Stardew Valley Creator Says He'll "Never Charge Money for a DLC or Update"

ConcernedApe plans to keep extra content for the game totally free.

By Marc Deschamps

Since the game's release back in 2016, Stardew Valley has gotten a wealth of updates, significantly increasing the amount of content available to players. Creator Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone has managed to keep those updates completely free to players, and it's kind of shocking in an era where gamers are used to being squeezed for every dime. While some fans might worry that Stardew Valley could eventually get paid DLC or updates, it seems that's not part of Barone's plans. In fact, Barone replied to one user on X/Twitter that he never plans to charge for these things. 

"I swear on the honor of my family name, i will never charge money for a DLC or update for as long as I live. Screencap this and shame me if I ever violate this oath," said Barone. 

That's a pretty bold proclamation, but clearly Barone feels passionately about this subject. The Stardew Valley creator did not offer any additional insight, so there's really no way of knowing why he feels the way he does. Still, that's a huge positive for the game's community, even if we don't know how much more content we can expect from the game at this point. Unsurprisingly, Barone's comments received a lot of positive attention from fans. It's very unusual for a game to keep getting free updates like this, and it's surprising to hear Barone dismiss even the idea of paid content. It also says a lot about his relationship with the game's community! 

It's been a few months since Stardew Valley fans heard from Barone, but his most recent comments came following a post about various things he's currently working on, including PC version 1.6.9. According to Barone, that version is "not a major update," so fans shouldn't get too excited just yet. He also notes that he's been working on the mobile port of Stardew Valley "every day" and will provide more information when there's "meaningful news" such as a release date. He's also still hard at work on the console ports for version 1.6, which have yet to be released. 

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Are you happy that Stardew Valley will never receive paid DLC or updates? Does it surprise you to hear the game's creator talk like this? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp, on Bluesky at @Marcdachamp, or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!

[H/T: GamesRadar+]

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