Stardew Valley creator says Haunted Chocolatier isn't just a 'copy and paste' of his iconic farming sim: 'They haven't played the game, so they don't really know'

Haunted Chocolatier developer Eric 'ConcernedApe' Barone explains why adding bosses to the game was necessary for him to grow as a developer, differentiating the game from Stardew Valley and pushing himself creatively.

Stardew Valley developer Eric 'ConcernedApe' Barone says adding bosses to his upcoming game Haunted Chocolatier was necessary to ensure he keeps "growing" as a game developer. It's also a key thing that sets the two games apart, in case you think Haunted Chocolatier "looks like it's just a copy and paste Stardew Valley," as per Barone's words.

Speaking to Nintendo Life, Barone is asked whether designing bosses for the Haunted Chocolatier has been difficult given Stardew Valley's lack of them. The answer is basically yes, though that's the idea.

"Designing bosses is a whole new ball game from anything that's Stardew," he says. "And I think I wanted something different. I wanted a challenge because I want to keep growing as a game developer. I didn't want to just do exactly the same thing again.

"I know a lot of people say, 'Haunted Chocolatier looks like it's just a copy and paste Stardew Valley.' But they haven't played the game, so they don't really know."

Obviously, Haunted Chocolatier and Stardew Valley share a distinct visual similarity, though I imagine the former has plenty of fresh ideas Barone feels weren't right for Stardew – like bosses.

Regardless, it hopefully won't be long until we see more of the game. Barone tweets that there'll be development updates on Haunted Chocolatier "in time," but for now, he needs to focus on fixing Stardew Valley following its latest update. One such issue? You'll need to remove the hats from your pets for a performance boost. Optimization, but at what cost?

Oh, and a new Stardew Valley bug can apparently make you rich with an army of 999 lobsters.