Barfender: CO-OP Bar Simulator

Take orders and prep drinks

The Steam EA feature panel names the in-shift loop as taking orders, then preparing drinks to match them. The page does not list a fixed drink menu, exact prep animation or per-shift timer.

Serve, clean up, break up fights

After drinks are ready the same panel lists serving customers, cleaning up and breaking up fights. Each of these is named as part of the current EA feature set; the panel does not grade the order or list a score chart.

Distinct customer personalities

The EA panel also names distinct customer personalities, framing them as part of what makes the floor shift. Specific personality profiles, mood rules or VIP handling are not part of the read panel and are not invented here.

Character customisation

The EA feature list describes outfit, hairstyle and face customisation as published features for the current EA build. The page does not itemise sliders, hair counts or wardrobe packs.

Licences unlock by star rating, not story quests

The announcement read on 16 October 2026 ("Barfender Update: Progression, Instruments & Fixes") confirms that licences now unlock once the bar reaches the required star rating, rather than requiring story-quest progress. Once a licence unlocks, it stays unlocked even if the rating later drops; this article does not tabulate specific star thresholds per licence, because they were not part of the announcement read on 2026-10-16.

The original EA description separately names equipment and quest upgrades; the licence change does not establish that all those upgrade relationships were removed.

Buying neighbouring shops

The original EA page also describes purchasing neighbouring shops to expand the bar's floor space. That mechanic is still in the read; exact adjacency rules, pricing or expansion phases are not part of either the 2026-10-14 store read or the announcement read on 16 October 2026 and are not invented here.

Cozy Nook as the built-in "quiet shift" mode

The announcement read on 16 October 2026 lists these rules for Cozy Nook difficulty. Inside Cozy Nook, vomiting customers, Hobo and Thief, and Hussein's visits do not appear, and the matching gameplay options are locked for that mode. The announcement does not establish the default difficulty or every rule in other modes.

Cozy Nook now defaults the Wiping-pushes-items toggle off

The announcement read on 18 October 2026 ("Difficulty Options, Streamer Mode & Performance") adds the Wiping-pushes-items rule and sets it to off by default in Cozy Nook. With the default in place, the cloth slides over glasses and money instead of sweeping them off the table unless the player turns the toggle back on. The announcement does not name a default for that toggle in the standard difficulty modes; this article does not invent one.

Staff-to-table assignment loses its distance rule

The announcement read on 16 October 2026 removes the distance rule when assigning an employee to a table. When checking assignments, look for the highlight on tables already assigned to another employee; the update adds that visual cue. The staff system itself remains Day 1 from the original EA description; only the table-routing constraint changes in this build.

Guitar and drum sounds, and multiplayer strum sync — old and new scope

Updated guitar and drum sounds are present in this build. The announcement read on 16 October 2026 describes multiplayer guitar strum as synchronised across the co-op session; the announcement read on 18 October 2026 extends that sync to all instruments, not only the guitar. The full input map for any instrument is not part of either announcement read, so this section does not publish a tutorial-grade control list. A dedicated instrument-play article would need a separate source read.

A save-compatibility message for returning demo players

The EA announcement adds a message about save compatibility for returning demo players. Its contents and actual save loading were not examined; the announcement alone does not establish which old saves work or whether conversion is available.

Options → Difficulty can change rules inside an existing save

The announcement read on 18 October 2026 ("Difficulty Options, Streamer Mode & Performance") states that the Difficulty setting can be changed in an existing save. The same note states that Difficulty and most of its rules take effect from the next game day, not immediately, so check the new rules after the next day begins.

Drink menu capacity rises from 8 to 16

The same note states that the available drink slots in the bar have been raised from 8 to 16 in this build. The announcement does not list the specific drinks that have been added or removed, and this article does not invent a roster.

"Pay all employees" counts toward task progress when paid individually

The same note states that paying each employee individually also registers toward the relevant task progression. The per-employee price and the task threshold are not published in the announcement, so this article does not tabulate them.

Property app lists only unmet conditions

The same note states that the Property app surfaces unmet conditions only; completed requirements are not repeated. Rooms that are merely short of money are no longer marked as locked in the app, because a money shortfall is treated as a different state from an unmet condition. The announcement does not list the per-room cost or the unlock thresholds, and this article does not invent them.

Performance work — not a frame-rate guarantee

The same note describes RenderScale and FSR settings and unspecified optimisations. This article does not promise a frame-rate target; RenderScale, FSR and the optimisation notes are not framed here as a FPS guarantee.

Streamer Mode shows Twitch connection status

Streamer Mode now shows Live, Connecting, Reconnecting or an error in the main menu, Multiplayer lobby and pause menu. Twitch operates in the host's game, not a guest's. Channel linking activates integration; this page does not provide account-linking instructions.

Cleaners, Bouncers and Bartenders stay on the future-roster list

The announcement read on 18 October 2026 does not move Cleaners, Bouncers or Bartenders from the future-roster list into the live staff list. Those roles remain planned but not yet available; this article does not certify any of them as currently playable.

Published player range and modes

The Steam page lists 1–4 players, single-player and online co-op. The panel does not specify the host/join flow, lobby UI or cross-region matchmaking, and this article does not invent them.

Future expansions and current features

The same page lists future goals: deeper bartending systems, kitchen work, expanded staff roles, personalities and management options, story content and richer entertainment options for the bar floor. The store's About description also mentions pool, darts and arcade, framed as part of the broader vision. The roadmap describes additions and expansion, not proof that every system is currently absent. The same EA discussion says the existing staff system was brought to Day 1. Pool, darts and arcade appear in both About and future plans, so this page does not certify every activity as available now. The 1.0 exit is named as a Spring 2027 target, which is a roadmap date, not a confirmed release date.

What is not in scope here

Exact drink counts, exact revenue per shift, a precise MVP ranking, host-menu specifics and the exact Spring 2027 ship calendar are not in the EA feature panel read on 14 October 2026. They are left out of this article.

Publisher-listed minimum tier

The Steam Windows requirements panel, read on 14 October 2026, lists the following published minimum configuration for Barfender: CO-OP Bar Simulator:

Recommended tier is incomplete

The Steam requirements panel read on this date shows only a 64-bit note in the recommended section; it does not list a separate recommended CPU, GPU, memory and storage tier. This article stores the minimum row as published and does not duplicate the minimum row into a recommended row, nor invent an upgrade target.

macOS minimum configuration — separate platform

A fresh read of the macOS tab on 14 October 2026 lists the following minimum configuration:

Do not apply the Windows DirectX requirement to macOS. These are store-listed minimums, not a tested frame-rate or compatibility guarantee. The macOS recommended column shows no specification values; a separate recommended tier is not established by this read.

Source range

The initial Windows and EA read is retained. A separate reread opened the macOS requirements tab on 14 October 2026. It does not verify a native install, controller bindings, a patch log or cross-platform co-op.

Read the update, checks and limitations in the existing answer.