Happy holidays, everyone!
Lately there’s been a lot of discussion within the community about the release timetable of Stardew Valley. It’s been weighing heavily on my mind, and I’ve spent many hours discussing the different possibilities with my publisher. It seems to boil down to two options:
1. Wait to launch the game until both single player and multiplayer are completely finished.
2. Launch the finished single player first and then add in multiplayer at a later date.
The matter is further complicated by the various ways in which these options could be executed (early access, beta, etc.). As I had mentioned in my last post, I was planning on doing some kind of public beta this month. Unfortunately, it didn’t end up being feasible for logistical reasons. However, it’s always been important to me that you guys get to play the finished game as soon as possible. You’ve all been very supportive of Stardew Valley for so long and I want to do everything in my power to repay that kindness. It feels wrong to delay the game for months to finish multiplayer when I have a complete single-player version ready for you to play.
That’s why I’ve decided to launch the single player version of Stardew Valley while I continue to work on multiplayer.
I feel good about this option because I believe single player is a full and wonderful experience; I wouldn’t release it if I felt differently. Multiplayer will certainly add new depth and fun to the game, and that’s why I’m still committed to finishing it. But delaying single player as a result doesn’t really benefit anyone. It’s clear to me now that multiplayer will still take many months of work. While waiting for the full SP/MP release would likely maximize sales, I think that this staggered approach will be better for you guys and for my own peace of mind.
I don’t know the release date for this single player version yet. There’s still a small amount of work to be done on single player before it’s completely ready. I will let you know the exact date as soon as I can!
Right now I’m adding steam achievements to the game.
As always, thanks for reading!
-ConcernedApe