Stardew Valley is the lovable farming simulator that was first released in February of 2016. Since then, it’s gotten multiple updates, adding whole new areas and expanding endgame content. So, it’s no surprise that Stardew Valley gets plenty of love from the gaming community.
In October of last year, creator ConcernedApe announced a new game: Haunted Chocolatier. This was exciting news for many fans of Stardew Valley, as the new title had a similar visual style and the familiar, comfortable vibe. However, it’s worth considering that because a new game is in development, upcoming updates for Stardew Valley might arrive much later.
Stardew Valley Updates
Both Stardew Valley and Haunted Chocolatier are being worked on by one indie developer, popularly known as ConcernedApe. Currently, Stardew Valley for PC is on version 1.5.6, which introduced the new Beach Farm, local split-screen co-op, and other minor additions. Meanwhile, console and mobile ports are slightly behind, but their respective updates are under development.
With regards to Stardew Valley for mobile, questions about its 1.5 update have become a recurring thing on ConcernedApe’s Twitter. Some of these inquiries are polite and respectful, though others are not. Still, this frustration among mobile players is understandable (even though the lashing out is not) because it’s been well over a year since the mobile Stardew Valley port received an update. Luckily, ConcernedApe recently announced that the mobile update will be released before the end of the year.
The Development of Haunted Chocolatier
Piggybacking on the topic of updates, it’s important to remember that ConcernedApe is the lone developer for Stardew Valley. Though work on the mobile port has been handed off to a third party, creating new content and outsourcing tasks is still a tedious endeavor. Now that the indie dev is working on a new title – Haunted Chocolatier – updates for Stardew Valley will likely slow down as ConcernedApe works on the new title from the ground up.
And the community knows for a fact that the farming simulator will be getting a new update as ConcernedApe announced that Stardew Valley version 1.6 was coming. While it reportedly won’t contain as much content as the 1.5 update, the developer has said that it will make modding easier. Additionally, when asked about the possibility of a 1.7 update, ConcernedApe replied with, “Who knows?” It seems that the indie developer isn’t closing the door on Stardew Valley just yet, even with the upcoming Haunted Chocolatier.
Though with that said, fans should exercise patience in waiting for ConcernedApe’s new content. While it’s easy to get angry that update x, y, or z is taking too long, working on two games with multiple ports is no easy task. And at this point, ConcernedApe is going above and beyond to add content to a game that was already “complete” during its initial release (at least, for the PC and console versions). There was no need to add new content to Stardew Valley because it already stood well on its own at version 1.0. However, ConcernedApe still does, essentially incorporating DLC-sized content for no extra charge.
As for work on Haunted Chocolatier, it’s clear from the gameplay footage that there are plenty of new features, visuals, and mechanics. Implementing all these into a cohesive game will take time and effort, which is likely why ConcernedApe has yet to announce a release date for Haunted Chocolatier. Despite this, the community as a whole is kind and supportive of the indie developer. Haunted Chocolatier (as well as the updates for Stardew Valley) will come out when it’s ready – and that’s okay.
Haunted Chocolatier is currently in development.