Stardew Valley creator says the game's name "just came to me," after the original "was not pleasant to say"
Feb. 3, 2024Sprouting names out of nowhere
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Stardew Valley’screator has revealed the original name for his smash success farming sim, which changed because it was apparently “not pleasant to say.”
Stardew Valley’s title is pretty simple, named after the titular community that houses our various farms, spouses, and unknowing arch-rivals. “It just came to me,” says Eric ‘ConcernedApe’ Barone when asked about the name’s inspiration on the community’s Discord. Though, in a different time and potentially in a different universe, the game had a slightly different name.
“The game used to be called Sprout Valley,” he continues, “but the word Sprout was not pleasant to say.” Sprout definitelyisa fun word to say and kinda explains what you’re doing in-game (sprouting stuff), but who am I to argue withthefarm man? Sprout-likes don’t hold the same appeal as Stardew-likes either, I imagine. All’s well that ends well, I guess.
The game formerly known as Sprout Valley is now gearing up for its big 1.6 update coming this year, which plans to addpets wearing hats, fortunes, anda big New Year eventcomplete with fireworks. Barone recommendsstarting a new save fileto see absolutely everything in the update, after which point, he’ll be returning to work onHaunted Chocolatier, his next life sim mash-up about ghosts running a chocolate shop. What a pitch!
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Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that’s vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he’ll soon forget.
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