How to Fish Wiki

Troubleshooting

Online / Co-op Won't Connect

How to Fish runs online co-op through Steam Friends. When a lobby fails to start or a friend cannot join, the cause is almost always a version mismatch, a network issue, or a Steam Friends permissions problem.

Two players cooking together — the kind of co-op state we're troubleshooting
Two players cooking together — the kind of co-op state we're troubleshooting

Common Causes

Three causes cover most reports. First, one player's game version is out of date — Steam usually patches in the background, but a paused or failed update will leave one player behind. Second, the host's network is blocking the Steam connection — NAT or firewall rules on the host side are the usual culprit. Third, Steam Friends' privacy settings are blocking the join request.

Fixes

Try the steps below in order. Most players resolve the issue in the first three steps.

Step-by-Step

  1. 1.Make sure every player is on the latest version of How to Fish (restart Steam to force a patch check).
  2. 2.Have the host restart their router and confirm Steam is allowed through any firewall.
  3. 3.Confirm both players are Steam Friends and have accepted each other's invite.
  4. 4.If the issue persists, try a direct connection by IP using the in-game lobby option.
  5. 5.If none of the above works, restart Steam on both sides and try again.

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