Stardew Valley still contains at least one secret that creator Eric Barone doesn’t believe a single person has ever found, and he’s started to doubt if it will ever be discovered. While Stardew Valley‘s longevity is due in part to the little secrets that ConcernedApe has sprinkled in throughout its many years of content, he may have managed to hide one secret message too well, to the point that it’s not even relevant anymore.
Having been released nearly a full 10 years ago, on February 26, 2016, Stardew Valley‘s take on the farming and life simulation genres has led the ambitious indie game to more than 41 million copies sold as of December 2024, and the occasional release of free additional content is still drawing in players to this day. Even as he provides updates on Haunted Chocolatier, his next gaming project, Barone has stated that he’s still not done with Stardew Valley, as his mind still contains ideas for ways to make it even more fun for players.
Stardew Valley’s 1.7 Update Hopefully Won’t Make a Mountain Out of a Molehill
If the next update for Stardew Valley isn’t as big fans hope it is, then hopefully ConcernedApe sets expectations for it accordingly before launch.
ConcernedApe Says There’s Still One Stardew Valley Secret Left to be Found
But even as new content looms just over the horizon, Barone noted players still haven’t found every little detail he’s scattered throughout Stardew Valley‘s nearly decade-long history. In a new interview with IGN, Barone was asked about an older statement concerning one long-hidden piece of content, questioning whether there was any indication that players had found it as the big anniversary nears. He confirmed that there seems to be at least one secret Easter egg in Stardew Valley that no one has come across yet, and it sounds like it has been there for quite a while. While it would be difficult to survey the millions of players who enjoy the farming life sim, especially without giving the secret away, word of any unearthed secrets tends to spread fast in the Stardew Valley fan community, so if it were discovered, he’d likely have heard about it by now.
Concerning what this mystery content could be, Barone was apprehensive to reveal its exact details. Based on his words, the hidden piece of content is some kind of in-game announcement message. Distinct from Stardew Valley‘s Secret Notes, which were first added in the 1.3 update and provide information ranging from villagers’ favorite gifts to the location of hidden items, this message’s original intent seems to have been to inform players about a new feature in the game that was ultimately turned into something else. “I’ll say it was a secret message that was basically announcing something that I actually shifted gears and that thing wasn’t even true anymore, but it’s still in the game,” he explained. “I just don’t know if anyone will ever discover it because it’s so obscure.”
As for how this piece of information has evaded dataminers for so long, Barone provided one clue, saying the message is not just part of the game’s code. While he didn’t come out and say it directly, his words implied that the secret message might be hidden in Stardew Valley‘s in-game art, because it’s not nearly as easy to decompile as raw code. “If you say hide it in the art or something, if it’s a secret message that’s hidden in the artwork somehow, then people can’t really discover that as easily,” he noted.
With as fervent as Stardew Valley‘s fan base has proven to be, that comment is sure to kick off a new wave of players scouring every pixel in hopes of discovering what message Barone left for them, and how long it’s gone undiscovered. While he’s still on the fence about whether he’ll ever publicly reveal the big secret, Barone plans to keep releasing periodic development updates on Haunted Chocolatier, which is demanding the majority of his personal attention, and on continued updates to Stardew Valley, in which he is now taking more of a creative director role for his newly expanded development team.
- Released
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February 26, 2016
- ESRB
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E for Everyone (Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood, Mild Language, Simulated Gambling, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco)
- Developer(s)
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ConcernedApe
- Publisher(s)
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ConcernedApe
Source: IGN
