Retronauts Episode 216: Stardew Valley
Added 2019-04-23 02:28:33 +0000 UTCThis time around, we're shining the spotlight on another newer game that, like Shovel Knight, feels like the platonic ideal of a specific retro experience. If you ever liked Harvest Moon, still like Harvest Moon, or fell off the series years ago, Stardew Valley is the game for you: it takes the fundamentals of Natsume's storied farming sim, sands off its many rough edges, and expands on the important parts in a meaningful way, all while having a personality of its own. This week on Retronauts, join Bob Mackey, Kat Bailey, and Kallie Plagge as the crew explores the cute and highly addictive world of Stardew Valley.
Comments
I like this addition of covering current games that harken back to retrogames. I just got Ultratron, a modern-day "clone" of Robotron 2084, and I am in LOVE! Now if only they would do this for Me Do!
VanDiagram
2019-04-23 16:50:44 +0000 UTCThanks for mentioning the crazy protracted development time and what it's like for a single indie developer to devote themself body and soul for years and years working in isolation and not knowing if it'll actually do anything on the market and disappear in a puff of smoke. I read Jason Schreier's "Blood Sweat and Pixels" and he goes into way more detail about the level of stress and burnout Eric Barone went through. "Once in a lifetime" is a cliche phrase, but someone really does things like this maybe ONCE in a lifetime. I write software for a day job and dabble with Unity and Quake mods on the side but there's no way in hell that I'd ever have the do-or-die wherewithal to build an entire game like Stardew or Axiom Verge. PS: I just realized I went to a number of performances at the theater Eric Barone worked at while he was developing Stardew and it's totally possible I walked by him. You never know what's going on in anyone else's life. Ha.
John Simon
2019-04-23 16:21:11 +0000 UTCMy daughter and I played so much of this game. She started 4 farms. One was her starter, but she didn't like her husband, but couldn't bring herself to divorce him so started a new one two years in. One on switch for single player and one for multiplayer. We have something like 500 hours on this game between us. As for the characters there are so many little things that are hinted at or said in a way that isn't explicit, like the fact that Abigail is the Wizard's daughter and not Pierre's. There is no blood test or anything, but a ton of clues from the three adults that point to it. On so many levels this is a game that rewards scratching just below the surface because when you do there is almost always something else there.
Pumpkinbob
2019-04-23 16:13:26 +0000 UTCMy daughter loves this game a ton on the Switch so this will be interesting to listen to. I actually bought the Limited Run version for the PS4 but then got my Switch and never ended up playing it. The chapter on it in the book Blood, Sweat, and Pixels was also very good.
littleterr0r
2019-04-23 02:32:56 +0000 UTC
