Stardew Valley creator changes approach to future updates and hints at sequel to popular farming simulator

After eight months of waiting, owners of consoles and mobile devices have finally received the long-awaited Stardew Valley update 1.6. Developer Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone admits that the delay was a real challenge for him, and in the future he wants all players to receive new content at the same time - updates will now be announced only when they are ready for all platforms.

Here's What We Know

The 1.6 update for Stardew Valley is the largest in the game's history: it adds a new farm type, seasonal costumes for NPCs, expanded dialogue, new events, quality of life improvements, and many secrets. PC players received the patch back in March 2024, while PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and mobile owners had to wait until November 4. Barone has repeatedly apologised for the delay, explaining that he wanted to fix all the bugs on PC first, and then move the update to other platforms to avoid technical issues and give players the best experience.

The developer admitted that this period was very exhausting for him: "It was nine months of hell, and I don't want it to happen again," Barone said in the TigerBelly podcast. Now, if there is a 1.7 update, he promises not to announce it until it's ready on all platforms to avoid disappointment and spoilers for some of the community.

Another interesting detail: For the first time, Barone openly stated that he does not rule out the creation of Stardew Valley 2. "Maybe I will make a full-fledged sequel someday," he said, leaving fans room for hope for a new chapter of their favourite game.

In the meantime, the developer can finally get back to work on Haunted Chocolatier, the next project that was put on hold due to priorities with the Stardew Valley update, but the release should not be expected anytime soon.

Source: TigerBelly