Playing Luigi's Mansion 3 with a friend turns a solo spooky adventure into a highly engaging cooperative experience. While the game starts as a single-player journey, it quickly unlocks a seamless local co-op mode where a second player can take control of Gooigi. Understanding how to unlock this feature and configure your controllers ensures you and your partner can start clearing haunted rooms together right away.
Unlocking Gooigi for Story Mode Co-Op
Co-op play in Luigi's Mansion 3 is not available immediately when you start a new game file. You must first progress through the opening tutorial hours and rescue Professor E. Gadd to receive the Poltergust G-00 upgrades. Once Professor E. Gadd introduces Gooigi, the game permanently enables two-player co-op for the entire main story campaign.
After acquiring Gooigi, open the in-game menu by pressing the X button at any time. Select the Co-op option, which immediately allows a second player to drop in using a separate controller. Player one will continue guiding Luigi, while player two assumes full control over his gooey, green counterpart.
Setting Up Controllers and Co-Op Gameplay
The Nintendo Switch allows flexible controller options for local two-player sessions in Luigi's Mansion 3. You can choose to split a pair of Joy-Cons sideways, use two full Nintendo Switch Pro Controllers, or pair dual Joy-Con setups for both participants. Simply sync the preferred controllers in the system menu before activating the co-op feature in the game.
Gooigi plays a crucial role during exploration by slipping through iron gates, stepping over hazardous spikes, and lifting heavy objects alongside Luigi. However, Gooigi has lower maximum health and dissolves instantly upon touching water, requiring careful teamwork to solve tricky hotel puzzles. If Gooigi dissolves, player two can quickly respawn after a short cooldown without penalizing Luigi.
Exploring Party Multiplayer Modes
Beyond the primary story campaign, Luigi's Mansion 3 offers dedicated multiplayer party modes located at the ScareScraper and ScreamPark. The ScareScraper mode lets up to eight players team up online or via local wireless to clear floors of ghosts within a strict time limit. This mode demands active communication, as players must rescue trapped teammates and tackle powerful boss ghosts together.
ScreamPark provides competitive local minigames perfect for short gaming sessions with family and friends on a single console. Players split into teams of Luigi versus Gooigi to compete in ghost-hunting challenges, pool floatie races, and cannon target games. Utilizing these alternative multiplayer modes provides great variety whenever you want a break from the main story mansion progression.
