Stardew Valley - Review 2024 | Why is this game so good?

A spoiler-free* review/critique/analysis/retrospective of Stardew Valley version 1.6. This cozy comfort game is worth playing in 2024 and beyond; it's a modern masterpiece and one of my new favorite games of all time. An open-ended country-life RPG that was originally released in 2016, this game has many compelling aspects working in its favor, like lots of engaging gameplay mechanics with tons of depth and variety to experience and a really satisfying progression system, but the real reason I suspect it has such strong appeal with so many people is likely just its charming, immersive premise, and its relaxing vibes and atmosphere. And the fact that it's developed by a one-man team (Eric Barone, aka ConcernedApe), who's continually put out tons of free content updates over its eight year life span, just goes to show that this game is a true labor of love that should be cherished by anyone who plays it.

* There are minor spoilers for a few bits of end-game content, unlocked gameplay mechanics, and certain individual situations, but no spoilers for anything that I consider to be major/important cutscenes or story arcs.

00:00 - Intro / Premise
02:45 - Presentation / Characters
04:21 - Visual Style / Aesthetics
06:00 - Music / Atmosphere
08:07 - Emotional + Symbolic Themes
09:35 - Cozy vs Challenging Gameplay
12:17 - Open-Ended Options
14:27 - Progression Systems
18:25 - Growth / Upgrades
20:52 - Mechanical Depth / Complexity
23:49 - Tutorials / Information Systems
26:16 - Discoveries + Secrets
27:26 - Criticisms
27:55 - End Game / Stopping Points
30:12 - Ginger Island
32:08 - Community Center vs JojaMart
34:31 - Fishing Mini-Game
35:16 - Social Simulation / Friendship
37:30 - Dating / Marriage Candidates
40:05 - Festivals
44:50 - Conclusion / Outro

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All the music used in this video is from the Stardew Valley soundtrack by Eric Barone, except these brief excerpts:

- "In the Hall of the Mountain King" by Kevin MacLeod (CC4.0)
- "Lukewarm Banjo" by Kevin MacLeod (CC1.0)
- "Drunken Sailor Sea Shanty" by PGN Music (CC1.0)

#StardewValley #SDV Junimo Junimos Pelican Town farming simulator nature

[TheNocturnalRambler]

If you enjoyed this review and want to help my channel continue to grow, then please consider doing me a favor and like, comment, subscribe, and share the video. Engagement like that helps a lot to promote it to a wider audience. If you want to support me more directly I also have Super Thanks set up for a one-time tip, but you can also become a channel Member or Patron where you'll also get access to exclusive bonus content every month (links are in the description). These videos take a lot of time and effort to put together, so I would appreciate any support you're willing to offer. Thank you.

[KingEdwardMMVIII]

I got into this game because somewhere I saw it mentioned the game was good for anxious people. I'm not the type of person you might expect to be playing the game. 33 years old. Big burly bearded dude. But something about putting this game on just cheers me up.

[CalebVersus]

This is one of THE BEST reviews of any game that I have ever seen/listened to. I hope that ConcernedApe sees this! Keep up the great work man. (:

[TripleRoux]

Stardew Valley is a gem. So much gameplay, so much depth and so much joy in one place. While other games I love are being destroyed by corporate greed, Concerned Ape is constantly adding free content to his lovely project. Perfection! Thanks for the lovely video!

[drfrankendoodle]

i think more than anything im consistently impressed by the quality of your writing. Its very emotional and evocative and significantly lifts up your reviews. It reminds me of noah caldwell-gervais in terms of going beyond pure critique and leaning almost into novelization. Feels like you're listening to an excerpt from a book about someone's experience playing the game, how it made them feel, etc. as opposed to a simple review.

All that is to say, keep up the good work and look forward to your future content. I hope your channel grows commensurate with its quality.

[TalonSky]

33:10 What's so stupid is this is actually referenced, in game, by Jody I think. She mentions JoJa Mart having vastly cheaper prices for food, to the point she can't justify shopping anywhere else.

But then the prices are objectively worse than Pierre's, and I don't think you can actually buy crops or food, just seeds. Concerned Ape really should have thought that one aspect through a little better, and maybe had JoJa be 75% the price of Pierre's, with seasonal crops and fully cooked dishes cheaper than the Tavern as well. Really give the players a tough call to make.

[Plz]

This review made me want to get this game & it’s the first to do so.
All other reviews were praising it surface level because it’s popular & it got them views and likes by people that like the game but your review is very sincere and genuine. Thank you for that

[alex.g]

I got introduced to this game on The Apple Arcade at first and then bought it for 4.99. I can say that I probably never would have tried it if it wasn’t on mobile and I’m glad I tried it and now I have it installed on my PC.

[minezweeper]

The developer gave all of his best to makes this game, no wonder it became so good

[midnightgaming]

I hope you get a lot of views, this game is fantastic

[lunariagames]

Jezuz, I didn’t know this game had much to do 😳. Definitely gonna try it out this weekend for the first time. Wish me luck 😅

[aamocryp]

this video got me to locate my bluetooth headset so that I can actually focus on listening to it all

as a long-time stardewer this is making me itch to get back into the groove of playing the game (it's 1am and I am dead tired), to the point where I found myself getting sad abt the meadow farm not yet being available on mobile

anyway, such a fantastic video and I will certainly look into your other videos once I've slept

[theor]

Great review as always. Gotta admit I never paid Stardew Valley any attention cause I just assumed its popularity was from the ultra casual Farmville crowd latching onto it, but I may actually give it a try at some point now.

[meh]

This is a wonderful review, but I hope it doesn't scare anyone away! Taken all at once, the complexity of the game can be overwhelming, but in reality you take it step by step and at your own chosen pace (unless you let some experienced player try to force you to act like you're experienced when you're not), and usually you find the complexity in a manageable fashion or not at all. It is true though that without the Wiki you will likely not discover a lot of things except by accident. On the other hand, most of the things you don't find out about don't harm your enjoyment of the game, they are tweaks to improve things even farther. As for the end point of the game, if you are tired of playing a file and don't want to go on to perfection, starting a new farm with a new character allows you to put into practice everything you've learned in your previous file and to have new experiences on a different farm, with remixed bundles, and all sorts of other changes. The game can stay fresh for a long time. I agree though, there are some Ginger Island things I just haven't bothered to do because they don't seem worth the while. And I don't feel I've missed anything. I hear the Joja route has been improved in 1.6, but why would I want to join the corporation I escaped from in the first place? The boring money-based Joja route is useful for some speedrunners, however.

[animesjogoseseriesclassica]

Usually get bored fast of these daily routine games like Harvest Moon. But this one seems to be really cool.

[GARCIIIAmonster]

you really find great words to describe what makes a game good or a game mechanic work.

[logixindie]

Amazing job on this video. Thanks for making me even more excited to play this game. I'm just still waiting for the console update.

[Nitiiii]

I love the art style of the game. Combined with modern game elements and UI, this is the best.

[moocelium]

just stumbled upon this review and holy shit u nailed it!! as an aspiring game dev that wants to make a farming sim, hearing such detailed analysis of stardews inner systems and workings scratched my brain in the nicest way! Also just wanted to recommend My Time At Sandrock to you since in my opinion, it has better romance and story as well as just being super fun!! If u end up playing it please share ur thoughts!

[dharunkrishna]

My brother recommended me to buy this game, and I did buy it as it was on 50% off. Since then, I have really enjoyed playing it.