Co-op Guide
Co-op Guide — Playing With FriendsHow to Fish — Co-op
How to Fish supports online co-op for up to four players, and it's a game that gets dramatically better the more people are in it. This page covers the practical side of playing with friends: how to set up a lobby, why co-op is faster than solo, who should do what, and the one thing most groups get wrong — the shared-money economy and the gambling rule you should set before anyone sits down at the casino.
How Co-op Works
1–4 players, online only
There's no split-screen, and there's no random matchmaking — you play with people you invite, not strangers.
Steam lobbies
From the main menu you open the multiplayer section and host a session, choosing Public, Friends Only, or Private. Friends join through Steam's invitation system, or by joining your session from their friends list.
One shared world
Everyone plays in the same island progression together — same quests, same bosses, same unlocks.
No crossplay — because there's nothing to crossplay with
How to Fish is a PC-only game on Steam — there are no PlayStation, Xbox, or Switch versions. Everyone in your group needs the Steam PC version. Steam Deck players aren't locked out of this: the Deck runs the same Steam sessions, so a handheld player can join a desktop player's game.
Why Co-op Is Faster
Co-op doesn't just add more hands — it lets you run the income loop as a pipeline instead of one person doing every step. One player catches, another shoots, a third carries:
Catch
The Fisher pulls the creature in.
Shoot
A second player blasts it out of the air before it lands, stacking the kill-score multiplier for bonus coins (worth more than a plain catch).
Sell
A third hauls it back and sells it.
3×
Three people doing those steps simultaneously out-earn one person doing them in sequence.
1st boss
It also fixes the game's single biggest early complaint: the first boss is genuinely harsh solo. Four players spreading the boss's attention make fights that feel unfair alone feel routine.
Who Does What (No Classes)
There are no formal classes, but four informal roles make sessions much smoother, and they naturally emerge after a few islands:
The Fisher
Keeps the catch pipeline running and targets the valuable and rare fish.
The Shooter
Takes airborne catches for the kill-score money and clears aggressive creatures before they reach the group.
The Hauler
Carries catches back to sell, manages inventory, and does the quest hand-ins.
The Spotter
Watches the waterline for seagulls, leaping fish, and the boss spawn, and calls it out.
Fisher + Shooter covers almost everything.
Add a Hauler.
The Spotter saves the group a surprising amount of money — most losses in this game come from threats nobody saw coming.
The Co-op Economy (Shared Coins)
Coins are a shared pool in co-op: the money the group earns is money anyone in the session can spend, and one player can spend the group's entire savings. That's the single most common source of co-op friction, so treat it as a rule problem, not a personality problem.
Three rules prevent the classic blowups
- 1
Agree on big purchases before anyone buys
If the group is saving for the assault rifle (~20,000), say it out loud, and don't let one player spend the fund on a gun everyone else will share anyway.
- 2
One player shouldn't control the whole economy
The game hands out coins to the group; whoever happens to be carrying can spend them. Designate who's allowed to make large purchases.
- 3
Set a gambling rule before anyone reaches the casino
The casino (Island 4) can empty the shared pool in minutes. Decide who's allowed near it and what the budget is before someone says "trust me, I've got this" over the roulette wheel.
Everyone works toward the same gear and progression, so the shared pool is fine — it just needs a shared plan.
Coordination & Etiquette
Decide who brings the boss trigger
Every boss needs a special bait or fish; make sure that item isn't sold, and one player is responsible for the hand-in after the fight.
Split purchases by role
Instead of everyone buying the same weapon, let the Fisher buy lures, the Shooter buy the guns, and the Hauler buy inventory — you get a wider loadout for the same coins.
Wait for everyone to load
Leaving the starting beach before everyone's spawn is in invites sync problems.
Watch the catches
Seagulls and the chaos will eat your money; assign someone to guard the valuable haul mid-fight.
Common Co-op Mistakes
- 1
One player draining the shared coins
The casino, or impulse weapon buys without asking.
- 2
Everyone buying the same cheap gun early
Pool the coins into one strong weapon for the group instead.
- 3
Splitting up
Aggressive creatures ambush the lone player; stay in sight of each other.
- 4
Entering a boss fight hungry
Stock food before the fight, the same as solo.
- 5
Selling a quest item or boss drop
Check the NPCs & Quests page before you sell anything unusual. NPCs & Quests
- 6
Ignoring connection issues
Early reports include trouble joining friends and lobby disconnects; if it happens, restart the lobby and re-invite.
FAQ
How many players?
1–4, online co-op. You can also play entirely solo.
Can I play with random players?
No. There's no random matchmaking — it's friends-only, invited through Steam.
Is there split-screen?
No. It's online co-op only.
Is there crossplay?
No — and there's nothing to crossplay with. How to Fish is PC/Steam only, with no console versions. Steam Deck players join the same Steam sessions as desktop players.
Are coins shared in co-op?
Yes. It's one shared pool — the group's money can be spent by anyone in the session. Coordinate big purchases and set a gambling budget.
Can I use the single-player guides in co-op?
Yes. The progression, quests, bosses, and economy are the same — the rest of this site's pages apply directly to a co-op game.
Can I play with more than four?
Not in the base game. There's an unofficial community mod that raises the cap to 8 players, but it's not part of the game itself.