Accessibility Suggestion- Slower Time Option

[AaronODST1]

I would encourage, if feasible, adding a slower-time option for file creation. When creating a farm, the game could offer a setting to have the time pass more slowly on that file (or, to put it another way, to make days last longer).

My partner enjoys games like Stardew Valley, but the fairly short time available on any given day prevents them from playing the game without significant anxiety. Trying to accomplish what they want to do before night cuts them off causes a fair bit of stress. We know that there are tools for time management later in the game- from minecarts to horses to coffee- but getting to that point in progression remains a stressful experience for them, and even with those tools, the game’s overall pace causes too much anxiety for them to enjoy it.

I don’t mean to imply the game moves too fast- I know a few people who’ve had this problem, but I personally enjoy the game’s pace and the resultant emphasis on managing my time effectively. I’m simply proposing that people like my partner could more realistically play Stardew Valley if there were an option to have longer days.

I also recognize that, on the PC version, modding or file edits could resolve this problem. My partner can only realistically play on the switch, and it seems reasonable to presume that people playing on consoles have no less need for accessibility options. That’s why I’m mentioning it here instead of turning to modding or the like.

Any concerns about making achievements too easy to achieve could be resolved by making those files ineligible for achievements, as other games have done.
I don’t know enough about the development process to know how difficult this accessibility option would be to implement, but it seems worth suggesting! I have seen others make similar suggestions in the past, but not in much detail, and I don't believe they've presented it as an accessibility option.

 

[noobsqoou]

I think an option to inflate the passage of time by a factor of 2, 3, or 4 would be perfect. Currently, a full 6am-2am (20 hour) day takes 14 minutes (Skull Cavern time is slightly inflated). The previously mentioned factors would lengthen the day to 28 minutes, 42 minutes, and 56 minutes, respectively. Granted, I imagine it would require some balance tweaking (lengthening farm machine processing times by the same factor, adjusting food buff durations, etc.) but it would be totally worth it imho. Being able to dedicate a full hour of real time to an entire in-game day would be the ultimate Stardew and chill mode. I could actually turn off auto-run.

 

[Heramegu]

Even though day may take 14 minutes, sometime it takes longer. That's because in a 1 player mode some menus stop time progression (like shopping or interacting with a machine board or a player), and also mini games like fishing. So depending on the activity, the day may be even longer.

iMO, in early-mid game happens too often that people try to do everything. But that's were decisions are important. I use to play with a notebook to manage my task for the day, because it is what we do on real life, we can't slow time. I guess it could be a great feature if it were integrated into the game, but anyways it can be done by each one as a game experience.

I would recommend you to try this, and see if he could manage how much time it spend on watering, and what's going to be their objetives and task on each day, trying not to think he has to do everything on one day, as the season have 28 days. If he needs to stop the time progression to review his notebook task, then he could press start.

I usually do one or two thing in the early game. Like: Watering + Go to the mines. And on the road I can do a few little things like, give a gift, see bulletin, calendar. Put some items on bundles, etc. But most time on my prior activities. Because move takes too much time on early-game, I plan a route, that doesn't make me move from one side of the map to another, and it saves me time. If I decided to go to the mines, I can do things like go to Robin's house and do make a Coop, for example.

 

[TurnipsAndPotatoes]

Yes, please! I would absolutely love that!

My mother has the same problem that AaronODST1 described with their partner. She adores everything about the game, but its hard (if not impossible) for her to get into it, because she cannot play very fast.

The things that Heramegu and others have said are of course true. An "average" player can be faster by planning carefully and take pressure of by not trying to do everything every day and its part of the fun.
But by the time that it takes my mother to water maybe 15 Crops more than half the day has already passed, and when she trys to forage she often doesn't make it home in time and ends up unconscious.
I'm sure there are others out there that have the same problem. (Not many of course, it's a niche problem, but still.)

I've heard some people say, that the game would drag on terribly later on, but maybe it would be possible to just add a "Time Speed Slider" in the options menu? There are mods that can change time speed on the fly, so it might be possible? Something like [x0.25 <-> x0.5 <-> x0.75 <-> Standard Time <-> x1.5 <-> x2].
(I bet the faster time speeds would create interesting new speed run categories )

Please consider it, it would make some people very happy!

(Also since this is my first post I just want to say: This game is one of the most amazing creations ever! Thank you ConcernedApe, for everything you have given us! )

 

[t41yo]

This would be a nice addition, now that the game (maybe?) nears the end of its official updates.

I never understood how some people call this a relaxing game. It's super fun, and beautiful, and heartwarming and inspiring and challenging and everything but to me it's NEVER been relaxing
There is just so much to do and I always want to try to fit as much as possible in any given day and optimize my routes and get the most out of it.
And even when I try to tell me that in theory there is unlimited time, i know that grandad will judge me and I NEED to make him proud!!

I really never had a problem with that, to me the game is about optimizing and clean execution and so on, but it would be nice to have the option to just take a whole hour for each day and finally feel that relaxation that I've heard so much about.

(The more I think about it, the more I realize how much the grandpa evaluation is part of it for me. So maybe a checkbox in the advanced game creation options, to disable the auto-evaluation at the end of year two, and make it happen for the first time only when you place a gem?)

 

[AaronODST1]

I think an option to inflate the passage of time by a factor of 2, 3, or 4 would be perfect. Currently, a full 6am-2am (20 hour) day takes 14 minutes (Skull Cavern time is slightly inflated). The previously mentioned factors would lengthen the day to 28 minutes, 42 minutes, and 56 minutes, respectively. Granted, I imagine it would require some balance tweaking (lengthening farm machine processing times by the same factor, adjusting food buff durations, etc.) but it would be totally worth it imho. Being able to dedicate a full hour of real time to an entire in-game day would be the ultimate Stardew and chill mode. I could actually turn off auto-run.

That would make a lot of sense! I imagine the most difficult work would come in adjusting the time-to-complete and buffs as you mentioned, both in terms of coding and decision-making, so I hope those wouldn't be prohibitively time-consuming. I do wonder if the farm processes would actually need to get much longer, since the player would sleep "less often" (as in, they would see the quick time-passage at night fewer times in one game session), which is one of the fastest ways to finish up a furnace process or something like that.

 

[AaronODST1]

Yes, please! I would absolutely love that!

My mother has the same problem that AaronODST1 described with their partner. She adores everything about the game, but its hard (if not impossible) for her to get into it, because she cannot play very fast.

The things that Heramegu and others have said are of course true. An "average" player can be faster by planning carefully and take pressure of by not trying to do everything every day and its part of the fun.
But by the time that it takes my mother to water maybe 15 Crops more than half the day has already passed, and when she trys to forage she often doesn't make it home in time and ends up unconscious.
I'm sure there are others out there that have the same problem. (Not many of course, it's a niche problem, but still.)

I've heard some people say, that the game would drag on terribly later on, but maybe it would be possible to just add a "Time Speed Slider" in the options menu? There are mods that can change time speed on the fly, so it might be possible? Something like [x0.25 <-> x0.5 <-> x0.75 <-> Standard Time <-> x1.5 <-> x2].
(I bet the faster time speeds would create interesting new speed run categories )

Please consider it, it would make some people very happy!

(Also since this is my first post I just want to say: This game is one of the most amazing creations ever! Thank you ConcernedApe, for everything you have given us! )

I'm glad to hear my partner isn't alone! There's also lots of time caught up in backtracking after they realize they forgot something or need to go a different way or somesuch, which they'll feel bad about, because now they've lost precious time in this ostensibly relaxing experience.

I appreciate you pointing out the end-game effects, which I had not thought about too hard, since I've spent most of my time playing through the early game a few times. That's a very good point! I'm concerned about the complexities of putting a time slider of any sort in the gameplay portion, so maybe that late-game slog would be better handled by a tool or structure that you can interact with to pass some time automatically.

It's also pretty unlikely that people who worry about a slow late-game would use this accessibility option in the first place, but that doesn't make the issue less noteworthy.

 

[Quirinea]

If you are playing on PC, there's a mod for it. "TimeSpeed" For me it's a must, and especially if I'm having any mods that add extra areas...

 

[TurnipsAndPotatoes]

If you are playing on PC, there's a mod for it. "TimeSpeed" For me it's a must, and especially if I'm having any mods that add extra areas...

Thank you, this is definately an option for a lot of people! I used to play on PC, although now I am on Switch most of the time, where mods are not possible. (As far as I know...)
Although the mod you mentioned might no longer be maintained, it says it's for Version 1.5.5.
It has more than 330k downloads though, so this request/problem might not be so niche after all.

Any concerns about making achievements too easy to achieve could be resolved by making those files ineligible for achievements, as other games have done.

I thought about this, and I think it might even not be necessary to disable achievements. After all, even if time is slowed down, you still have to do everything almost the same. Farm the same number of crops, fish the same number of fish, give the same number of gifts etc etc. It will even take longer, since it takes longer for seasons to pass. It gets easier to finish things up earlier in terms of seasons and years passed in the game, but in terms of invested playtime or skill its not much of a difference.

It's also pretty unlikely that people who worry about a slow late-game would use this accessibility option in the first place, but that doesn't make the issue less noteworthy.

I agree completely. And of course it should not be an option that is presented to everyone at game creation. For normal players time speed should just be standard by default. But for those who know what there doing / what they need it could be a godsend if there was an option somewhere.

 

[Quirinea]

Thank you, this is definately an option for a lot of people! I used to play on PC, although now I am on Switch most of the time, where mods are not possible. (As far as I know...)
Although the mod you mentioned might no longer be maintained, it says it's for Version 1.5.5.
It has more than 330k downloads though, so this request/problem might not be so niche after all.

Are we speaking of the same mod?
This: https://www.nexusmods.com/stardewvalley/mods/169
Has been updated for 1.6. (dated 20.4. this year) I'm happily using it with my first 1.6. playthrough

 

[SCLPTURES]

that's a pretty good suggestion! i've never really thought about it like that. even when i'm just sitting around waiting for an in-game event, it seems to go by very fast, so i can't imagine how it's like when you've got a lot of things to do