Stardew Valley creator Eric Barone, the man who just will not cut it out, has revealed that the newly-released 1.6 update contains, on top of everything else, a "secret, experimental mobile multiplayer feature" that enables players on mobile platforms to join in on the fun with others.
The big 1.6 update went live on PC in March, but didn't make it to console and mobile platforms until November 4, which also saw more new stuff plowed in on top of what was already included in the original update. But there was even more to it than we realized, hidden amidst the title screen's lush greenery.
The recent update added a secret, experimental mobile multiplayer feature. This guide explains how to access it: https://t.co/q3DDVP3nhMNovember 5, 2024
"With the release of Stardew Valley 1.6 on mobile, there is now a hidden multiplayer feature which you can access," Barone wrote in the new Stardew Valley mobile multiplayer guide. "Mobile multiplayer works pretty much the same as on other platforms, except there is no farm 'discovery' capability. You can only connect via IP. You can, however, join a PC-hosted farm from a mobile device via IP."
Barone warned that trying to host or connect to a game over a mobile network will likely not work well. The "best-case scenario" for mobile players looking to connect with others is one in which players on a "high-end mobile device" connect to a PC-hosted game via WiFi.
The other end of the scale "would be if someone were to host a game from a low-performance phone, on a cell network (you would probably have to create a mobile wi-fi hotspot for others to connect to locally), and they were on a train or something, going through tunnels. And then the host is also getting calls, causing the app to be interrupted repeatedly." In that oddly specific scenario, Barone said the multiplayer experience would be "potentially frustrating," which I would imagine is a bit of understatement.
On the other hand, Barone also respects the fact that you're a grown-ass adult. "If you want to try these things out, there’s nothing stopping you," he wrote. "Just be aware that there are inherent connectivity issues that can arise when attempting to host a multiplayer game from a mobile device."
The mobile multiplayer mode is hidden because it's still "experimental" and may have bugs or other issues, and may just not be much fun depending on how you try to use it. To unlock it, you'll need to use—and at first I thought Eric was kidding here, but no—the Konami code, as translated onto leaves on the Stardew Valley logo.
Once that's done, exit the "?" menu and you should see a new co-op button on the title screen that gives you an option to either host or join a game. If you're hosting a game you'll need to set up your farm first and make cabins available for other players; if you're joining, you'll need the IP address of the host in order to connect.
Alongside the mobile multiplayer surprise, Barone also dropped a 1.6.10 bug fix patch for PC today that, I'm very sorry to say, did away with the invisible coyotes. I continue to hold out hope for adoptable Canis latrans in the entirely speculative (but we all know it's going to happen) Stardew Valley 1.7 update.
Stardew Valley has a troublesome new 'disappearing chickens' bug, which Eric Barone is explaining away by declaring invisible coyotes are stealing them
Not content with finally getting Stardew Valley 1.6 live on all platforms, Eric Barone has piled a bunch of other new stuff on top of it in yet another big update
