Hi everyone,

The new 1.4 update for Stardew Valley is now available for PC, Mac, and Linux on Steam & GOG! As usual, this update is completely free for anyone who owns Stardew Valley.

This update not only adds new content and features to the game, but improves the gameplay experience significantly with tons of “quality of life” features… including some things the community has requested for a long time. There’s also an enormous amount of bug fixes and some optimizations improvements–in short, the game is more polished than ever. I hope this update will greatly improve your Stardew Valley experience, and make your time in the valley even more joyful, seemless, and fun.

If you’d instead like to just see a complete changelog (full of spoilers), click here.

Otherwise, I’d like to share just a few of the new things you’ll find in the update:

  • There is a new end-game mystery, involving an abandoned building…

  • Added some more character events… including a new 14-heart event for every spouse. I wanted to show a little more about what each spouse is up to after marriage, and give you another thing to look forward to after marriage.

  • Added Fish Ponds, a new farm building that allows you to raise fish and harvest a variety of items from them. Most fish will produce roe, which can be processed further in a preserves jar. Some fish produce other things, though, and many also produce secondary items that can be useful.

  • Added a new farm map: Four Corners
    Four Corners is perfect for the new separate money option in multiplayer, since each farmer can have their own quadrant to live in. But it’s also fun for single player or cooperative farms. Each quadrant has a different perk, but the intruding cliffs reduce your total farming area. Another interesting feature is that the greenhouse, farm cave and pet area are located in the center of the farm.

  • Over 60 new items, some fun, some practical and some powerful
  • Added 24 new hairstyles, 181 new shirts, 35 new hats, 14 new pants , and 2 new boots
  • Junimo Kart has been almost completely re-done

 

  • Sheds can be upgraded to double their interior size:


  • Added 2 new monsters and 2 new alternative levels to the mines
  • A new type of upgrade at the Blacksmith’s
  • An emote menu for your farmer (default key is Y)

  • This update also includes a huge amount of Quality of Life improvements, like being able to stack “big” items (like kegs), or seeing the Junimo Note icon pulse when hovering over an item that’s required for a bundle. The social tab now keeps track of villagers’ likes and dislikes (click on a villager’s icon to bring up their profile):

  • Your collections tab now keeps track of all the letters you’ve received:
  • 14 new music tracks!
  • Hundreds of bug fixes
  • And plenty more…

 

Again, please keep in mind this is a highly condensed version of the changelog that leaves out a lot of details. I’m purposely leaving a lot out because I don’t like spoilers! That being said, if you’d like to see the complete, spoiler-filled version, please check out this link: https://www.stardewvalley.net/stardew-valley-1-4-update-full-changelog

1.4 should make it to Console & Mobile soon. I will let you know as soon as I have any concrete details on that!

Also, for mobile players, please note that 1.4 save files will not work on the current 1.3 mobile version. So please keep that in mind when considering a save transfer.

It’s always fun & exciting to share new content with you, and I really hope you have fun & enjoy discovering all the new stuff.
As always, thanks for playing Stardew Valley!

-ConcernedApe

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1.4 PC Release Date & More!

Hi everyone,

It’s been a while since I posted here, so I’d like to give you all an update on what’s happening in the world of Stardew Valley. In short, it’s an exciting time and there are a lot of great things going on right now!

1.3 Update For Xbox and PS4

The most recent big news is that XBOX and PS4 now both have the 1.3 multiplayer update, bringing all platforms (except VITA) into parity with one another. This is a rare state of harmony and peace that I am enjoying for the moment. I know Xbox and PS4 took longer than expected to get the 1.3 update, and I’m sorry for any frustration that caused. It’s not how I wanted things to happen, but unfortunately there were a series of technical roadblocks that were specific to these consoles, and also the fact that 1.3 radically changed Stardew’s code to allow for multiplayer (which made it particularly difficult to port). Still, the updates are out now, and I am going to do my best to make sure that this kind of delay doesn’t happen in the future. My plan for updates going forward is to release on PC first, and then simultaneously on consoles and mobile shortly after (ideally within a couple of weeks). The reason to release on PC first is mostly due to the ease & speed with which hotfix patches can go out on PC. If any rare bugs are found, they can be patched immediately. On consoles, there is a certification pipeline that you must go through to release anything, so if any rare bugs can be found and fixed via the PC release before launching on console, that is much better for everyone. Still, I would like the delay between PC and console release to be as short as possible.

The 1.4 Update

Now, the next big thing for Stardew Valley is going to be the free 1.4 update, which adds a pretty big variety of new things to Stardew Valley. One of my main goals with 1.4 was to finally “polish” the game to the degree that I’ve always wanted. What I mean by that is that I wanted to fix all the bugs that have been lingering in the game, to fix a lot of weird or annoying things about the controls & feel of the game, and add in a lot of “quality of life” features that will make the game more seamless to play. I feel pretty confident that this goal has been met!

Content-wise, nearly every aspect of the game has been expanded or improved upon in some way.

One small example is the Wild Bait…which used to be essentially worthless… but now gives you a chance to catch double fish.

There’s a lot of little things like that, where I felt that the game had some holes or weak points that could use a little boost.

Another example, is that every spouse now has a unique 14-heart event after marriage:

There is more end-game stuff like that to keep things going a little further after you’ve completed everything. I don’t want to spoil very much, so you’ll just have to wait and see for yourself!

One more thing to share… on PC, a screenshot button in the options menu that lets you take a screenshot of your entire farm (or any area, for that matter)

1.4 is currently in the final stages, just doing some last minute tweaks and fixing the rare bug…

But I’m at a point where I’m ready to announce a release date: The 1.4 update will come to PC on November 26th

My goal is for the update to release on consoles & mobile simultaneously a few weeks after PC.  Once 1.4 has a little more testing on these platforms, I hope to give a solid release date for them.

Google Play ‘User’s Choice’ Nomination

The Android version of Stardew Valley has been nominated for Google Play’s “User’s Choice” award in the US and Canada.  It’s an honor to be selected as one of the 14 best games of the year, and if you’d like to vote for Stardew Valley to win the award, please  check out this link
Voting ends on 11/25… It would be cool if Stardew Valley won!

Merchandise

I also want to give a shout out to some of the new Stardew merchandise from Fangamer, Sanshee, and The Yetee. Sanshee has a new Abigail plush and some nice pins, The Yetee has some new t-shirts, and please keep your eyes on Fangamer for some really cool new items coming soon (I foresee something good on the 22nd…) . Check out the store page for links to the different collections.

Miscellaneous

There’s a few more things going on that I’d like to mention:

  • The PS Vita version is still slated to get another update to fix some problems, though it will remain on 1.2 content-wise.
  • There are currently no plans to bring multiplayer to mobile.
  • 1.4 has some optimization improvements that should make performance better on consoles.

Also, the 1.4 update marks the first time in Stardew’s history where I’ve worked on new content with other people. After 7 years of working completely solo,  I formed a small team earlier this year to help me continue working on Stardew Valley. Originally, my plan was to do 1.4 completely solo, but the timing of it all didn’t work out that way, so 1.4 ended up being a team project. It’s all very small scale (1.4 was made with the help of 2 other people, and the team is currently just me and one other person), but having some help (particularly on the technical/programming side of things) is nice & will be good for Stardew Valley. It means that there will be a lot more in each update than I could do alone. I am still working on an unannounced project completely solo, though, with no plans to bring anyone else on.

Anyway, I think that’s all for now… as always, thanks for reading & for playing Stardew Valley!

-Ape

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Self-publishing on Switch

Just a heads up everyone, starting today I’ll begin self-publishing Stardew Valley on the Nintendo Switch. That means I will now have full responsibility for any and all matters concerning Stardew Valley on the Switch, so if you have any comments or inquiries about the Switch version please send them directly to me.

I thank Chucklefish for their help in making Stardew Valley a major success on the Switch, and I’m looking forward to continuing full support of Stardew Valley on the platform!

With today’s change, I’m now self-publishing Stardew Valley on all platforms except mobile, where Chucklefish continues to serve as publisher.

 

-Ape

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Hi everyone,

This is Eric Barone (aka ConcernedApe), creator of Stardew Valley.

I am aware of the news and social media reports that Chucklefish allegedly engaged in unfair and potentially abusive labor practices during development of their game, Starbound. I feel the need to address this situation because the connection between Chucklefish and Stardew Valley, as well as the degree to which Chucklefish was involved in the creation of the game,  has been a source of confusion for many people . So I’d like to clarify a couple of things.

Throughout the 4.5 years of development, I was the only person to work on Stardew Valley. Neither Chucklefish nor any contributors working with Chucklefish were involved in creating the game, in any capacity.

For the multiplayer update, which came out on PC 2.5 years after the game first launched, a Chucklefish employee did create the multiplayer net-code, but that was the only case where Chucklefish was directly involved in development of the game.

Beyond that, Chucklefish has served only as publisher, which means that they handled the business and marketing side of things, as well as contracting the localizations, console & mobile ports to 3rd-party companies. Since December of last year, I’ve moved to self-publishing on PC, Mac, Linux, PS4, Xbox, and PSVita… Chucklefish is no longer publishing the game on those platforms.

I can also say that, both personally and in my capacity as the recent founder of a small team, I believe in compensating developers for their contributions in working on games.

-Eric

 

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Stardew Valley now available on Android

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to give you guys a quick heads up…

It’s a day early, but Stardew Valley is now available for Android on the Google Play Store!

It’s $7.99 USD, but for regional pricing please check the store.

I hope you enjoy playing Stardew Valley on your Android device.

-Ape

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Android Version Coming March 14th

Hi Everyone,

 

Update: Stardew Valley for Android has a release date — March 14th!

Just want to give you a quick update… Stardew Valley for Android is on it’s way, and is now open for Google Play pre-registration.

The android version will be priced at $7.99 (the same as iOS). Please check the Google Play Store to see the price in your region!

Like the iOS version, this is the full version of Stardew Valley, up to 1.3 (but not including the multiplayer functionality).

Transfer of PC save data is supported, so you can carry over your game without having to start over!

English, Russian, Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, German, Hungarian, Korean and Turkish language support will be available at launch (coming to iOS and consoles in a future update).


Mobile development studio The Secret Police have been hard at work on some recent updates to the Mobile version since the iOS launch, adding the following mobile-specific features:

  • Save at any time – even when you close the app!
  • Pinch-to-zoom functionality, allowing players to zoom in and zoom out to get a full view of the farm
  • New control systems including virtual joystick and invisible joystick options, ‘action / attack’ button option, improved auto-attack and Joypad adjuster tool with complete customization of your onscreen controls

 

I also want to let the Xbox/PS4 players know that the multiplayer update is coming along well… the XBOX update is in QA, and PS4 will follow shortly. I hope to release both, simultaneously, within the next couple of months.

I’ll let you know as soon as I have anything more concrete to share with you. Thanks so much for your patience.

-Ape

 

 

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Hi everyone,

Update: The new languages are now live on Steam/GOG. Thanks to everyone who helped me test out the beta.

 

 

The Steam beta for French, Turkish, Italian, Hungarian, and Korean is here. If you speak any of those languages, and want to help me find bugs, typos, or even just give feedback on the new text, it would be a big favor and I’d really appreciate it!

To access the current beta version of Stardew Valley (on Steam):

  1. Right click on Stardew Valley in your games library and select “Properties”
  2. Click the “Betas” tab
  3. Click the drop down menu and select “beta” (no password is necessary)
  4. Steam will download the beta version. Stardew Valley should now have a [beta] tag in your library.

While it’s very unlikely that playing the beta version will threaten your save files, I recommend backing them up anyway. Your save files can be found in the “%appdata%/StardewValley/Saves” folder (on PC).

If you have any feedback or bug reports, please use this thread on the Stardew Valley Subreddit.

 

** UPDATE Feb. 2nd **

Hungarian language is now included in the beta

 

The Xbox and PS4 multiplayer updates are still in development, but are coming along well, and I will let you guys know as soon as I have more information on that.

 

I appreciate any help with testing out the beta,

& thanks for playing Stardew Valley!

-Ape

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Job Openings

Hi everyone,

I mentioned in my last post that I’ll be forming a small team to help me continue expanding and maintaining Stardew Valley. Links to the official job postings can be found below, and I’ll update them with the new ones when they’re available:

 

Posted March 27th:

Administrator

 

I appreciate everyone taking their time to apply!

Thanks

-Ape

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What’s In Store For Stardew Valley

Hi everyone,

 

First, a quick reminder:

A few weeks ago I announced that I’ll be self-publishing Stardew Valley on most platforms (everywhere except Nintendo Switch and mobile). Today, that transition takes effect.

So, as of today, for PC, Mac, Linux, XBox One, Playstation 4, and PS Vita, if you have any questions, comments, or business inquiries, please send them directly to me. I now bear 100% of the responsibility for these platforms!

 

Now, I’d like to tell you guys what I’m up to, and what’s in store for the future of Stardew Valley.

 

As many of you know, I’ve been working on a new game for a while. I haven’t revealed anything about it, except that it takes place in the same universe as Stardew Valley. I’ve been deliberately secretive about it because I want to be able to work on it without any pressure for the time being. I also want to make sure the concept is fully realized before revealing anything, because once it’s out there, I’m going to have to fully commit to it. I’m a pretty cautious person when it comes to this sort of thing.

 

Now, I believe I’ve said in the past that I wanted to devote all my time to the new game, and I might not work on any new Stardew Valley content. Well, that’s not exactly true. While there have been times in the past where I felt burnt out, and maybe even said that I wanted to move on, I always find myself coming back to Stardew Valley. For one, I keep getting new ideas for ways to improve and expand upon the game. This world is so full of potential, I could probably work on it for the rest of my life. There’s also such a wonderful community surrounding the game… and I like making you guys happy. I’m extremely grateful to all of you for supporting my work and creating this wonderful Stardew Valley community.  I wouldn’t be where I am today without you. And knowing that there’s still tons of people out there who love the game and would be extremely happy to get new content motivates me to keep working.

 

In short, what I’m saying is that I am going to keep making new content for Stardew Valley. In fact, I’ve recently put my other game on the back-burner and have been in the process of creating a new free content update.

 

French, Korean, Italian, and Turkish translations are also underway, though they may not come out until early next year.

 

I’m aware that saying “I’m working on new content” might be aggravating to those on consoles who don’t have the 1.3 update yet… Or to those on Switch who are experiencing frame rate issues in the new patch. I also haven’t forgotten about the PS Vita users, some of whom have reported bugs to me. It’s very important to me that I make good on my promises… the idea of expanding further while there are still lingering issues and unmet promises disturbs me, and isn’t something I want to be doing.

So I want to make it clear that these issues are my top priority, and if there’s ever anything I can do to help these things happen more quickly, it takes precedence over any new content… however, I don’t do those ports myself, they are done by Sickhead Games, so there’s nothing I can personally do to have an effect on that process, beyond setting it into motion (Sickhead Games does great work, by the way…  and they are making very fast progress on the console updates). I am also doing what I can to see the issues with Switch multiplayer get fixed, but that is also not something I can directly accomplish. So when I do work on new content, it’s only when I have no current avenue for addressing these higher priority issues.

 

So, currently I’m working on a new Stardew Valley update, and my new game is on hold for the time being. The difficult thing is that I want to work on both… I want to keep working on Stardew Valley and I also want to work on my new game. But I don’t have enough time to accomplish my goals with both things simultaneously. For a while, I considered being finished with Stardew Valley altogether. But that would make me (and many others) sad. So I’ve decided that I’m going to form a team to help me work on future Stardew Valley content. The update I’m working on right now (1.4) will be another solo update, but after that I hope to have a team in place that I can work closely with on future content.

 

This is going to be a big change for me… I’ve always worked alone, and working with a team is a whole new ballgame. However, just as I did with Stardew Valley originally, I’m just gonna go for it, and have faith that I can rise to the occasion and make it work. My hope is that the new team will help take some of the workload off me, so I have enough breathing room to divide my time between my new game and Stardew Valley. I still plan on having a very active role in the future of Stardew Valley, and the originator of all major Stardew Valley decisions and content. And there are many aspects of development which I’ll never be okay with handing over to another, like music or writing. But when it comes to programming, fixing bugs, administrative/business work, or even pixel art… I think I’d be okay with having some help. I’ll post more about this later.

 

This is a lot of new info, so here’s a summary:

  • My top priority is to see the 1.3 multiplayer update come to Xbox One & Playstation 4, and for issues with the Switch patch to be addressed.
  • I am working on a new game, but I’ve put it on hold in order to create a new Stardew Valley update (1.4).
  • French, Korean, Italian, and Turkish translations are in the works, though they may not come out until early next year.
  • I plan on forming a team to help me work on new Stardew Valley content (beyond 1.4)
  • Once the team is in place, I’ll divide my time between Stardew Valley and my new game.
  • I am now self-publishing on all platforms except Nintendo Switch and mobile.

Thanks so much for reading and have a great weekend

-Ape

 

 

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Hi Everyone,

I’m happy to announce that the 1.3 Multiplayer Update will be coming to Nintendo Switch this week,

on Wednesday the 12th of December.

It will be available across the North American, European, and Japanese Nintendo eShop regions.

A big thanks goes out to Tom Coxon from Chucklefish, who developed the multiplayer netcode which made this update possible. Also, a big thanks to Sickhead Games for porting it to Nintendo Switch!

I know that many of you have been looking forward to this update, so here’s a quick reminder of what you can expect:

Support for up to 4-player online co-op.
You can invite 1-3 friends to join you in the valley, either starting from scratch or diving in from an existing single player save. Each player will have their own Cabin on the farm, and you’ll be able to work together to achieve common goals such as farming, mining, fishing, foraging and festival participation!

The state of the Stardew Valley game world, including the main storyline, is shared between all players on the farm, as well as the pool of money you accumulate. However, each player will have their own private inventories, skills, achievements, collections, individual relationships, quests, and crafting/cooking recipes. As more hands are better than one, you may wish to change the difficulty level of your collective farm, which you can achieve by scaling the profit margins.In terms of marriage, players can choose to woo the eligible folks of Pelican Town, or craft a wedding ring to propose to a fellow player. If the other player accepts the ring, the couple becomes engaged!

Nintendo Switch features:

On Nintendo Switch you’ll be able to communicate with others on your farm using the Switch online voice chat or the new chat box feature with colored text and nearly 200 custom Stardew Valley emojis.

You can also play together via local communications play, meaning that 2-4 switch consoles can connect & play together over a short distance without the need for a Nintendo Switch Online account.

Single Player Content:

While the new 1.3 single player content has now been available on PC for a little while now, I’ll keep things vague to avoid spoilers for anyone who hasn’t come across them yet.

  • For 3 days in Winter you’ll be able to visit a traveling festival called the Night Market, which will visit Pelican Town. Here farmers can come and go as they please to purchase unique items, enjoy live entertainment and more!
  • There are now new character events to encounter, including some secret events triggered by certain conditions… Some of these even grant you permanent bonuses.
  • In Winter, farmers may encounter a strange event which activates a new ‘secret’ type of collection, leading to a new adventure and greater knowledge…
  • Your horse can now wear hats and Signs are now craftable items, available to you from the beginning of the game.
  • Much more to be discovered!

multiplayer screenshot

Next up is the PS4 and Xbox One Multiplayer updates, which is my top priority. I’m working with Sickhead Games to get these to you as soon as possible… I really appreciate your patience.

After the Switch update has launched, I’ll have more to share with you very soon…

Hope you’re having a nice holiday season & thanks for reading!

-ConcernedApe

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