Haunted Chocolatier Dev ConcernedApe Reveals Why the Game Is Taking So Long to Release

May 13, 2026, 1:45pm

Eric Barone, otherwise known as ConcernedApe, has revealed why it is taking so long for his upcoming game, Haunted Chocolatier, to release. Announced all the way back in 2021, Barone’s follow-up to the hugely popular Stardew Valley has been eagerly anticipated by millions around the globe. Despite this, Haunted Chocolatier still doesn’t even have a broad launch window and doesn’t necessarily seem close to its arrival. Now, in a new interview, Barone has shed light on why this is the case.

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Speaking to Game Informer, Barone provided a new status update on Haunted Chocolatier and how its development is going. When compared to Stardew Valley, Barone said that Haunted Chocolatier is a much larger game, which seems to be the main thing that has led to its lengthy development. Barone didn’t go on to say just how many hours of content might be in Haunted Chocolatier, but he did say that its systems are much more in-depth in comparison to Stardew Valley.

“It’s way bigger than Stardew Valley, at least in terms of the amount of maps, the amount of monsters, the depth to the whole item system, and all the equipment slots and all the stuff like this,” Barone explained. “Everything is cranked up.”

Barone also happened to mention that his ongoing work on Stardew Valley has greatly hindered his ability to solely focus on Haunted Chocolatier. Since Stardew Valley continues to be so popular, Barone said he is almost constantly interacting with fans and managing the current state of the farming sim. This keeps his focus split, which makes it that much more difficult for Haunted Chocolatier to ever receive his primary attention.