Stardew Valley developer Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone is not shy about his passion for his game, with seven years done and dusted, and 12 total years done, he shows no sign in stopping. Though, he appears to be taking somewhat of a breather to dust off his side project, Haunted Chocolatier.
During an NPR interview, Barone explains that criticism is a key factor in what drives his game’s future and that he pays attention to fans’ thoughts and concerns.
“I do take in a lot of what the fans are saying. I pay attention to what their thoughts are, what their criticisms are. And the players are very important to me. I mean, I will never forget that it’s because of the players that I’m in this position, that the game was able to be popular, that my dreams as a game developer have come true.”
The only way he may stop updating Stardew Valley is if the game becomes too packed with content. To him, he believes games can totally have too much content, which can take away from the experience. That said, it sounds like he still has ideas and will keep acting on them for decades to come, even “50 years from now.”