Is Stardew Valley cross-platform? How to host multiplayer co-op games

Ava Thompson-Powell
Stardew Valley cross platform multiplayer

While the relaxing atmosphere of Stardew Valley makes for a fun time playing the game alone, its multiplayer feature lets friends explore the idyllic world together. But with Stardew Valley being on multiple platforms, does the game have cross-platform?

The highly successful Stardew Valley gives players lots of activities to complete alone or with the multiplayer feature, from catching seasonal and Legendary fish with different types of baits, to farming, or finding different rare artifacts throughout the life simulation.

One feature that players are expecting more from their favorite games nowadays is the ability to play with friends across multiple platforms, and to be able to easily pick up and play without needing to start a new game. Here’s everything you need to know about cross-platform and multiplayer play in Stardew Valley.


Contents


An image of different characters at a fair in Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley is a great game to experience together, but can you play cross-platform?

Is Stardew Valley cross-platform?

No, at this time, Stardew Valley is not cross-platform. While it seems unlikely that the feature will ever be introduced, we will update you here if the situation changes in the future.

The only exception to this is if you have one player on PC, and the other on a Mac.

What is cross-platform?

Cross-platform is a feature that allows you to play with friends across different platforms like PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation.

How to play Multiplayer in Stardew Valley

Though cross-platform isn’t fully available across all platforms, playing Stardew Valley together through Multiplayer is luckily very easy to do.

A farm in Stardew Valley
Playing multiplayer is really easy to do in Stardew Valley!

Starting a new Multiplayer save in Stardew Valley

First, you’ll need to decide whether you want to change your current save game into a multiplayer one. If not, you’ll need to start a new one. Once you’ve decided, simply follow these steps:

  1. If you’re starting a brand new save, select the ‘Co-Op‘ button from the main menu.
  2. Select ‘Host New Farm‘.
  3. As you typically would, go ahead and customize your character and fill in your name, farm, animal preference,  and your favorite thing.
  4. On the left side panel, you’ll see ‘Starting Cabins‘, ‘Cabin Layout‘, ‘Profit Margins‘, and ‘Money Style‘  – set those to your preferences (the maximum is 3 extra on top of yours).
  5. On the right-side panel, choose which type of farm you’d like to start with.
  6. After you’ve set everything to how you want it, select the green ‘OK’ button and you’ll load into the game.
  7. When in-game, hit the menu button (Escape/E on PC, B on Nintendo Switch and Xbox, and Circle on PlayStation).
  8. Select the gamepad icon, and scroll down until you see ‘Invite Friend‘ at the very bottom, or select ‘Show Invite Code‘ which they can enter to join you.
  9. That’s it! Your friends should now arrive in one of the cabins dotted around your farm!

How to invite friends to join a single player world in Stardew Valley

If you want your friends to join you in your current save, however, there are also some steps you can take:

  1. While in single-player, build a cabin by visiting The Carpenter’s Shop, one for each of the friends that you’d like to join you.
  2. Save the game.
  3. Exit to the main menu, select the ‘Co-Op‘ mode to load up the same save, and then have them join your game as mentioned in the steps above.

So, there you have it. That’s everything you need to know about Stardew Valley multiplayer and cross-platform. If more information is revealed, we’ll update you right here at Dexerto.

For more life simulation guides and tips, check out our pieces from Animal Crossing, The Sims 4, and Pokemon:

The best Sims 4 mods | All missing Pokemon in Sword and ShieldThe Sims 4 cheats and how to use them | 10 best terraforming ideas for your Island in Animal CrossingHow to make money in The Sims 4 | Pokemon Sword and Shield trade codes | Stardew Valley cheats | Best Stardew Valley mods | Stardew Valley Barns guide | What’s the Stardew Valley fair? | Stardew Valley Scarecrow range | Stardew Valley Skull Key guide | How to fish in Stardew Valley | How to use Bait in Stardew Valley

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About The Author

Ava was formerly Dexerto's Evergreen Editor, based in England. With a BA (Hons) in Media and Communications, and a passion for RPGs, The Sims, Pokemon, and Dead by Daylight, she primarily covered tips, guides, and reviews.