Split Screen / Local Co-op

No — Big Walk has no split screen and no local couch co-op. The official FAQ and press kit are explicit: the game is online co-op only, 2–12 players, with every player on their own device and their own copy. That is true on every platform, PS5 included. If you want to play with someone in the same room, the workaround is two devices side by side connected via crossplay — full instructions below.

What The Official Sources Say

The official Big Walk FAQ addresses couch co-op directly: Big Walk is designed as an online co-op experience, and the press kit lists the multiplayer as "2–12 — online co-op" with no local mode mentioned. Major guides — IGN's wiki, GamesRadar, Co-Optimus — all report the same: no split screen, no shared screen, no couch co-op, on PC, PS5, and Switch 2 alike.

The game's own architecture explains why. Big Walk's signature mechanic is proximity voice chat — audio that muffles, fades, and echoes based on each player's position in the world. That system assumes every player has their own screen and their own audio perspective. The puzzles lean on the same separation: describing what you can see to someone who cannot see it has no tension when both of you are looking at the same display.

So this is not a missing feature waiting to be patched in; it is a design decision. Expecting split-screen support to be added later is not realistic.

PS5 Split Screen: The Specifics

If you found this page searching about PS5 specifically, here is what those facts mean on that platform:

• No split-screen mode exists on PS5. One PS5, one copy, one player. The second person on your couch cannot drop in with a second DualSense.
• The PS5 version is the same online build as PC and Switch 2. There is no platform-exclusive local mode.
• Every PS5 player in the session needs PlayStation Plus for online play — relevant when your same-room partner is on a second PS5. Big Walk was a PS Plus Monthly game at launch, though, so a PS5-owning friend may already have a copy — see our PS Plus guide.
• What about Share Play? Sony's Share Play streams your screen to a friend and formally supports "playing a game together" — but it was built around local co-op and turn-based games, and Big Walk is a real-time 12-player online game with positional audio per player. We have not tested Share Play with Big Walk and found no official statement on it, so treat this as our inference, not a tested fact: do not count on it working. The reliable path is the two-device setup below.

How To Play Big Walk With Someone In The Same Room

The realistic setup is two devices side by side — two PCs, a PC and a laptop, a PS5 and a Switch 2, any combination — each running its own copy of the game, connected via crossplay, with each player wearing their own headphones.

1. Pick who hosts. Whoever has the more reliable machine or connection hosts from the main menu's Host Game option; the host's save is the one the group builds on. Our Join Codes on PS5 guide shows exactly where the session code appears and how the other person enters it.
2. Both players use headphones. This matters more here than in any other game: with speakers, you will hear each other twice — once through the in-game proximity audio and once across the physical room. The official FAQ itself warns about this effect when players share a space.
3. Enter the session from the second device via Join Game with the host's code — crossplay between the four platforms is a confirmed, shipped feature, so the distance between your couches is irrelevant to the network.
4. Consider separate rooms if the echo annoys you. The official FAQ's practical suggestion for same-location players is to play in different rooms — it preserves the muffled-through-walls effect the game is built around.

It is more demanding than classic couch co-op — two devices, two copies — but it is the only way to get the intended experience, and it works today without waiting on anything. For couples and housemates, it keeps the comfort of playing together while the game keeps its separation: you still lose each other in the dark, just with someone you can elbow when the session ends.

Why The Question Keeps Coming Up

The confusion is understandable. Big Walk looks like a couch game: goofy characters built from stacked colored balls, bright toy-like monuments, obvious party energy, a place among the "play with your friends" indie hits. Everything about the vibe suggests a living room and a shared screen.

But the vibe and the architecture point in opposite directions. Per-player proximity audio, separated teammates, information one player can see and another cannot — that is an online design from the ground up, and it is why every official source gives the same flat answer. If split-screen is a dealbreaker for you, the honest advice is to skip Big Walk: nothing on any roadmap suggests it is coming.

Summary

Big Walk does not support split screen or local couch co-op on any platform, including PS5 — confirmed by the official FAQ and press kit. The game is online co-op only, 2–12 players, built around per-player proximity voice chat. To play with someone next to you: two devices, two copies, headphones, crossplay — see the Join Codes guide for the session setup and Big Walk Crossplay for the full platform matrix.

Sources

• Official Big Walk FAQ — House House — online co-op design, same-location audio warning, separate-rooms suggestion
• Official Big Walk Press Kit — multiplayer listed as "2–12 — online co-op"
• IGN Wiki — Big Walk — no split screen / local co-op
• GamesRadar — Big Walk multiplayer guide — online-only co-op, crossplay setup
• Co-Optimus — Big Walk — couch co-op not supported
• PlayStation Store — Big Walk — PS Plus requirement for online play

RELATED BIG WALK TOPICS

These related pages complete the picture:

OTHER BIG WALK MULTIPLAYER TOPICS