Stardew Valley creator Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone is already preparing himself for a world of hurt when his next game, Haunted Chocolatier, comes out and people realize it really isn't Stardew Valley 2.
To his credit, Barone never billed Haunted Chocolatier as a sequel to Stardew Valley, but the comparisons were always inevitable. Stardew Valley is one of the most beloved cozy games of all time, and despite Haunted Chocolatier being officially described as "more of an action RPG" than Stardew, Barone's name will always be synonymous with the farming sim space.
Talking to IGN, Barone said fan expectations from Stardew Valley lovers keep him up at night.
"It's been a huge struggle for me actually," he said. "See, what I want to do is just not care and just make the game however, just whatever, not worry about it. But it's basically impossible because I can't help but think about how this will be received. And I know that there's going to be a lot of people playing this game who are expecting it to be a Stardew Valley 2. And are they going to like it or not? And it's like, yes, I want to just make the game I want to make, but I also don't want a bunch of people to not like the game because they were expecting a certain thing. That's not going to feel good. I know that."
I personally think Barone is worrying a little too much about this, from the sound of things. He's made it clear in the past that Haunted Chocolatier is still a life sim at its core, despite some added action RPG elements and a darker, more mysterious vibe, and visually it shares the same general pixel art aesthetic as Stardew. I've found, perhaps unsurprisingly, the cozy games community to be among the least fussy, and if there's one thing Barone has proven, it's his ability to make a damn good cozy game.
The bad news is that it sounds like Haunted Chocolatier is still many years away from releasing. While Barone has a small team of developers helping him, he's still the main creative force driving development on both Stardew Valley, which we now know is getting a massive 1.7 update at some point, as well as Haunted Chocolatier. In the same interview with IGN, Barone committed to making the game he wants to make, without compromise, no matter how long it takes.
"I would say it's coming along," he said of Haunted Chocolatier. "The progress isn't as fast as I would like. Nothing is ever as fast as I would like. The main important thing about Haunted Chocolatier is I'm not going to release anything that I'm not happy with. If I don't think it's a great game, I'm not going to release it. So even if that takes years and years, so be it. That's just what I want to do. Fortunately, I don't feel like there's any real pressure. I haven't received funding from anyone or crowdfunding. There's not going to be any pre-orders.
"I don't actually owe anyone the game. It's like when I want to do it and when I want to release it, it'll get done. I mean, it's true that I've announced the game, that does create a lot of pressure on me because I do feel like I don't want to disappoint the fans by taking too long, but there's no real physical obligation with it. It's more just mental constructs, you might say."
Haunted Chocolatier, in case you haven't been following along, is a game where you take on the role of a confectionary store owner. Like Stardew, you'll mosey around town, hang out with its denizens, and romance people, and unlike Stardew, there will also be ghosts rummaging around. You will also whack at things with weapons and use shields to block, but it's unclear how deep the action elements are at this juncture.
