Maintain on to your parsnips, as a result of an apocalypse has struck the pastoral lands of Stardew Valley.
No, it wasn’t a game-breaking bug or new content material. Slightly, the extremely anticipated Stardew Valley 1.6 replace launched modifications that overhauled the again finish and rendered a number of of its hottest mods fully ineffective. Whereas mod compatibility may not be on the prime of thoughts for each fan, it’s paramount within the bigger Stardew Valley group, the place a single mod may need more than 10 million downloads. Now, the 1.6 replace has kicked off a frenzied scramble amongst its fanatic creators to repair their content material and mitigate the consequences of what individuals locally are calling the “modpocalypse.”
Nevertheless it’s not all unhealthy information. Replace 1.6 is likely to be one of many greatest turning factors for modding within the sport’s historical past and can make it simpler so as to add new content material, like characters and music. Beforehand, sure modifications required technical programming data, however because of enhancements made in 1.6, it’s simpler than ever to create mods. Polygon spoke with creators behind a number of the greatest mods, and whereas they talked about the challenges that got here with all the present dysfunctional mods, within the opinion of Stardew Valley Expanded creator turned Stardew Valley developer Devin Hedegaard, the modifications will “make the modding group stronger than ever earlier than.”
In response to Hedegaard, higher often called FlashShifter, the sport was developed in a manner the place you “would have to be a programmer“ to edit and add issues behind the scenes. Content Patcher, a well-liked program for modders, made it a lot simpler so as to add content material, however there have been limitations on what you can use it for. Now, modders can use it to edit and add much more components to the sport, like animals and music, that you simply couldn’t earlier than. “With Content material Patcher, you don’t have to be a programmer, you simply want to have the ability to learn information and assume logically. And you may add issues very simply now. […] It was simple earlier than, however now it’s even simpler,” Hedegaard mentioned by way of Discord voice chat.
Developer Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone first launched Stardew Valley in 2016, and it’s bought over 30 million copies to this point. That lasting recognition can, largely, be defined by Barone’s continuous updates, but additionally by the passionate group of modders who proceed to create new content material and develop the world of the sport. Gamers can discover new areas, meet fan-made characters, or alter the artwork path thanks to those mods. In response to a consultant from Nexus Mods, there have been over 336 million downloads throughout roughly 15,300 Stardew Valley mods over the previous eight years, making it the fifth-largest sport group on the positioning.
Slightly than policing modders with the likes of DMCA takedowns, Barone has labored tirelessly to foster collaboration. Previous to launch, he described the 1.6 patch as a “modding-focused” replace and even launched an alpha model that confirmed off the code earlier than its official launch. Moreover, Barone employed the creator of SMAPI, the most well-liked software program used to load Stardew Valley mods, to work on replace 1.6 and make the sport extra modder-friendly.
The creator of SMAPI and Content material Patcher goes by Pathoschild, and each particular person Polygon spoke to talked about the important thing function he performed and the way he served as a constant line of communication between Barone and Stardew’s group. LemurKat, a creator behind the favored East Scarp mod, instructed Polygon by way of Discord that Pathoschild “stored up wonderful documentation on the features that had been being opened for us to work with.”
DestyNova, one other energetic modder within the East Scarp group, echoed these sentiments. “[Pathoschild and Barone] collaborated to be sure that modders like myself had each device that you can probably consider up till the final second,” DestyNova mentioned by way of Discord voice chat. “And Pathoschild just about accommodated modifications as finest he may, like up till [two nights prior to release].”
Along with structural modifications within the code, the brand new replace additionally introduced new property for modders to work with. DestyNova beforehand created a mod that added a nonbinary NPC to Stardew Valley, and now they’ll have extra issues to work with.
“It’s like having your artwork palette expanded. Not each modder goes to even be an artist, so each time there’s an replace from the sport, there’s extra property individuals can use. There’s extra content material individuals can work with,” DestyNova mentioned.
Nonetheless, with massive modifications come main rising pains. Pathoschild maintains a database the place gamers can verify to see if mods work with 1.6, and only a fast look exhibits dozens of now-defunct mods, which has led to a ton of labor for modders. Hedegaard described a grueling schedule within the days after the replace’s launch. “I sleep as a lot as I can, after which I type of simply stand up and simply work all day. Like, positively over 12 hours a day minimal,” he mentioned.
“There are a variety of regressions in some locations. However there are components of my mod the place it’s been high-quality for like two years, and now with this replace, it’s damaged, and I’ve needed to repair it,” Hedegaard continued. “However that’s simply the brief run of it. The long term with these modifications, it’ll make the modding group stronger than ever earlier than, for my part, and it’s an excellent change. And it’s one thing that the modding group actually wanted.”
Though the patch has launched loads of new issues, like bugs and model compatibility points, these modders no less than aren’t in it alone. The identical communities that helped convey earlier content material to life can now supply assist throughout all of the troubleshooting. The one round East Scarp, specifically, has gained a repute for being a welcoming place for individuals to study and a haven for LGBTQ-friendly Stardew Valley content material.
“That’s what’s necessary to me as a queer author. I believe individuals see [the East Scarp] NPCs and folks see themselves, and it turns into necessary for them. […] ‘Oh, hey! This can be a nonbinary NPC. I really like them a lot. Right here you go, pal who can be nonbinary.’ Then we by accident grew a group of people that wish to make queer NPCs, and I really like that,” DestyNova mentioned.
And on the finish of the day, the communities round these mods could be simply as significant because the content material they add. Guides and energetic Discord servers all function pillars of assist.
“It will likely be simpler, ultimately, however many people extra veteran mod makers are having to relearn the method as effectively, and adapt to the brand new mechanics [in the game],” LemurKat mentioned. “This has led to much less of a educating atmosphere and extra of a sharing, ‘Hey, take a look at this cool characteristic I’ve simply discovered.’ Which is fairly cool since I’ve been mod-making for nearly 5 years now and nonetheless have loads to study.”
Should you’re a fan of those mods and wish to assist the creators, typically a easy “thanks” can do wonders.
“For almost all of us, this can be a part-time passion, and we wish to expertise the brand new content material as a lot as you do,” LemurKat mentioned. “Should you discover your sport is bugging out, I might urge you to learn to parse and browse your SMAPI logs, as there are some issues you may repair your self. Should you can not discover the answer there, let the mod creator learn about it by posting a transparent description of the problem, and the hyperlink to the SMAPI go browsing the Nexus Mods web page. […] And please, supply supportive feedback too! I really like discovering a ‘Thanks on your arduous work’ publish buried amongst the display screen of ‘That is damaged, please repair’ feedback.”