Online Co-Op Games
Destiny 2
As a free-to-play first-person shooter with a plethora of DLCs and an enormous player base, Destiny 2 is a solid option if you’re craving a low-commitment shooter that you can play with friends. Grind to collect gear and weapons across the solar system, play against other teams in fast-paced online battles, or take on big dungeons that will test your teamwork and communication. Because Destiny 2 feels mostly like an MMO, you really will feel anything but distanced when you play it through.
The Division 2
The Division 2 is an excellent third-person online shooter where you personalize your own agent, customize your playstyle and explore a map full of environmental details. You can play story missions and PVP on squads of four, and the game really pushes you to blend everyone’s strengths to make the team stronger rather than encourage every man for himself. There is so much rewarding content and exploration to be had, and the progression in The Division 2 feels more fulfilling than other online games where the missions can feel like gutless busy work.
Dying Light
If the coronavirus has you strangely reaching for a zombie apocalypse game, you’re not alone. I recently picked up Dying Light again, and found that it’s still just as great as I remembered it being. The Dying Light community is still kicking, and you can play this entire first-person adventure online with a team of four from beginning to end. I found this game to be much more fun to play with others rather than solo, and it still stands to be one of the best zombie games ever made. The crafting elements, storytelling, and overall execution make it a brilliant title that it’s still not too late to pick up.
Warframe
Warframe is a free-to-play, third-person co-op game where you explore the universe and battle enemies as a space ninja. You can find it on every system, and the idea is to collect “frames,” or weapon systems that you can equip to change your supernatural abilities, specific stats or weapons. There are dozens of different frames to find, and most of them are pretty badass. As a free-to-play game, there is a thriving online community to play with, and it shouldn’t be too difficult to convince your friends to download if you want to get your buddies on board. Warframe won’t make you feel paywalled out or bombarded with microtransaction ploys, making it a fantastic contender for anyone craving rad online gameplay on a budget.
Monster Hunter: World
Monster Hunter: World is an action RPG where you hunt monsters and craft new weapons to alter your playstyle. It’s a game you will easily put hundreds of hours into, given that the base campaign takes upwards of 40 hours to complete, and there’s so much more to do than just the main story. Grab a team of friends and try to hunt down all the unique beasts that can be found in the game, and you’ve got yourself a pretty lengthy group activity that definitely won’t disappoint.
Unrailed!
Definitely the black sheep of this list, Unrailed! is a game that belongs here as the least demanding of all the aforementioned titles. While all of the other games mentioned are expansive and require more commitment and effort to play, Unrailed! is more comparable to something like Overcooked. You team up with up to four players to build tracks in front of a moving train before it catches up to you and goes off the rails. You must chop trees, mine ores and upgrade your train in order to advance, and it’s a hectic and absurd blast. If you’re a fan of games like Overcooked and want a more arcade-style option to play with friends, Unrailed! is definitely worth checking out. The game is currently in Early Access, and can be played both locally and online.
