Use the game's chat panel for channels and private conversations. These messages are separate from the Activity feed, which records game actions and events.
| Channel | Audience and purpose |
|---|---|
| Global | General player conversation |
| Trade | Trading discussion and offers |
| City | Players associated with your current city channel |
| Family | Members of your current family |
City and family access follow your current location or membership. Moving cities or changing families can change the corresponding channel you can access. Family chat requires family membership.
Start a private conversation with another player through their profile's messaging action. Opening a conversation with the same player resumes the existing conversation. You cannot create a direct conversation with yourself.
The server checks participation before allowing someone to read or send conversation messages. Unread indicators help identify new messages, and older messages can be loaded from the conversation history.
Messages must be non-empty and fit the 300-character limit. Repeated rapid sends can be rate-limited. A global chat mute can block sending; a family-chat mute specifically blocks sending in that family channel.
Discussing an offer does not transfer cash or items. Use the Market or the two-step Trading flow to complete an exchange. A promise in chat does not replace reviewing the actual trade offers before accepting them.
Push alerts for direct messages can be configured in Settings. Receiving an alert and marking a conversation read are separate from replying.
Messaging behavior checked against the game code on 17 September 2026.