How to Fish Connection Failed: Steam Relay Fixes
If How to Fish shows Connection Failed, update and restart Steam on every PC, confirm everyone is on the same game version, check the main-menu Steam relay status, and use the official Discord #common-bugs guide if that relay text turns red.
Guide evidence checked
- Official diagnostic
- Steam relay status in the main menu
- Red relay text
- Use official Discord #common-bugs
- Latest connection change
- Longer connection window in Patch 1.0.10
Connection Failed checklist
Update every player
Close the game, restart Steam, and let each PC download the same current How to Fish build.
Restart the session
Create a new lobby after all players are back online instead of repeatedly joining a stale session.
Read the relay indicator
Patch 1.0.9 added a Steam connection diagnostic in the main menu. A red Steam relay label indicates initialization failed.
Use the official support route
If the relay label is red, follow the #common-bugs guidance in the official How to Fish Community Discord linked by the patch note.
What the recent patches changed
| Patch | Connection-related change |
|---|---|
| 1.0.9 | Added the main-menu Steam connection diagnostic and red relay guidance. |
| 1.0.10 | Increased the time allowed to connect to reduce instant disconnections. |
What to include in a useful bug report
Record the host and joining player's game version, the exact relay-indicator color, whether a new lobby behaves differently, and the point at which the failure appears.
Patch 1.0.10 writes the version number to player.log for easier debugging. Share only the relevant log details requested by official support and review them for personal information first.
FAQ
What does red Steam relay text mean in How to Fish?
Patch 1.0.9 says red relay text means the Steam connection failed during initialization; use the official Discord #common-bugs guidance.
Did Patch 1.0.10 fix instant disconnections?
It increased the allowed connection time to lower the risk, but the official wording does not guarantee that every connection failure is fixed.
Evidence log
Sources
- Official Steam patch notesLevel A
- Official Steam store pageLevel A