Haunted Chocolatier Is the New Game from Stardew Valley Creator ConcernedApe

Concerned Ape’s Haunted Chocolatier is a new spooky pixel-art adventure game from ConcernedApe (aka Eric Barone), the developer of Stardew Valley, and an early gameplay trailer has been revealed. This dreamy, colorful top-down title is coming to PC, and while other platforms have not been confirmed yet, it will come to “major platforms” eventually. The game is not likely to release for a while either, as ConcernedApe said there is still “a ton of stuff to do.” At least today’s footage shows a bit of the game’s combat, some decorating, and just a little bit of chocolate-making. More information can be found on the new Haunted Chocolatier website, but long story short, ConcernedApe isn’t sure exactly what this new game is yet.

“I’m not sure how best to describe it,” ConcernedApe said. “It’s evolving organically as I develop it, so I’m not sure where it will go. But at its core, the gameplay loop involves gathering ingredients, making chocolate, and running a chocolate shop. Of course, there’s a lot more to the game than that, but I don’t want to get too deep into at this early stage, partly because I don’t want to be tied down to any particular concept of what the game is.” That being said, the game is currently planned to be single-player, and it has more action RPG elements than Stardew Valley.

Despite the seemingly spooky nature of Haunted Chocolatier, the Stardew Valley creator clarified that this new game is not “an evil or negative game.” He explained, “However, if Stardew Valley mostly channeled the energy of the sun, Haunted Chocolatier channels the energy of the moon. Both are vital.” You can take a look at some screenshots below.

Last year, Barone teased that he was working on two games – one that takes place in the Stardew Valley universe but isn’t a farming game, as well as another, early-in-development title that “will tie into Stardew Valley in some way.” It’s currently unclear which of those games is Haunted Chocolatier, but it’s probably safe to bet on the former of the two titles. Stay tuned for more information on this new game from the Stardew Valley creator.