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Dragonwilds "Name Already Taken" when joining a server

RuneScape: Dragonwilds server status →RuneScape: Dragonwilds servers →

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IsThisGameDown

Last checked

October 15, 2026

Steam Discussions — "Name Already Taken !?" ↗

Joining a friend's RuneScape: Dragonwilds dedicated server or a console-hosted world fails with a message that your character name is already taken, worded in one report as "A character with this name already exists." Changing the name does not help in the console-hosted case.

Also appears as: dragonwilds name already taken, dragonwilds character name already taken, dragonwilds a character with this name already exists, dragonwilds character already exists, dragonwilds character exists error, dragonwilds duplicate name error, dragonwilds cannot join friends server name taken, dragonwilds cant join ps5 world character exists, dragonwilds ghost connection

This is a join-time rejection from the host's server or world, and so far nobody has posted a confirmed fix. We found two separate Steam Discussions threads and no reply from Jagex in either.

On a dedicated server, one player says the usual cause is another member with the same name, or your own earlier connection still being open on the server (a "ghost connection"). That is a single player's explanation and was not confirmed by the poster.

The other thread is a PC player who gets the same message on every PlayStation 5-hosted world, including worlds they never joined before, and who tried new names and restarts of Steam, the PC, the PS5 and the world.

Operational

No problems reported in the last 15 minutes.

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What to try

  1. 01

    Ask the host to switch the dedicated server off and on (one report)

    On the dedicated-server thread, the player Kevz suggests asking the host "to just restart the server, to reset ghost connections", and says "Only turn the server off and on to reset it." The reply adds that this gives a new join code but keeps your saves intact. That is one player's advice from October 10, 2026, and the original poster never replied, so we do not know whether it worked. Only the person running the server can do this.

    Unconfirmed
  2. 02

    Ask the host whether anyone else on the server uses your name (one report)

    Kevz's other suggestion is to ask the host who is on the server and whether any member has the same name as you, then try again. This is from the same single reply and is also unconfirmed.

    Unconfirmed
  3. 03

    Possibly related: 1.0.1 fixed emoji names on console-hosted worlds

    Jagex's 1.0.1 patch notes (October 14, 2026) list "Fixed an issue where users with Emojis in their name on PC would not be able to join PS5 or XBOX player hosted worlds." The notes do not mention the "name already exists" message, and the console-hosted report predates the patch (September 15, 2026), so we cannot say they are the same bug. If you are on PC joining a console host, make sure the game is updated to 1.0.1.

    Unconfirmed
  4. 04

    What did not work on a PS5-hosted world (one report)

    The PC player in the console-hosted thread reports the same error after trying several different character names, restarting Steam, restarting the PC, the PS5 host restarting the console, restarting the world, and trying other PS5-hosted worlds. Because changing the name changes nothing, that poster suspects the message is not really about the name and may come from crossplay player registration. That is their guess, not a finding.

    Unconfirmed
  5. 05

    No confirmed fix yet for the name-already-taken message

    No confirmed fix yet; this page will be updated. Neither thread has a Jagex reply. If it persists after the host restart and a 1.0.1 update, report it in the Steam Discussions or the bug-report channels of the official Discord (discord.gg/rsdragonwilds), with your platform, the host's platform and whether the host runs a dedicated server.

    Unconfirmed

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What people are saying

Notes from players who've hit this one — no time limit, an answer from months ago is still an answer.

  • Nothing reported here yet.
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