Obsidian Entertainment's survival game and 'Honey I Shrunk The Kids' tribute Grounded has been a roaring success, and it's easy to see why. Aside from the nostalgic premise, the developer's trademark snappy writing, and engaging building mechanics, the game is perfect for cooperative play.

In Grounded, players take the role of kids who have been shrunk to miniature size, and must survive their backyard's wildlife while searching for parts to repair their shrinking machine. They have to balance combat, gathering resources, building bases, crafting equipment, and exploring the map. While it's possible to play solo, the game becomes much more manageable in co-op mode. Many hands make quick work, after all. And when they're face to face with one of Grounded's spiders, players will need some moral support.

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But if co-op is a core feature, it begs the question: How easily can players connect with each other? Is it as easy as pick-up-and-play couch co-op? What about players without a good internet connection?

Does Grounded Have Split-Screen?

Unfortunately,  Grounded does not have local split-screen co-op right now. In order to play together, each player needs a copy of the game on their own machine and all players have to connect online. The game supports cross-play between consoles and PC, so there's no need to get everyone on the same version, but fans still may find this disappointing.

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It may not stay this way forever. Grounded is still in early access, and Obsidian Entertainment has promised that each of Grounded's updates will have meaningful changes. It's possible that players will see local co-op added in the future. But right now, Obsidian's priorities seem elsewhere.

The latest updates have been focused on adding more areas, enemies, tools, and building features. Obsidian did throw Grounded's solo players a bone with trainable pets in the Shroom and Doom update. People who can't play online can still get a helping hand.

It's understandable why there's no local co-op yet. Split-screen can be resource-intensive. The game has to render everything twice, after all. If it does arrive, it'll be when the game is closer to feature complete, and the developers can focus more on optimization. In the meantime, Grounded has a very active online player-base. It shouldn't be too hard to find someone else to play with. But the game is still a perfect fit for split-screen co-op, and it should be made an eventual priority.

Grounded is out now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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