Elden Ring 'Connection Error Occurred' — How to Fix It

What it means

'A connection error occurred' (and its cousin 'Connection with the other player has been lost') means Elden Ring couldn't keep a peer-to-peer link to another player going.
Because the co-op connection runs player-to-player, it's sensitive to NAT type, the ports your router allows, and either player's connection wobbling.
It's also just FromSoftware's servers having a bad day — check their status before you start changing router settings.

Affected Models

Elden Ring on PC (Steam)
Elden Ring on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4
Elden Ring on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree co-op

Common Causes

FromSoftware online servers down, busy, or under maintenance
Strict / Type 3 NAT on one or both players' connections
Required multiplayer ports blocked by the router or ISP
One player's internet hiccupping (Wi-Fi drop, congestion)
VPN, proxy, or aggressive firewall interfering with the peer connection
Cross-region co-op with very high latency the game can't sustain

How to Fix It

Check server status, then restart the game.

Look up FromSoftware/Bandai Namco server status (and Downdetector).
If it's a server outage, nothing on your end will help — wait it out.
Otherwise, fully close and reopen Elden Ring; a stale online session is a common cause.
Use a wired connection.

Co-op hates packet loss, and Wi-Fi delivers more of it.
Plug the PC or console into the router with an Ethernet cable for stable sessions — this alone fixes a lot of mid-fight disconnects.
Check your NAT type.

On consoles, the network test shows your NAT type — you want Type 1 or 2 (Open or Moderate), not Type 3 (Strict).
On PC there's no built-in test, but the same router fixes apply.
Strict NAT makes the peer-to-peer link hard or impossible to form.
Open the multiplayer ports or enable UPnP.

Easiest: turn on UPnP in your router so the game opens its own ports.
If you prefer manual port forwarding, forward Elden Ring's ports to your machine — FromSoftware lists them in their support pages (they include TCP/UDP ranges used by the game and the platform's online service).
Forward to a fixed local IP so it doesn't change.
Turn off VPNs and lower the matchmaking range if needed.

Disconnect any VPN or proxy and add the game to your firewall's allow list.
If you keep disconnecting from far-away players, agree a password with friends so you only match each other, or play with people in your region — extreme latency breaks the session no matter what your router does.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does Elden Ring co-op connect fine then drop after a few minutes?

That pattern usually means the peer-to-peer link is forming but fragile — packet loss from Wi-Fi, a congested connection, or a marginal NAT situation on one side.
Switch both players to wired Ethernet, enable UPnP (or forward the ports), and avoid cross-region sessions.
If it still drops mid-fight, check whether FromSoftware's servers are having issues, since matchmaking and some session handling still route through them.