There's something special about playing co-op games with your friends. If done right, it can create unbreakable bonds that last forever. But it can also weed out the fake ones who steal your loot while you're downed and conveniently "forget" to revive you.
Source for that? Me, and countless hours of discovering which people are actually sociopaths in disguise. 😆
Whether you're strengthening friendships or testing new ones, co-op gaming on Linux has never been better. The 15 games in this list are the best choices for shared adventures.
1. Unravel Two
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
Unravel Two puts players into a beautiful cooperative experience where two adorable yarn creatures called Yarnys work together to overcome obstacles. Both players control a Yarny and their companion as they swing, climb, and solve environmental puzzles through remarkable natural landscapes.
The game requires collaborative play, as many puzzles cannot be solved alone, nudging players to communicate and coordinate their movements. The emotional storytelling unfolds wordlessly throughout the environment, creating touching moments as the two characters help each other through challenging situations.
2. PEAK
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
PEAK is an innovative climbing simulation that brings the thrill and challenge of mountaineering to cooperative gameplay. Players work together to plan routes, manage equipment, and support each other through treacherous ascents on realistic mountain faces.
You won't get anywhere in this game if you don't cooperate with your friends, as one wrong move can negatively impact the whole team. Weather conditions, equipment management, and stamina all play crucial roles in successful climbs.
The realistic physics and new mountain environments (that change every 24 hours) create an immersive experience that captures both the beauty and dangers of extreme climbing.
3. Valheim [Native Linux]
Steam Deck status: Verified ✅
Valheim drops up to 10 players into a procedurally generated Viking purgatory where cooperation isn't just helpful; it's essential for survival. This Norse-inspired survival game combines base building, exploration, and combat in a beautifully stylized world.
The game shines in its progression system, where different biomes present unique challenges that require coordinated preparation and teamwork. Building impressive settlements, crafting advanced equipment, and taking down powerful bosses all benefit from having dedicated teammates handling different roles.
4. Phasmophobia
Steam Deck status: Verified ✅
Phasmophobia will make your dream of becoming a demonologist true, at least until you're screaming like a child and abandoning your teammates to save yourself from an angry ghost.
In this, up to four players work together as paranormal investigators, using specialized equipment to identify supernatural entities while trying not to become victims themselves.
The game's genius lies in how it makes every player essential, someone needs to monitor cameras, another handles EMF readings, while others navigate the haunted locations to gather evidence.
5. American Truck Simulator [Native Linux]
Steam Deck status: Verified ✅
American Truck Simulator transforms long-haul trucking into a surprisingly engaging cooperative experience through its multiplayer convoy features. Players can form trucking companies, coordinate deliveries, and explore the meticulously recreated American highways together.
The game offers a relaxing experience where players can chat while cruising down scenic routes, coordinate convoy formations, or work together to complete challenging deliveries.
If you don't like the American setting, then you can go for Euro Truck Simulator 2, which is set in Europe. I can vouch for both of these games; they are very addictive.
6. HELLDIVERS 2
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
Want to make democracy great again? HELLDIVERS 2 delivers chaotic cooperative action where up to four players fight for "Super Earth" against undemocratic alien threats. This shooter calls for strategic coordination, where accidentally calling in orbital strikes on teammates is just part of the hilarious (and intense) experience.
Here, every mission feels like a desperate fight for survival where success depends entirely on how well the team works together under pressure.
7. Barotrauma [Native Linux]
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
Barotrauma plunges players into the crushing depths of Europa's ocean, where up to 16 players can team up inside a submarine in a fight for survival against alien creatures and human incompetence. This survival game combines submarine simulation with horror elements and unconventional storytelling.
Every crew member has specific roles, like Captain, Engineer, Medic, Security, and the submarine's survival depends on each player performing their duties competently. When things go wrong (and they will), the results are often spectacular failures involving hull breaches, reactor meltdowns, and alien infestations.
8. It Takes Two
Steam Deck status: Verified ✅
It Takes Two is specifically designed as a cooperative experience that cannot be played alone, following a couple navigating both their relationship and bizarre worlds filled with creative gameplay mechanics. Every level introduces new cooperative mechanics that require both players to work in perfect harmony.
The game constantly surprises players with its variety; one moment you're operating asymmetric tools to solve puzzles, the next you're engaging in competitive mini-games that lighten the mood.
9. Sons of The Forest
Steam Deck status: Unsupported 🚫
Sons of The Forest combines survival horror and cooperative mechanics, where up to 8 players work together to survive a cannibal-infested island. Here, you build shelters, craft weapons, and uncover dark secrets while trying not to become dinner.
The game naturally creates team roles, like builders, resource gatherers, and brave souls who venture into dark caves. Having backup makes the horror slightly more bearable, though you'll still jump at every creepy sound together.
10. R.E.P.O.
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
R.E.P.O. sends you and your crew into haunted locations to hunt for valuable loot while dealing with angry spirits that don't appreciate trespassers. It's part treasure hunting, part ghostbusting.
Teams need to coordinate between searching for valuables and handling supernatural threats that get increasingly hostile. Communication is key when you're trying to grab loot while your teammate is getting chased by a poltergeist.
11. Unrailed! [Native Linux]
Steam Deck status: Verified ✅
Unrailed! transforms railroad construction into a frantic cooperative puzzle game where up to four players must work together to build tracks for an unstoppable train. The procedurally generated landscapes require constant adaptation and perfect coordination to avoid derailment.
The game creates natural chaos where everyone has a different job, like chopping wood, laying tracks, clearing obstacles, or keeping the train from flying off the rails. As levels progress, everything gets faster and more hectic.
12. Dead by Daylight
Steam Deck status: Verified ✅
Dead by Daylight puts four survivors against one killer in a deadly game of cat and mouse where teamwork literally means life or death. Survivors must coordinate generator repairs, healing, and rescues while avoiding becoming the killer's next victim.
The real trick here is from those split-second decisions: Do you risk saving your teammate on the hook or prioritize your own survival? Every choice matters, and bad teamwork usually ends with everyone dead.
13. Schedule I
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
Fans of Breaking Bad (and Better Call Saul), I have something special for you. Schedule I is a chill cooperative experience focused on manufacturing narcotics where players work together to handle complex operations through careful planning and coordination.
You'll be juggling resources, keeping supply chains running, and making sure nothing falls apart while your friends handle their own share of the work.
14. Deep Rock Galactic
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
Deep Rock Galactic combines space dwarves, mining operations, and alien bug extermination into one of the most polished cooperative experiences available for Linux. Up to four players take on different roles: Driller, Engineer, Gunner, or Scout, each with unique tools essential for mission success.
The procedurally generated cave systems ensure every mission feels fresh, while the class-based gameplay creates natural cooperation as each dwarf's abilities complement the others perfectly. The game's progression system rewards both individual skill development and team coordination, with a steady stream of upgrades and customization options.
15. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2
Steam Deck status: Playable 🟡
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 drops you and two friends into a grim future as superhuman Space Marines, fighting endless alien hordes. You're basically walking tanks with chainswords and big guns, and the game makes you feel every bit as overpowered as that sounds.
The combat rewards aggressive teamwork where you charge headfirst into massive enemy swarms while covering each other's backs. When someone goes down, you better believe you're fighting through hell to revive them.
I let you enjoy and explore these games. Meanwhile, if you have suggestions on some interesting games or you found a new favorite here, please leave a comment.
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