Private Lobby Guide — Invite Friends & Host Settings
Create servers, invite Steam friends, public vs private rooms, and player counts — sourced from the Steam store page and community multiplayer guides.
Can You Play Solo?
No. MECCHA CHAMELEON is online multiplayer only — no single-player mode, no AI bots, no offline play per Steam store description and community FAQ aggregators. You need real players and an internet connection. Minimum functional lobby is two players; the developer recommends 2–10 for stable sessions. Wikipedia notes technical support for higher counts depending on host network, but quality drops as lobbies grow.
How to Create a Private Lobby
From the multiplayer menu: Create Server → set a recognizable, unique server name (avoid generic names like "Hide and Seek") → optional password for private sessions → pick official or workshop map (ensure all friends subscribed to workshop maps). Host on wired Ethernet when possible — Destructoid notes if the host disconnects, the session ends immediately.
How to Invite Friends
Fastest path reported by community guides: Esc → Friends List → invite Steam friends directly. Friends can also open Find Server, enable Search Public Servers, and join by your unique server name. Keep Steam Overlay enabled (Steam → Settings → In-Game) — overlay supports invites and lobby communication. After map, password, or privacy changes, recreate the room and send fresh invites — stale invites break.
Public vs Private Servers
Steam store: if a server is not set to private, anyone can join — streamers use this for viewer participation. Private rooms use passwords or friend-only invites for learning sessions and groups that do not want random joiners mid-prep. After patch v1.1.0, in-progress games may not appear in public search — empty browser does not always mean broken multiplayer.
Best Player Count for Friend Groups
Steam recommends 2–10 players; maximum depends on host network environment. Destructoid: no fixed hard cap but recommended 2–10 for session quality. Community consensus cited on FAQ sites: 4–8 players most balanced for Normal mode; 3–6 ideal for learning paint mechanics without every seeker ceiling-checking instantly; 6–10 suits Infection/Double modes. Streamer lobbies should explain rules before sharing passwords on stream.
When Steam Invites Fail
2UpSkill and multiple Steam threads report invite bugs (black screen, auth failure). Workaround: skip Steam invites — host creates room with unique name, friends join via in-game server browser. Some players join any public server for ~10 seconds, leave, refresh search, then find private rooms. See our Can't Join Lobby fix guide for version mismatch and workshop steps.
Stable Host Checklist
Pick one host for the night. Everyone on same game version (restart Steam after updates). Match Steam download regions if friends are in different countries. Test with two-player private room on Mansion before workshop maps. Avoid mid-session host migration unless connection fails.