How to Fix Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 Crossplay Not Working: Step-by-Step Guide

If there is one thing that can instantly kill the mood in a co-op shooter, it is getting your squad together only to discover that the game refuses to let anyone actually play together. Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is built around four-player cooperation, so crossplay problems are more than a minor annoyance. They can completely derail a session before your squad even reaches the dropship.

The sequel from Cold Iron Studios and Daybreak Game Company expands the original formula with a four-player co-op structure and cross-platform multiplayer across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Steam, and the Epic Games Store. That sounds perfect on paper. In practice, some players have encountered matchmaking failures, broken invitation codes, infinite loading screens, unavailable multiplayer menus, and Public or Private matchmaking options that suddenly become greyed out.

I’ve seen enough multiplayer launches to know the drill: somebody changes five random router settings, somebody else reinstalls the entire game, and eventually the squad gives up and plays something else. Don’t do that just yet.

The good news is that most crossplay problems can be narrowed down to a handful of areas: in-game configuration, platform permissions, invitation handling, NAT behavior, local game files, or a stuck matchmaking session.

Here is the troubleshooting route I would use before reaching for the nuclear option.

Why Crossplay Can Break in Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2

Before changing settings, it helps to understand what is actually happening behind the scenes.

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 uses a hybrid multiplayer architecture with matchmaking services assisting players in finding sessions while gameplay connectivity can depend heavily on the participating host’s network environment. That means your connection quality is not determined exclusively by the game’s matchmaking service.

This is where things get messy.

A player with a restrictive firewall, Strict NAT, problematic router configuration, VPN, or poor regional routing can potentially become the weak link for the entire fireteam. The situation gets even more complicated when you mix ecosystems. A Steam player joining an Xbox or PlayStation player isn’t simply connecting two copies of the same PC client. Multiple platform networking and account systems have to cooperate.

That’s why one player can see the lobby perfectly while another gets “Multiplayer is Unavailable”, sits on an endless loading screen, or cannot accept an invitation.

Step 1: Check Every Crossplay Setting

This is the boring stuff, but don’t skip it. A single mismatched option can waste an entire evening.

Start by launching the game and entering the main hangar. Open Settings and find the relevant Team or Gameplay multiplayer options.

Make sure Crossplay is set to Enabled.

If it already says Enabled but cross-platform matchmaking still refuses to work, perform a proper toggle refresh:

1. Turn Crossplay Off.
2. Save the setting.
3. Exit the settings menu.
4. Open the menu again.
5. Turn Crossplay back On.
6. Save again.

It sounds almost laughably simple, but multiplayer clients sometimes fail to refresh configuration states correctly. A toggle refresh is much faster than reinstalling a 50+ GB game.

Next, check your Matchmaking status. It should be selectable as either Public or Private, depending on how you want to play.

If both options are greyed out, that’s a major clue. The client may have lost communication with the matchmaking or authorization backend. In that situation, don’t keep hammering the button. Completely close the game and launch it again.

Check Challenge Card Settings

If your squad is using Challenge Cards or similar session modifiers, make sure everyone’s preferences match.

For troubleshooting purposes, I recommend temporarily having every player use the same Challenge Card preference:

• Everyone has Challenge Cards enabled.
• Or everyone has them disabled.

You don’t want one player using a different multiplayer configuration while you’re trying to diagnose a crossplay connection.

Mission Progression Can Also Break Your Lobby

Here’s another easy one to overlook.

If the host selects a mission that another player hasn’t unlocked yet, the game may prevent that player from properly joining the activity.

This becomes particularly annoying when one member of the squad has rushed ahead through the campaign while another player is still working through earlier missions.

The safest approach is to have the player with the lower campaign progression host the session and select content that everyone has unlocked.

If you are trying to force a mission that one member hasn’t reached, the result can look like a networking failure even though the underlying problem is simply progression compatibility. A player may be removed from the session and replaced by an AI teammate.

Before blaming your router, make sure everyone can actually access the mission you’re attempting to launch.

Step 2: Check Xbox, PlayStation and PC Permissions

Crossplay doesn’t exist entirely inside the game. Your platform account can override what the game is allowed to do.

Xbox Series X/S

Xbox privacy settings are particularly important when multiplayer or cross-network play suddenly stops working.

Open the Xbox guide and navigate through:

Profile & System → Settings → Account → Privacy & Online Safety → Xbox Privacy → View Details & Customize → Communication & Multiplayer

Look for the option that controls whether you can join cross-network play.

Set it to Allow.

After changing the setting, restart the console. Don’t assume the game will immediately pick up the new permission while it is still running in the background.

If the account is managed through family settings, those restrictions may also need to be reviewed.

PlayStation 5

On PS5, check whether your PlayStation Network account has restrictions affecting multiplayer communication or cross-platform interaction.

This is particularly relevant for managed or restricted family accounts.

If invitations aren’t appearing correctly even though your account settings look fine, completely shut down the PS5 rather than simply putting it into Rest Mode.

You can also use the PS5’s Safe Mode maintenance options if you’re experiencing broader system-level issues. If the problem extends beyond Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, rebuilding the database may be worth considering.

I would not jump straight into system maintenance for a single game issue, though. Try the simpler fixes first.

Steam and Epic Games Store

PC players have another layer of potential headaches because Steam and Epic use different account and social infrastructures.

Make sure your relevant accounts are correctly linked where the game requires it, and confirm that your launcher actually shows you as Online.

Avoid testing crossplay while your launcher is set to:

• Invisible
• Offline
• Do Not Disturb
• Another status that blocks social interaction

If the game needs the launcher service to process an invitation, appearing offline is obviously not helping.

Step 3: Use the Crossplay Invite Code

When normal friend invitations fail, the manual invite code can be the cleaner solution.

The host should enter the hangar alone and open the Team section.

Look for the crossplay invitation option and generate a new invite code.

Then:

1. The host generates the code.
2. Send it directly to your teammate through voice chat or a messaging service.
3. The joining player opens the Team menu.
4. Selects Enter Invite Code.
5. Carefully enters the complete code.
6. Submits it.
7. The host then adds the player to the hangar group.

Don’t reuse an old code if you’ve already been fighting connection errors. Generate a fresh one.

And yes, manually typing an alphanumeric code while four people are yelling over Discord is exactly the kind of multiplayer ritual we’ve all endured. Slow down and double-check every character.

Step 4: Fix NAT and Router Problems

This is where things get much more serious.

Your NAT type determines how easily your device can communicate with other players.

If you’re seeing Strict NAT or something equivalent to NAT Type 3, cross-platform multiplayer can become significantly harder.

For a healthier multiplayer configuration, you generally want:

• Open NAT / Type 1 where applicable
• Moderate NAT / Type 2 as a practical alternative

Start by running your console’s built-in network test.

On PC, check Windows and router networking information for clues about NAT behavior.

Enable UPnP

If your router supports UPnP (Universal Plug and Play), enabling it is often the easiest first step.

UPnP allows applications and games to request the network mappings they need without requiring you to manually create every port rule.

After enabling it, restart the router and the gaming device before testing again.

Manual Port Forwarding

If UPnP doesn’t solve the problem, manual port forwarding may help.

The ports commonly associated with the relevant PC multiplayer services include:

TCP: 27015–27030, 27036

UDP: 4380, 27000–27031, 27036

Forwarding should be configured toward the correct local IP address of your gaming machine.

If you’re uncomfortable changing router settings, don’t randomly open a giant range of ports. That’s a great way to create a completely different headache.

Turn Off VPNs

If you’re using a VPN, disable it temporarily.

VPNs can introduce additional routing and packet encapsulation between you and the game session. That’s not necessarily a problem for every game, but it can absolutely make peer-to-peer multiplayer troubleshooting harder.

For testing, connect directly through your normal internet connection and try matchmaking again.

Step 5: Verify Your Game Installation

If your network is behaving normally but the game hangs whenever you join another player, local files become a reasonable suspect.

Steam

On Steam:

Library → Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 → Properties → Installed Files → Verify Integrity of Game Files

Let Steam complete the process.

If corrupted or missing files are discovered, Steam should download replacement data automatically.

This is worth doing after a major patch as well. Multiplayer problems sometimes appear after updates when one machine didn’t properly replace or validate every file.

Epic Games Store

Epic Games Store has its own verification function in the game’s management options. Run the equivalent file verification process and allow it to finish before launching the game again.

Don’t interrupt the process halfway through because it looks stuck. Give the launcher time to inspect the installation.

Keep Windows Updated

PC players should also make sure Windows and their graphics/network drivers are reasonably current.

The original article specifically recommends a fully updated Windows 11 environment. Rather than treating Windows 10 as automatically incompatible, I’d approach this practically: run a supported operating-system configuration, install pending updates, and avoid troubleshooting multiplayer on an outdated system first.

Step 6: Force the Game to Recheck for Updates

Console players should manually check for updates if a patch has recently been released.

Don’t assume your console downloaded everything correctly just because the game launches.

Find Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 on the dashboard, open its options menu, and select Check for Update.

A client running an older build can behave strangely when matchmaking servers have already moved to a newer version.

If one member of your squad has a different game build, crossplay troubleshooting is pointless until everyone is on the same version.

Step 7: Try the Matchmaking Reset Workaround

This is my favorite fix when the matchmaking UI appears completely haunted.

Sometimes a failed lobby leaves the client behaving as though you’re still connected to a previous session. The result is a bizarre state where Public matchmaking stops working, menu options become greyed out, or the game refuses to search for players.

Try this sequence:

1. Change matchmaking from Public to Private.
2. Move your character into another instanced area, such as the back of the dropship or a single-player/tutorial sequence.
3. Trigger the transition.
4. Cancel the activity or return to the main hangar.
5. Switch matchmaking from Private back to Public.
6. Attempt matchmaking again.

The idea is to force the client into a different session state and make it re-establish its matchmaking connection.

If it works, you can often get back into public matchmaking without rebooting your entire console or PC.

Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 PC Requirements: Minimum and Recommended PC Specs

The Best Order to Troubleshoot Crossplay

Don’t randomly change everything at once. That makes it impossible to figure out what actually fixed the problem.

I’d work through the fixes in this order:

1. Restart the game completely.
2. Confirm Crossplay is enabled for every player.
3. Check Public/Private matchmaking settings.
4. Make sure everyone can access the selected mission.
5. Verify platform privacy and cross-network permissions.
6. Generate a fresh crossplay invite code.
7. Check NAT type.
8. Enable UPnP if necessary.
9. Disable VPNs.
10. Verify PC game files.
11. Check for updates on every platform.
12. Perform the matchmaking reset workaround.

This order starts with the painless fixes and gradually moves toward network-level troubleshooting.

Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 Classes Guide: Every Class, Ability, and Loadout Explained

Final Thoughts

Crossplay problems are especially frustrating in Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 because the entire game is built around getting a squad together and surviving overwhelming numbers of Xenomorphs. The last thing you want is to spend 30 minutes fighting a matchmaking menu instead of fighting the hive.

The good news is that a greyed-out multiplayer option, failed invitation, infinite loading screen, or cross-platform connection error doesn’t automatically mean your installation is broken.

Start with the game’s own settings. Then check platform permissions, mission progression and invite codes. After that, investigate NAT, UPnP, router behavior and VPN interference. Finally, verify your files and use the matchmaking reset if the client appears stuck in a phantom session.

Don’t reinstall the game unless you’ve already exhausted the simpler options. In most cases, reinstalling is the gaming equivalent of hitting a fly with a sledgehammer.

Get the network layer behaving properly, get everyone on the same game version, generate a fresh invite, and your four-player Fireteam should be back where it belongs: dropping into the hive instead of staring at a loading screen.

How to Turn ON Crossplay on Your Xbox Series X|S & Xbox One