How to Fish patch 1.0.6: save files and ghost servers
Contents
Patch 1.0.6 landed on 23 August 2026. It is a two-line patch, but both lines touch the sorest spot of How to Fish’s launch week: save files.
What changed
| Item | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Loading a save | loaded without validation | file is checked first |
| Ghost servers | lobbies named Game Name in the list | no longer created |
| Writing on crash | the game saved as it crashed | it does not |
| Manual saving | — | Save, Main Menu and Quit buttons |
| Autosave | — | once per minute |
The Game Name lobbies
This was the visible symptom. The server browser filled up with lobbies carrying the default name, and joining them did nothing. The patch note gives the cause directly: the game tried to load a save file without checking it first, and a broken file surfaced as an empty lobby. Since 1.0.6 the check happens before the load, so those entries stop appearing.
Why saving on crash was removed
The old behaviour looked sensible — the app is dying, so rescue the progress. In practice that write was what corrupted files, because the game was serialising a state that was already inconsistent. The developers dropped it and kept three reliable points instead — Save, Main Menu, Quit — plus a one-minute autosave.
The patch note puts it plainly: you do not lose much progress even on a crash, because the autosave runs every minute.
What this means in practice
- If you already had corrupt saves from before 1.0.6, this patch does not repair them. It only stops new ones being made. Patch 1.0.9 later took on the already-broken files separately.
- Do not close the game from Task Manager. Quitting through Quit is a save point; killing the process is not.
- Server names still reject special characters — a restriction introduced back in patch 1.0.4, and for the same reason: broken save files.
What we are not claiming
The developers published no build number, no download size and no list of internal changes beyond these two points. Everything above comes from the official 1.0.6 note and the neighbouring 1.0.4, 1.0.5 and 1.0.9 patches.
Frequently asked questions
When did patch 1.0.6 release?
On 23 August 2026, a day after 1.0.5 and on the same day the developers announced one million players.
What exactly did 1.0.6 fix?
Two things: the save file is now checked before the game tries to load it, and the moment at which the game writes a save has changed.
Why were there lobbies called Game Name?
The game was trying to load a corrupt or empty save file and displaying it as a server. The file is now validated before loading.
How often does the game autosave?
Once a minute. That is on top of the Save, Main Menu and Quit buttons.
Will I lose progress if the game crashes?
Per the patch notes, no more than a minute of it, because autosaves run every minute. The game no longer writes a save during the crash itself.