• AUTOMATION
  • DISCOVERY
  • MONITORING
  • HUMAN

How to manage matchmaking lobbies with your AI

Connect Hathora to your agent to automate lobby creation and player discovery. Once connected, your AI handles the heavy lifting of matchmaking setup.

Ask AI about this page

Short answer

How can I use AI to handle matchmaking lobbies?

Your AI uses Hathora to spin up new lobbies and check the status of existing applications. This lets you automate player discovery and lobby management through simple chat commands. You'll see how the AI handles the lifecycle of a match below.

Lobby management outcomes

Where your matchmaking tasks land.

What happens when your AI takes over matchmaking tasks.

AUTOMATION

Instant lobby creation

The AI uses Hathora to spin up new game sessions on demand. You get a ready-to-play environment without manual configuration.

DISCOVERY

Player matchmaking

Your agent checks application data to find the right players for a match. This keeps your player queues moving automatically.

MONITORING

Real-time status checks

The AI tracks the state of your game applications. You can ask for updates on lobby health or player counts at any time.

HUMAN

Manual intervention

You still decide when to shut down servers or change game rules. The AI handles the repetitive setup, but you keep the final say.

The workflow

What your AI does when a matchmaking request arrives.

The AI moves from initial request to a live, populated lobby.

  1. Initialize the session

    The AI starts by setting up the necessary infrastructure for a new game session.

    create_lobby

  2. Verify player status

    Your agent looks up the current state of game applications to ensure players are ready.

    get_application

  3. Check lobby availability

    The AI uses existing data to confirm if a lobby can accept more players.

    get_application

  4. Confirm setup

    The AI reports back once the lobby is live and ready for players to join.

    create_lobby

Try it

Copy these to start.

Use these prompts to trigger Hathora actions immediately.

Starting points

These are starting points. Replace the specific lobby IDs or application names with your actual game data.

Hathora Connector

You're all set. Choose your MCP client and follow the setup instructions.

Connector linkhttps://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_lblkC9JZNZr4yIkSYSD3Wb0QWve8vPqvdGNAIBGT/mcp

Claude Desktop

Follow the steps below to connect in seconds.

  1. 1In Claude Desktop, open Settings → Connectors.
  2. 2Click “Add custom connector” and paste the connector link above as the remote MCP server URL.
  3. 3Click Add and start a new chat — Hathora capabilities are ready to use.
Configuration · claude_desktop_config.jsonCopy
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "hathora-mcp": {
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_lblkC9JZNZr4yIkSYSD3Wb0QWve8vPqvdGNAIBGT/mcp"
    }
  }
}
Copy into chat04

  • Create a new public lobby for a 4-player match.

  • Check the status of application ID lobby_9928 to see if it's full.

  • Set up a private lobby for a small group of friends.

  • Get the details for the current active game application.

  • Claude
  • ChatGPT
  • Cursor
  • VS Code
  • Windsurf
  • Claude Code
  • JetBrains
  • Cline

Start here

Connect Hathora once, then ask.

Just link your account once. Your credentials stay encrypted, and you can immediately start managing lobbies through your preferred AI client.

Connect Hathora to your AI

FAQ

How the Hathora MCP behaves

  • 01

    Can the AI delete a lobby once it's finished?

    No. The current tools only allow for creating lobbies and checking application status. You must handle deletions manually.

  • 02

    Can the AI change the game rules inside a lobby?

    No. The AI can only create the lobby and check its status. It cannot modify the internal logic or rules of a running game.

  • 03

    Does the AI handle player authentication?

    No. The AI uses Hathora to manage the lobby and check application data, but it doesn't manage user passwords or login credentials.

  • 04

    How do I create a private lobby?

    You can simply tell your AI to create a private lobby, and it will use the creation tool to set it up for you.

  • 05

    Can I see how many players are in a lobby?

    Yes. By checking the application status, your AI can tell you if a lobby is full or how many players are currently active.

  • More questions about Hathora? See everything the Hathora Connector can do

Connect Hathora to Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT & more