After years of anticipation, Hytale is finally here, and it’s even better when played with your friends. The sandbox RPG’s multiplayer lets you roam massive worlds, build side by side, and take on challenges together, whether you’re hosting your own world or jumping into someone else’s.
In this guide, we cover everything you need to get started, from hosting and joining multiplayer sessions to fixing common issues and setting up a dedicated server for always-online adventures in Hytale.
Table of contents
How to host a world and invite your friends in Hytale
Hosting a multiplayer session in Hytale is pretty straightforward. Just follow these steps:
- Launch Hytale and load into the world you want to host.
- Press ESC to open the pause menu.
- Select “Online Play” from the menu.
- Toggle “Allow Other Players to Join” to On. You can set a password to keep your session private.
- Click Save.
- Hytale will now configure your network and generate a share code. In case you set a password, you can enable the “Include Password in Share Code” option so your friends won’t need to enter it manually.
- Click “Copy to Clipboard” and send the share code to your friends.
Don’t post your shared code publicly, as it can contain information about your network connection.
How to join a friend’s world in Hytale
Once your friend shares a share code, follow these steps to join their world:
- From the main menu, go to the Servers tab.
- Click “Join via Code.”
- Paste the share code your friend sent to you.
- Enter the password if one was set and not included.
- Click “Connect” and wait for Hytale to link you to their world.
Make sure the host is online. Hytale’s direct friend join system won’t work if they’ve closed the world or quit the game.
How to fix share code not being generated in Hytale
Sometimes the share code doesn’t appear when you enable online play. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can try:
- Enable UPnP on your router: Log into your router’s admin panel and turn on Universal Plug and Play (UPnP). This helps Hytale open the necessary ports automatically.
- Check for UPnP support: Some routers don’t support UPnP. If yours doesn’t, consider manual port forwarding or using alternate methods (like Tailscale).
- Deal with double NAT: If you have more than one router (e.g., a modem and a Wi-Fi router), enable UPnP on both or connect directly to the primary router.
- Allow Firewall access: Make sure Hytale is allowed through your system firewall for private and public networks.
- Manual Port Forwarding: Note the UDP port shown in Online Play, then forward it to your PC’s local IP in the router’s port forwarding section.
After applying any fix, return to the Online Play menu and click Save again to regenerate the share code.
How to host a dedicated server in Hytale
If you want a persistent world that remains online even when you’re not playing, you’ll need a dedicated server, either by self-hosting or renting one from a server provider.
Below are the “Launch Verified” hosting services officially recommended by Hypixel Studios:
If you’re planning to run your own dedicated server, the official Hytale Server Manual is a great place to start. You can also read our explainer on whether Hytale is coming to PS5 and Xbox for the latest updates on console support.
