Stardew Valley Review 

B580 bruh same thing for me watched this video a few years back then stopped because spoilers and now I’m back

Yooooo, I'm not even done my second year on stardew, I'ma come back when I finish it

Dude this was me lmao

Somehow, Stardew Valley is the one game I can think of where the worst thing about the game is that you have too much fun.

@@MidoriOfTheShuinsen I agree but I also find hollow Knight to be like this

The only thing that sucks is that replaying it isn’t really satisfying because you already know everything and one of the best parts is all the surprises it has

@@sugnoma667 "A Hat in Time" too (if you don't count Steam Workshop mods)?

I am your 1000th like, cool

He probably means like mapping out charts for exactly what to do each day, and how much energy and time to devote to certain things. Basic improvements that don't take much effort like having production buildings inside that you can collect as you step out is acceptable to me. Plus, most of his min-maxing stuff comes towards the end with his monstrous greenhouse ancient fruit farm and such.

There's also a balance with role-playing. You don't want to min-max the roleplaying.

I can't grasp the concept of min maxing. Can anyone explain?

@@silentj624 maximising the amount of progress or work done with the least amount of time/ best efficiency Stardew has a very limited time each day so you need to plan out what to do each day otherwise you won’t have time to do things

i mean those things weere kind of inevitable, like they're no-brainers. wish i had all of them when the game released lol, i remember installing mods to play online smh

@@highdefinition450keep in minds the budget and manpower to make the game originally, the game was initially made entirely by one person.

It's also very telling that a lot of the critiques are about things contrary to the design philosophy and the way the game tries to encourage you to play. Which isn't to say they're invalid, but those choices were made with a complete reasoning behind them. Even fishing is difficult to start because it's a skill and something that's satisfying to get better at rather than arbitrary or poorly designed.

@@seanthebluesheep I definitely agree! A lot of his suggestions wouldn't really fit into the Stardew vibe, but everyone looks for something different in the games they play

I completely agree! I was actually a going to comment that myself before I saw your comment

Really? I bought the game about two years ago and dropped it in about two hours, and most of the criticism in his video is the reason why I'm hesitant to give it a try again. Do you know if the marriage + friendship stuff has been fixed? Also it might be my adhd ass that thinks that, but when he showed the footage of the fishing mini-game and how long it took to complete I was literally tensing up on my chair in frustration so I can't imagine playing it myself. Is it better? No worries if you don't want to answer!

@@TheGallicWitch I know I am not the op but I personally think they have. There is a marriage arch now to add to it. The latest update added a lot of options to gameplay. Personally, I have ADHD and I like Stardew to play and listen to podcasts or tv shows I don't have to watch.

*Team Cherry sweats*

@@nonamea9177 *sweats in Silksong*

I want to be an indie game dev one day an that's what I hope happens or I sort of don't as he's such a good critic I fear he ruins my whole career lol

Right? It's the hardest fish to catch in the whole game and it's pretty rare to boot.

If the fish is called legend then of course it would. Im kidding, i caught 2 of those in my 3rd year and it was because i wanted to catch fish during rainy days cus i thought it would make them more easier to catch

I caught 2 on my second year: the sewer one and the red one. Took a surprising amount of time

Really? I bought the game about two years ago and dropped it in about two hours, and most of the criticism in his video is the reason why I'm hesitant to give it a try again. Do you know if the marriage + friendship stuff has been fixed? Also it might be my adhd ass that thinks that, but when he showed the footage of the fishing mini-game and how long it took to complete I was literally tensing up on my chair in frustration so I can't imagine playing it myself. Is it better? No worries if you don't want to answer!

Mako - Marriage has been more developed in general, so there’s more to it now. Friendships still work in the same way, but that’s more of a fundamental problem, though it’s worth pointing out it’s entirely optional and if you’re patient, can mostly be done on birthdays or via special events. The fishing he showed in the video was the hardest fish in the game - most aren’t that bad. Also worth pointing out that fishing is probably the most skill based aspect of the game, and there are other ways to level it up passively instead should you choose.

Yeah fishing kinda sucks but you can level up through crab pots, and if you complete the crab pot bundle with foraged goods from the beach plus one or two things from the traveling saleswoman you get some crab pots for free. It takes some patience but it can definitely be done

There's a beginners fish pole I'm sure it can help

Smattless no a lot of the game has been fixed or improved nothing has really gotten worse and anything that was useless before is now useful or semi useful and as someone who has adhd and always has problem with playing games that aren’t interesting this game has gotten me to play over 200hrs of it

Gold Diggers would love you

Hardly, because I would give them stuff like flowers and vegetables instead of money :D

Neptuna I'm so sorry that I couldn't give you a birthday present, Shane, but I already gave you two pints this week, sawry! xD

Jedy Zichterman Shane, or Pam?

*gives you a bar of gold.* oh, thanks, have a newspaper clipping I guess

+NosferatuTodd Essay-style review. Would you describe Matthewmatosis that way? It's not an expression I've heard before.

Son of Tiamat Well, I just pulled the term out of my ass, but yeah, these long reviews that go in-depth and point out things I would've overlooked otherwise are videos I absolutely gush over. Matt, Noah Caldwell-Gervais, and of course Joseph Anderson are some of my favorites

***** It seems like a pretty good term, and these style of reviews sure beat the hell out of listening to AngryJoe ramble on inarticulately for forty minutes.

Son of Tiamat 100% Agreed

Sassy-styled black man?

Serathis Is this a Star Trek reference?

Gay Nutbuster Yes. Yes it is.

Serathis Ayy, lmao :D

im a miner fisher adventurer socialist

+Joseph Anderson Really liking your reviews and your video style. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. For The Witness, I'd recommend an extra-strong spoiler warning, because for people who haven't played it, having a certain thing spoiled (I think you know what I'm talking about.... A certain puzzle type) would really diminish the experience of playing it for the first time. Looking forward to the video!

Yep, I already have a whole paragraph devoted to it. The video will not be a review and I want to make that clear.

Cant wait for multiplayer ^ ,^ That should be the next update.

I am considering buying this game, what do you think of the 1.1 Update that just came out? Does it fix some of the issues you mentioned in the review? I am the sort of person that played WoW but hated the mindless quest grind to level up, but I think this game's sort of progression grind where you get to look back at all you've created at the end and see all you've built looks really satisfying.

1.1 added heaps and fixed a lot of things including balance. It did add a little more end game content although not as much as was suggested in this video. Hopefully more will be forthcoming ^^ It's already an outstanding game though. I, personally, loved the idea of Harvest Moon but hated the time limit (in terms of days) that the game forced upon you. Aside from a cutscene at the start of your 3rd year (in which Grandpa comes along and judges your farm... and in this new patch has been made so you can access it any time after this point for a new judgement freely) there is no end point. You're allowed to take as much time as you like and should be encouraged to do so. It's a relaxing and wonderful game. I'm currently on my 2nd playthrough where I'm trying to do things in a more min/max kinda way but only because I like challenging myself. The base game was fantastic without needing to worry about such trivialities and taking your time grants you a huge sense of satisfying progression as you go through the game with so much content and upgrades that feel like they're always the correct price and just the right amount of rewarding. Buy it! :P

I think we may need a re-review after he's done with the witcher 3 video. So... never XD but it'd be nice

All of this still makes animals not worth your time, because they require so much work and care every day, while farming only needs you to plant seeds, water once then harvest. The biggest issue with animals is how much space they require and how costly it is to feed them. It's impossible to have enough grass and have it regrow because they eat it too fast, so you are forced to buy grass starter, 100g, or hay, 50g, once you don't have any grass. Like he said, only pigs are worth your time. You only need to pet them, let them go outside and wait for truffles. You don't even need to make the oil because Iridium quality basically makes them sell as much as what the oil is valued at

All of these problems you mention can be avoided if you know what do do. You only have to buy starter if you cut down all your grass without having a silo. If you let the grass live and give it space, by the time you get your animals, it'll last infinitely and you can store the excess in the silos.

db Problem is I know what I am doing. I have 4 silos and a huge area with grass. If I let the animals outside, there's no more grass after 7 days. If I let some grass grow outside just enough to regrow, the hay stockpile will decrease rapidly with my 48 animals because the grass will be too slow to regrow, making me either have to buy grass or hay every 2 weeks. Don't forget that cutting grass doesn't give hay all the time too

@@neitsuke Notice how the animals in the video have a black cloud when petted. this is due to a lack of consistent, daily petting meaning the product from said animal is of lesser quality. Once at 5 hearts you obtain large milk of golden stars daily which sells for more than the standard cheese. point is JA is attacking the wrong issue with the grass/going outside. Edit: If you put a fence post/lightning rod on grass starter, it will spread whilst also not being able to be eaten. ie a permanent grass spawner

@@thorwrigglesworth5116 Even considering quality, animals were the worst manner to make money and wasn't worth your time spent on them for how little the reward is compared to gardening. Since then it has been alleviated with the container that collects all products and I think now, quality matters when refining products. Even with the rod on grass trick it doesn't matter since grass grows way too slow to keep animals fed outside. At the time I had 4X12 animals and I couldn't keep up too well with grass and hay. Now that I scaled down to 24 it is far more manageable

DUN DUN DUNNNNN

Well, this is the case for all his videos.

its actually pure platinium

this is the exact problem i had with animal crossing, the FOMO manufactured by that game of "cut your grass, pick your flowers, dont miss potential rare items, get as much wood and stone as possible" etc got draining, i missed a single day and I havent been on since, for a year

What saved my first playthrough I think is that I completely ignored the social aspect of the game (except for Linus, he was my bro). Losing cutscenes and food recipes was fine by me. So it balanced pretty well. My second playthrough however... I wanted to see what was up with the rest of the people of this town. But I couldn't really let go of the need to optimize harvests and collections which resulted in much stress indeed 😅 I ended up bailing after the first year. Which sucks because I wanted to see the new content ! Guess I'll give it another try someday. With a chill mindset.

literally me, i wanna come back to the game after couple of years, with a mindset to not min max and just relax

@@lucasmoreel8126 y'know, I did the exact opposite of that. I completely ignored the money-making aspect and just hanged around trying to max everyone's hearts, only farming and mining for gems and cooking recipes to use as gifts. It worked out pretty well

Comments like these are why I come down in the comments to begin with

Hey, I am interested in getting stardew valley, and the flaws presented in the video were really offputting. May you elaborate on how they got fixed?

@@damianlesnik8559 animals: now there's an endgame machine that can collect animal products for you so you only have to empty that from time to time. Museum: in the desert you can now buy artifact trophes that contain random artifacts. Friendship: nowadays there are a lot more ways to find out and keep track of good gifts for your villagers. Marriage: overall a lot less buggy. And there are events that only trigger after you are married that are specific for each spouse. Also there is a new secret marriage option. Engame: over the years the has been put in new content on a regular basis. Chucklefish ist still working on the game and is putting in new goals and quests.

@@damianlesnik8559 there are also more ways to go about doing everything. Several content updates have been added that create more really interesting ways to earn money, increase productivity on your farm, or interact with the townspeople. There are a lot less bugs than there were and much has been added. Many of the problems have been addressed but a few still remain; the automation of animal produce was excellent, but keeping their friendship still feels like a chore (there are a few other things but I won't spoil). Even with the few problems, the fun FAR outweighs them. I've played over 650 hours of this game and still love it, so I say give it a try!

@@nuli2929 wdym secret marriage option

@@yourehereforthatarentyou Exactly what is says. :D I think visiting the desert trader would be a good hint.

I'm tempted because the changes look good. But I don't know if I have time. I also don't know if it would be an acceptable fit for the channel. I doubt many people will see this message but how would you feel about a "Game Name 1.1" update review as its own, 5 minute video?

I would love any video you made, the more the better. However I can see many hoping you'd just make a video on a new game, rather than using your time to make a re-review. Ultimately if you think you have a lot to say about the changes, I think an update video would be an interesting look at how the game improved or fixed it's problems.

Even if it's just 5mins I'd still love to see it. Mostly because it will be interesting to see if your opinion changed at all with the new additions to the game, since oddly enough most of the changes we're almost spot on with the criticism you had in the video. Either way, I'd completely understand if you don't want to and rather review new games. I love your content and review style so whatever you do is fine by me.

hey man, i just discovered your videos, and love how you do them, that being said yes i would love this review

Your videos are great and i think that a quick update video would be great maybe just including the new changes and what you think of them and what they solve.

+TMTLive You know, before a started playing this game, I made a commitment not to try min-max. I always try to min-max when I play those kind of games, but this time I didn't. And really, it never got dull to me. It was one of the most relaxing experiences I had with a game. I just went with the flow, did things however I could, with what time was given to me. And like that, I discovered that I enjoy a lot more without trying to be as efficient as possible. Otherwise, it feels I working. I think that's why I hated both Factorio and Infinity Factory.

Eduardo Bordinassi Even working doesn't feel like working if the problems are constantly changing and require interesting and creative solutions. Stardew felt like working to me exactly because it doesn't require or stimulate the player to try to find interesting ways to develop their farm. For me, the way Stardew lets the player do whatever they want breeds a feeling of meaninglessness, while Factorio, Space Chem and Infinifactory are incredibly free yet still restrictive enough to make what freedom you have in making layouts feel meaningful. I can understand that others might like relaxing, mindless games, but to me that is exactly what working is. Clicking my virtual crops felt infinitely more like boring office work than laying out complex self-supporting systems, which is incredible because my job IS programming complex interactive systems. That said, it did at times succeed in making me tune out and just go from day to day tending to my farm without feeling like I'm wasting my time. This is going to sound weird, but I think there is one slight problem with the camera system that actually ended up being the cause of my inability to get entirely immersed in the grinding, and that was the edge of the farm map. In games like Rune Factory, if I remember correctly, you would always water right in front of you, so to water an entire lane you had to keep walking in that direction and press the watering button in a certain almost therapeutic rhythm. Stardew almost does the same thing, as you can just keep your cursor right next to your character and thanks to the character that directly follows you it'll always be one tile ahead as you keep walking. Sadly, when the camera can no longer go right, you start having to think about your mouse placement again, and that small window of "oh wait I have to-" I think is what caused me to realize that I was "doing" nothing during the rest of the game. I should note that I never tried to min-max. In fact, I hardly even looked at the sales prices of whatever I was selling. I think I'd love this game if I was a NEET, though.

It is about routine, it's about making a routine and progress to make you satisfied with your lifestyle and farm.

It's not about routine, though, you made it about routine.

you fuken nerd nah jk tastes differ its cool

I have it but I've never played it. It looks interesting, and I hear a lot of the randomness in it can be mitigated by learning the game which is great, but I've never gotten around to trying it.

+Joseph Anderson I really recommend it especially if you were ever a fan of Star Trek TNG. Evokes a lot of memories from the show

db It would be really really reeeallly confusing havr hundreds of thousands of tabs

well, with collectors coming out loads will be all like "wow... this is gud"

Aditya S His final point is not that there is no ending but that the game lacks end game content and theres not much left to do once you reach that point.

Sadly evryone don´t remember evrything aswell as you do...most ppl set up what u say but then forget what order they set it up in, even when i was only farming/fishing i forgot what boxes i used to put the diffrent items..