Summary
As fun as it could be to seeHaunted ChocolatierandStardew Valleyshare the same universe, a case can be made to say they should remain separate. There are implications that the story could take place before the one inStardew Valley, and that’s the way things should stay. If it were to happen at the same time and the stories overlapped or conflicted in displeasing ways,Stardew Valleyfans who wanted to check outHaunted Chocolatiermay find themselves unhappy.
The potential thatHaunted Chocolatierhas to be its own story is incredible. The trailer for it introduced a morefleshed-outStardew Valleycombat system, what looked like a portal to another world, and a new town full of NPCs for players to talk to.Stardew Valleywas an incredible success, so withHaunted Chocolatier,there are a lot of standards to meet, and thusHaunted Chocolatiermustn’t be justStardew Valleyin a different outfit.
Haunted Chocolatier As Its Own Game
What Is Known About Haunted Chocolatier
As it stands, there are a few things the developer has shown that fans can draw their own conclusions about. Making use of the mystery of this new game to let fans predict or make guesses about what could come is a good play on ConcernedApe’s part. Like this, players can have fun speculating while also not being shown so much of the game that it isn’t even given a chance to be its own game. So far, some key bits players know fromscreenshots ofHaunted Chocolatierand discussions are:
Haunted Chocolatier’s Future
Even though there’s been confirmation that the two games will be connected in some way, it is importantHaunted Chocolatieris given a moment to shine. Before any ties back to Pelican Town are made in-game, there should be plenty of world-building that makes it unique and sets it apart from its sister game. It’s a game of its own, and though it will face countless comparisons toStardew Valley,as is only natural,Haunted Chocolatierneeds to be seen as a standalone gamefirst and foremost.
Being compared to other games similar to it isn’t always a good thing, after all. When one game comes out first or simply does things “better” than the existing competition, there will always be a comparison made between it and any other game of the same genre or type. One good example is to take a look at games likeGenshin ImpactandHonkai: Star Rail. They are made by the same developer, but they are not the same game. However, fans may expect the same thingsGenshin Impactto come toHonkai: Star Railand vice versa.
Though these expectations aren’t inherently wrong, it’s holding one game up to another and expecting them to be carbon copies. But if they were, then the games are at fault for being too similar. It can be hard to please both ends of the spectrum, so asHaunted Chocolatiercontinues to develop, devoted fans of the developer’s previous game should keep an open mind and heart to anything that seems either too similar or too far away fromStardew Valley. Games can sometimes be the developer’s enemy as well as the developer’s heart and soul, so fans ofStardew Valleyare encouraged to wait and see how things go with this new and upcoming game.
