Lethal Company is the latest co-op horror sensation taking the world by storm, and I have to admit: It’s pretty dang fun. It reminds me of how rapidly Among Us proliferated during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the fact that it’s taking off in an era where we’re not all expected to stay home is impressive.
While Lethal Company is best enjoyed with a party of four, its online matchmaking leaves much to be desired for us single player introverts without a ready group of friends to play the game. Sure, you can play with randoms and it’s a perfectly fine experience, but also like with Among Us, nothing beats playing with people you know / people you aren’t afraid to make a fool of yourself in front of.
If you don’t have a ready group of friends who’ve bought Lethal Company, and you’d prefer not to use the online matchmaking system, the question becomes: Can you play Lethal Company solo?
Ridin’ (the Lethal Company ship) solo
Good news! It is technically possible to play Lethal Company by yourself. I say technically here because unless you’re exceptionally skilled at surviving the monsters skulking the halls of this game’s many “abandoned” warehouses or the freaks that come out when the sun goes down, you won’t get very far.
And then, there’s the scrap quota you have to consider. If you only have your hands to carry salvage, there’s a good chance you won’t meet your quota. I tried playing Lethal Company solo, and (I think) I was doing a decent job, but then I got eaten by a monster and lost all my salvage. This was a deeply demoralizing experience and I wish it not on my worst enemy.
To avoid going through this nightmare, I recommend getting used to the online matchmaking system, at least until more of your friends are able to pick up their own copy of Lethal Company.
How to play Lethal Company solo
If you insist on ignoring my warnings, here’s how to jump into a solo game of Lethal Company. In the game’s main menu, rather than joining an existing session, you’ll want to host your own. You can change the name of your ship if you’d like, but you’ll want to change the setting from public to friends-only.
By flipping this setting, you’ll ensure no randoms can join up, and unless you send invites to friends, no one will be able to interrupt your solo quality time.