ConcernedApe has addressed concerns (does that work?) surrounding Haunted Chocolatier, the next major release from the developer of Stardew Valley, the most positively rated game ever released. In a recent blog post, ConcernedApe came out to answer questions and quell fears from fans about Haunted Chocolatier’s lengthy development cycle.
It has been years since Haunted Chocolatier was announced, but ConcernedApe stressed that, while it’s taking a while to finish, it’s absolutely still coming.
‘I Am Not Going to Abandon Haunted Chocolatier’
ConcernedApe, whose real name is Eric Barone, released Stardew Valley almost a decade ago, in February 20216. His second game, Haunted Chocolatier, has a similar vibe and was unveiled in 2021. In a recent blog post, Barone admitted he announced it way too early, but he ‘had his reasons’.
He then went into more depth about some key concerns regarding the game, such as the leading worry that it might have been abandoned by the solo developer, and the scrapped content would be pulled into Stardew.
He said:
No. First, I am not going to abandon Haunted Chocolatier. But even if I did, I am not going to add it to Stardew Valley. Stardew Valley and Haunted Chocolatier are separate games.
It doesn’t even make sense from a technical perspective, as Haunted Chocolatier is written from scratch, it’s not the same “engine” as Stardew Valley. You can’t just copy and paste Haunted Chocolatier into Stardew Valley.
Barone has turned his attention to Stardew Valley again, working on a critical update to appease the millions of people who still play the game. He said that he’s only working on Stardew again because it’s such a drastically popular game and he ‘still has additional ideas for how to improve it.’
In the closing sections of the blog post, Barone confirmed that Haunted Chocolatier still doesn’t have a release window, but it’s not cancelled or abandoned.
Are you eagerly awaiting the arrival of Haunted Chocolatier? Let us know what you’re excited about on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that The Last of Us season three could be the final run
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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