Can You Play MultiVersus Offline?

MultiVersus is back, after nearly a year away, letting you play as one of several ridiculous characters, from The Matrix‘s Agent Smith though to Scooby Doo‘s Shaggy. But while much has been made of its multiplayer, can you also play MultiVersus offline?

Can You Play MultiVersus Offline?

You cannot play MultiVersus offline. When you launch it, you have one button that says “Enter MultiVersus.” There’s no option to play locally or offline, nothing at all. All you can do is click that button.

Click the button, and the game contacts the MultiVersus servers, at which point you’re able to access the normal menu, complete with the various game modes. But if you try to “Enter Multiversus” offline, you get the message:

“Unable to authenticate. Try again later.”

Try clicking/pressing again, and you’re brought back to that same menu. Playing on the PlayStation 5, I tried disconnecting my internet when I was on the main menu, not even in a match, and the game just crashed.

Related: Is MultiVersus Crossplay or Cross-Platform?

Does MultiVersus Have Local & Single Player Play?

MultiVersus does, however, have single-player and local play. The default mode is 1v1, but you can choose from one of several modes, including local mode. In that mode, you can play locally against other players on the same console or PC.

On top of that, you can also add bots to a game, which is excellent for practicing your platform-fighting skills. In short, if you want some single-player MultiVersus, go right ahead – as long as you’re online.

It doesn’t exactly make sense to have a local mode and force players to be online, at least from the players’ perspective. But WB Games will be counting on MultiVersus to make some serious money, and keeping players engaged with live events and other FOMO-heavy features is likely part of the strategy.

So the answer to whether you can play MultiVersus offline is no. Even if you’re playing locally, you still need an internet connection.

MultiVersus is available now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.