In State of Decay 2 you control a group of zombie apocalypse survivors hunting for shelter and resources, as you battle your way through the ruins of civilization. In the latest installment, you can play in co-op with up to three additional friends, but there has been some confusion about how co-operative play works. Like many co-op games, when you join the host's game you'll be helping to progress their base and their story, but that doesn't mean you'll miss out on loot and other items. Here's how co-op works in State of Decay 2.

Player tethering

State of Decay 2 won't allow co-op players in a shared world to roam freely. Instead, for performance reasons, you will be tethered to the host as you move around the game's sizable open world. This is similar to other co-operative games such as Far Cry 5. Best VPN providers 2020: Learn about ExpressVPN, NordVPN & more In our hands-on session with the game, we didn't find the tethering range to be restrictive, or even noticeable, as you work together to plunder the haunted ruins of zombie-infested America. You can't go running off in different directions to do separate excursions, however. When you drive a significant distance away from your friends, they will "hitch a ride" towards you. The distance feels generous enough that most co-op players shouldn't really notice it. You're there to help out, mainly. Progression and loot sharing

When you join a friend's session, you are effectively playing as a survivor within their game. It's their base, their survivor community, and their story progression. State of Decay 2 is a bit divergent in the sense that it doesn't feature a linear story, instead spawning progressive narrative events based on your decisions and growth. What you will gain from helping a friend, however, is influence points, which is a resource needed for base building and other actions, generated by successful activities. Additionally, any loot you acquire on your travels in your friend's game will be taken back to your own personal base. Players will be able to drop items on the floor as well, for others to pick up, use, and keep. You will be able to access your pool of supplies and gear from your personal progression from your friend's game, via their bases and outposts. Achievement progress will also be shared when you're inside a multiplayer game. Additionally, you build up special rewards the longer you remain in a friend's game, which will be delivered to your supply cache when you return to single player. Communication and death