Before diving into the multiplayer setup, make sure you've got a decent farm going since having basic resources really helps. When starting multiplayer you'll want the host to build cabins first either through robin for 100 gold and some materials, or just select them during farm creation which is way easier. The timing here matters cause cabins need to be placed before anyone can join and you'll want to position them smartly since they take up valuable farm space.

Each player gets their own progression path which is pretty crucial to understand - you level skills separately track relationships individually and manage your own inventory space. Money's interesting cause you can either share everything or run separate wallets through a special book at the mayor's house, and most groups find sharing works better early on. Watch the time management cause everyone needs to agree on sleep and festival starts, plus coordinate mine runs since those shared progress points matter.

For actual setup, getting 8 players running on pc is totally doable now but console folks are limited to 4 max with switch only handling 2 in split-screen. The stability's way better these days especially after those early patches fixed the connection stuff. If you're planning station positions remember stuff like crop layouts and processing equipment need careful spacing since everyone's gonna need access. Good to know that crossplay isn't a thing yet so make sure your group's all on the same platform before getting too excited about the setup.