wonderful thing about the best co-op games is that they offer a plethora of choices. Whether you’re looking for some explosive teamwork-heavy gameplay to rally the squad or if you’re looking for something goofy and light-hearted to play with your partner, there’s a little something for everyone on our best co-op games PS5 list here. Some of these games are among the best games you can play right now too, so you don’t want to miss them.
The best PS5 co-op games:
1. Helldivers 2
Helldivers 2 is a brave departure for the underappreciated series by Arrowhead Game Studios. Despite the drastic shift from isometric twin-stick shooting towards immersive third-person action, the developer has nailed moment-to-moment gameplay.
Taking down hoards of blood-hungry bugs or unfaltering robots with your mates has never been so satisfying. There’s also a variety of stunning locations to explore once you plummet down to a planet in your drop pod, eager to spread democracy to bug-infested planets. Well, that’s the reasoning Super Earth gives behind sending Helldivers on reckless missions, at least.
With all Helldivers 2 future updates being free, as well as the unique take on battle passes with the Helldivers 2 Warbonds mechanic, there’s a lot to dig into. If you’re looking for a chaotic and surprisingly immersive co-op hoard shooter on PS5, sign up to become a Helldiver of Super Earth today.
2. Destiny 2
We couldn’t have a list of the best PS5 co-op games and miss out the seminal Destiny 2. Bungie’s work on the franchise over the last decade has defined what it means to be a strong live-service title, bringing together an epic and ever-evolving story with an engrossing loot chase.
Even better, however, is that all of Destiny 2 can be enjoyed alongside your friends online. Whether you want to kick back and chat the night away playing PvE Strike missions or dial up the action with competitive PvP or six-person Raids that demand your attention.
As cliche as it sounds, Destiny 2 really does have something for every FPS enjoyer and for every mood. There are even three flavors of badass for you to choose from when you start, ultimately letting you choose between the best Destiny 2 Titan build, Warlock build, or Hunter build. It’s even free to play, giving you a great opportunity to test it out, though there isn’t all that much relevant content to play through unless you fork out for expansion and season passes.
3. Diablo 4
Diablo 4 has arrived and you can dive into hell with one of the best co-op experiences you can find in an RPG. With couch co-op and online co-op thanks to online multiplayer and Diablo 4 crossplay to go alongside it. It is a packed RPG, filled with stuff to do on the Diablo 4 map.
Diablo 4’s story is arguably the best in the series, but the focus is still on that solid action RPG combat in an isometric view. With a 25+ hour long campaign, numerous classes to enjoy, and a lot of endgame content, you won’t be short of stuff to do in this latest entry in the series.
While it had a rocky few months after launch, with a disappointing first season that left most people worried, Diablo 4’s recent updates have turned the game around, making it a must-play for anyone wanting a great co-op experience.
4. It Takes Two
EA’s Hazelight Studios brought us all a true masterclass in cooperative storytelling with the release of It Takes Two. Inventive, touching, funny, challenging – it’s no wonder the game swept up at The Game Awards in 2021; not to mention earning a GOTY 2021 nomination.
For those who have yet to experience the game, it’s a two-player cooperative experience in which you navigate a Honey I Shrunk the Kids-like world to save the marriage of troubled couple, Cody and May. It truly is amazing how quickly you and your co-op partner of choice will band together, united by a single front: getting revenge on a magical talking romance novel.
5. Remnant 2
Blending the epic boss fights and RPG systems of a Soulslike with a third-person co-op shooter, Remnant 2 was a stand-out game when it dropped in 2023. In our Remnant 2 review we highlight and praise its “multiple classes, strange worlds, frantic combat, and astounding replayability”, and while it’ll be helpful to have played the first game, it’s absolutely not essential – new players can slide in and get to grips with it, no problem.
An in-depth class system (in which you can actually blend multiple classes together) gives you plenty to tinker with, letting you find your perfect setup for taking on Remnant 2’s procedurally-generated levels and impressive boss fights.
It’s easily one of the best Soulslike games right now and is a must-play for your next gaming night with pals.
6. Overcooked! All You Can Eat
Very much the frontrunner in any conversation about best co-op games on PS5, and indeed practically any console this last decade, the Overcooked series is renowned for its chaotic, fast-paced, friendship-destroying arcade action. Luckily for PS5 owners, the absolute best helpings of the series have been brought together into one neat package with the release of All You Can Eat.
In this game, you and up to three other chefs band together to chop vegetables, cook meat, and prepare dishes for hungry guests. Working against the clock, hazardous kitchen environments, and one another’s worst panic-driven instincts, Overcooked! is notorious for turning even the closest of friends into lifelong nemeses. Still, nothing beats that feeling when you and your team suddenly all click and feel that rush of endorphins only possible from getting three stars on a particularly challenging stage.
7. Back 4 Blood
Remember the good old days of whacking zombies senseless in Left 4 Dead? Well, Back 4 Blood brings back those vibes, except this time there are cards to shake things up.
In this four-player co-op slasher, each player has to pick the best Back 4 Blood cards to create a deck that’ll cater to their style. If you’re smart about it, your squad can boost their stats and compliment one another so you can take on hordes across the game’s many acts.
Back 4 Blood is a difficult game and whether you’re playing it as an online game or going through the single-player campaign, you’ll need to think long and hard about what you take into battle. You can find out more about that, though, in our Back 4 Blood review.
8. Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands
The beauty of the Borderlands series – and indeed its fantasy spin-off, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands – is that you can always count on it for a superb, loot-filled, local co-op experience. At any time, up to four players can drop in and drop out of both local and online multiplayer sessions, leveling up their character and amassing all of Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands legendary weapons.
There’s even a full campaign mode to enjoy here – however, you might end up a little too distracted to notice once you start larking about with your pals and scrapping over who gets the best loot. For more info, check out our full Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands review.
9. Sackboy: A Big Adventure
For those who grew up with a PlayStation 3, there really was no better alternative for local co-op games than the LittleBigPlanet series. However, if you could routinely count on one criticism to be levied at earlier entries of this bubble-collecting platformer, it was the rigid refusal to add a full third dimension.
Well, in the PS5 era, we can finally say hello to that third axis! With Sackboy: A Big Adventure, the titular mascot can at last move around freely in full 3D, in a game that marries the best of the series’ creative strengths with the frantic, up-to-four-player chaos of games like Super Mario 3D World.
It’s a wild adventure that’s perfect for younger players and casual players just looking to spend time reveling in a shared hobby.
10. KeyWe
Who hasn’t fantasized about running a post office as one of two small flightless birds native to New Zealand named either Jeff or Debra? Similarly, surely we’ve all dreamed about dressing said birds in silly hats and using their cute little beaks to pluck the flowers of wild kudzu to stop the plant from wrecking our perfectly pruned mailroom desktop? There must be more than one of us, right?
KeyWe is an adorable, occasionally frustrating, two-player local co-op game that requires coordination, time management skills, and, to some degree, decent keyboard literacy. That might sound more like a job interview than a co-op game, but mastering these birds will certainly bring you and your partner closer together – unless it tears you apart and leaves you both with intense horror-filled nights, haunted by the image of two uncoordinated kiwis as they dance above your inevitable lonely graves.
11. Heavenly Bodies
Speaking of friendship enders, at least in Overcooked you can blame time limits and panic for your mistakes. In Heavenly Bodies, often the problem comes down to just never quite figuring out how you’re supposed to move your arms.
This two-player co-op game carries in the vein of games like QWOP, Octopus Dad, Heave Ho, and Super Bunny Men, in that you usually spend the first fifteen minutes of every session remembering which labyrinthine combination of buttons is required to move your right elbow successfully up and down in a waving motion.
It’s the kind of game in which every session leads to spurious bursts of laughter and frustration, and it’s perfect for two players looking to build hilarious memories while playing their PS5.
12. Warhammer: Chaosbane
There is always additional space left on the hard disk of any die-hard co-op gamer’s PS5, just on the rare chance Diablo ever decides to grace console gamers once more with its presence. While we wait, however, there’s going to be an itch for cooperative fantasy experiences, and Warhammer: Chaosbane certainly does an admirable job scratching all those strenuous, out-of-reach spots.
A classic Gauntlet-style four-player dungeon crawler, Chaosbane gives you and your friends your very own hero with their own special abilities and cooldowns and lets you go wild amassing legendary loot and smashing monsters with your weapon of choice.
13. Fortnite
Does anyone even need to be sold on Fortnite anymore? Epic Games’ online battle royale-meets-house building sim still absolutely dominates the world; so much so we didn’t just include it on our best free PS5 games list, but also made a whole separate list for best games like Fortnite – such is its power.
Still, it’s worth knowing that Fortnite on PS5 lets two players in the same room go online in split screen, allowing you both to claim the crown in stunning 4K.
And for those who don’t like the building mechanic, there’s now a Zero Build mode which gives you the fun of Fortnite without having to craft Fort Knox every time you enter a firefight. Better yet, you can avoid PvP combat entirely by opting to play one of the new Fortnite games; LEGO Fortnite, Rocket Racing, or Fortnite Festival.
14. The Quarry
The dark horse in this list, The Quarry doesn’t seem at first glance like it would make for one of the best co-op games on PS5. It’s a narrative-heavy game, for a start – meaning you’ll have to spend a lot of time distinctly not talking to your friends. It’s also one of the best Ps5 horror games, which might not be the best option if your pals are prone to the odd jump scare.
However, for up to four players, The Quarry makes for an excellent alternative to movie nights at your place. At the start of each session, players assign themselves a character, and anytime that character becomes the focus of the gameplay, the game pauses to let you pass the controller to that player and have them work to stay alive over the next few minutes.
It’s a wild, tense, and often quite funny experience watching friends and family scramble to keep their characters alive as the stakes get higher and higher. The game’s multi-path endings mean that even if certain characters die early on, the story isn’t ruined for everyone else, and if someone wants to tap out early and get a drink, all they have to do is suffer the shame of public failure.
If you’re still on the fence, you can check out our The Quarry review.
15. Nobody Saves The World
If you and a friend are looking for an endlessly creative and fascinating game to play then Nobody Saves The World is for you. As Nobody, you stumble upon a magic wand and thanks to its power transform into over a dozen different forms and creatures.
Using the powers and abilities granted by each one, you will take on various challenges, explore dungeons, and get to see a variety of unique locations. There isn’t anything quite like Nobody Saves The World and that is why it is on this list.
16. The Jackbox Party Pack 8
Sure, three games in one package sounds fine, but what about five? Jackbox Party Packs are the quintessential party game experience – each version offering a collection of five inventive, challenging, and often hilarious party games, all designed to get you and the room talking and laughing together.
However, as this is a list of the best co-op games on PS5 – not just the best party games in general – it’s worth drawing your attention to Poll Mine in this eighth installment. In this game, the room is split into two teams, and each team works together to rank answers to questions that the opposing team has to guess correctly in the correct order. The result requires intimate knowledge of the people around you, playing out like a blend of Family Feud, Family Fortunes, The Newlywed Game, and Mr. & Mrs.
17. Deep Rock Galactic
Sometimes, you don’t want the fun to end, and Deep Rock Galactic offers a seemingly endless amount of progression and enjoyment to be had. You play as a space-fairing dwarf who must enter different cave systems in order to harvest resources, while also avoiding the onslaught of alien bugs after you and your team.
As you make successful trips in and out of procedurally generated caves, you’ll gain more money and resources to better equip your dwarf, and with the help of your friends, you can build the perfect squad for any encounter.
Deep Rock Galactic’s lack of a conclusion may be off-putting to some, but if you and your friends want a great experience that can be played at any time without the risk of missing out on story content, etc., then this game is certainly for you.
18. Returnal
Despite originally being a single-player roguelike experience, a post-launch update added an unnecessary, but very exciting co-op mode to the game.
As a PS5 exclusive, at least for console players, Returnal is a hard-as-nails third-person shooter set in a sci-fi world where you’ll definitely die over and over again, earning permanent progression for future runs. That makes it the perfect candidate for a co-op update, and with a friend, things can be much easier.
It’s not a true co-op experience, having some limits like your friend’s progression not counting in their solo experience. But it’s a unique co-op game that not only feels fantastic to play but also offers some truly immersive features with the DualSense controller.
19. Baldur’s Gate 3
If you want a truly hardcore, RPG co-op experience that you can sink dozens of hours into, you cannot go wrong with Baldur’s Gate 3. It swept up countless awards and Game of the Year gongs in 2023 and is widely considered a top 5 RPG of all time.
What’s more, on the PS5 you can play a campaign with up to four friends online, and two people can share the same console thanks to BG3 split-screen being in the game.
With turn-based combat, more dialog options and story outcomes than you can shake a stick at, and tons of amazing characters to meet, it is a game that you will truly get lost in – just make sure you’ve definitely got plenty of time to commit to it though, especially when playing co-op! Suit up with one of the best BG3 classes each and get going.
And with that, you should now be armed to the teeth with knowledge about the best PS5 co-op games. Whether you’re throwing a house party or looking for a long gaming session online with pals, there will be something on this list for you. Keep checking back too, as we’ll be adding any suitable new PS5 games to the list over time once we’ve put them through their paces.
For more games that you can play with (or against) others, you should also consult our best PS5 multiplayer games list – you’ll see some overlap with this list, but there are plenty of great competitive titles on there too!