Game invitations and local multiplayer

In the Stadia menu, you can invite other players to play online multiplayer games with you, or manage the game invites you receive. You can also link multiple Stadia Controllers to the same device to play local multiplayer games with other players in the same room.

Note: To get push notifications on your mobile device when someone invites you to a game, go to your notifications settings in the Stadia app .

Invite a player to a game

On your TV

1. Launch the game you want to play online with someone else.
2. Open the Stadia menu.
   • On your Stadia Controller, press the Stadia button .
   • On Google TV or Android TV, you can also press the Home button on a connected Bluetooth® controller.
3. Scroll through your friends list or "Recently played with" list and select the player you want to invite.
4. On the player's profile, select Invite to play.

On stadia.com

1. Launch the game you want to play online with someone else.
2. Open the Stadia menu.
   • On your Stadia Controller, press the Stadia button .
   • On a computer keyboard, press Shift + Tab.
3. Scroll through your friends list or "Recently played with" list and select the player you want to invite.
4. At the top of the chat window, select the player's name again.
5. On the player's profile, select Invite to game.

In the Stadia app

1. Launch the game you want to play online with someone else.
2. Open the Stadia menu.
   • On your Stadia Controller, press the Stadia button .
   • On the touch gamepad, tap the Stadia button .
3. Under "Friends", select the player you want to invite.
4. At the top of the chat window, select the player's name again.
5. On the player's profile, select Invite to game.

Use a game link to invite players in your web browser

When you play a game in a Chrome browser on stadia.com, you can share a link with your friends that lets them join you in the game.

Note: This option is currently unavailable in the Stadia app .

1. On a computer with Google Chrome, sign into your account on stadia.com.
2. Launch the game you want to play with a friend.
3. Open the Stadia menu.
   • On your Stadia Controller, press the Stadia button .
   • On your computer keyboard, press Shift + Tab.
4. At the top of the menu, select your Stadia name.
5. Select Game invite link Copy game link.
6. On your computer keyboard, hold down the Esc key to exit full screen mode.
7. Paste the link where your friends can find it.
8. To return to the game, go to the Stadia tab in your browser and select Back to game.

Note: If you invite players to join a game that doesn't have an online multiplayer mode, they'll receive an error message after they accept your invitation.

Manage the game invites you receive

You can find game invites in the Stadia menu and on your Friends list. If you receive an invite on a mobile device, you can only accept it if the device supports Stadia gameplay.

When you receive a game invite, you can accept or decline it:

On your TV or on stadia.com

1. Open the Stadia menu.
   • On your Stadia Controller, press the Stadia button .
   • On a computer keyboard, press Shift + Tab.
   • On Google TV or Android TV, you can also press the Home button on a connected Bluetooth controller.
2. Under your Stadia name, select the game invite.
3. Select Dismiss or Join.

Note: Until you select an option, the invite remains in your menu. If you're already playing a game and accept an invite from a different game, you'll exit your current game. If the game isn't in your library, you won't be able to accept the invitation unless you purchase the game and repeat the above steps.

On your mobile device

1. On your mobile device, open the Stadia app .
2. At the top right, tap Friends .
3. Under "Friends", tap the game invite you received and select Dismiss or Accept.

Note: Until you select an option, the invite remains in your menu. If you're already playing a game and accept an invite from a different game, you'll exit your current game. If the game isn't in your library, you won't be able to accept the invitation unless you purchase the game and repeat the above steps.

Manage multiple invites

1. Open the Stadia menu.
   • On your Stadia Controller, press the Stadia button .
   • On a computer keyboard, press Shift + Tab.
   • On Google TV or Android TV, you can also press the Home button on a connected Bluetooth controller.
2. Under your Stadia name, select the notification with a bell icon next to it.
3. Under "Game invites", select the invitation you want to manage.
4. Choose Dismiss or Join. Until you choose one of these options, the invite will remain in your menu.
   • In the Stadia app , choose Dismiss or Accept.

Note: If you're currently playing a game and accept an invite from a different game, you will exit your current game.

Privacy and blocked players

In your Privacy settings, you can choose who can send you invites:

• All players
• Friends
• Friends & their friends
• Private (no one)

If you have trouble receiving game invites, check this setting first.

If you block a player, they won't be able to invite you to games. You can still find blocked players in games you've been invited to. However, they won't be able to hear you if you use a microphone to speak in voice chat.

Local multiplayer

To play games on Stadia that support local multiplayer, link multiple Stadia Controllers to a screen using the same linking code. If you have Google TV or Android TV, you can also connect multiple Bluetooth controllers.

BLUETOOTH is a registered trademark of Bluetooth SIG, Inc.