Palworld multiplayer not working

Palworld shows an error when starting multiplayer that multiplayer is currently not possible. On the Xbox, multiplayer is grayed out or achievements do not work. What you can do against the errors can be found on MeinMMO.

You want to start a multiplayer game on Steam or Xbox, but see an error? Your game partner is collecting achievements, but unfortunately you are not? MeinMMO explains what is behind the problems and what you can do about it.

More about multiplayer: If you want to create a game, take a look at our Guide to Multiplayer and Crossplay in Palworld. Here we also explain what is possible and where the differences between single player, servers, and co-op are.

Palworld: Error when hosting multiplayer game – What you can do

What kind of error is this? If you want to host a co-op game, you may sometimes see the error that this is not possible: You should either check your internet connection or restart your PC. However, a multiplayer game is neither started nor hosted.

Why does the error occur? Simply put, the servers are overloaded. Take a look at the Palworld server status: Here you can see how well the official servers are reachable. If the servers are heavily overloaded, there will be problems starting a multiplayer game. Single-player games that you start offline are not affected by this.

What can be done about it? We have found several tips to be useful:

On the one hand, you can first host the game as a solo game, start the game, and then save and exit. After that, you can select the game again, switch to multiplayer, and try to start the game again. In some cases, this has worked for us.
On the other hand, you can confirm the error with “OK” and try to start the multiplayer game again. Here too, it suddenly worked for us after several attempts.
In some cases, changing the host can also help. Let another player host the co-op game, and it may work.
One last option is to restart the game.

Tip: Once you have successfully hosted your game, do not leave the game! Once you leave the game, you have to host it again, and the error may occur again.

If you managed to get into the game successfully, we recommend taking a look at the best tips for starting Palworld. Here you will find plenty of hints on how to succeed in the world of Palworld.

Palworld: Multiplayer grayed out on Xbox

What does that mean? On Xbox, in addition to the game, you need an “Xbox Game Pass Core” membership. Without a membership, you cannot use multiplayer. If you do not have an active subscription, the menu item in the game will automatically be grayed out.

Without a membership, you cannot join official servers or private games. Unfortunately, the “Xbox Game Pass Core” membership is mandatory for multiplayer. The “Xbox Game Pass Core” subscription costs €6.99 per month. You can find more information directly at Xbox.com.

Palworld: Achievements in multiplayer do not work

What is the problem? As of now (as of July 2024), achievements in multiplayer only work to a limited extent:

If you defeat a boss in multiplayer, all participants in the session receive the achievement on Steam.
General achievements, for example “collect 50 different Pals”, can only be completed by the host. They will not unlock for all other participants in the session.

It is not yet known if there will be a bug fix for the problem in the long term. Currently, you can only unlock general achievements in single-player mode.