How does COOP work exactly?

[Panicsferd]

I don't have any friends who own this game, and I was just wondering how the coop stuff works... is it like online where you both control a squad of mercs or what?

[Lanani]

To quote from one of the latest dev diaries:

One player is designated the “host” and the other the “partner”. The host is the one who initiates the game and the partner is the player who joins the host’s game. When creating a game the host has the option of starting a new campaign with their partner or inviting them into an ongoing playthrough.

We aimed to make the co-op gameplay as seamless as possible. The host can save and load games at any time as if they were playing alone and their partner will be there along for the ride. Additionally there is no functional difference between a save made in a co-op and single player, and the host can continue the game in single player if their buddy drops out. Both players can also load any of the saves (auto-saves or manual saves) created during co-op gameplay and continue them in singleplayer.

We found that in co-op games it is important for both players to be aware of what's happening in the moment-to-moment gameplay. We implemented a system where conversations with NPCs are controlled by the player who initiated them, but both players observe the conversation happening in real time. The non-controlling player can even offer suggestions for conversation options.

In order for both players to be aware of what is going on, we had to make some compromises. For instance, both players can only explore the same sector in tactical view. Splitting up to tackle Grand Chien separately might sound appealing, but the majority of missions take place on multiple sectors and it can get disorienting.

On top of that, there's the issue of how time advances when one player is engaged in combat in a different sector. It would be tedious for one player to spend 40 minutes in the Satellite View waiting for their partner to finish their tough fight with the Legion. Considering the technical challenges as well, having both players on the same sector made the most sense.

[peppergomez]

If you start a new co-op game, can each player control his own full squad. Or do you have to share control of a single squad?

[FreeGen]

Originally posted by peppergomez:

If you start a new co-op game, can each player control his own full squad. Or do you have to share control of a single squad?

it's shared 3&3 and only one imp

[suejak]

It's shared however you want. You can assign or unassign mercs to one player or the other at will.

[Fáfnir]

so the campaign can be played fully coop with 1 other player ? (or can it be more ?)

[Hopper]

Originally posted by Fáfnir:

so the campaign can be played fully coop with 1 other player ? (or can it be more ?)

Yeah, you COULD play the entire campaign with 1 other player. The other player could pretty much do anything the host could do.

But that was back in July 2023 when JA3 was first released. These days coop is almost unplayable due to desync issues.

[oj]

I’ve been playing co-op since launch. Overall, I’ve probably played 70 hours total in co-op to date and quite a few of these hours in the last few weeks (with patch 1.5).
Our experience was really good so far. We only had the occasional de-sync issue. Obviously, your mileage may vary, but I recommend to give co-op a try if you’re interested.

[8Squirrels]

I've just completed a coop campaign with a friend and while we had a bit of desync, it barely effected the enjoyment of the game whatsoever. It was quite a fun experience. I found that having a reduced number of mercs to think about made things quite enjoyable.

If we do it again, we've discussed cutting down the merc numbers to only two per squad (max of three squads) for an extra challenge.

Overall I'd say coop was a great way to experience the game and if you've got a buddy who's interested, it's at least worth giving it a try.

[Fáfnir]

Originally posted by Hopper:

Originally posted by Fáfnir:

so the campaign can be played fully coop with 1 other player ? (or can it be more ?)

Yeah, you COULD play the entire campaign with 1 other player. The other player could pretty much do anything the host could do.

But that was back in July 2023 when JA3 was first released. These days coop is almost unplayable due to desync issues.

Thats really sad, i was excited to play that game's campaign coop with a friend :'(

[Fáfnir]

Originally posted by 6sheep:

I've just completed a coop campaign with a friend and while we had a bit of desync, it barely effected the enjoyment of the game whatsoever. It was quite a fun experience. I found that having a reduced number of mercs to think about made things quite enjoyable.

If we do it again, we've discussed cutting down the merc numbers to only two per squad (max of three squads) for an extra challenge.

Overall I'd say coop was a great way to experience the game and if you've got a buddy who's interested, it's at least worth giving it a try.

you confirm the desync are happening since 2023 ?