Hi everyone,

I hope the new year is going well for you so far.  I’d like to give you an update on several things that are happening right now:

Xbox One / PS4 patches:

Chucklefish and Sickhead Games are making good progress on addressing some issues with the console versions. Their top priority is to resolve the issue where saved games become unload-able. Fortunately, they’ve discovered the reason this is happening, and after this next patch, it shouldn’t occur anymore. If you currently have a save file that won’t load, it will likely work once again after the patch comes out. The patch will also fix several other issues: I’ll share the full patch notes with you when the it’s been finalized.

Patch Notes (31 January 2017)

The Xbox One and PS4 updates are live! Here’s a change log:

Xbox One & PS4

• Fixed potential loss of item in cursor slot when clicking the bundles tab in the pause menu.
• Fixed crash when hatching / buying baby blue chickens.
• Fixed crashes that sometimes occur when clearing quests out of the quest log.
• Petting a fully-happy animal no longer wraps happiness around to 0.
• Animals with a deluxe product no longer produce less at higher happiness.
• Fixed a golden pumpkin duplication exploit.
• Fixed ‘Exit to Title’ causing some values and bits of world state to be ‘carried over’ between games. This affected, among other things, the availability of chests in the mines.
• Fixed crashes while saving.
• Possible fix for fertilizer boxes being placed instead of fertilizer.
• Missing heart characters have been fixed.

Xbox One

• The bug that causes crashes while looking for save files has been fixed.
• Most saves that couldn’t be loaded before should now load. In some cases there may be lingering minor graphical issues in save files that previously couldn’t be loaded.

The following issues are also fixed by the above, but may continue to affect save files they’re already present in:

• Crash when speaking to Gunther.
• Incorrect item / object graphics.
• Objects that should be interactive not being interactive.
• Crashes when walking into specific parts of the farm.
• Crashes while harvesting specific crop tiles.
• Crashes while hovering over specific items in your inventory.
• Crashes while shipping specific items.

PS4

• Share overlay image in PS4 streams has been removed.

FAQ

• Will issues affecting corrupted Xbox saves persist even after the Feb 1 patch?

New saves and saves that have previously not been corrupted will work fine and will never become corrupt. Existing saves that became corrupt and could not be loaded will be repaired and become loadable in almost all cases now. Saves that became corrupted may continue to behave oddly in some cases (Refer to the list in Xbox One patch notes about issues that might persist).

• What about the issue where PS4 Pro users have problems shutting down their console, going into rest mode and running other apps?

The PS4 Pro issues associated with Stardew Valley are a system software bug, and not caused by the game. Sony have informed us that a fix is coming in the next major system software update, but we (Chucklefish & Sickhead) haven’t been told when that will be.

Localisations (Beta test in early february):

Playism is translating Stardew Valley into Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, German, Russian, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese. Back in October, I said that these localised versions would be available by the end of the month… I was way off. After inspecting the state of the localised versions, it become clear that they needed a lot more work. Well, that work is now mostly finished. Chucklefish is doing some private testing of the localised versions, and it seems very solid so far. In early February we will do an open beta test on Steam. It will go live for everyone some time after that, depending on how the beta goes.

Nintendo Switch

Stardew Valley will not be a launch title on Nintendo Switch, but I am still planning on bringing it to the platform later this year.

Playstation Vita

We are currently investigating the possibility of a PS Vita port.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer co-op is still in development… progress has been made but it’s going to be a while yet.

Most Stardew Valley development is being done by others, now (Chucklefish, Sickhead Games and Playism)… but I do still work on the game. For example, I am currently working on making the controller easier to use (getting rid of the cursor in menus when using gamepad). That should be added to the console and PC versions in a future patch.

I hope this post answers some of the questions you may have had lately.

Also, thanks so much to everyone who put Stardew Valley on their end-of-the-year awards/lists.  I am very honored. Thank you!

-ConcernedApe

UPDATED UPDATE: The Xbox One and PS4 patches are both live!

—

Hi everyone,

An important patch for the console versions is in the works.  I will let you know when it goes live, but in the meantime I’d like to share these patch notes with you:

Xbox One:

– Performance improvements for periodic hitching and freezes.
– Fixed Junimo harvesters not path finding.
– Fixed About button (?) to be unclickable during main menu transitions.
– Fixed crash when sleeping if you built a Junimo Hut and the Witch visits you.
– Fixed a crash when sleeping that would prevent a player from advancing past year 1, day 28.
– Moved in some HUD elements that were too close to the edge of the screen.
– The LT and RT buttons can now be used to switch buildings in carpenter menu.
– The shipping menu can now be closed by pressing the VIEW button.
– The B button can now be used to close Grandpa’s letter.
– B button now goes back one page when you’re in a specific bundle of the Junimo menu.
– B button now returns a held item to your inventory in Bundle menu in the Community Center.
– Made harvesting easier by also checking beneath the player when pressing the A button.
– Cursor position will no longer affect item placement if it is currently invisible.
– We now show the ground placement indicator for seeds, like other objects.
– Fixed incorrect tool hit location in some situations.
– X button can now be held down to auto-repeat while in menus.
– Cursor will no longer interact with HUD menus if it is currently invisible.
– Fixed toolbar becoming stuck partially transparent.
– The VIEW button can now be used to advance the “Level Up” dialog.
– Fixed some cases of the game becoming stuck after using “Exit to Title”.

Playstation 4 

– Fixed crash sleeping on 3rd or 4th day when playing with OS in non-English languages (German, Portuguese).
– Fixed About button (?) to be unclickable during main menu transitions.
– Fixed crash when sleeping if you built a Junimo Hut and the Witch visits you.
– Fixed a crash when sleeping that would prevent a player from advancing past year 1, day 28.
– Moved in some HUD elements that were too close to the edge of the screen.
– The L2 and R2 buttons can now be used to switch buildings in carpenter menu.
– The shipping menu can now be closed by pressing the TOUCH PAD button.
– The CIRCLE button can now be used to close Grandpa’s letter.
– CIRCLE button now goes back one page when you’re in a specific bundle of the Junimo menu.
– CIRCLE button now returns a held item to your inventory in Bundle menu in the Community Center.
– Made harvesting easier by also checking beneath the player when pressing the CROSS button.
– Cursor position will no longer affect item placement if it is currently invisible.
– We now show the ground placement indicator for seeds, like other objects.
– Fixed incorrect tool hit location in some situations.
– SQUARE button can now be held down to auto-repeat while in menus.
– Cursor will no longer interact with HUD menus if it is currently invisible.
– Fixed toolbar becoming stuck partially transparent.
– The TOUCH PAD button can now be used to advance the “Level Up” dialog.
– Fixed some cases of the game becoming stuck after using “Exit to Title”.

Thanks for playing Stardew Valley and I hope you have a nice weekend

-ConcernedApe

Hi everyone,

Stardew Valley is now available on Xbox One, and Playstation 4 in North America and Europe! The price for the console version is $14.99 USD, just like PC.

Stardew Valley was ported to Xbox and PS4 by my publisher, Chucklefish, in conjunction with Sickhead Games. The launch has been relatively smooth so far, but there are a few issues we are aware of. We will be rolling out some patches in the next few weeks to address some of these issues, including:

• Game crashes when going to sleep around the 3rd day, if the system language is not english. (PS4)
• Game crashes in certain cases if the Exit To Title button was used (Xbox One)
• Occasional hitching/freezing in the Xbox One version
• GUI elements cut off on the edges of the screen on certain TV setups
• Control improvements

In the meantime, Molly from Chucklefish has started a thread in the forums with some known bugs/issues and a few workarounds.

Thanks so much to everyone who has purchased the console version so far… I hope you are enjoying it… and thank you all for your continued support!

-ConcernedApe

I’m pleased to announce the official release dates for the Xbox One and Playstation 4 versions of Stardew Valley!

Stardew Valley will launch in North America for the PS4 on December 13th, 2016.

Stardew Valley will launch in Europe for the PS4 and globally for the Xbox One on December 14th, 2016.

Pre-orders for the Xbox One (globally) and PS4 (Europe only) will begin on November 30th, 2016.

Stardew Valley will not be coming to the Wii U, however. Looking at Wii U and the current gaming landscape, we made the difficult choice to shift our development efforts to creating a version for Nintendo Switch.  I am really looking forward to the Switch, and I believe that the Switch’s unique capabilities could create some exciting opportunities for Stardew Valley. I do want to emphasize that I am absolutely committed to seeing Stardew Valley on Nintendo platforms, and I really do appreciate your support and understanding in this.

-Ape

Hi everyone,

As you may know, I’ve been working with Playism and Chucklefish to create official translations for Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Brazillian Portuguese, Spanish and German (and possibly Thai). I mentioned on twitter recently that these versions would be available some time this month in a free update. However, during our internal testing of the localized versions, we’ve encountered some issues, and it looks like we won’t be able to release it this month.

Making sure that everyone has a great experience with Stardew Valley is our top priority, and we all agreed that we’d rather delay the release of the localization update than risk jeopardizing that experience.

This is going to affect the localization of the console versions of Stardew Valley more than the PC version. On PC, I can release the localization update as soon as we feel like it’s ready. Releasing a game on consoles is more complex and requires submissions well in advance of the actual release. This means the console versions will only be in English at launch, and we’ll have to patch in the other languages a little later.

Multiplayer is still under development… I know it’s taking a while, but it should be worth the wait. Thanks for your patience!

-ConcernedApe

Hi everyone!

It’s been a wild weekend for me. I had a booth at PAX West… my first time ever going to a convention, let alone exhibiting at one! It was really amazing to meet so many people who appreciate Stardew Valley. The vast number of positive interactions I had is hard for me to comprehend, and when I start to think about it I get really emotional. I am very grateful to have met you all.

Some highlights of the convention:

• All the people doing Stardew Valley themed cosplay! I met Abigails, Emilys, Gunther, Shane, Sebastian, Leah, Jas, Maru, and several people who were dressed as their own in-game characters! One person had a locket with a picture of Sebastian in it. Another came with a fiberglass rod. Sebastian gifted me a potato! Very fun.
• People who brought me their Stardew Valley art, home-made jelly, and gave me hugs.
• Funny Stardew stories, like the guy who found a catfish in the trash can after his friend spent many hours fishing for one. Also the guy who listens to the soundtrack while doing yoga, and all the people who expressed their interest in marrying Pam.
• People’s personal & heartwarming stories about how the game helped them get through tough times. Thanks so much for sharing with me.

At PAX, I had one of the new features of version 1.1 available to demo, and I’d like to tell you all a little more about it.

When starting a new character in version 1.1, you’ll be able to choose from five different farm maps (including the original map). Each map is based on a different skill, and includes unique gameplay opportunities that correspond to that skill. Here’s a rundown:

Riverlands (fishing) — Lots of water, and fishing is actually viable, unlike the other farm maps. It also looks really nice!

Forest (foraging) — Forage items spawn on the west edge of the map, as well as renewable stumps. There is also a unique type of weed that spawns on the farm.

Hill-top (mining) — Lots of cliffs. There is a mining area to the southwest where ores and unique geode-bearing stones will spawn.

Wilderness (combat) — Plenty of farming space, but monsters come out at night.

Everything else in the patch should seamlessly integrate into your existing save files, but to play the new maps you’ll have to start a new character.

There’s a few more things I need to finish for the update, but it should be ready soon.

Thanks again to everyone I met at PAX for the kind words and suggestions!

-Ape

Hello,

I’d like to give you a little update on what I’ve been up to. As you may know, I’ve been working on version 1.1 (a more substantial content update) for quite some time now. It’s taking longer than I had hoped, for a few reasons. For one, I am working on the update entirely on my own. That’s the way I made the rest of the game, it’s how I like to work, and I think it would be a bad idea to change it at this point. Secondly, I have post-release “maintenance” duties that take time away from pure development. This includes writing emails, working on business stuff, trying to maintain a social media presence, doing interviews, and more.

However, to be entirely honest… the main reason the update is taking so long is that I was feeling very burnt out for a while recently, and my productivity went way down. Stardew Valley has consumed nearly every waking moment of my life for almost five years now, and I think my brain demanded some time away from it. I had taken a very small break (a few days) a couple months after launch, but it wasn’t enough. I know I said I felt refreshed, but I was lying to myself. I should have just committed to a longer break. Rather, I spent the last couple of months dilly-dallying, playing video games all day, surfing the web, and feeling guilty about the trivial amount of real work I was doing.

In truth, I’ve always had ups and downs, periods of intense productivity and energy followed by periods of low motivation. I’ve been this way for as long as I can remember. This time around did seem a little worse than usual, but I reminded myself that with the success of Stardew Valley, my life got very weird very suddenly. It’s probably normal to need some time to adjust. I’m not even sure if this recent funk was due to the sudden success, to my own volatile brain chemistry or simply a result of working too hard for too long without a break. Sometimes I forget that I am actually a human with the need to relax and have a little fun.

Whatever the cause, the good news is that I am now very productive again. I’ve accomplished more in the past week than I have in the previous few months, and I feel my usual level of energy and motivation. I am feeling very optimistic about the future.

Why am I telling you all this? I don’t even know, I just want to, it’s my style. I want to let you know that I’m still here and still at work, but I don’t want to craft some kind of story to fool people into supporting me. I want to tell you the truth and let you form your own opinion. Anyway, thank you for reading my message.

Here’s where I’m at on version 1.1:

Shane’s marriage stuff is completely finished.
Emily is 80% finished. I am working on her now and making rapid progress.
New farm buildings
A new upgrade option for your house
Ability to move buildings
New items and crops
More spouse behaviors

Still planning on doing:
Something I’m not ready to reveal yet, but will add more replay value to the game
more buildings
some more character events for non-marriage NPC’s
more bug fixes
???

When will this be released? I’m not sure. I made a lot of estimates during the pre-release development of Stardew Valley and was always wildly off, so I’ve learned not to do that anymore. All I can say is that the update will be ready as soon as it possibly can be, and while I want to release it soon, I won’t compromise on quality to make that happen. As always, thanks for your patience.

In other news:

I am going to have a little booth at PAX West this year. If you’re going, make sure to stop by and say hi!

Multiplayer, console versions, and localizations are all in active development.
Thanks for reading!
-Ape

Hello everyone!

First, I’d like to thank you all so much for playing Stardew Valley. The game has been more successful than I ever imagined, and I’m very grateful to everyone for granting me this amazing opportunity. I can’t say it enough– the community that’s formed around this game is incredible… full of kind, talented people who have given Stardew Valley a life of it’s own. It’s really cool. 

The last couple of months have been pretty wild for me. I released seven patches… with bug fixes, adjustments, and some new content here and there. In addition, I’ve been keeping up with interviews, business stuff, social media platforms, and helping people who are having issues with the game. In short, I’ve been extremely busy.

Toward the end of April the launch buzz had cooled off enough that I could afford to take a short break. It’s been nice… I’ve actually played some other games for the first time in a long while, which was fun (Final Fantasy IX, Factorio, Age Of Empires II) .  I feel refreshed, and I’m ready to get back to work!

First, here is a list of what’s planned for the future of Stardew Valley:

• Version 1.1 — A substantial content update
• Co-op Multiplayer
• Localizing for non-english regions
• Mac/Linux Ports
• Console Ports
• Merchandise

Now, there’s obviously a huge amount of work involved to achieve all this… and I am just one person. I know in the past I’ve been very adamant about doing everything myself… and I still am, when it comes to game design and content. However, I’ve decided to seek outside help for some of the more technical things listed above. More specifically, I’ve accepted an offer from Chucklefish in which they will handle the porting, localization, and the technical side of multiplayer. This will allow me to focus on creating new game content for version 1.1, which I will continue to do entirely on my own.

This should result in faster overall development and reduced workload for me, while preserving my artistic control over Stardew Valley. I think it will be beneficial for everyone.

There’s no official timetable for any of this yet… Mainly I just want to let you all know that multiplayer, porting and localization are actively being worked on.

In the meantime, I’d like to give a little rundown of some things I’m planning for version 1.1:

• More late-game content
• New farm buildings
• New crops
• New artisan goods
• New advanced farming/producing mechanics
• Shane and Emily will be marriage candidates. They will also have more events and dialogue as a result.
• More marriage content for all spouses
• More events for the non-marriage NPC’s
• Improvements/Additions to mining and combat
• Ability to move buildings and other convenience features
• More bug fixes
• More secrets
• More small, fun touches to the world

(note: anything in this list is subject to change)

Well, that’s all for now. Again, thanks for all your support and thanks for reading!

-ConcernedApe

Purchase Stardew Valley for $14.99 on Steam,  GOG  &  Humble !

The official Stardew Valley Wiki is also live!

Hi everyone!

I’ve got some exciting news: Stardew Valley will be released on February 26th!

It will be priced at $14.99 USD.

Watch the new trailer below:

I’m really looking forward to sharing this game with you : )

-ConcernedApe