The Most Popular Farming Sim Ever Is 10 Years Old, and I Have a Confession to Make

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Like many Stardew fans, I own the game on multiple platforms. The Switch has long been my go-to for the game, but I also grabbed it on PC so I could dive into the 1.6 update right away. Next to The Sims 4 and Skyrim, Concerned Ape’s beloved farming sim is probably at the top of my “most-played” list in terms of sheer gameplay hours. And yet, for all that time in the game, I’ve yet to hit some of the major milestones that some might consider to be integral to the gameplay experience. In honor of 10 years of Stardew, here’s a look back on the game’s legacy and a list of everything I’ve not yet managed to do while playing the pixel art farming sim.

Stardew Valley Is 10 Years Old, But Still Topping Charts

At first glance, Stardew Valley seems deceptively simple. With pixel art and a relatively straightforward gameplay loop, it seems like an easy game. And in many ways, it is. But the amount of breadth and depth to the farming sim is obvious from its amazingly long life. Yes, Stardew Valley has received a number of major updates over the past 10 years, but that alone isn’t enough to explain the game’s longstanding place as the farming sim. New farming sims are inevitably compared to Stardew, particularly if they use a 2D pixel art style.

Stardew Valley continues to rack up accolades even 10 years later. Just recently, it became the most-played game on Steam Deck. It also overthrew the reigning top-rated game on the PC platform, where it remains among the most-played games on a daily basis. Clearly, Concerned Ape created something special when he made Stardew Valley. With another major update on the way soon, there’s no doubt the farming sim will continue to enjoy massive popularity for years to come. And yet, how many of us have truly uncovered even a fraction of what the game has to offer?

I May Be a Cozy Gamer, But I’ve Never Managed to Hit These Stardew Valley Milestones

When I got my Nintendo Switch a few years ago, Stardew was one of the first games I installed. Since then, I’ve put hours into my farm. Or should I say, farms. Because herein lies the issue. I tend to start a new game every time I feel the call of the fields, which means that despite my many hours of play time, I’ve yet to hit many of the game’s major milestones. I’ve never gotten married in Stardew. Heck, I’ve never figured out how to get a date to the Flower Dance. Because here’s the thing about Stardew Valley. It seems simple. But it’s actually really kind of complicated.

I enjoy Stardew Valley, but the reality is, it’s not my favorite cozy game. Not by a long shot. Getting started in the game is easy enough, and ticking off goals like fixing the Community Center and completing requests is straightforward. But much of what the game offers, you have to kind of figure out for yourself. There’s a reason Stardew Valley guidebooks and wikis exist. Getting married, or even beginning a relationship, requires an intricate knowledge of your chosen NPC’s likes and dislikes. It means giving them gifts over time. How much time? I couldn’t tell you, because I’ve never had the patience to bother.

When I play Stardew, I focus on my crops until I get bored. I’ve got a graveyard of abandoned save files with variations of the same messy, chaotic farm. There’s so much lore I only know about from a habit of spending too much time on cozy gamer subreddits. Because at the end of the day, Stardew Valley isn’t actually a simple game at all. It’s that depth and complexity that make it so long-lasting. After all, there’s plenty waiting to be uncovered, with Concerned Ape himself affirming there’s at least one secret that no one has uncovered.

At this point, I’m pretty sure my pixel self in Stardew Valley is single for good. That might mean I’ll never know the true terrors of sacrificing your in-game children to the witch, but I’m okay with that. The joy of playing an open-ended game like Stardew is that you can play however you want. And for me, that means starting over from day 1 whenever the urge to plant pixel potatoes strikes me. So, happy birthday to Stardew Valley, and to all the farms I’ve abandoned, I’m sorry. But not that sorry.

Do you have any Stardew Valley confessions to share on the game’s 10-year anniversary? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!