Stardew Valley creator shares mysterious new screenshot that has spooked fans theorizing over update 1.6

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Is Ginger Island about to head down the Joja route?

Stardew Valley
(Image credit: ConcernedApe)

The creator of Stardew Valley has shared a vague screenshot from the game, which has sent fans into a frenzy trying to figure out what it means. 

On September 21, Eric 'ConcernedApe' Barone shared what appears to be a Stardew Valley screenshot on Twitter, that features a golden parrot sitting on a JojaMart brand stand. Unfortunately, the developer didn't give any context to this screenshot, which has left fans to fill in the blanks and come up with their own theories as to what the Stardew Valley creator is trying to tell us. 

Like we said, the screenshot looks like it's from Ginger Island but what's interesting is that the parrot in question has a bubble above its head with three gold coins in it - indicating that that's what it's after from the player. If you've played Stardew Valley, you'll already know that this is strange since Ginger Island's currency is Gold Walnuts and not coins. 

"Joja route for Ginger Island rather than walnuts," one Reddit user has guessed, "dang he's [ConcernedApe] making us replay the entire game for the Joja story path," another adds. "Okay HEAR ME OUT- after getting dissolved in Pelican Valley, Jojamart strikes back by building a factory on Ginger Island to advance their filthy capitalist agenda," a Twitter user has theorized - which has got a lot of other fans worried about the corporation taking over the peaceful island. 

We know that ConcernedApe is currently working away on the Stardew Valley 1.6 update, although, as the developer has said themselves, "it won't be huge." More recently, the Stardew Valley creator teased that the game's next update will feature new items and "secrets" - so maybe fans are onto something with this Joja/Ginger Island conspiracy. We'll have to wait for Stardew Valley 1.6's release date to find out,  which is due "when it's ready". 

Find out all about ConcernedApe's next game Haunted Chocolatier with our guide. 

Hope Bellingham
Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.