10 Best Co-Op Games Where You Don’t Play A Fixed Character

There are so many co-op games out in the world, from massive multiplayer games to simple couch co-op games that can accommodate, or even require, a friend to play alongside you. However, often players will find themselves being confined to the same characters every time they play.

Fortunately, there are some games where that isn’t the case. Some co-operative games involve a choice between a few characters, and some even allow players to completely create their own from scratch. Whichever way players prefer their characters to be, there will definitely be a game for that. So, here are some of the best games that allow a cooperative experience without having specific characters involved.

10 Valheim

Customise Your Own Viking Warriors

The era of co-op survival games might have started to calm down, but Valheim got in right near the end and remains a great game to play with others. The story of a newly dead Viking warrior gathering materials and readying for fights against the creatures of this mysterious land, all in search of a place in Valhalla, is genius.

A great idea, a well-built game which managed to sell five million copies within a month of the unfinished, early access release on Steam. Valheim is a triumph in gaming terms. I’ve spent a great deal of time grinding materials and weapons alongside friends to try and take down bosses like Fader or The Queen. However, while the Viking characters you and your friends play are generally similar in nature, they can be customised and come without names or set stories.

9 Deep Rock Galactic

Space Dwarf Character Customisation

A very different sort of game with character customisation, Deep Rock Galactic allows players to join together in teams of 1-4 in order to complete missions, gather loot, and build their own characters up through new weapons and abilities. Going mining has almost never been this satisfying in gaming before (with a notable and obvious exception).

Deep Rock Galactic is such a charming take on roguelike co-op gameplay. Taking on different roles across the classes, these space dwarves can make for a really fun, action-packed adventure which is definitely best shared with some friends along for the ride, playing these unnamed but powerful warriors.

8 V-Rising

Start With A Fresh Vampire

Another game with a nameless leading character who can be customised at will, V-Rising allows players to join together and explore the five biomes available to their newly arisen vampires. These characters can be customised, and their stories are built through the deeds of the players as they raise castles and down epic enemies.

While V-Rising is another survival game which can be played solo, I definitely got a lot more out of it alongside friends. Survival games are more enjoyable with friends to adventure along with, and brutal games in the genre like this one can be more fun if we work cooperatively together to defeat some of the more daunting bosses.

7 Overcooked 2

Characters Don’t Matter, Only Speed

Sometimes, the best thing to sit down and play together with friends is something that will end friendships. A hectic party game like Overcooked 2 has provided me with many opportunities for laughter, and endless rage. If there’s one thing to take away, it’s that nothing about your character matters; the story is the friends you raged at along the way.

There are plenty of party games with meaningless characters which will let you have a great time with friends. However, this is one that comes with a bright, colourful design, all types of madness, and an expanded set of levels and restaurants and challenges beyond the first Overcooked. This sequel has, since release, become one of the most notable party games for friends in modern gaming.

6 Phasmophobia

Ghost Hunting Is For Everybody & Anybody

A game about ghost hunting with your friends, sometimes getting caught and killed and left to haunt those that remain. Phasmophobia was always going to be a hit. It is a hilarious experience for any group of friends, and it is also probably one of the most consistent games out there that people will play incorrectly.

Still, though, Phasmophobia is a great co-op experience with little care for story. The focus is on individual missions, and your character is randomly generated in appearance, and matters very little. It’s the other aspects of Phasmo, especially the friends, which make the experience special enough to repeat time and time again.

5 Minecraft

The Ultimate No-Story Co-Op Experience

There are a thousand ways to play Minecraft. However, it has become over time more and more a cooperative experience where players can join friends, parents or even strangers in larger worlds as they adventure in their own way. The one thing that Minecraft doesn’t care about is your character, which has a basic appearance that you can change at will with any number of skins.

Minecraft is as good as it gets when it comes to co-op gameplay. From creating brilliant displays and structures in a relaxed environment to attempting to survive together in a hardcore world. The diversity in how to play, along with the updates that have only made it better over time, make Minecraft possibly the best game in history with nearly no story or characters whatsoever.

4 Diablo IV

Classic Local Co-Op RPG Action

The Diablo games have always had co-op elements behind them. Finding great games to play locally with someone you live with has gotten a lot more challenging in modern gaming. Fortunately, there has been a renaissance, but Diablo is one franchise that never stopped having options to play with somebody right next to you.

This is a big part of the charm of the series. This latest entry pits players against Lilith, the daughter of Mephisto, in an action RPG which features you taking on characters across different classes in this dark fantasy take on classic dungeon-crawling style action. I’ve never hesitated to grab up a new Diablo game, particularly when looking for something to play with a partner.

3 Monster Hunter: World

Ultimate Nameless Character Growth

There are few franchises like Monster Hunter. Having had a huge number of games which essentially follow the same formula, fans never seem to tire of killing monsters for better loot so that they can kill bigger monsters. It is tried, tested, and the immersive side of things was at its very best in Monster Hunter: World.

This game doesn’t feature local co-op, but playing with friends online is the preferred form of gameplay for many, including myself. As for the characters, they are simply known as Hunters and, though there is some story background about your character, it isn’t a particularly set role.

2 LEGO Marvel Super Heroes

A World Of Characters Instead Of A Single One

As opposed to an RPG that allows you to build your own character, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes and the rest of the LEGO franchise allow hundreds of characters to be playable over the course of each game. This game, in particular, is known as one of the best in the series, and one of the most consistently enjoyable co-op experiences.

From Iron Man and Captain America all the way to Spider-Hulk and J. Jonah Jameson, this game allows as much freedom with your characters as any RPG that gives you options in building your own. The story is set, but the character freedom is absolutely not.

1 Baldur’s Gate 3

The Ultimate Customisable Experience

There are so many games that pride themselves on great character creation options, but few of them follow that up by also having as incredible an experience in terms of real choices that affect your character and their story. Baldur’s Gate 3 is one of the greatest games of the 21^st Century, and this is easily one of the clearest reasons why.

Beloved for the immersive way players can experience the entire campaign together, Baldur’s Gate 3 allows roleplayers to come together, completely build their own characters, and have an entire play-through for a specific ideology. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t created a new character just to find out how evil you can be in the game. Baldur’s Gate 3 creates the dream experience for a player who has always wished a game would let them be weirder and have more choice. This is the least “set” a character in an RPG has ever been.