Nioh 3 can get be pretty tough, especially once you find yourself facing a particularly nasty boss, or if you're in a mission filled to the brim with powerful enemies. There are plenty of ways to make these challenges easier, but perhaps the best way to bypass these hurdles is to play in co-op, either with real people or their AI-controlled ghosts.
Nioh 3 becomes a completely different game when you're with a bunch of your buddies, and you can get rewards from helping other people even if you aren't physically there to assist them. Here's how to set these multiplayer sessions up.
Nioh 3: How to Get & Use Character Creator Codes
Nioh 3 features an expansive character creator where players can either design their own character or use a Character Creator Code to import designs.
How to Play Multiplayer in Nioh 3
There are two ways to play multiplayer in Nioh 3: you can either summon or become a Visitor, or join someone's world via Expeditions. Both of these will have you playing with other players, but they're a little different in how they work.
Either way, you can initiate co-op matchmaking by going to any Shrine and selecting the Co-Op option. Here, you'll get to pick which of the two multiplayer types you want to participate in, as well as set any additional parameters that you might want to add.
Nioh 3 Visitor System, Explained
In Nioh 3's Visitor matchmaking, you can either call people to you, or go to someone who is calling for help. Visitors have a golden glow around them, and they can only be summoned during a mission. Also, they won't be able to open any chests or other interactibles.
To summon a Visitor, you need Ochoko Cups, which you can get as loot in the world or as rewards by acting as a Visitor yourself. At the end of a successful mission, you'll receive additional rewards, including gear, Glory, and Amrita. There is no cost to becoming a Visitor.
How to Place Benevolent Graves
Benevolent Graves are the blue grave swords you can find in the world that summon friendly NPCs to help you fight. You can place your own by getting and using Righteous Jaspers, which you can get either by helping players as a Visitor, or by checking out the Sudama merchant in the Eternal Rift and seeing if they're selling any.
Nioh 3 Expeditions, Explained
Expeditions mode plays a little differently compared to Visitor mode. Here, each player has a higher degree of freedom when it comes to interacting with things like Shrines, chests, and collectibles. Downed players can revive themselves or be revived by other companions when they get defeated in Expedition mode, but doing so will reduce the team's shared Assist Gauge, which acts sort of like a health bar. When the Assist Gauge is depleted, the Expedition fails.
There are two kinds of Expeditions, and each has its own rules and restrictions.
Expedition Story Mode
Story Mode is essentially a freeplay exploration mode where up to three players can roam around the host player's world. They can collect chests, interact with collectibles like Kodamas and Scampusses, but any story progress will be tied to the host only (though companions can still help the host with their story quests).
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Expedition Mission Mode
Mission mode is restricted to completed missions and unlocked sub-missions only, such as Crucible Manifested, where players fight Jakotsu-Baba early in the story. Players can only host an Expedition Mission lobby after a quest becomes available to them. Likewise, you cannont join lobbies set in quests that you personally don't have access to yet.
Companions can only be healed by Shrines once. Praying at Shrines will not respawn enemies while in Expedition Mission mode.
Which Co-Op Mode Should You Pick?
- If all you want is someone who can help you fight stuff, call a Visitor, or be a Visitor yourself.
- If you want to explore Nioh 3's open maps with friends, choose Expedition Story mode.
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If you want to farm missions or complete sub-missions with friends, choose Expedition Mission mode.
- Expedition Mission mode also rewards you with loot and resources at the end of a successful run, as if you were playing as a Visitor. Both are excellent sources of Amrita as well.
Nioh 3
- Released
- February 6, 2026
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Suggestive Themes, Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Koei Tecmo
- Publisher(s)
- Koei Tecmo
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Franchise
- Nioh
- Number of Players
- 1-3 players (online)
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Unknown
- PC Release Date
- February 6, 2026
- PS5 Release Date
- February 6, 2026
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PC
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
