Voice Chat Not Working

In this game, silence isn’t always a fault. Two of the three monkeys are built around missing voices: one hears nobody, another can’t speak at all. So before anyone starts unplugging headsets, it’s worth checking whether the “bug” is just a role doing exactly what it was designed to do. When something really is broken, the culprit is usually a setting outside the game rather than the game itself. This page sorts the two apart, then walks through the fixes in the order most likely to help.

Step Zero: Who Is Supposed to Hear What

The game’s voice chat is restricted by role on purpose. Compare what you’re experiencing with this table first.

Three complaints that turn out to be working as intended:

• “Total silence on my end” while you’re the Deaf Monkey – that’s the whole point of the seat.
• “Our third player never says anything” while they’re the Mute Monkey – the role has no voice.
• “The Deaf Monkey ignores me” – they literally can’t hear you. Wave, point, use an emote or give them a slap.

Anything outside that pattern – a Blind Monkey who hears nothing, or a Deaf Monkey nobody can hear – points to a genuine problem.

The Five-Minute Triage

• Steam has installed the newest version of the game.
• Your computer is using the microphone you’re actually speaking into.
• Steam’s own voice settings point at that same microphone.
• Your operating system lets apps use the microphone at all.
• No mute button on the headset or cable is switched on.
• The game was launched after the headset was plugged in, not before.
• Discord, recording tools and similar apps aren’t holding the mic.
• Steam’s file check came back clean.

Working Through It

1. Start with the version. Voice chat was touched by both launch-week patches (details further down). Ruling out an old build takes seconds.
2. Ask the computer which mic it’s listening to. Plugging in a headset doesn’t guarantee it becomes the default input. Open your sound settings and confirm the device you’re talking into is the one selected – and that its level moves when you speak.
3. Ask Steam the same question. The Steam client keeps its own voice device choice, separate from the system. Pick your headset there too and use Steam’s built-in mic test to watch it react.
4. Check the privacy switches. Both Windows and macOS can block apps from the microphone in their privacy settings. On a Mac, Steam and the game each need to appear in the microphone list with access granted; on Windows, app access to the mic has to be allowed.
5. Relaunch after any hardware change. If the headset went in while the game was open, quit and start again so the game sees the new device from the beginning.
6. Release the mic. Some chat and capture programs grab the microphone exclusively. Close them and test again.
7. Let Steam repair the install. From the game’s Properties in your library, open Installed Files and run the integrity check.
8. Swap seats to isolate it. If one player is never heard, give them the Blind seat and ask the Mute Monkey – who hears everyone – whether their voice comes through. That tells you whether it’s the role or the hardware.

What the Patches Already Fixed

Voice problems were among the first things the developers tackled after release. If your trouble dates from launch week, an update may already have solved it.

Why Not Just Use Discord?

When voice misbehaves, the obvious shortcut is to move everyone into an outside call. Guides advise against it, and the reason is the game itself: the role limits are the puzzle. A Deaf Monkey who can hear every word has nothing left to solve. Use an outside call to troubleshoot setups before a run if you must, then come back to the in-game voice for the bomb.

Symptom Finder

Quick Answers