Three player coop games

[strumpusplunket]

Looking for a couple of good three player coop games for the kids' birthdays soon. They're 15/16 so not too many restrictions on age unless it's something pretty explicit.

At least one, and maybe both, should probably be action-focused, like a first- or third-person shooter/RPG type.

With some good success we've already played: Sea of Thieves, Valheim, Dying Light 1 & 2, Remnant from the Ashes, The Division 2, Borderlands 2 & 3, Project Zomboid, No Man's Sky, a bit of Dark Souls 3, Magicka 1 & 2, Minecraft, Clone Drone in the Dangerzone, and a few others I think I am forgetting. The first six or so of those were the ones we had most fun with.

I've had a search for well-reviewed games that look to fit the bill and am looking at:
Monster Hunter World/Rise (not sure which is best for coop - is it right that the first one is the better game but more of a pain to go through in coop, whilst the second has better coop but is a bit more basic?)
Ghost Recon Wildlands/Breakpoint (think the first of these looks better, but not sure what the coop experience is like. Sounds a bit heavily focused on stealth?)
Sons of the Forest (I got bored of The Forest solo after not very long, but hoping this one is an improvement and the coop will help carry it)
Warframe (the base game is f2p, and not sure which, if any, expansions are worth trying?)

 

[strumpusplunket]

Deep rock galactic (1 to 4 player coop great fun)
diablo 2 / 3 (isometricy dungeon crawler - plenty of other games in this genre as well such is van helsing or titan quest but i put diablo at the top of the tree)
fortnite. PvP but its great fun, free and you can do 3 player teams and workign as a team means you will likely do pretty well.
world war z (its like left 4 dead on steroids)
gears of war 5.... not a great game if i am honest, the series has had its day, but 3 player story coop works well. (its on gamepass so free if you have that)

your suggestion of ghost recon is a good one. i have completed both the ones you mention and both are great coop. There is some stealth on a few of the missions where you have to be not seen... but not enough to be obnoxious and most of the missions you can just go in guns blazing if you want.

Sea of theives is on my groups radar as well...... i take it you reccomend it?

Cool. Cheers for that.

Deep Rock Galactic is on our list, but I was thinking that we've played Vermintide 1 & 2 and L4D too quite a bit (forgot those from my list...) so wanted something a bit different from the "clear a level against hordes" type game this time. It's on the list long-term, though.

Oh, yeah, WWZ is another one we played and quite enjoyed for a while (man, I forgot so many!)

Fortnite - yes, another one I forgot to say we'd played. I suck at it. The kids are good though. They still play, but we play less together these days as I am a burden for them and they have friends their own age who they actually win rounds with...

I quite like the Diablo games and hadn't thought of those for coop. I've played and finished them all, but could start 3 again with a new character for coop maybe. Probably prefer something I'd not alrady sunk hours into, though, I guess. Though again, it's doubtless updated a lot since I finished it ages ago now.

Sounding like GRW might be the best bet from those I listed, possibly Diablo 3 if the kids fancy something a bit different after that. I do fancy the idea of one of the Monster Hunters, but really not sure which is best or how good they really are for coop.

As for Sea of Thieves, the kids really love it. I don't mind it, but it's a bit slow for my liking in some places. Very fun, though, when you stumble across another ship and have sea battles en route to a quest or (even more tense) when laden with loot on the way back. I recall one sea battle where there was also a kraken. That was pretty epic and frantic.

 

[strumpusplunket]

i never got on with vermontide. not sure why..... it was pretty enough but just found it dull.

deep rock is different to that am not sure what I could compare it to really. essentially it's a series of fetch quests or repair quests with digging involved but it's just really good fun and can get quite bonkers where you are trying to get back to your escape vehicle at the end.

Ah, maybe DRG is a bit different to what I'd gathered. Looking up some player reviews of it, it does sound really good.

If you liked Sea of Thieves and Valheim, then I'd say ARK: Survival Evolved would be worth a go, either local hosted or if you can set up a private dedicated server (on an old laptop or something)

We have all got Ark from when it was free on Epic, but one of the kids kind of played it to death when it was given away and I think he's had enough of it for now. Maybe when more time has passed we can all pick it up.

Another genre to consider might be beat 'em ups.

Streets of Rage 4 and it's dlc are excellent, plenty of characters/moves to unlock, difficulty options to try, the dlc adds a cool survival mode where if playing in co-op you need to really consider who gets the power ups etc. There's a vs mode as well if I remember correctly.

TMNT: Shredder's Revenge was also pretty damn good and a blast to play with others.

They might not get you as much playtime as some of the other games already mentioned, but they very fun whilst they last.

I hate beat-em-ups. Just a genre I've never enjoyed for some reason, even back in the first gen console days when they were a big part of the gaming scene.

If you want something completely different to everything else you'd listed - try Snowrunner. It really works very well in coop.

I also dislike driving games. The kids like them, but I've never found enjoyment in them.

PAYDAY/PAYDAY 2
GTFO is another that was on my radar but never actually got round to playing it

GTFO looks interesting. I know it's geared around four players, so it is okay with three (AI teammates tend to be a bit rubbish in these games...)

Not tried the multiplayer myself, but Trine series maybe?

That's another series I've finished soloe without knowing there was multiplayer! Will check out how MP works.

Halo 3's Firefight can be a laugh. It's old, but what other games can you get 3 players into the same vehicle.

Didn't even know about this game on PC at all. Will have to have a look.

The Forest solo is pants, but great fun coop. especially at night when you're running round trying to defend/repair your base from the 'locals' and there's screaming all round. terrifyingly good fun

Ah, I don't think I knew there was MP in the original. It was the harsh survival elements that got me. I just got jaded constantly looking for food and water and trying to find and scavange resources. The area felt too big as well to make this manageable. I think I heard Sons had tones this down a bit?



I was chatting to the kids about these ideas and they like the sound of Wildlands. They have birthdays close together, so I will need to decide on another one in a couple of weeks too. Cool that there are so many coop games around at the moment.

 

[strumpusplunket]

Rocket League but you need a pad really.

We played this yonks ago. We all sucked at it, and yeah, it is hard to control with KB/M, and I just don't get on with controllers.

has dying light been mentioned? I completed that in 3 player coop.
I echo the trine suggestion. it's quite funny in coop esp if you are a bit inept like we were.

One of the kids and I played DL 1 for dozens of hours, including the DLCs and loved it. We all played 2 for a bit, but only I stuck with it and finished it. Just didn't feel as fun as the first for coop.

Trine I've played solo, and had no idea it had coop as well.

 

[strumpusplunket]

Shame there isn't (I think) a demo available of it. It's a very different experience to a 'normal' driving game. It's a strategy / puzzle / exploration game. You just happen to be in a truck.

So that I didn't know. Maybe I should watch a Youtube of someone playing it to get a basic idea.

 

[strumpusplunket]

The full game is free. The only thing you pay for are resources and a new frame (which you can usually get in the game with enough grinding). It is a fun game and you do feel like a badass smashing through enemies, but the grinding for new gear did get boring for me in the end. The best part IMO is modding your frames and weapons to synergise well together and then going into high level missions and just dominating. It is a shame they changed how the survival missions worked.

Another vote for DRG. Great game to play in Co-op. The different classes work and support each other well, and the game does have its randomised ass clenching moments, but I won't spoil them for you

I'm going to throw in Astroneer. You start off on a lone planet for you to explore. You dig up resources (or manufacture them), unlock the tech tree and eventually you can explore the other planets in that solar system. None of these planets are habitable so there is personal resource management to consider while exploring. There aren't really enemies to fight, the game is mostly about exploration and the challenges surronding that. The game allows you to traverse the entire surface of every planet and below them(spoilers ).

Overcooked is a good fun and requires well polished communication and performance between you.

If you want to do some building together there is
parkitect (Basically Roller Coaster Tycoon)
satisfactory (An in depth factory builder.)
stardew valley

We did play NMS, but found it got much too grindy for our liking. That is the issue with survival/mining/buidling games. Not many get the balance right for my tastes. Valheim is one of the best in my experience, oh and the first Subnautica I guess. Not sure where Astroneer falls on the grindiness scale.

Really liking the sound of DRG the more I read about it!

(I have almost two hundred hours in Stardew Valley, incidentally - not something I admit too often...)

 

[strumpusplunket]

also worth mentioning Halo Infinite - it's free for the multiplayer and there's a load of game modes. i quite often drop on to it for a quick bit of solo action but could be a good shout for co-op too.

Ooh, it has campaign coop. I do like when we can play through an actual campaign together. Remnant and Dying Light are a couple I had most fun with personally because of that.

A lot of Destiny 2 content is built around a group (fireteam) of 3 and is easy to dip in and out of.

One of the kids mentioned Destiny. I think the base is f2p now too?

Unfortunately the xbox app is not playing ball right now, but from memory (we played this back in 2021). We played as a team of 3 and 100% completed the game in about 2-3 weeks. I think it was about 40 hours of actual game time. We were addicted and I don't remember it feeling grindy.

Resources are abundant, the challenge is exploring/finding them and bringing all of it back. Items you drop don't despawn. You also got vehicles, which allowed you to mine resources quicker or they help you carry more resources. By the end of our run we had a catalogue of resources to draw from when we needed to build something.
Some resources can be automted, for collection and/or creation, so you can do other things.

The only survival resource you need to manage is oxygen and power. Your backpack carries a 72.5 seconds worth of oxygen, suffocation take 15 seconds after you run out. You can get oxygen tanks which extend this (80 seconds each) or a portable oxygen generator which will provide you with unlimited oxygen as long as you have power.

Your main base has an unlimited supply of oxygen and power (up to a certain wattage). When you are within range of your base you will be fed oxygen and power from your base and it will refill your backpack. You can create tethers which link you back to your bases oxygen supply and allow you to explore further away from your base. Tethers are easy to make. They never dissapear unless you remove them so they also work as breadcrumbs, so you can return to previous locations.

Power is needed to run the machines, if you run out all that happes is that they pause what they are doing. They resume when power is restored.

This video shows you the early game and you can see the tether system that I talked about.

That's cool. I notice it's on GP too, so I might give it whirl solo to try it out once I've finished Atomic Heart.

 

[strumpusplunket]

Yup, Deep Rock is great fun, and it is quite different from the usual wave/horde shooters



GTFO works fine with 3 players. The AI is... OK - it doesn't do stupid things like alert mobs etc. (I believe they are basically treated as invisible to "sleeping" mobs), but considering how key teamplay is, it does make some scenarios difficult (also has an annoying habit of using ammo/health kits when you are trying to save them!).

It's also brutally difficult and needs a lot of patience, but is very satisfying when you manage to clear a level (just be prepared for some arguments when one of you screws up and wipes the team )

Factorio might be an option? It's good fun multiplayer, and again can be very satisfying when you work together to come up with a nice efficient design. Also a nice big map so you can each have your own little "task" to set up a mini-factory to feed into the main base - e.g. one of you sets up a refinery system, one sets up a copper mine, one a steel mine, etc.

For something a bit faster paced and less "thoughtful", how about Risk of Rain 2?

I think we'd perefer something a bit action-focused, but one of my kids is such a crazy gung-ho, always needs reviving player that GTFO might be a stretch

(I always get any reviving teammates achievements in barely any time when I play with him)

 

[strumpusplunket]

The forest or the new forest game will keep you all entertained.
I would also recommend looking at the following;
Raft
Dont Starve Together

Think I'll keep an eye on the new one. I think one of the kids does have Raft. Will ask when he gets home later. I tried Don't Starve, but didn't get on with the gameplay loop for some reason. I know it was well received, but I was bored quite quickly. I may be just an old, impatient curmudgeon these days...

It is although you will find a lot of activities are closed to you without the paid content. Still, its enough to let you know whether its for you or not I would say.

Cool. A few f2p ones we can try out. It looks like this might be shaping up to be a good year for games in our house.

 

[strumpusplunket]

Impatient might be the word, Dont starve together is a very deep game with a lot of customisation and I found it very difficult to get to the top of hunting and killing some of the more difficult/world monsters.
Frankly I was always playing with the ex gf, who just wanted to build base's, survive and explore, compared to me trying to find a way to off the Bearger or Deerclops.

Yeah, part of it is age, and the time pressure that comes with it, but I have much less patience for drawn out gameplay loops than I used to. Maybe when I retire I'll feel I have time to get lost in deep systems again that take time to work through again. Coop might be different, as if the kids are having a good time I put up with a lot more in this respect.

 

[strumpusplunket]

I would say Dont Starve and Dont Starve Together, whilst technically being almost identical games, do play out very differently, least thats how I found them!
DS Together has quite the scope from what I remember.

Have you tried Ready or not? (unsure if this has more than 2 player mode).
If I can think of any others, I'll come back here.

Right. Will see if the kids like the look of DST too.

I'd not heard of Ready or Not. Looks like a modern take on the old SWAT games from the mid-2000s? I vaguely remember playing one of those a long time ago.

 

[strumpusplunket]

The Ascent is another one to maybe consider - fulfils the RPG/shooter requirement, although it's top-down isometric rather than FPS/TPS, lots of nice effects & OTT explosions though

Or for something completely different - what about Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes? If you take it in turns to defuse vs instruct

I finished The Ascent and thought it was pretty decent, but maybe not to the extent of wanting to play it through again even in coop. I like the idea of Keep Talking, but the kids are more likely to put time into something with a bit more action.