If your game becomes stuck on the "Joining Game" screen, this indicates a version mismatch between your client and the server. This is a common issue following the 42.13.2 patch release. This occurs when:
Your server is running version 42.13.2 while your client is on 42.13.1, or
Your client is running version 42.13.2 while your server is on 42.13.1
Both your server and client must be on the same version for the connection to work properly. After making changes to either the server or client branch, restart both to ensure the changes take effect. This guide will show you how to do this.
Important Note:
Switching your Project Zomboid server branch will wipe your server. Make sure to make backups if necessary first by following this guide, and restore them by following this guide.
Option 1: Update to Version 42.13.2 (Unstable Branch)
Option 2: Remain on Version 42.13.1 (Beta Branch)