Last updated: 26 June 2026

Monster Hunter Wilds Co-Op Multiplayer Complete Guide

Monster Hunter Wilds supports up to four hunters per hunt across PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via full crossplay. Whether you want a persistent group with friends, a drop-in session via SOS Flare, or a massive 100-player lobby for matchmaking, this guide walks through every system so you spend less time in menus and more time hunting.

01The Three Ways to Play Online

Wilds offers three distinct multiplayer structures that each serve a different playstyle:

• Link Party — a persistent group of up to 4 hunters. Members receive automatic invites whenever anyone posts a quest, making it the best choice for a regular crew.
• Lobby — a shared hub of up to 100 players. Lobby members can join each other's quests but do not get automatic notifications; you browse available quests manually at the Quest Counter.
• SOS Flare — fired mid-hunt to broadcast a help request to the entire player base, regardless of lobby. Any hunter can answer from the Quest Counter, and NPC Support Hunters fill empty slots automatically while real players are on their way.

02Setting Up a Link Party (Play With Friends)

The Link Party is the fastest way to stay grouped with specific friends across multiple hunts:

1. Open the Communication menu from the main hub screen.
2. Select Link Party, then Create Link Party (or Join Link Party if a friend is hosting).
3. Invite hunters in your current Lobby by name, or add cross-platform friends by entering their Hunter ID.
4. Once everyone is in the party, post a quest as normal — every Link Party member gets an on-screen prompt to join immediately.
5. To invite a cross-platform friend not yet in your lobby, use Communication → Hunter Search → Hunter ID Search, then send a lobby invite.

A Link Party persists between hunts and play sessions as long as members stay connected. You can have a Link Party of 4 inside a Lobby of up to 100, so there is no conflict between the two systems.

03Lobbies and Environment Link

When you go online you are placed in an Environment Link lobby — a matchmaking pool of up to 100 players hunting in the same region. From here you can post a quest, browse quests posted by other lobby members at the Quest Counter, or filter by monster and difficulty.

To join a specific friend's lobby rather than a random one, ask for their Lobby ID (in the Communication menu) or accept a direct lobby invite. You can also create a private lobby with a password to keep the session closed.

Environment Link lobbies are useful for organic matchmaking — if you just want to hunt the same monster as other players without coordinating, post an open quest in a public lobby and others can drop in.

04Using the SOS Flare

The SOS Flare is the fastest way to get help mid-hunt. You can fire one at any point after a quest has started:

1. During an active hunt, open the Mission and Quests menu.
2. Select SOS Flare and confirm — your hunter fires a signal flare into the sky.
3. Other players see your SOS at the Quest Counter under SOS Flare Quests, filterable by target monster, difficulty, locale, and platform.
4. While waiting, NPC Support Hunters automatically join to fill empty slots; once real hunters arrive, the NPCs leave to free up spots.
5. Up to three additional hunters can answer your flare, bringing the total to the four-hunter cap.

You can also answer an SOS from the Quest Counter at any time — no shared lobby required. This makes the SOS system the most accessible way to jump into a hunt with a stranger instantly.

05Crossplay — PS5, Xbox, and PC

Monster Hunter Wilds supports full crossplay across all three platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Crossplay is enabled by default when you go online.

• To play only with hunters on your own platform, go to Options → Game Settings → Crossplay and restrict it.
• To add a cross-platform friend, exchange Hunter IDs — a unique identifier on every hunter's profile that bypasses platform-specific friend lists.
• Cross-platform hunters can be in the same Link Party, the same Lobby, and can answer each other's SOS Flares with no extra setup beyond crossplay being enabled.

06Campaign Restrictions and Health Scaling

Co-op in the story campaign works, but with important restrictions that catch many players off guard.

Story cutscene locks: certain main story quests gate progress behind cutscenes. You must watch the relevant cutscene yourself before you can join — or be joined on — that quest. Both players need to have individually reached and viewed the cutscene checkpoint before tackling the quest together. Once you are both past it and the combat phase begins, multiplayer works normally with full rewards for everyone.

Monster health scaling: when extra hunters join, the monster's HP scales up to compensate, and ailment thresholds (paralysis, sleep, KO) also rise with party size. Rewards and material drop rates stay the same regardless of party size.

• Solo: base monster HP and ailment thresholds.
• 2 players: a moderate HP increase and slightly higher ailment thresholds.
• 3–4 players: full scaling — expect noticeably longer hunts if raw output per hunter stays the same.
• The scaled HP applies the moment a second hunter joins, including NPC Support Hunters.