Split-screen on PC

Wasteland 3

Up to 2 players on one PC, with controllers or keyboard and mouse.

2Verified handler

Handler “Wasteland 3” by Talos91, version 4

What works

With Nucleus Co-op, up to 2 players can play Wasteland 3 together on one PC, each in their own part of the screen, with controllers or keyboard and mouse. The free community handler “Wasteland 3” by Talos91 does the setup and was checked by hub moderators: version 4, updated 30 Apr 2024. Wasteland 3 is a role-playing, strategy and turn-based strategy game from 2020.

Players2
ControllersSupported
Keyboard and mouseSupported
Several keyboards and miceNot supported
Hub moderatorsVerified

How to play Wasteland 3 split screen on PC

Get Nucleus Co-op
Download Nucleus Co-op, free for Windows 10 and 11, and unzip it into its own folder, for example C:\NucleusCo-op. There is no installer.
Keep it out of Program Files, your user folder and OneDrive.
Download Nucleus Co-op
Install the Wasteland 3 handler
In Nucleus Co-op, search the Hub for Wasteland 3 and install its handler, or download the handler file from this page and drop it on the Nucleus window. Then show Nucleus where Wasteland 3 is installed.
Download the handler file (.nc)
Take a seat
Each player presses a button on their own controller to join and takes a spot on the screen. Pick a layout that fits your players.
Launch and connect
Press Launch: Nucleus opens one copy of Wasteland 3 per player and lays the windows out on your screen. Then link them in game, usually one player hosts a LAN or online session and the others join it. The handler notes say how.

What you need

A Windows 10 or 11 PC
Nucleus Co-op runs on Windows only. System requirements
Wasteland 3 for Windows
Installed on that PC. Nucleus starts every player's window from that one install.
Nucleus Co-op, free
With .NET Framework 4.7.2 or later and the Visual C++ 2015–2022 runtimes (x86 and x64). Download
Something to play with
One controller per player; one player can use the keyboard and mouse. Controllers
A PC that can run 2 copies
Each player runs their own copy of Wasteland 3, so the PC carries several times the usual load. Lower the graphics settings if it struggles. Performance tips
A multiplayer mode
Nucleus links the windows through the game's own LAN or online mode; the handler takes care of it.

Handler notes

Tested with latest legit Steam version but it should work with the the GOG version too. Full Campaign Co-op for 2 players.
Split-screen setup guide.
Host a direct connection multiplayer game and join in the other instance using localhost and the same port.
For gamepad instances make sure you enable the controller in the game options-gameplay-input mode when an instance launches and press B to save, fully disable Steam Input for the game in Steam for the controllers to restrict correctly.
ONLY one keyboard/mouse supported, press the END key once to lock the input for the kb instance to have its own cursor. You need to left click each mouse to make the emulated cursor appear after locking the input. Press the END key again to unlock the input when you finish playing. You can also use CTRL+Q to close Nucleus and all its instances when the input is unlocked.
Create custom resolutions in your AMD/Nvidia/Intel panel (for example: 960x1080, 960x540, 1920x540 etc.) so the game can see and use them. If you use the Steam overlay Nucleus UI option accept quickly on the launch arguments prompt that will appear in Steam so that the first instance can launch with the Steam overlay enabled.
Read the FAQ if you have any further questions and want to know more about Nucleus Co-op.
Handler by Talos91. Please support the Nucleus Co-op team if you like my Nucleus handler work.

About Wasteland 3

From the creators of Wasteland 2 and Torment: Tides of Numenera comes Wasteland 3! Following the critically acclaimed releases of 2014's Wasteland 2 and 2015's Wasteland 2: Director's Cut, fans have been clamoring for a direct sequel. Now we can bring it to you, with your help! You start the game as the sole survivor of Team November, a Ranger squad dispatched to the icy Colorado wastes. This is a land of buried secrets, lost technology, fearsome lunatics, and deadly factions. No one here has ever heard of the Desert Rangers. Your reputation is yours to build from scratch, and your choices may save this land or doom it. With a renewed focus on macro-reactivity, you’ll be picking between warring factions, deciding whether locations are destroyed or saved, and making other far reaching decisions that have a marked impact on the shape of your world. - A party-based role-playing game, with a renewed focus on our trademark complex story reactivity and strategic combat. - By including vehicles, environmental dangers, and a revamped, more fluid action system, we are evolving on Wasteland 2's deep tactical turn-based combat and unique encounter design. - Play by yourself or with a friend in story-driven synchronous or asynchronous multiplayer. Choices open up (or close off) mission opportunities, areas to explore, story arcs, and lots of other content. - Your Ranger Base is a core part of the experience. As you help the local people and establish a reputation in Colorado, quests and narrative will force you to make decisions on how to lead. - The game will be set in the savage lands of frozen Colorado, where survival is difficult and a happy outcome is never guaranteed. Players will face difficult moral choices and make sacrifices that will change the game world. - Wasteland 3 will feature a deep and engaging story utilizing a newly-revamped dialog tree system from the celebrated writers of Torment: Tides of Numenera. - Simultaneously releasing to Windows, Mac, Linux, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Summary from IGDB