Stardew Valley creator Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone is still actively working on a new project and may share the first official details "in the somewhat near future."
Barone said as much in a recent tweet responding to a fan who asked about what he's planning next. "I am working on some new stuff, and I might share something in the somewhat near future," Barone said, "but it will probably just be a spur-of-the-moment decision to announce anything."
Barone didn't offer any additional details about how this new game plays – though he did rule out a magic school setting in another reply – which is no surprise given his cautious history. Just over a year ago, he stressed that he wants to avoid "too much hype or speculation" about his next game, both because it was still being ironed out, and also because he's "not setting out to make the next indie smash hit."
We may not know what's next from the Stardew Valley creator, but we do know that he's been working on other projects for several years at least. In December 2018, Barone announced plans to form a new development team that would support ongoing work on Stardew Valley and make it easier for him to devote more time to his new project. This came on the heels of Barone's shift to self-publishing after working with Chucklefish for years. Even back then, his messaging around his next game was conservative to say the least.
"I've been deliberately secretive about it because I want to be able to work on it without any pressure for the time being," Barone said at the time. "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."
Barone's work on other projects hasn't stopped Stardew Valley from putting out yet more exciting updates – the most recent headline being Stardew Valley update 1.5 – and he's stayed active in the game's community as well. Just this month, he shared a long-overlooked tip that makes the community center way easier to handle.
Stardew Valley fans are still making lots of cool content too, like this mod that takes some headache out of fishing by – wait for it – letting you see the fish.
