Those who have already written off Stardew Valley couldn”t be more wrong: The farming simulation still has a few surprises in store in 2022.
The coast redwood, which is common in California, can sprout over 110 metres into the sky – making it the tallest tree species in the world. But it takes many hundreds, if not thousands, of years for it to reach these insane proportions. Why are we telling you this? Because this example is a wonderful illustration that patience pays off.
Admittedly, Stardew Valley, the farming simulation from developer Eric “Concerned Ape” Barone, may not have been around for centuries, but it is still no spring chicken. The Harvest Moon-inspired title was released back in early 2016 – and yet tens of thousands of players still return to Pelican Town every day.
But here, too, patience has paid off: thanks to a series of major content updates, version numbers 1.1 to 1.5, and countless smaller patches, Stardew Valley is currently better than ever. But how much better exactly? That”s what we found out in our post-test.
Return to Stardew Valley
The sophisticated game mechanics, the cosy atmosphere – we already praised all of this in our original review from 2016, and all of these are still Stardew Valley”s greatest strengths. In detail, however, a lot has changed: Particularly worth mentioning is the cooperative multiplayer mode for a total of up to four players introduced with version 1.3.
The host can open his single-player score for the multiplayer, for which, however, enough houses must first be built for each individual player. Alternatively, it is possible to create a completely new multiplayer world, in which you then also directly determine the number of accommodations. Afterwards, other players can join with an invitation code; accordingly, there is no server browser or matchmaking.
In multiplayer you have to coordinate well – if only because all players share the same purse. Going to bed (and thus saving) only works if all the farmers are in bed at the same time. The multiplayer mode offers wonderful options for the division of labour: You don”t like the mines? No problem, then concentrate on the field work and let someone else do the work underground. This always creates very nice moments that generate a sense of community among the players – for example, when the assembled team catches fish at the picturesque lake and everyone curses about the fishing mini-game.
New coat of paint for the farm
The multiplayer mode is also a top reason to try out some of the new maps. In addition to the well-known standard farm, there are now six other options for your homestead: riverbed, forest, mountain tops, wilderness, corners and beach. These not only look very different, but also bring individual advantages and disadvantages with them.
“Mountain peaks” are so winding that larger cultivation areas are difficult to find, but there are raw materials en masse here. “Corners” is ideal for multiplayer mode, because here each farmer can call his own largely separate area. Based on the names of the maps, While this isn”t 100 percent perfect, it”s undoubtedly better than nothing – and helps you better understand the numerous conversations in the game.
For example, you should pay Emily and Shane a visit – since Update 1.1, the two of them have joined the ranks of marriage candidates. Since then, there are twelve villagers with whom you can enter into long-term relationships.
The island is calling!
Of course, there are also entirely new quests and areas. After you have collected all the items for the community centre, Willy the fisherman invites you to his home. There you can repair his old boat, which he will use to take you to Ginger Island in the south.
What at first seems like a small island soon turns out to be an extensive area complete with its own farm with bed, shipping crate and everything. The highlight of the island is the volcano dungeon with its ten floors. It couldn”t match the mine on the main island, but the prospect of rare items and the cool lava look make the trip to the seething mountain worthwhile.
You should also pay a visit to the lair of the mysterious Qi, whom you may already know from his desert casino. Especially cool: If you feed the parrots on the island with walnuts, they will rebuild destroyed bridges, build a beach resort or unlock fast travel options. This really creates the feeling that you have had a lasting influence on the world. Last but not least, you”ll find the ostrich egg on Ginger Island, which you”ll have to put in an incubator for a few days to hatch into a magnificent ostrich that will enrich your farm.
There”s also new content on the main island itself, such as the bulletin board for special orders. And if that”s still not enough for you, you can access the countless mods created by the community. Although these are not directly included in the rating, they have undoubtedly contributed decisively to the long-term success. Five very helpful mods are presented in the following picture gallery.
These mods will make your daily farming life easier
If your farm has settled into a routine, this is the perfect time to try out a few of the myriad mods for Stardew Valley. (Nexusmods.com) is the biggest place to go for fan modifications, but you”ll also need a free account there. However, before installing any mods, it is better to make a backup in Steam.
The API called “(SMAPI)” is a basic requirement for installing mods and should be installed first, also the (Content Patcher) is quasi indispensable for many fan creations. These five mods will help you with your everyday work:
A special recommendation is also (the huge Expanded mod by FlashShifter), which among other things adds five new maps and a quest line and romance around the wizard. Plus there are more potions, fish and even music tracks.
A beginner”s experience
All these new features sound great in theory, but how does it play in practice? Even as a Stardew Valley newcomer, I managed to get into the game largely well, even if the sheer mass of content can be a little intimidating at times.
After an initial familiarisation phase, Stardew Valley becomes an almost meditative experience: waking up in the morning, cultivating fields, selling yields, chatting with the villagers – it”s all delightfully light-hearted and perfect for distracting yourself after a stressful day at work.
The game finds a very pleasant compromise between familiar routine on the one hand and variety on the other. Because of the different seasons, we always have to plan ahead, and the dungeons also loosen up the farmer”s daily routine.
Last but not least, the mods – which are pleasantly easy to install, even though there is no connection to the Steam Workshop – ensure long-term gaming fun. The co-op mode, on the other hand, fits seamlessly into the gameplay and expands Stardew Valley with a social dimension beyond the NPCs.
What could be better?
Now some of you will have squinted in the direction of the rating and asked yourselves: “Sounds great – why not a 90?” Despite all the enthusiasm for the undoubtedly outstanding qualities of Stardew Valley, a few quibbles did bother us in the post-test. For example, the fact that the map only shows the rough position of your character. This makes navigation a little irritating at first.
The biggest shortcoming of Stardew Valley, however, is still its lack of tutorials. An example: In the mine you can dig up soil with your rake, which is absolutely essential to get the artefacts for the museum. But the game doesn”t explain that to you.
Of course, this is by no means a huge problem, after all, the internet is full of guides and tips about the game – the (Stardew-Valley-Wiki) is particularly recommended in this regard. Nevertheless, it would be better if players did not have to resort to external sources.
However, we should not expect such serious changes in Stardew Valley. A version 1.6, which should mainly make life easier for modders, is still planned, but everything after that is written in the stars. Eric Barone is already working on his next game called Haunted Chocolatier – perhaps there will be more room for instructions and such there.
Till we are finally allowed to slip into the role of the chocolate maker, we enjoy the quiet life on our farm in the Star Valley for a while. Missing tutorials or not.
Editor”s verdict
Even as a games journalist, one is not entirely immune to prejudice, because at first I naively smiled at Stardew Valley: “A farming game with a pixel look and dating mechanics? I”m sure it”s all right, but that”s all it is.” Many hours of play later, I”m still smiling, but this time for different reasons: Stardew Valley is great! And after intensively reading the patch notes and talking to my colleague Dani, I can also reconstruct how much better Stardew Valley has become since release. New areas, additional end-game challenges, the co-op mode and much more – I”m thrilled!
On the other hand, I did notice some negative aspects of the game. Stardew Valley”s introduction is relatively weak and some mechanics are only insufficiently explained. In addition, there are a few completely subjective points of criticism, for example, I find that the collection quests in the community centre are a little too much. These aren”t huge problems on their own, but they have the overall effect of denying Stardew Valley a rating in the highest regions.