When Infinity Nikki, the stunning open-world dress-up game headed by former Breath of the Wild dev Kentaro Tominaga, announced an upcoming collab with Stardew Valley, reactions varied – and even prompted a response from ConcernedApe himself.
Now, Infinity Nikki developer Infold Games has replied, too – albeit to ConcernedApe's own post regarding the crossover. In the farming sim creator's initial announcement, he explained that "I never receive any money from these collabs" and he only does them "because I was a fan of the other games, or because I genuinely thought the players would like it." He stated as much after players expressed concern that the partnership felt financially motivated.
Infold Games' own reply, made directly in response to ConcernedApe's, comes in the form of an online post in which devs call the collab "a free love letter" of sorts. "We really appreciate you sharing your feelings on this," writes the studio to the Stardew Valley mastermind. "Any unintended stress was the last thing we wanted. It was our way of saying thanks – a free love letter to Stardew Valley from our team and for the community."
We really appreciate you sharing your feelings on this. Any unintended stress was the last thing we wanted. It was our way of saying thanks—a free love letter to Stardew Valley from our team and for the community. Working on it felt like we were all tending a little farm… https://t.co/8J5wq4ubhDAugust 21, 2025
The Infinity Nikki team continues: "Working on it felt like we were all tending a little farm together. The care and detail you pour into your world is exactly why we want to make cozy games too. We're still learning from you every day." It's certainly a wholesome statement, but not everyone is convinced just yet.
"'We're still learning from you every day,' yet I haven't seen a single good change after all the things you've done wrong," comments one player.
Their words likely reference Infinity Nikki's laundry list of controversies, from situations that warranted 1,000-word apologies to ongoing bugs. Many of the comments do still express joy and excitement, even if the overall vibes feel off. As one person puts it, Infold Games "could not have chosen a better collab honestly." Another says that negative responses are "the ones making me lose hope for the game, not Infold" or the crossover itself.
Only time will tell how the collab is received come its September 1 arrival – and I, for one, as controversial as it might be, am genuinely looking forward to giving it a chance as a fan of all things cozy game-related (especially Stardew Valley).
Need something else to gett excited about now? Explore a few of the most exciting new games underway this year and beyond.
