One Stardew Valley fan has done what many of us wish we could and gotten her own mother into the farming sim – but in a twist of events, her mom has become even more of a Stardew stan than even she is, clocking over 1,000 hours to date.
Whenever a parent or grandparent makes rounds on the web for gaming, like the beloved Skyrim grandma, a wholesome following develops. That's sort of happening now to Emilia, who has recently gone viral online for a thread in which she details how she got her mom involved in Stardew Valley. "I introduced my mom to Stardew Valley," writes Emilia, "and she's played 1000+ hours since." An impressive total playtime, for sure – but things get even more wild.
i guess y’all really appreciate my mom’s dedication so here are some screenshots from her evil farmshe went with the joja mart for this save to be extra wicked. she’s also wearing the mayor’s lucky purple shorts so he won’t talk to her anymore pic.twitter.com/4Gs7bEwDs3August 5, 2025
Emilia says her mom "has a save where she has married and divorced everyone possible to intentionally become enemies with the townsfolk" – a true chaotic evil playthrough, if you ask me. As the post started gaining traction, Emilia followed up with a screenshot of her mother's "evil farm," along with a bit of an explainer: "She went with the Joja Mart for this save to be extra wicked. She's also wearing the mayor's lucky purple shorts, so he won't talk to her anymore."
Brilliant choice, I say, as a certified mayor hater myself. But things are as wholesome as they are amusing in Emilia's thread, with her dropping some "gamer lore" from her past, as well as her mom's other favorite games: "My mom actually introduced me to gaming! The franchise we've played the most together is probably AoE, but back in the '00s, we also played Sims, SimCity (totally different), Zoo Tycoon, and anything else we could get our hands on."
As for why Emilia got her mom into Stardew Valley, she says it was initially to help with a health condition. "I actually introduced her to SDV after she was [diagnosed] with a neurodegenerative disease that affects her mobility and fine motor skills," she says. "Because she was stuck indoors, video games were a no-brainer solution for staying distracted while she recovered from a bad episode." It sounds like things worked out for the best.
She says playing SDV then helped her with regaining use of her left hand — I can’t say if this is true, but it definitely kept her occupied and motivated to use it LOLAfter this experience, I do believe video games can be extremely valuable for disabled folks!August 6, 2025
"She says playing SDV then helped her with regaining use of her left hand – I can't say if this is true, but it definitely kept her occupied and motivated to use it," concludes Emilia. "After this experience, I do believe video games can be extremely valuable for disabled folks!"
You love to see it. It's so heartwarming, I almost forgot that Emilia's mom is currently making enemies out of Pelican Town in its entirety.
Hopefully, Emilia returns with updates on her mom's journey in Stardew Valley. Judging by her replies, she's also going to share even more games with her mother – including Fields of Mistria, an indie mashup of Sailor Moon and Stardew Valley vibes.
Itching for even more? Here are our favorite games like Stardew Valley, and some of the most exciting new games to look forward to.
