Stardew Valley's creator is forming a new team to speed up content updates and create time for his next game

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Work on the new game has been paused to make room for Stardew Valley fixes and update 1.4

Days after the Nintendo Switch release of Stardew Valley multiplayer update 1.3, today creator Eric 'ConcernedApe' Barone unveiled plans to ramp up Stardew's development, including the formation of a new development team and a big 1.4 update. The announcement comes on the heels of Barone's shift to self-publishing: after working with publisher Chucklefish for years, as of today Barone is both the developer and publisher of Stardew Valley on all platforms apart from Switch and mobile. 

Barone has been working on a new, unannounced game for some time, but he says he's paused its development to prioritize Stardew Valley - particularly getting its multiplayer update onto PS4 and Xbox One, fixing some performance issues with the Switch update, and releasing new translations. Additionally, after update 1.4 is finished he plans to build a team which will help maintain Stardew Valley and develop new content for it. 

"I still plan on having a very active role in the future of Stardew Valley, and [being] the originator of all major Stardew Valley decisions and content," Barone said. "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." Barone added that, "Once the team is in place, I'll divide my time between Stardew Valley and my new game." 

Regarding his next game, which is set in the same universe as Stardew Valley, Barone said: 

"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." 

Need more Stardew goodness right this instant? Here are 11 games like Stardew Valley that are sure to get their hooks in you.  

Austin Wood
Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.