Stardew Valley’s developer, Eric Barone, has parted ways with his publishing partner, Chucklefish.
In a blog post on the official website, Barone – also known as ConcernedApe – declared that he would be self-publishing Stardew Valley on PC, PlayStation 4, Vita, and Xbox One. Meanwhile, Chucklefish will retain the publishing duties on Nintendo Switch and mobile platforms.
“When I initially released Stardew Valley, I was a total newcomer to the video game industry,” Barone writes. “Chucklefish, as my publisher, supervised the distribution, console ports, and translations of the game. They established the official wiki and assisted me in redesigning the website, with remarkable results. And, of course, Tom Coxon did an astonishing job by adding network code to the game, making multiplayer a reality.
“However, I’ve reached a point where I’m prepared to forge ahead on my own. I believe that self-publishing is the ultimate goal of most indie developers, and I’m delighted to be in a position where this is feasible!”
According to Barone, and a statement he attributes to his publishing partner, the separation is amicable.
“We are proud to be a part of the Stardew Valley story and wish ConcernedApe every success in his new self-publishing endeavor,” Chucklefish’s statement on Barone’s post reads. “We will continue to work closely together and are particularly thrilled to be continuing to publish the versions of Stardew Valley for Nintendo Switch and Mobile, including the upcoming Switch Multiplayer update (currently in submission) and the new Android version, which we know many of you are anticipating!”
Simon Parkin reviewed Stardew Valley for Eurogamer when it arrived on Nintendo Switch in October 2017. He rated it as essential, stating “a modern indie classic on PC finds in Nintendo’s Switch the ideal platform”.
