Grounded multiplayer with friends is probably the best way to experience the game, teaming up in shared worlds to take on the perils of the Yard together, whether it's boss fights, creating bases, or exploring to hunt down the various Grounded Superchip locations. Grounded's multiplayer is relatively easy to set up, though there's a few settings and features you'd be wise to be aware of - so we've got it all explained below. If you want to play with friends, here's everything you need to know about Grounded multiplayer.
How to host a Grounded Multiplayer game
To host Grounded Multiplayer you need to go to the main menu, as any online options can't be triggered from within the game itself. Select Multiplayer, then Host Online Game, where you'll be given the choice to Continue your current save or start a New Game, along with the option to set a password so only your select friends can join the session and increase the Grounded player count to between two and four.
If you start a New Game you'll be prompted to choose between a Standard or Shared World, or if you continue an existing save then you can click the left stick to create a shared copy of your world, and we'll explain what this mean below. Once you've set your preferences accordingly, you'll be dropped into the game and ready to receive online visitors, who can join from any of the available platforms thanks to Grounded cross play.
Of course, if you don't have any friends to play with, you can always make some! Find out how to tame bugs to make Grounded pets here!
Grounded Standard World and Shared World explained
Want to find some gross but valuable Grounded toenails? Check here!
When hosting a Grounded multiplayer session, you'll have the choice between using a Standard or Shared World, either as a prompt when setting up a New Game or an option when selecting a save to continue. The difference between them is as follows:
A Standard World is attached to your personal Xbox Network account and managed by you, which means you can make backup saves and use auto-saves while playing. However, only you can host this world, so if you quit the game then the session will end for everyone.
A Shared World is stored online, which means you can grant host access to your friends and they can host sessions in it even if you're not around. However, this does mean there is only a single persistent shared save for this world so no backup saves are possible, while any actions you take are final and can't be undone by reloading old saves – because there aren't any.
How to join a Multiplayer game in Grounded
Helpfully, the process to join a Grounded multiplayer game is a lot simpler, as you just need to select Multiplayer then Join Online Game from the main menu. You'll then be presented with a list of available games to join, along with which players are currently in them. Select the one you want to connect with, enter the password if one has been set, then you'll shortly pop up in your friend's world so you can take on the bugs together. You can even steal all their best armor, or work together to find secrets like the Grounded Minotaur Maze Key.
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