I still remember the first time I tried to team up with my cousin in No Man’s Sky. He was playing on a PS5, I was on PC, and I spent 20 minutes clicking through every menu I could find before I finally stumbled on the right way to send him a friend request. If you’ve ever stared at your screen confused about how to add No Man's Sky friend, you’re not alone. The game’s menu system can be a little overwhelming at first, especially with cross-platform play mixing platform-specific and in-game friend systems. This guide breaks down every step you need to know, plus fixes for common issues that might stop you from joining your friends’ sessions.
How to Add No Man’s Sky Friends Across All Platforms
The easiest way to add friends no matter what platform they play on is to use your in-game Hello Games Friend Code, instead of relying on platform-specific usernames. Before you get started, make sure you have these four things sorted to avoid headaches later:
- An active internet connection, even if you’re playing on the same local network as your friend
- Your friend’s Hello Games Friend Code, or their platform-specific username if you both play on the same hardware
- Both players must have the latest game patch installed to avoid version mismatch errors
- Cross-platform play enabled in your game settings (it’s turned on by default, but it’s worth double-checking if you’ve adjusted your privacy settings before)
To send a friend request, open the main menu and navigate to the “Network” tab. From there, select “Friends” and then “Add Friend”. You can either paste in their Hello Games Friend Code, or search for their platform username if you’re both on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, or Switch. Once they accept the request, they’ll show up in your in-game friends list permanently, so you don’t have to re-add them every time you launch the game. If you play across multiple devices yourself, your friends list will sync across all platforms you play on, as long as you’re signed into the same Hello Games account.
Troubleshooting Common Friend Request Issues
Even if you follow all the steps correctly, you might run into issues sending or receiving friend requests. Most of these problems have simple fixes, and you don’t need any technical expertise to sort them out. The most common issue I see is friend requests not showing up in the in-game list, even after the other person says they sent it. This almost always comes down to platform privacy settings blocking requests from players outside your platform’s friend list.
To fix that, head to your console or PC platform’s privacy settings and make sure you allow friend requests from all users, or at least from users you’re trying to play with. If you’re playing on PC, your firewall or antivirus software might also be blocking No Man’s Sky from accessing your friends list, so try adding the game to your allowed apps list if requests still aren’t coming through. Another quick fix is to restart your game completely if your friends list isn’t syncing – I’ve had this happen a dozen times after a new patch drops, and a quick restart always fixes it.
Best Practices for Playing Co-Op With Your No Man’s Sky Friends
Once you’ve added your friends, you can join their sessions directly from the friends list with one click, but there are a few tips that will make your co-op experience way smoother. First, set a shared waypoint as soon as you join their game, so you don’t get lost if you split up to explore different parts of the planet. No Man’s Sky’s map is huge, and it’s really easy to wander off and get stranded thousands of units away from your group if you don’t mark your meeting spot.
You should also turn off friendly fire in your network settings if you’re new to playing together. I learned this the hard way when my friend accidentally blew up my newly built exocraft with a plasma launcher while we were fighting sentinels, and I had to spend an hour rebuilding it. If you’re working through story missions together, make sure you sync your mission progress before you start, so everyone in the group gets credit for completing objectives. If you don’t sync, only the host will get the mission rewards, and you’ll have to redo the whole thing when you go back to your solo session. It’s also fun to set shared goals, like building a joint base or taking down a rare giant creature together, to make your play sessions feel more cohesive.
How to Remove or Block No Man’s Sky Friends If Needed
Most of the time, playing with other people in No Man’s Sky is a ton of fun, but occasionally you might run into someone who griefs your base or makes your sessions less enjoyable. Removing or blocking someone from your friends list is really simple, and you don’t have to leave your game to do it. Just head back to the Network tab, open your friends list, select the user you want to remove, and choose the “Remove Friend” option.
If someone is being actively toxic or repeatedly joining your session without permission, you can select the “Block User” option instead. Blocking a user in-game also blocks them across all Hello Games titles, so you won’t have to worry about them contacting you in any other Hello Games games you play. Don’t worry about losing any shared builds if you remove someone – any bases you built together will stay intact, they just won’t be able to access your private sessions anymore. You can also adjust your session settings to “Friends Only” at any time if you don’t want random players joining your game.
Once you know how to add No Man's Sky friend, the entire game feels like a completely different experience. Exploring uncharted planets, building massive bases, and taking on high-level expeditions is way more fun when you have people to share it with. I now play with a small group of friends every weekend, and we’ve built an entire planetary colony with farms, trade posts, and a fleet of starships that we’ve been working on for months. Don’t let the confusing menu system stop you from teaming up with other players – with the steps above, you’ll be exploring together in no time.
