Players running into the Chained Beasts unable to move in multiplayer glitch are typically immobilized in the prep dungeon or equipment room before arena fights, unable to walk or pick a starting potion. Community members discussing the issue on the Steam forums have found immediate workarounds, including toggling the Windows key to refresh application focus and switching input devices from controller to keyboard to break an active overlay state.
Symptoms of the Multiplayer Movement Lock
According to reports across Steam discussion threads, this movement failure specifically targets multiplayer sessions rather than solo runs. Groups playing in two-, three-, or four-player co-op lobbies—regardless of whether they hosted the room or joined an invite—frequently report the following behavior:
- Dungeon and Equipment Room Freezes: Characters spawn into the pre-match equipment area or starting dungeon but cannot walk left or right.
- Inability to Select Potions: When presented with healing potions, affected players cannot click or select options, even though buttons like Left Bumper (LB) to inspect potion side effects continue to register.
- Single-Player Inconsistency: Affected players report being able to navigate normally when loading into single-player mode, with the lock appearing exclusively during multiplayer sessions.
- Mid-Session Appearance: Some squads complete the tutorial and first mission without problems, only for one or more party members to lock up in subsequent staging areas.
Player-Tested Fixes and Workarounds
Because this bug prevents players from confirming selections to advance into the arena, teams are often forced to abandon matches. If you or a teammate experience this movement lock, try these community-reported fixes before restarting your run.
1. The Windows Key / Alt-Tab Refresh
Multiple players reported that their movement lock was caused by a window focus error.
- Press the Windows Key on your keyboard to bring up the Windows taskbar and remove active focus from the game client.
- Click back directly into the game window to re-engage client focus.
2. Switch from Controller to Keyboard and Mouse
In a thread tracking the equipment room freeze, players isolated the problem to an input conflict on gamepads. The game can become trapped in a background state equivalent to holding Tab on a keyboard (inspecting powers or afflictions), which disables standard movement and potion selection.
- Disconnect or stop touching your gamepad.
- If switching to keyboard frees your gladiator, check your controller mapping to ensure no inspect buttons are sticking or continuously registering.
3. Verify Updates and Patches
In official Steam forum threads regarding this lock, players noted that the issue was fixed following a quick response. If you are experiencing this bug on an older build:
- Exit the game entirely.
- Open your Steam client and verify if an update is queued.
Summary of Reported Multiplayer Lock Issues
| Issue / State | Where It Occurs | Confirmed Community Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Character frozen, cannot select potion | Starting prep dungeon / Equipment room | Tap the Windows key to drop focus, then click back into the game |
| Gamepad stuck inspecting afflictions/powers | Pre-battle potion selection | Switch input from controller to keyboard and mouse |
| Host or client locks during co-op only | 2-player to 4-player lobbies | Restart the lobby after checking for pending Steam client updates |
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the multiplayer movement bug happen in single-player?
No. Players discussing the issue on Steam confirmed that gladiator movement and potion selection work as intended when launching solo sessions. The input freeze appears tied directly to multiplayer dungeon states and lobby sync.
Does character choice prevent the glitch?
Forum testing indicates that character choice does not prevent the bug. Players documented the freeze while playing different beasts, including the Lioness and the Bear, across multiple lobby sizes.
Why does the potion menu freeze my gladiator?
Players discovered that the freeze often stems from the client registering a continuous "check powers/afflictions" command (identical to holding Tab on a keyboard). While this menu check state remains active, normal movement and selection inputs are blocked.
