To play with your friends in Ashen, you’ll have to take a few extra steps. Normally, you’re automatically connected with random players as you explore the world. You can work together (or not) to defeat the many, many threats and help build the town of Vagrant’s Rest. You’ll have to generally be in the same place, and be at the same point in the story — you won’t see players that have beaten every boss until you’ve done the same, for example.
- Checkout Ashen and other free games on the Epic Games Marketplace.
It’s an open, persistent online system and one that isn’t as restrictive as it seems. You can actually invite your friends to your game world, but there are a few steps you need to take to make this happen. You can’t simply invite them through the party menu on PC or Xbox One. To bring one friend along and help you on your journey, you’ll need to do the following.
More Ashen guides on Gameranx:
How To Play Multiplayer With Your Friends | Online Coop Guide
In Ashen, you can encounter online players anywhere outside the safety of your village. While inside Vagrant’s Rest, you won’t encounter any other players — when you leave, they can appear at any time. Other players will only appear if you’re roughly the same level (story progression, boss defeats) and in the same area.
- To communicate, press [D-Pad: Up] to signal another player. If you get too far away, you’ll leave the other player’s world.
To actually play with friends, you’ll have to take a few extra steps. Here’s exactly what to do in-game.
- Open the pause menu and go to System -> Multiplayer.
- Set a Multiplayer Filter Code. This is a six-digit number you’ll have to create yourself.
- Make sure both players have Multiplayer Filter and Disable AI Companion checked.
- Share the Multiplayer Filter Code you set with your friend. You can do this via Party or Messenger.
- Your friend will need to input the Multiplayer Filter Code in the same Multiplayer menu.
If everything is setup, and you’re both in-game, you should now be able to encounter each other. The best place to meet is right outside Vagrant’s Rest. If you’re inside Vagrant’s Rest, you won’t see your multiplayer friend — you need to be outside the town.
Tap up on the D-Pad to open the multiplayer beacon and call your friend to your world. It takes about 30 seconds for them to appear — if the online options are working right. Unfortunately, you’ll need to repeat the process whenever you enter / exit Vagrant’s Rest.