Hazard Levels Co-Op Guide: Crossplay, Crawls and Brewing

Four friends, one double-decker bus, and a rift that turns your teammate into a toilet halfway through a loot run. Hazard Levels co op is built around that kind of chaos, and now that the 1.0 release has landed with full crossplay, it's easier than ever to get your whole group into the same Crawl. This guide covers how the multiplayer works, how to run a Crawl as a squad, and which systems reward good teamwork.

How Co-Op Works in Hazard Levels

Hazard Levels is a physics-driven survival horror game for 1–4 players from Wales Interactive, the studio behind Sker Ritual. You can go in solo or bring up to three friends. Online co-op supports 2–4 players.

The essentials:

• Crossplay across every platform. The 1.0 launch on November 12, 2026 brought the game to Steam, Epic, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, and all of them can play together.
• Proximity voice chat. Your friends hear you only when you're close, so a teammate who wanders off goes quiet. That's exactly when you'll want them most.
• First or third person. The game supports both views. Third person helps you see what's crawling up behind you, and it's also the only way to admire your own outfit.
• Solo works offline. If your squad isn't online, you can launch and play alone without a connection. The game is balanced for anywhere from 1 to 4 players.

The game spent six months in Steam Early Access, starting April 30, 2026. During that time it moved from stealth horror toward the physics comedy it is now. Guns, a brewing system and several new trap rooms were all added before 1.0.

Platforms, Prices and Online Requirements

Image: Steam / Wales Interactive

Platform	Notes
PC (Steam, Epic)	Windows only; full controller support; in-game invites use Steam's invite system
PlayStation 5	PS Plus required for online play; free demo available (single player only)
Xbox Series X|S	Online co-op for 2–4 players; Xbox cross-platform co-op; Xbox achievements and cloud saves

The standard edition launched at $12.99. The Myths & Legends packs (Dragon, Unicorn, Minotaur, Kelpie and Kitsune) are cosmetic only, with masks, suits, scanner skins and voice lines, so nobody in your group falls behind by skipping them.

To play first, try the free demo on Steam or the Hazard Levels PlayStation Store page. You can find the full game on Steam as well.

Running a Crawl as a Squad

Every Crawl starts at The Fox Hole Arms, a British pub with The Family's secret R&D lab hidden underneath. You gear up on the double-decker bus and head into a procedurally generated rift. Each rift has new biomes, shifting layouts and randomized hazards. Here's how a run goes:

Image: www.walesinteractive.com

1. Load out on the bus. Grab your Gravity Gauntlet, a Rift Scanner and at least one Rift Stabilizer. The bus also stocks two weapon types: the revolver and the AKM. The AKM starts with 60 rounds.
2. Hit the quota. Pull ingredients and valuables back to the collector box. Use your ping so everyone can find the deposit point.
3. Scan for the next rift. Once the quota is complete, sweep with the scanner to find the dimensional anomaly. Then drop a stabilizer on it to tear the portal open.
4. Go deeper or go home. Each new dimension is stranger and more dangerous, and deeper rifts hold better loot.
5. Beat the collapse. When the rift starts collapsing, everyone has to make it back to the bus before the timer runs out. If you don't, the run is lost.

Squad tips that follow from how this works:

• Bring several stabilizers. You need one to open each new rift. If nobody has a spare, someone has to backtrack to the bus or pay for one at a supply station.
• Pick a scanner lead. The scanner can show you a path to the exit. Have one player call out directions during the collapse while the others carry loot.
• Stick together near rifts. Splitting up clears rooms faster, but players who wander into a different dimension get left behind. Proximity chat won't reach them.
• Expect Rift Surges. Since 1.0, surges can hit any rift at any time. Your heads might triple in size, floors can turn to ice, or the world can flip upside down. Laugh, then keep moving.

Handling Loot Without Wrecking It

The Gravity Gauntlet lets you grab, carry and throw objects. By default it holds two items at once. Physics matter a lot here:

Image: Steam / Wales Interactive

• Every bump costs money. Dropping an ingredient, throwing it, or slamming it into a doorframe lowers its value. One 6,200 cosmic apple loses 600 just from clipping a toilet.
• Assign a carrier for expensive pieces. Crystals, idols and rare plants should go to the steadiest player. Everyone else clears the path, holds doors and deals with monsters.
• Throw at monsters, not at friends. The Gauntlet was reworked so that throwing objects is a real combat option. Charge your throw for a harder hit; the outline color changes while you charge. Explosive barrels make great ammo.
• Smash shiny crates. Breaking crates and killing enemies can drop Power Ups. Some help the whole team, such as a team-wide heal or a short burst of infinite ammo.

Banked money is individual, so you each earn and spend your own cash. Agree on who buys the shared essentials, like stabilizers, before you leave the bus.

Perk Cocktails: Buffs, Pranks and Revives

The brewing system turns your haul into more than cash. Open the hidden door by the cash register to reach Brewdragon's Secret Brewery. At the Brewing Station you can research recipes, fill orders and brew from a list of over 70 cocktails. Completing order ledgers levels up perk drinks so they're more useful on future Crawls.

Drinks worth knowing about in a group:

• Coffin Dodger revives you three seconds after death. Drink it before things get dangerous. Simply carrying it in your inventory won't save you.
• Teenie Weenie shrinks the drinker. Teammates can then pick them up with the Gauntlet and throw them.
• Magnetonic pulls items toward you from up to 5m away for 20 seconds, with no limit on how many items it pulls. It's ideal for your loot carrier.
• R.A.D.S gives you a toxic aura that damages nearby enemies.
• Shapeshifter turns you into a prop, such as a barrel, a pickle or a football. Use it to hide from things you can't fight.

Since 1.0, every perk cocktail can be thrown at another player to give them its effect. You can heal a downed friend from across the room, or turn them into a toilet. Use that power responsibly. Or don't.

Creatures That Punish Sloppy Teamwork

Creature	What it does	Squad answer
Kevin	Grabs you with his tongue and steals gear, drinks, snacks and 20%–50% of your money	Keep him off your loot carrier; focus fire on him fast
Wizard	Transforms players into gnomes; his name glows above him	Shoot him on sight. He can summon allies
The Phantom	Inverts your controls on contact	Call it out over prox chat so no one bumps into it
Tilly	A "lost child" hiding a knife in her trench coat	Don't approach. Run or shoot
Flying Apex	A mutated shark in the Aquarium that bites and spits whirlpools	Keep your distance and use guns
Spider	Webs root you in place	Have a teammate cover anyone who gets webbed

Trap rooms are just as dangerous: crushing pillars, laser barriers, rotating fire traps, swinging hammers and electrified floors. Send one player through first to learn the timing, then pass loot across instead of everyone running the gauntlet with their arms full.

Progression Between Crawls

Back at the pub, you have plenty to spend money on between runs:

• Bar snacks boost your stats for the session, and each has five upgrade levels: Iron-Hide Pork Rinds (+HP), Hoarder's Pickled Rings (extra slot), Sharp-Tongue Zappers (stamina), Bull-Rush Beef Strips (speed) and Steady-On Nuts (stamina regen). If you die during a Crawl, you lose the snack's benefit and have to buy it again.
• Upgrade station: spend your earnings to upgrade gear such as the Gravity Gauntlet, which lets it carry more items. The upgrade applies to the item in your hand, so if you drop it, the upgrade is gone. Hold on to upgraded gear.
• Challenge Room: complete challenges during Crawls to unlock cosmetics, many of them inspired by the team's favorite movies. 25 Steam achievements reflect the Challenges, and the game's full list of 45 achievements includes Rift Amateur, Rift Pro, Rift Champion and Gnome Dunk.
• New in 1.0: a Post Summary Screen after every Crawl, Landlord missions from the pig in the corner, and a Rift Bestiary hidden somewhere in the pub where you can study every creature you've met.

If someone in your group is brand new, 1.0's integrated tutorial and extra in-level signage will get them through their first Crawl without too much hand-holding from you.

FAQ

Does Hazard Levels have crossplay?

Yes. Since the 1.0 launch, players on Steam, Epic, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S can all play together in the same lobby.

Can I play Hazard Levels alone or offline?

Yes. Solo play works offline, and the game is balanced for 1–4 players.

Do I need a subscription for online co-op on PS5?

Yes. PS5 requires PS Plus for online play.

Why is the game running at 30 FPS on my powerful PC?

Go to Options > Graphic Options and set Fullscreen to Fullscreen. If the game crashes on launch or the cursor doesn't show, unplug any extra USB controllers or devices.