The making of Stardew Valley players' most important tools
What Your Favorite Tool Stardew Valley Says About You! #stardewvalley #shorts #game
Stardew Valley is known as a cozy game, an experience that allows you to immerse yourself in the repetition of tasks such as tilling soil, planting seeds and watering crops. The game is divided into 28-day seasons – and you have to be in bed by 2am every night – but otherwise there's no real time limit. You are free to make your day as you wish. You don't even have to farm; many players spend their days fishing, exploring Stardew Valley's deep mines, or tending flocks of sheep. But despite all the coziness, Stardew Valley is not an everyday game. Once you've been absorbed into the idyllic nature of farm life, it's easy to be further enticed by the harsh nature of getting everything done as efficiently as possible. There's a lot to keep track of: When is the best time to plant eggplant seeds? What are Shane's favorite gifts? How many more fish do I need to catch?
That's why, for many Stardew Valley players, the most important tool isn't a gold pickaxe or iridium dustbin. It's a guide book.
Stardew Valley was released in February 2016, and the official Stardew Valley Guidebook, published by Fangamer, was released later that year, following the 1.1 update. It's like The Farmer's Almanac, but for Stardew Valley. Designer and artist Kari Fry was brought in to illustrate and design the book after publishing a few fan guides and art books for other games, she told Polygon via email. Her partner, Ryan Novak, does data and writing. Together, they've updated the guidebook four times, and they're now working on a fifth version that accounts for the new 1.6 update.
