How to Play with Friends on Madden 23 PS5

As a long-time Madden player and fan of the series, the first thing I always want to know with each new release is – how can I play with my friends online? Madden 23 makes playing co-op and head-to-head multiplayer simpleonce you understand the process.

In this ultimate guide, I‘ll clear up any confusion around inviting friends on PS5, organizing online matches, managing cross-platform issues, and troubleshooting annoying errors that pop up. Time to team up on the virtual gridiron!

Play Online Multiplayer Together

To cut right to the chase on "how do you play with friends on Madden 23 PS5" – here are the basic steps:

1. From the Main Menu, navigate to the Exhibition tile and select Online Head-to-Head
2. Choose the Invite Player option to pull up your PSN friends list
3. Send an invite to your friend, wait for them to accept it, then enter a lobby
4. Agree on teams, settings, play style preference, and communication method
5. Start the match and enjoy co-op or competitive gameplay!

Once in an online lobby together, you have full control over picking teams, difficulty, game style, time limits, and any house rules like no mush rush allowed.

Communication is key when coordinating multiplayer, so I suggest using PlayStation Party Chat, Discord on your phones, or another voice platform while you play rather than in-game text.

Coordinate Your Squad in Online Team Up

Madden 23 introduced Online Team Up last year, which lets you merge separate Franchise teams to play co-op. Have one friend handle offense and the other focus on defense for true two-player gameplay.

After inviting your friend, toggle Team Up to On in the lobby settings before picking your squad. I love running my franchise with friends in this mode!

Track Multiplayer Stats and Leaderboards

A fun part of playing friends is watching the rivalry unfold. Under My Career Stats, you can scope data on your head-to-head record,top performers between your friends, and stay motivated by chasing leaderboard dominance.

My Current Record vs Friends:

Don‘t sleep on those stat trackers! Nothing beats trash talking over your win percentage or flexing 5 TD passes in one game.

Local Multiplayer and Split-Screen Options

If you want to play Madden 23 on the same PS5 console together, just connect a second controller and join the match.

Once both players are signed in, you can control individual athletes or play full co-op with a friend. This is great for casual games on the couch when friends come over.

Note that Madden disables split-screen this year though, likely due to hardware demands for high resolution. So you‘ll both be looking at the same full screen rather than dividing it.

The Cross-Platform Conundrum for PS4 & Xbox

The biggest bummer about Madden 23 – no crossplay support yet, meaning PS5 users can‘t invite Xbox or PS4 opponents. This segmentation is a pain when your squad crosses console types.

However, you can download past generation editions without extra cost if you own Madden 23 through dual entitlement. Navigate in settings to switch from the PS5 to PS4 version so both accounts run matching builds.

No official word yet if crossplay ever comes, but I expect it eventually based on other EA titles. Fingers crossed for Madden 24!

Fixing Common Online Multiplayer Errors

In my experience organizing gaming sessions across 5+ Madden releases, there‘s always odd glitches popping up:

• Can‘t join friends games in progress
• Random lag spikes or disconnects
• Invites sending but not arriving
• Privacy settings blocking game invites

Here are my best troubleshooting tips for common party issues:

Ensure Visibility Settings Turned On

Double check your privacy options in PlayStation account settings show you as online to friends and allows sharing what games you‘re playing. Madden can‘t send or receive invites otherwise.

Reset Network Connections

If lag is making matches unplayable, I reboot my PS5 and router completely to refresh all connections. This resolves quirky hosting problems 9 times out of 10.

Add Friends via Username

If invites constantly fail but you‘re visible online, try removing your friend from contacts and re-add them manually via their PSN username instead just to reset the relationship.

Launch Separate Franchises Then Merge

On several past occasions when we couldn‘t join in progress games directly, launching separate Franchise modes then combining them did the trick.

As long as you sync the settings initially, merging keeps everything intact. This was the only way my buddy MikeOxlong21 and I could play together in Madden 22 consistently!

The Future of Madden Multiplayer

Expanding social competitive play seems to be an obvious priority for EA Tiburon moving forward based on features like Online Team Up.

I expect playing with friends to keep improving incrementally each year through smarter lobby coordination, leagues integration, and better connectivity.

Rumors already swirl around 3v3 modes coming soon. My dream addition would be combining a mini battle royale format like MUT Squads with Apex Legends style respawn beacons!

Go Enjoy Some Co-Op Football!

Hopefully this guide covered all the key things to know around playing online multiplayer or local co-op with friends in Madden NFL 23 on your PS5.

Teaming up on defense to shut down offenses or perfecting routes in tandem on offense leads to amazing gameplay moments together.

Have any other questions on getting games running smooth? Let me know and I‘ll help sort out any issues!

Now get out there on that virtual gridiron with your friends for some epic football fun on PS5!