10 PS4 Co-Op Games That Reward Exploration

I have to admit there is something pretty satisfying about discovering secrets in video games. Whether it's a secret path, treasure, or an unexpected loot drop, I always get extra excited! The only thing better than that is to share that experience with a friend in a well-made co-op game!

Surprisingly enough, PS4 has a strong library of these games where you and your friend can slow down, look around, and engage deeper with the virtual world around you. It doesn't matter if you love survival, sandbox, or dungeon-crawling games, because the list has something for everybody. So, call your friends ASAP since you'll definitely want to try one of these!

10 Divinity: Original Sin 2

You Probably Missed Something

Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a generous PS4 RPG that reveals its full potential when it's played in co-op mode. Each area of the game is rich with optional quests, puzzles, hidden chambers, and lore that you can easily miss on your first playthrough. The game's co-op structure encourages you and your friends to split up in a competitive questing atmosphere, where you'll cover more ground and explore more.

Combat is another thing to explore, as turn-based fighting here hides many tricks that you can discover through playing (if you haven't looked it up online previously, of course), which is another element enhancing this already great gaming experience. No wonder for a game coming from the same studio that built Baldur's Gate 3.

9 A Way Out

A Road Trip Experience

A Way Out is a game created exclusively for a two-player co-op mode, where single-player isn't possible. The game follows two guys who escape prison and work together to avoid getting caught. The game is fun and reminds me of those party games where you yell at your friend, trying to tell them what they're doing wrong. But the real richness the game offers lies in the many NPC interactions, mini-games, and hidden locations that you get to see only if you stray off the beaten path.

What makes the exploration great in this game is that it naturally fits into the co-op dynamic. For example, you can go one way, while your friend might go the other way, and you are almost guaranteed to find interesting things that will only build up your experience. The game is fairly short, so you can play it multiple times, picking choices that you haven't before and seeing both versions of the ending.

8 Deep Rock Galactic

Have You Been In Every Tunnel?

From where I'm standing, Deep Rock Galactic is one of the best 4-player co-op games out there. You and your dwarf friends are on a task of mining procedurally generated cave systems for rare ore. However, the caves hide much more than the task at hand, and if your party isn't in a rush, I guarantee you'll find plenty of surprises. Hidden passageways, crafting resources, and collectibles are just some of the things that you'll find while wandering around the depths of this game.

The dwarf-driven adventure relies heavily on your team's cooperation, as each miner has its own pros and cons, and you all need to work together to both complete the mission and explore your surroundings.

7 Don't Starve Together

In Don't Starve Together, you'll have a chance of experiencing the popular survival game with a friend, where you'll need to strategize together in order to make it through. You can either opt for splitting up to cover more ground but risk dying, or go together for a safer option, but at the cost of exploration. Whatever the case may be, the game is surely one of the best survival games for newcomers.

Whichever play style you choose, Don't Starve Together's procedurally generated world will reward you for poking your nose around with things like diverse biomes, critical resources, and different gear. For me, co-op adds another dimension to this unforgiving survival experience, because you know that every hard-earned victory or a disastrous mistake will be shared with someone else.

6 Terraria

How Deep Will You Go?

Terraria is a game that can trick you with its SEGA-like looks and make you believe it's simple, but what lies beneath is a very deep exploration game. The world is actually pretty vast, and both the surface and underground worlds offer a ton of opportunities for exploration, which are even faster when playing with friends.

What makes the game amazing and addictive is the fact that everything in the world is destructible, and there is plenty to discover whichever way you go. What I love most is that exploration constantly offers progression: you need better gear to explore deeper, and, at the same time, you need to go deeper to get better gear.

5 Unravel Two

Did Someone Say Bonus Levels?

Unravel Two is a beautiful two-player platformer built around tethered yarn characters that need to work together in order to progress. Besides the obvious laughing and yelling that you will be doing with your friends, my favorite part is that this game actually has bonus levels that are hidden in the main story.

The bonus levels are, in a way, the heart of the game as they are more challenging and sometimes contain puzzles that will make you scratch your head a few times. Also, without spoiling too much, I'll just say that the game has other hidden collectibles you can find around the world.

4 Minecraft

Mining is Always Better With Friends

Minecraft is the legendary sandbox game whose co-op game can't be left out of this list. The survival mode is much easier and more interesting when played with a friend because not only can you split up and gather resources at a faster pace, but you can be stronger in combat. Also, building big structures won't be as tedious when you're not doing it alone, and splitting duties will make everything go faster.

When it comes to exploration, Minecraft's procedurally generated world makes it one of the top games with almost unlimited replayability. I love how interactive and how packed with surprises it is, so you never know what you're going to find next. Different biomes, dungeons, ocean monuments, and woodland mansions make exploring feel very rewarding.

3 Outward

There's a Lot to Discover Out There

Outward is a co-op RPG that generally treats you more like an ordinary person than a chosen hero, which helps shape how the atmosphere of the whole game works. Travel is long, combat tough, and resource management demanding, and all of these things are made easier with a friend.

Exploring the world in co-op mode really gives you that expedition feeling, where you don't know what can come next. The game is made to be a self-directed discovery, so every unique location or loot you find gives you a great feeling of satisfaction. What I especially love is that exploring is required not only for side quests but for main quests as well.

2 Strange Brigade

Zombies And Puzzles

Strange Brigade takes you and your team of up to 4 players to a 1930s adventure world to find the undead in a Tomb Raider-like atmosphere. While shooting is the main attraction in this game, looking around and searching carefully is a strong second. Each level has its own hidden chambers, puzzles, and collectibles.

What's extra cool, in my view, is that the puzzles you encounter are different depending on the number of people you have in your party. So is the number of enemies, so be careful when wandering into uncharted territory.

1 Alienation

Protect and Explore the Earth

If you were looking for a thrilling PS4 top-down co-op that sometimes reminds you of Roguelike games, then you're in the right place. Alienation can support parties of up to 4 players who go to different locations on Earth and fight the invading aliens. While doing so, you all need to look around carefully because maps aren't linear and often contain hidden elements like loot, optional objectives, or mini-bosses.

The class system (Tank, Saboteur, and Bio-Specialist) enriches the game further as each has its own pros and cons, so you'll need to develop a strategy with your teammates before embarking on alien-slaying missions. If you are among those players who like to turn every stone when uncovering a new map, Alienation will definitely reward that.