What's the Appeal of Stardew Valley?

[CharmaineP]

My first night I couldn’t figure out how to open my own door and passed out on the porch, so you’re in good company, CharmaineP.

I took up SDV because I was having health problems and there were a lot of smoky days one summer. I have a garden IRL that is a refuge, but I also needed a way to occupy myself that was physically undemanding and could be done inside. So, virtual gardening. When I first started playing I could see plenty of ways the farming is very different from IRL (no aphids, yay!) but also saw details that made me think the game was put together by someone who actually knew something about growing veggies—like a cartoonist who draws a face that differs from a person’s actual face but also evokes it so it’s recognizable. I could put together a fantasy farm and have some of the same challenges of planning a real life garden (which plants? How do I handle crop rotation? How do I make good use of available space?) while planting things that I grow in real life—or things I would never grow in real life.

It’s also like a garden in being a safe space with room for creativity. As many have pointed out, not much bad happens to you in this game. There are very few mistakes you can’t come back from pretty quickly. In fact, when the worst things do happen to you, someone always helps you out. And as in real life, some farm for aesthetics, some for stuff they can put into meals, some for money-making, and the game lets you do any or all of those things. I love the over-the-top things people come up with in the forum.

The mix of predictability and randomness is part of what makes it enjoyable. You can set up your own routine, goals, and schedule, but so much in this game is randomly generated that you never have quite the same day twice and there’s often a surprise (OK, festivals are weaker in this regard). I also appreciate the purely decorative random bits the game gives you, like butterflies flying out of a tree in summer, woodpeckers showing up in fall, frogs leaping out of the weeds in the rain, or seagulls flying off the dock at the beach.

The game is built out of a lot of similar, simple parts (all garden crops function pretty much the same way, fish ditto, etc.) so it’s easy to learn the basic mechanics, but the parts all differ in how you can use them, when and where they occur, and so on, so they all fit together differently. For instance, is a given pumpkin a jack o’lantern? Loved gift for one NPC? Part of a recipe for a loved present for another NPC? Something to ship today for a nice wad of cash? Something to put in a preserve jar for a nicer wad of cash in a few days? That means you can learn the basics of the game and enjoy it quickly, but the vast, not to say overwhelming, array of choices means you can play for hundreds, even thousands of hours, and not exhaust its possibilities.

What makes it truly addictive for me is that it works as both a set of strategies to figure out and as a story I’m telling myself about whatever farmer I’m playing. I enjoy figuring things out (there’s even a wiki for research! Nerd happiness!) and storytelling so to be able to do both at once makes my brain very happy. Different farmers mean different styles and strategies to try and different stories that result. But they all have happy endings.

Hi Jayamos, I just wanted to share how much I loved the first line of your reply "My first night I couldn’t figure out how to open my own door and passed out on the porch, so you’re in good company,CharmaineP." I laughed and laughed., it made me feel so much better about my own clumsy attempts- Thank you.

 

[CharmaineP]

Hi, Everyone. Here is an update on progress. I will spend the next few days analysing and reflecting on my minimal experience of Stardew Valley, your replies, and then applying reflexivity, i.e. how my analysis and reflection are influenced by me being me, age, gender, preconceptions, cultural capital, etc.
According to my Stardew Valley journal, I need to make a trip into town and make some friends!

 

[MogBeoulve]

Hi Jayamos, I just wanted to share how much I loved the first line of your reply "My first night I couldn’t figure out how to open my own door and passed out on the porch, so you’re in good company, CharmaineP." I laughed and laughed, it made me feel so much better about my own clumsy attempts- Thank you.

Trust me, we have all been there. My first week, I got so lost on my farm that I just passed out somewhere in the fields at 2 am.

 

[Lew Zealand]

Trust me, we have all been there. My first week, I got so lost on my farm that I just passed out somewhere in the fields at 2 am.

I cheated in that I'd been playing Minecraft before Stardew and over the course of years of getting utterly lost everywhere in the game, I slowly learned to create rudimentary maps in my head. So by the time I started Stardew Valley I wouldn't get lost too much except in Cindersap on occasion. And even then I rarely ran out of Energy as I just went to bed when E got low.

Why would you eat Spring Onions for E when you can sell them for g!
Why would you eat a Fish when you sell them for more g?
Why would you eat a Cheese when you can sell them for crazy g???
Why would you not go to warm, welcoming bed when your E gets low? Like below 50%. You need to make sure you can get back!

Of course with more Energy you can make even more g with more effort but, but.......

Hmmm-- you know, the greatest of people frequently come from humble starts. And sometimes the rest of us can too. This is where the path of young(ish) Farmer Bobbi took its first hesitant and wavering naps. Realizing that the intent of one Ape of greatest Concern was for a silly Farmer to be conservative with her efforts and sweat so not to upset the delicate energy equation of the entire Ferngill Republic. She saw an unseemingly and frankly embarrassing overeffort from the likes of Morris and Pierre and realized her calling was to bring Balance to the Farm. With the lowest levels of mitochondria ever detected in a conscious, much less sentient being, she singlehandedly led the way in achieving a version of success only dreamed of by others. In that they could only approach Farmer Bobbi's levels of relaxation and restiveness while dreaming.

And all was well until the fateful day that tenth Slime accidentally died from tetanus upon unluckily skewering itself on Bobbi's Rusty Sword while she was leaning against the Mines ladder. A few seasons later she accidentally noticed in the far distance that the Adventurer's Guild door was open with Marlon beckoning her in with a wary eye, noting with exasperation her Sword's slight slime patina cured to rock hardness by excessive disuse.

Marlon probably was saying congratulatory or more likely disbelieving things. Maybe. But Bobbi heard nothing and this time not from passing out while still standing.

Instead Bobbi spied her new arch-nemesis/spirit-animal settled near-motionless in the corner upon a rocking chair of great comfort and ease, and knew that one day this Throne of Immobility and Unwavering Repose had over the brief course of a few soft fleeting footsteps...
Become her destiny.

 

[Chaya7]

I have been playing this game since it came out. It has diverse appeals. When I began Stardew Valley, it appealed to the side of me that was autistic and didn't trust people. There are many relationships to develop in the game, and Eric built in so much kindness. It helped me learn how to relate casually to people, and to trust that people are good inside once you get to know them. It even forces one to learn these things, as part of the game points come from talking to people and giving them gifts. Later, as my physical disability progressed, it gave me an avatar who was strong and healthy, and I could feel more free in the world through her. That's good for my brain and for my mood. Nowadays it is a way of getting through my physically painful days, as it is such a good distraction. Who needs opiates when I have this wonderful distraction? On top of all those things, the game has so very many challenges to meet, and of course you get a mental boost at each success. It allows me to do things that I used to love doing, like beachcombing, gardening, foraging, chopping wood, and fishing, and to visit places I miss, like forests, lakes, the ocean, and the tropics. And there are even more activities to choose from, like mining and fighting monsters. There is just so MUCH. Taking care of farm animals...I so loved that when I was young. Chickens, cows - the game brings it all back. Really, there is so much kindness and love built into this game, along with fun activities. Added to all of that is the wonderful, wonderful music.

 

[Farming]

Hi,
My gaming daughter has recommended Stardew Valley for my university assignment, learning about virtual gardens and their communities. I've never gamed, and Stardew Valley seems like a great community to learn from. Could you share with me what the appeal is of Stardew Valley? Charmaine

I personally enjoy how casual and relaxing it is, I like the general aesthetics and the style of the game

It's not for everyone though! I only play like 20 minutes a day because after that it gets a bit boring.

 

[Just Thinking 2021]

forgive me if this has been touched on before, but one major reason to love Stardew is the Community!
i'm a moderator for a youtuber who streams stardew content and we have such a good time all the time!
all of the youtubers who stream stardew content or make videos (and there is SO MUCH information on Youtube about this game... everything you ever wanted to know, practically) are great people with a genuine love for the game.
please spend some time checking them out!
: )

 

[Floor_Banana]

Hi,
My gaming daughter has recommended Stardew Valley for my university assignment, learning about virtual gardens and their communities. I've never gamed, and Stardew Valley seems like a great community to learn from. Could you share with me what the appeal is of Stardew Valley? Charmaine

Well,

One, your gaming daughter sounds wonderful. Two, speaking from someone who admittedly, hasn't been playing Stardew for a long period of time like some people replying to this post, I've been playing it for a decent while. Here's my take;

The appeal I see in SV is the idea of a safe zone. I struggle a decent bit mentally, and when I found SV I was in a really bad place. Having that little safe zone I knew I could return to after the struggle of each day... It was nice to know I had that at that time. It's considered in the community to be a huge joke that people use it as escapism- in fact, some do!

Some SV NPC's are very relatable for some! For example, one romanceable NPC (Sam) struggles during year one because his dad is off to war, and some people in real life struggle with that. It's the fact that some characters are so relatable that it's almost reassuring that while yes, it is a fictional character, it's still someone to relate to, right?

Also, it's the fact that SV incorporates actual farming techniques, and actual farming logic! It can be seen as educational in a way. I don't own a farm or garden in real life yet (planning on it, but I am broke), but from what I've heard it actually has real life logic incorporated!

Not only is SV a wonderful game with a neat art style, a good idea, and relatable characters, for some, it's good escapism! The soundtrack is relaxing- in fact, the overall concept is relaxing! I'd say that's one of the bigger appeals.

 

[CherryLeafy101]

Hi,
My gaming daughter has recommended Stardew Valley for my university assignment, learning about virtual gardens and their communities. I've never gamed, and Stardew Valley seems like a great community to learn from. Could you share with me what the appeal is of Stardew Valley? Charmaine

I like it because the game's challenge comes from planning and puzzle solving rather than physical challenge.

For example, the main challenge of Dark Souls and similar games is how physically challenging and reaction based they are; you have to perform the correct physical action(s) at exactly the right time or the game punishes you heavily. I'm dyspraxic with limited reaction speed and button pressing ability. So, that kind of gameplay quickly drives me round the bend and the controller is forcefully handed to my boyfriend for it to become his problem.

But in Stardew, it's largely a walk around and click on things game. So there's minimal physical challenge to annoy me. But, the game makes up for it with the sheer amount of different mechanics, planning requirements, and how you have to tackle multiple substantial, interlocking challenges to develop the kind of farm you want to have. For example, I usually become a wine & diamond farmer for money. I also farm cheese for health food.

This involves setting up giant ancient fruit fields, so you have to get an ancient fruit seed and then a reasonable amount of seed makers. You also need a ridiculous amount of wood, iridium, gold, iron, and copper ore, battery packs and oak resin. So you have to solve the issue of mass wood farming, which for me involves solving the problem of tree fertilizer and therefore bone mills. You also need to amass enough furnaces that you can produce all the ore bars you need for your kegs and crystallariums without it taking 50 years. You also need to solve the issue of a consistent battery pack supply, and the most consistent way is solar panels. Which eat your gold and iron ore bars and refined quartz. So you also have to deal with the supply and production of those. Then you need somewhere consistently sunny with lots of space for a big bank of them, so you need to have already unlocked the desert. You also need a consistent source of hardwood for casks for aging wine so it sells for more, and the easiest way to do that is to get mahogany seeds and set up a tree farm. But then you have to get the seeds in the first place, so you need a hardwood stump, which you need to upgrade your axe to harvest. On top of all of that, all of this quickly outgrows even the largest house upgrade, so you need to keep building and upgrading sheds, so you need to get the materials for those and make sure they're ready when you plan to expand. From the very beginning of the game, there's a lot of juggling, planning, and perseverance required to reach this point.

 

[wildandblue]

Another aspect I love about SDV is it's a 2D game, so it doesn't give me motion sickness. Other games I can play comfortably are Kingdom Two Crowns, Dead Cells and Journey.

I know all of the device settings adjustments one can make, and other accommodations, and am always bummed to experience that familiar, awful feeling when trying a new game. It's more noticeable on my PS4, but experienced on my iPad too.

 

[Just Thinking 2021]

Also meant to add, it was my daughter who turned me on to Stardew also! We were doing some xmas shopping at a Best Buy and she held up a game cartridge and said, "hey mom, i think you'd really like this game!" so i bought it (for the switch). after a year on switch, i moved over to the steam game on pc -- it's so much easier to play that way. and i've done more in the game than she ever did! : )

 

[Rhiannon]

All of the varied answers to your question show why this game is so amazing. For those who like to "finish" a game, you can do that. For those who want to have the satisfaction of growing produce and selling it, you can do that. For those who want to be social and get to know the locals, you can do that. For those who like combat, you can do that. For those who like to explore, you can do that. This game has something for everyone. And for a non-gamer, your daughter has pointed you in a great direction as it is a very relaxed game to play. My son is the one who told me about it and I'm forever grateful to him for that!