I want Eric Barone to make his new game, but I get why he's still fixing Stardew bugs

GamesLife SimStardew ValleyI want Eric Barone to make his new game, but I get why he’s still fixing Stardew bugsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: ConcernedApe)

Stardew Valley farmer interacting with her Goat, which has a little heart over its head from improving affection levels.

Stardew Valley creator Eric Barone acknowledged earlier this year that his long-awaited next game, Haunted Chocolatier, started “getting dusty on the shelf” while he worked on Stardew Valley’s 1.6 patch. As much as I’m looking forward to his ghosts and ganache life sim, I don’t think there are many among us who’d fault Barone for continuing to tinker with the beloved farm sim that made him famous.

He’s hardly the only one who’s struggled to move on from a hit game. His story echoes that of Terraria developers Andrew “Redigit” Spinks and ReLogic, who keep making that game’s “last” updateonly to make yet another huge oneevery time. I’m also reminded of George Lucas' famous inability to quit messing with Star Wars, although the controversial film re-releases aren’tquitethe same thing as well-received Stardew Valley additions and bug fixes—I don’t think anyone’s really complaining in this case.

I’ve never spent years updating a hit game, but it’s easy to relate to the cycle of fixing, tweaking, building, and rebuilding that can turn any project into a forever project. Every time you fix one thing, you notice something else that could use improvement, and each addition generates ideas for more possible additions. Legend has it that turn-of-the-century eccentric Sarah Winchester had workers continuously add rooms toher bizarre California mansionfor decades to confuse vengeful spirits, but I think she just kept noticing walls that would look better with doors on them, and it all got out of control.

And, of course, Barone has Stardew Valley’s immense popularity to contend with.

“Stardew Valley is a big and popular game, and I have a lot of attachment to it,“Barone saidearlier this month. “I also feel a strong sense of duty and obligation to all the people who have bought Stardew Valley over the years, granting me this rare opportunity to be an indie game developer. So it’s hard to ‘let go’ of Stardew, even temporarily, to work on something that isn’t already established and meaningful to people.”

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