Summary
Stardew Valleyhas come a long way since it launched back in 2016. The latest significant update brought the game to version 1.5, adding a boat load of new content including new areas to explore, new enemies to fight, several quality of life improvements, among other things.
Creator Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone hasrevealed thatStardew Valley1.6is on the way, but as usual he has remained tight-lipped about what the next major update will contain. As time presses on fans become more and more anxious for what may be one of the last majorStardew Valleyupdates as the developer builds up to the release ofHaunted Chocolatier.
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Tempering Expectations For Stardew Valley1.6
TheStardew Valleycommunity was collectively blown away by the sheer volume of content added with the 1.5 update. Those expecting the next update to be as extensive should know that ConcernedApe has confirmed thatStardew Valley1.6 won’t be nearly as content heavy. It will make the game “easier and more powerful to mod,” said ConcernedApe back in April 2023 as he took a break from working on the upcomingHaunted Chocolatierto work onStardew Valley1.6.
ConcernedApe has been working onStardew Valley1.6for some time now. While he is downplaying the significance of the update it is likely that he has a few tricks up his sleeve. Some of the more likely possibilities are explored below.
A New Festival is Confirmed For Stardew Valley 1.6
ConcernedApe has confirmed that a new festival will be added with the1.6 update. As of the 1.5 update,eachStardew Valleyseasonexcept Winter has two festivals. Winter has three festivals including the Night Market which takes place over three days. Presumably this extra activity is added because crops don’t grow in Winter, and the player has a little more time to kill. The Night Market technically doesn’t count as a “true” festival since shops remain open during the day.
Each season has one festival roughly halfway through, and one toward the end. While this is purely speculation, a possible candidate for a new festival could be a New Year celebration either taking place on the last day of Winter or the first day of Spring. That said,theStardew ValleyChristmas analogueknown as the Feast of the Winter Star is a celebration of the good fortune Pelican Town has had through the year.
New Secrets To Discover in Stardew Valley
Stardew Valleyis chock-full of mysteriesfor the player to uncover. There are a handful of unsolved mysteries, like the identity of the Wizard’s daughter and the true nature of the seemingly alien Strange Capsule. While ConcernedApe has not elaborated, he has mentioned that there will be new secrets added to the game in the same tweet confirming a new festival. Whether they are related to existing content or not is anyone’s guess.
There are multiple Easter eggs and clues that seemingly indicatethe presence of aliens inStardew Valley, including the Strange Capsule event. Some of the lore surrounding the game’s Dwarves suggests that they may be of extraterrestrial origin, so this could be explored in more detail through new secrets and dialogue.
It has been known for some time that the Dwarves and Shadow People are enemies, as revealed by Krobus who describes a 1,000-year war between the game’s 2 fantasy civilizations. The 1.5 update forStardew Valleyfleshed out the lore surrounding Dwarves a little, but the Shadow People remain something of a mystery in comparison.The 1.6Stardew Valleyupdate could address thisand potentially explore the 1,000-year war in greater depth.
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A New Scythe May Be Coming to Stardew Valley
While it isn’t clear what exactly ConcernedApe has planned, he has revealed that players can expect more items. Not too long ago, on Jul 12, 2025, to be precise, he teased fans by simply tweeting “iridium scythe.” For the uninitiated,the best scythe that can be obtained inStardew Valleyis the Golden Scythe, obtained by reaching the end of the Quarry Mine. While the Golden Scythe is much more efficient than the original one, it stands out among the other basic tools as the only one without an Iridium version. Some players will go so far as to use a mod that changes the sprite to a purple one that matches the rest of their tools.
The only real use for the Scythe is harvesting hay and certain crops.Stardew Valley’sGolden Scythegives players a better chance of getting hay and has a larger radius. The only problem with the Golden Scythe is that it cannot be replaced when lost; perhaps an Iridium Scythe will simply be a craftable replacement or slightly improve on the Golden Scythe stats.
A New Area To Explore in Stardew Valley is Unlikely
TheStardew Valley1.5 updateadded Ginger Island along with the Volcano Dungeon and some new NPCs to interact with. WhileStardew Valley1.6 could add a new area to explore, it seems unlikely that this is on the cards. As explained, ConcernedApe has already told fans that 1.6 won’t be nearly as significant as 1.5, so if a new area is added it won’t be as big as Ginger Island.
Perhaps a new dungeon of some kind will be added that will serve as a way to unlock new items and secrets. This is merely a possibility; there is no evidence for or against a new dungeon being added, but ConcernedApe did end his list ofStardew Valley1.6 additions with “???,” so it cannot be ruled out.
In the end,nothing is really off the table forStardew Valley1.6, but it will hopefully tie up some loose ends lore-wise and contain enough new content to keep fans engaged a little while longer. Thankfully ConcernedApe has given enough information that some educated guesses can be made, but ultimately only he knows exactly what is in store.
Stardew Valleyis available now on Android, iOS, PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
