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Stardew Valley and more indies are coming to Xbox Game Pass

By Otto Kratky August 10, 2021

Today’s ID@Xbox stream was packed with indie games galore, but the highlight of the show came from Stardew Valley developer Concerned Ape. During an interview on the stream, Eric Barone, the sole developer of Stardew Valley announced that the game will be coming to Xbox Game Pass.

Stardew Valley was originally released in February 2016 but has since exploded in popularity. The game, heavily inspired by the Harvest Moon franchise, gives players a farm to call their own, and a small town to live in. The game is currently available on PC, Switch, PlayStation consoles, and Xbox consoles, and will arrive on Xbox Game Pass later this fall. A concrete release date for the game on Xbox’s subscription service was not announced.

Chopping down a tree in Stardew valley. — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Along with Stardew Valley, a decent number of other indie titles are coming to Xbox Game Pass. Aragami 2 hits the service on September 17, Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous arrives on March 1, 2022, Evil Genius 2 is set to launch on Game Pass in fiscal Q4 of this year, and Pupperazi is rolling onto the service sometime soon.

The ID@Xbox stream wasn’t just about the indie games coming to Xbox Game Pass though. You can find a list of every game that appeared during today’s showcase down below.

Lightyear Frontier
Lab Rat
the Legend of Wright
OlliOlli World
Inked
Sam & Max Save The World Remastered
Aeon Drive
The Big Con
The Vale: Shadow of the Crown
Aragami 2
Pathfinder Wrath of the Righteous
Pupperazi
Evil Genius 2
Stardew Valley
Library of Aruna
Spacelines from the Far Out
The Artful Escape

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Otto Kratky is a freelance writer with many homes. You can find his work at Digital Trends, GameSpot, and Gamepur. If he's…

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When is Stardew Valley 1.6 coming to consoles?

A player fishes in their local pond.

There are few cozy games as successful and beloved as Stardew Valley, so it's no wonder it has received regular updates since its 2016 release. If you're a fan of the game, you've no doubt been looking forward to its new 1.6 update, which brings some pretty substantial changes and bug fixes to improve the gameplay experience. Unfortunately for some players, the update has only released on PC so far, meaning console players have been left wondering when they'll get an opportunity to see all of the fresh changes in the game. Here's what we know so far about when the Stardew Valley 1.6 update is coming to consoles.
When is Stardew Valley update 1.6 coming to consoles?
Unfortunately, we don't have an immediate answer regarding when Stardew Valley update 1.6 will land on consoles, though we do know it's on the way in the near future. In a social media post on April 26, developer ConcernedApe gave a minor update on the console versions of the newest update, saying, "Console and mobile ports are still in progress, thank you again for your continued patience!" This doesn't answer much, but it should at least give console players the peace of mind that the update is still headed their way and will be available as soon as possible.

In the meantime, you can check out Stardew Valley's 1.6 patch notes to see everything new in the update, which includes a wide variety of bug fixes, translation changes, and gameplay improvements that should make most players happy.

Gaming

Haunted Chocolatier: release date speculation, news, trailer, and more

Character running past a chocolate factory in Haunted Chocolatier.

In late 2021, indie developer Eric Barone (commonly known as ConcernedApe online), famed for single-handedly creating the magical Stardew Valley (one of Digital Trends' best video games of all time), officially announced that he was developing an all-new game. That game is called Haunted Chocolatier, and it looks like a whole other world of fun, casual simulation where you find out the secret desires of every single member of your community.

Details are still limited. but don’t worry —plenty of info has already dropped. We’ll keep you updated about every detail so you know what’s going on.
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There is no set release date for Haunted Chocolatier, and it looks like it's going to be in development a bit longer than fans initially expected.

Gaming

Stardew Valley gift guide: the best gifts for every villager

A wedding in Stardew Valley. The player characters is marrying Haley, who's in a bridal gown. They're standing underneath an arch with all the townsfolk watching.

The residents of Pelican Town are friendly enough when you begin a new farming adventure in Stardew Valley, but you need to do some work to really earn their affection.

You have an individual affection level with each that can be raised primarily in two ways: doing quests for them and giving them gifts. The latter option is far faster and more efficient, but also riskier. Unlike some other games, each character in Stardew Valley has gifts they like and love but also feel nothing for as well as dislike or hate. Giving a bad gift to a character you're hoping to romance will only set you back. Let's open our journals and make sure we know the best gifts for each villager in town.
How gift-giving works