Haunted Chocolatier is "way bigger than Stardew Valley," says ConcernedApe: "Everything is cranked up"

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Stardew Valley mastermind Eric 'ConcernedApe' Barone has been hard at work on both his beloved 2016 farming sim and new game Haunted Chocolatier – a title that's apparently set to be much larger than his previous cozy gem.

It's no secret that Haunted Chocolatier will feature a bigger world than its predecessor – heck, ConcernedApe himself admitted that the "world of Haunted Chocolatier" will somehow be even "larger" than that of Stardew Valley nearly a year ago now.

He's back with more to say about his upcoming project in a new interview with Game Informer, though, and boy, does Haunted Chocolatier sound like it's shaping up to be absolutely massive.

"It's way bigger than Stardew Valley, at least in terms of the amount of maps, the amount of monsters, the depth to the whole item system, and all the equipment slots and all the stuff like this," as ConcernedApe reveals. "Everything is cranked up."

And, yeah, that checks out – it sounds like Haunted Chocolatier has still got a ways to go before its release as well, with the creator describing his current state as "knee deep" in development.

Latest Videos From ConcernedApe's Haunted Chocolatier -- Early Gameplay - YouTube Watch On

Previously, he explained that he wants to "take a more 'creative director' role" on Stardew Valley's 1.7 update, the farming gem's upcoming big patch, so that he can "focus the vast majority" of his attention on Haunted Chocolatier.

So, no matter how far away or along his next title is, I'm certain he's been focusing on it for quite some time now. I mean, he does also say he spends five days a week on Haunted Chocolatier… and just two on Stardew Valley.

It's evidently "a lot harder" to make a game. There's more pressure on ConcernedApe now, too, as he's got fan mail to sift through and "business people asking me for this or that all the time." It's not as simple as cracking down and just focusing on Haunted Chocolatier, as nice as it would be.

Plus, although he's taking a bit more of a backseat on it, I'm sure the Stardew Valley 1.7 update takes up a hefty chunk of space in the developer's mind.

Here's hoping Haunted Chocolatier isn't too far off, even if it's still in the distance – or that we at least get a new look at the game soon. A whopping four years have passed since the last video of its early build came to light, and I'm itching for more.

"I am not going to abandon Haunted Chocolatier," says Stardew Valley's Eric Barone: "I know, I shouldn't have announced the game so early."

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Anna KoselkeStaff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.

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