Stardew Valley has long had a reputation as an indie darling, and this isn’t just because of the incredibly high level of critical and commercial success that it’s seen, but also due to the (sole) creator’s attitude towards additional content.
None of this has ever been paid, and there have been far more updates than Eric Barone ever expected, giving players reason to stick by the game nearly 10 years on.
Such is the popularity of the game that it’s not uncommon to see it crop up in cameo appearances in other games. Eric Barone – otherwise known as ConcernedApe – has now revealed that there’s no charge involved when it comes to these crossovers.
Infiniti Nikki Crossover
The crossover that started this particular conversation was Stardew Valley’s Junimo feature in Infiniti Nikki. In a tweet relating to this, Eric Barone stated, “there have been a few collaborations between Stardew Valley and other games over the years.
“To be clear, I never receive any money from these collabs. I’ve only done them because I was a fan of the other games, or because I genuinely thought the players would like it.”
To those who are familiar with how Barone has handled post-release updates for Stardew Valley, this mentality might not come as much of a surprise.
Balatro Crossover
The recent mega hit Balatro contains a small crossover, not just with Stardew Valley, but with a whole host of other games, including the Divinity series and the Witcher.
It’s a testament to the sheer success of Stardew Valley that it fits neatly alongside the enormous, sprawling, high-budget RPGs from larger developers like Larian and CD Projekt Red.
Here, the crossover is subtle, giving players the opportunity to customise the Balatro cards that they use to resemble the characters and aesthetics found in these various games.
Terraria Crossover
The original crossover is arguably came in Terraria, way back in 2022. Terraria and Stardew Valley have a lot in common as far as indie games with a loyal fanbase and an endless stream of new content.
Here, certain characters and icons from Stardew Valley were made available to players – the Junimo made another appearance here, as did a Joja Cola can and a Stardrop. A combination of these items with a Dryad would allow the players to gain blue chickens.
