Co-op & Multiplayer
Face the cold with up to three friends
Permafrost supports solo play and online co-op for up to four players total. Co-op does not make the world easier, it lets you divide the work of survival. Here is how multiplayer works.
Permafrost can be played entirely solo, but it is also built for online co-op of up to four players total. The developers are careful about what that means: co-op does not simplify the world, it just means you do not face the cold alone.
How co-op works
You and up to three friends share the same frozen world. The draw is not that enemies get weaker or the cold gets gentler, it is that survival becomes a team effort where you can divide responsibilities and play to each other’s strengths.
In practice, a group can:
- Split the work of survival. One player scavenges while another tends the fire, crafts or fortifies.
- Build shelter networks together. Larger, better-defended bases come together far faster with extra hands.
- Cover more ground. Multiple survivors can explore and gather in parallel, then regroup with the spoils.
The trade-off
More survivors means more mouths to keep warm and fed, and more coordination to keep everyone alive through a storm. The world stays as harsh as it is solo. Co-op rewards groups that actually communicate and assign roles rather than four people doing the same thing at once.
Solo still stands
If you prefer the lonelier, more deliberate experience, solo play is a first-class way to experience Permafrost, and your dog companion ensures you are never entirely on your own. Co-op is an option for sharing the burden, not a requirement for surviving it.