Yes, you can play Bodycam with friends, but not through matchmaking: one player invites the others to their lobby and creates a match in the Custom tab, or everyone joins the same server from the Server Browser separately. Quick Play and the Server Browser are solo-only until Reissad Studio’s new Party System arrives, and as of the latest patch it is still in development with no release date.
Below: where the Party System stands, both ways to play together today step by step, how hosting works, the Wingman catch for duos, bots, crossplay, and what to try when you and a friend cannot find each other.
Bodycam With Friends at a Glance
| Question | Answer right now |
|---|---|
| Can you play with friends? | Yes, through a Custom match or the same server |
| Can you party up and queue together? | No, the Party System is still in development |
| Quick Play and Server Browser | Solo only for now |
| Wingman (2v2) as a duo | No, solo queue only for now |
| Do private lobbies give Reissad Points? | Yes, at 50% of the standard rate |
| Crossplay | Nothing to cross: Bodycam is PC only, on Steam |
| Bots in private games | Yes |
Updated October 13, 2026: we rechecked every Bodycam announcement on Steam through patch notes V0.8 #6 (September 25), the latest as of today. The Party System is still not live, and Reissad Studio now says a first version will go to an experimental branch for testing before release. We added the hosting, bots, crossplay and troubleshooting answers players ask about.
Where the Party System Stands
Reissad Studio’s v0.8 “Locked and Loaded” announcement (September 2, 2026) was blunt about it: the Party System “will not be included in this update” because it “is not stable enough to release while player connectivity continues to evolve.” The same note gives the official workaround: “For now, Quick Play and the Server Browser can only be used solo. To play with friends, create a game together using the ‘Custom’ tab or join the same server separately.”
Patch #1 the next day listed what the finished Party System will do:
- Invite friends to your group.
- Queue for matchmaking together across all game modes.
- Join ongoing matches directly from the Server Browser.
Patch #5 (September 18) explained the delay: the system “is being rebuilt on top of a new connectivity layer, and that rework also has implications for the anti-cheat.” Then patch #6 (September 25) said the Party System “isn’t ready yet, but it’s going well,” that internal tests “look better than last week,” and that the plan is to “get a first version we’re happy with internally, then put it on an experimental branch so you can stress test it.” The studio also called #6 “likely the last v0.8 patch” for a while, with a minor or intermediate update next. No date has been given. Our news stories on patch #5 and patch #6 cover both sets of notes in full.
How to Invite Friends to Your Lobby
Since v0.8, Bodycam’s main menu is the Lobby, an explorable hub built around a shooting range, and the v0.8 notes say it has its own Social tab. That is where the group starts. Reissad’s patch #1 wording for playing together today is to invite friends “to your lobby and creating a custom match,” so:
- Open the Social tab in your Lobby and invite your friends from it.
- Once they are in, test your loadouts on the range together if you like. Players are invulnerable in the Lobby, per the v0.8 notes, so it is a practice space, not a place to fight each other.
- Create the match from the Custom tab, as below.
Method 1: Host a Custom Match
This is the reliable way for a group to play together right now.
- One player opens the play menu in the Lobby and picks the Custom tab. Since v0.8, menus live on an in-game tablet, and the settings let you switch the interface to full screen if the tablet view is hard to read.
- The host chooses the mode, map and settings and creates the game.
- The host invites friends to the lobby, or friends join the created game. Reissad’s own wording in patch #1: “you can still play with friends by inviting them to your lobby and creating a custom match.”
- Start the match and play together.
Who should host? Whoever has the most stable connection. Reissad’s notes state that “Bodycam’s multiplayer runs peer to peer, which means the quality of your match depends directly on the connection between players,” so the host’s internet matters to everyone.
What if the host leaves? v0.8 added Host Migration. When the host disconnects, a new host is picked based on ping, and the match tries to restart from its latest state within a maximum of five seconds. Player positions, magazine ammo, kills, deaths, dropped weapons and even bot states can be restored. The one exception: once a match has ended, migration no longer applies, and everyone returns to the Lobby if the host quits.
Do you still earn progress? Yes, at a reduced rate. Patch #3 (September 8) restored currency in private lobbies “allowing players to progress while playing with friends or bots,” at 50% of the standard rate, so public matches stay the faster path. Our Reissad Points guide explains what that currency unlocks.
Method 2: Join the Same Server Separately
For public matches with strangers, coordinate in voice chat, pick a server in the Server Browser with enough open slots for your whole group, and have everyone join it individually. Join quickly: if the server fills while you are still picking, the last friend gets left out and you all start over.
Two details help. Patch #6 fixed “player count refresh inconsistencies in the server browser UI,” so if you and a friend see different player counts, refresh the list before giving up. And Wingman is different: Reissad’s notes say Wingman “matches cannot be joined once they are in progress.”
The Wingman Catch for Duos
Wingman, the 2v2 mode that replaced Bodybomb in v0.8, is now the only mode where ranks and ELO are earned. It is also, for now, solo queue only. The v0.8 notes say Wingman “is for now only available for solo queues, due to technical reasons, duo-queue will be enabled asap.” No patch through #6 has switched duo queue on, so the one mode built for a pair still cannot be queued as one.
If you and a friend just want to play each other or practice together, a Custom match is the way: the host picks the mode and map. Reissad has not published which team sizes each mode allows in a Custom game, so a 1v1 or a game with you both on the same side depends on the options the Custom tab shows for the mode you pick.
Crossplay, Consoles and Controllers
There is no crossplay to worry about, because Bodycam is only on Windows PC through Steam. No PS5 or Xbox version has been announced; our console guide tracks the rumors and why they keep coming back. Every friend you play with needs their own copy on Steam.
Controllers work, with a caveat. Steam lists full controller and DualSense support, but the v0.8 notes describe gamepad support as “playable but still rough around the edges.” Voice chat was rebuilt in v0.8 through Epic Online Services, so you can talk in game, though a separate voice app is handy while you set up a Custom lobby.
When You Cannot Find or Join Each Other
Two problems come up again and again: a friend who sees a different server list, and a “connection failed” error when joining. Here is what the official notes support:
- Update first. Everyone in the group should be on the same, latest build. Steam updates Bodycam automatically, but a pending update can leave one friend on an older version.
- Refresh the Server Browser. The player count fix in patch #6 targeted exactly the “my friend sees different numbers” problem.
- Swap hosts. Because matches are peer to peer, a “connection failed” error when joining one friend can disappear when someone else hosts.
- Check the Steam login. Patch #1 added “a clear error message when the game cannot log in through Steam.” Previously that showed up as a black screen, and a friend stuck there cannot join anyone.
If the game itself will not start for someone, our crash and launch fixes cover that, and our best settings guide helps the friend whose frame rate drags the group down.
Why It Works Like This
Bodycam is an Early Access game from a small French studio, built on peer-to-peer networking, and v0.8 rebuilt most of the game at once: a new interface, a new progression economy, Wingman, Host Migration, and critical multiplayer code moved from Blueprints to C++. Six fix patches followed between September 3 and September 25. The Party System sits behind a new connectivity layer and the anti-cheat work, which is why the studio is holding it for an experimental branch rather than rushing it out. Every other Bodycam guide is on our Bodycam hub.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you play Bodycam with friends? Yes. Create a game together in the Custom tab, or join the same server separately from the Server Browser. Quick Play and the Server Browser cannot group you yet.
Can you party up and queue together in Bodycam? Not yet. The Party System, which will let you invite friends, queue together in every mode and join matches from the Server Browser, is still in development, and Reissad plans to test it on an experimental branch first.
How do you invite a friend in Bodycam? Invite them to your Lobby from its Social tab, then create a game in the Custom tab. Reissad’s notes describe exactly that route while the Party System is in development.
How do you invite friends to the shooting range in Bodycam? The shooting range is part of the Lobby, the hub that replaced the main menu in v0.8, so inviting friends to your lobby brings them to it. Players cannot hurt each other there.
Can you 1v1 a friend or be on the same team in Bodycam? Only through a Custom match, where the host picks the mode and map. Reissad has not published team sizes or team selection options for Custom games, and public matches cannot group you yet.
How do you host a match in Bodycam? Create a game in the Custom tab. The player who creates it hosts, and because matches are peer to peer, the friend with the best connection should be the one to do it.
Do private lobbies give Reissad Points in Bodycam? Yes, at 50% of the standard rate since patch #3 on September 8, 2026, whether you play with friends or bots.
Can you play Bodycam with bots? Yes, in a private game. Reissad’s notes mention progressing “while playing with friends or bots,” and Host Migration rebuilds bot states if the host leaves.
Is Bodycam crossplay? No. Bodycam is only on PC through Steam, so there are no console players to cross over with, and no console version has been announced.
Can you play Bodycam Zombies with friends? Not right now. Zombies was disabled in v0.8, and Reissad says it returns for Halloween, potentially with new content. Our Zombies guide tracks its return.
Can you play Wingman with a friend? Not as a queued duo yet. Wingman is solo queue only “due to technical reasons,” and Reissad says duo queue will be enabled “asap.”