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How to Play Ocarina of Time Multiplayer With Friends

Ocarina of Time has no built-in multiplayer in Ship of Harkinian, but community projects offer online play and experimental local co-op.
Length4 min Posted Quest giverVGSources Team
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Yes, but not through an official built-in multiplayer mode. The most practical online route is the PC port Ship of Harkinian paired with the separate community project Anchor. For local co-op on one PC, an experimental fork called OOT True Coop offers a more involved option. Both routes require you to provide your own legally obtained game data.

Choose the route that fits how you want to play

Route Play style What to expect
Ship of Harkinian + Anchor Online co-op Anchor is a separate multiplayer layer. Its project page describes players joining a room, loading remote save-state data, and sharing item and flag updates. Clients use a public relay by default. Anchor project
OOT True Coop Two players on one PC An experimental fork designed for two game instances and two controllers, with shared enemy health and synchronized enemy and boss behavior. It must be built from source and has documented limitations. OOT True Coop project
Shipwright-MP Direct-IP hosting and joining An unofficial experimental source snapshot documents host and join controls, but its own README says it was not successfully compiled or gameplay-tested in its packaging environment. It is not a verified beginner-friendly option. Shipwright-MP project

For most people looking to play online, start by checking Ship of Harkinian and Anchor. The projects are independent, so compatible versions and installation details can change; confirm current instructions in each project’s own documentation rather than assuming every tutorial still applies.

What you need before setting up multiplayer

  • A compatible Ship of Harkinian build for your platform. Its official setup guide provides the Windows route; consult the project’s current documentation for other platforms.
  • A legally obtained copy of Ocarina of Time from which you dump the game data yourself. Ship of Harkinian does not distribute Nintendo’s game assets.
  • For online play, the separate Anchor client and a compatible setup for each player.
  • For OOT True Coop, enough technical comfort to build a fork and run two game instances. The project describes a gamepad for each instance.

The official Ship of Harkinian FAQ lists supported NTSC Japanese and American, and PAL European and Australian, versions for N64 cartridges and GameCube discs. It also points to a compatibility checker. Support depends on the specific game image; check it before proceeding. Requirements for community multiplayer projects may differ from the official port’s requirements.

Set up Ship of Harkinian first

On Windows, follow the project’s official setup guide. In broad terms, the process is:

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  1. Download Ship of Harkinian from the project’s official releases and extract the program.
  2. Provide a legally obtained, supported game image that you dumped yourself. The program checks the version and extracts the assets it needs locally.
  3. Launch the game after the extraction and setup complete.

The project does not provide the Nintendo-licensed assets. The FAQ says users must own a legal copy and dump its data using other software; it does not provide instructions for downloading unauthorized game images.

Play online using Anchor

Anchor adds multiplayer to Ship of Harkinian; it is not an online mode included in the official port. Its project description says players in a room share item and flag updates, and that a joining player can load remote save-state data. That description does not establish that every game system or action is synchronized perfectly.

  1. Install and configure Ship of Harkinian using its current official instructions.
  2. Check Anchor’s repository for the current client, installation steps, and compatible build requirements. The available project information does not establish a stable version pairing or a lasting set of in-game connection steps, so use the current Anchor instructions rather than guessing.
  3. Have each player prepare a compatible setup and legally dumped game data.
  4. Connect through Anchor’s public relay, which is the default for ordinary users, and follow the client’s current room instructions.

You do not normally need to run your own relay server. Anchor documents server binaries for macOS arm64, Linux x86_64, and Windows x86_64, but these are server builds—not the game client—and are relevant if you choose to self-host. Its maintainers note that players outside the United States may prefer self-hosting if relay latency is a problem. No specific latency or uptime is guaranteed.

Try local co-op with OOT True Coop

OOT True Coop is aimed at two people playing on one computer: run two game instances, assign a controller to each, and connect both instances to the same room through an Anchor relay. Its README also describes enabling enemy synchronization in each configuration. This is a source-build project, and its repository page does not show a published release, so expect a more technical setup than installing a finished consumer application.

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The fork describes shared enemy health and synchronized enemy and boss behavior, but it also lists limitations. Examples include differences in enemy targeting, sound and particle effects, and incomplete Floormaster mirroring. Treat it as an experimental project whose behavior may not match a fully integrated co-op game.

Why Shipwright-MP is not the default recommendation

Shipwright-MP’s source snapshot documents direct-IP hosting and joining. However, its own README labels it unofficial and experimental, says the modified game was not successfully compiled or gameplay-tested in its packaging environment, and warns that its transport has no password authentication or encryption. Those caveats make it an option to investigate cautiously, not a stable route to recommend to a novice or for sensitive network use.

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Check current instructions before you begin

Ship of Harkinian’s official FAQ warns that external tutorials can become outdated and recommends the project’s own releases, readme, and setup guide. That matters especially for multiplayer: Anchor and the local-co-op forks have their own development and compatibility timelines. Confirm current builds and setup steps in the official FAQ and the relevant project repositories before installing.

The official Ship of Harkinian FAQ says online functionality is on the project’s radar, but gives no ETA. Until the official project documents otherwise, distinguish its enhancement-focused PC port from community projects that add multiplayer.

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Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 1
Nintendo 64 Console, Premium Bundle (Renewed)
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Bestseller No. 3
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