The four year anniversary is next month

Stardew Valleyis proof that staying power is real, even if you don’t hold a “live service model” over people’s heads, or wage a clandestine PR war against your players.As revealed by creator Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone, the game just hit 10 million sold. 10 million!

Although that number doesn’t contain any platform breakdowns (it’s currently on PC, PS4, Switch, Vita, Xbox One and mobile devices), it’s a huge jump from the previously reported 2019 figure of six million sold. Maybeour Game of the Decade awardsgave it a bump? Just kidding,Stardew Valley‘s quality spreads like wildfire through word of mouth. I’ve told hundreds of people about this magical project in the past four years or so, and it looks like it’s still going strong.

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What’s astounding about this milestone is that it’s pretty much all due to the efforts of one person, who openly shares their contact informationon their official websiteand answers fan questionson a weekly basis on Twitter. The success ofStardew Valley, much like the act of playing the game itself, is a humbling and feel-good story.

The ghost at the end of the hallway

Picking up the smiley face post-it off the broken mirror

John and Molly sitting on the park bench

Close up shot of Marissa Marcel starring in Ambrosio

Kukrushka sitting in a meadow

Lightkeeper pointing his firearm overlapped against the lighthouse background

Overseer looking over the balcony in opening cutscene of Funeralopolis

Edited image of Super Imposter looking through window in No I’m not a Human demo cutscene with thin man and FEMA inside the house

Looking at the ghost of Jackie inside the lighthouse