The One Part of the Stardew Valley Trials that was Scripted

[@BlaDeSDV]

My glory of knocking Haboo out! With what you had to work with, this was the right call. Haboo, we are 1-1 on elimination challenges!

[@noahwilson63]

Rematch! Rematch!

[@dovelyy]

STARDEW TRIALS SEASON 2 HABOO VS. BLADE LET'S GOO

[@trainwrecked1956]

To be fair this wasnt what I thought was scripted. I actually thought Seanie's villain arc was what was scripted. Finding out about this was shocking but Z did what he had to. And as they say in Show Biz "THE SHOW MUST GO ON". I know I am late on this but my thoughts are with King and his family.

[@88porpoise]

I don't thing it was a bad decision, but I think it was a missed opportunity. My course of action would have been: 1) Blade wins and Haboo is eliminated and every celebrated finally achieving their goal. 2) Start of next episode it is announced that due to *reasons* King Nooblit has to withdraw from the competition. 3) That open spot is to be filled by the last eliminated player. 4) Haboo returns, with a new skin clearly intent on vengeance. Created its whole new story arc. And it is in line with reality shows.

[@squeezleprime308]

Just my two cents, but situations like this come up on broadcast reality shows as well. And they have to be handled. It's good that all of you as a body decided how to move forward; it was the grownup thing to do. Keeping KingNooblit and his mom and family in my thoughts.

[@slytherclaw91]

Haboo splitting the winnings makes so much more sense now (if this was even part of his reason - pure speculation).

[@noahwilson63]

I was thinking the same thing. I feel a bit bad for Haboo. I bet it was hard for him to feel like he actually won.

[@CuttheropeTutorials]

@@noahwilson63 I kind of wonder who would have won...

[@bumper3241]

Honestly, I dont think anyone would be upset about fudging the results, especially given the circumstances. I am glad about your honesty, Z, thanks a tone for this one

[@RK-iq9uh]

So Haboo had even more plot armor than originally thought. :) In all seriousness this was a totally fine decision given the circumstances and I think it lead to a far better series than the alternatives. There was no real indication of these sorts of troubles (other than Blade's multiple appearances). It flowed really well and I don't think anyone will blame you. This stuff happens and I don't think integrity is lost when unforeseen hiccups occur.

[@allofashes]

you speak like a youtuber who just got cancelled and is trying to fix it, i promise we're not mad at you Z (or you, King, i wish your mother all the best

[@JoeMama-ik7qf]

aged like milk kekw

[@spam-el3ee]

​@@JoeMama-ik7qf uhhhhh...

[@lolxoxo867]

@@JoeMama-ik7qfwhat happened??

[@Jonahcruse]

Aged like something that doesn’t age well

[@elenashmeleva192]

Ngl I kinda miss seeing new videos

[@bobbleheaddance8408]

I’m glad this is all out in the open, it shows how genuine these stardew content creators are, thank you for being clear about this. Prayers and thoughts for Kings family during this difficult time.

[@bamberslann7050]

Changing the course of the competition, given the circumstances, sounds totally reasonable to me - King, I'm sorry to hear about your mom. You're both in my thoughts going forward. Z, you handled this beautifully, and I appreciate your honesty. Am I hearing a redemption arc for KingNooblit in season 2?

[@victoriahewitt9938]

I admire your sense of integrity so much. The Trials were amazing because of everything you put into them, time, effort, decisions, etc. I can't imagine a better ending than what we got. I feel sorry for what KN is going through, but I respect the hard call you had to make, along with your desire to not trash talk or keep hush. You & your stuff are amazing! Keep up the great work, Z!

[@maritaandcats]

Hey Victoria! Fancy seeing you here! (It’s Marita!) You’re a fan of Z as well? I love his content! And I absolutely agree that I really admire his integrity here. :)

[@Dargesh890]

My two cents: It was a fun series to watch. The only way I can be upset about this is if you intentionally changed results just to keep certain people in. You were put in a tough spot and did your best, and I think that the way you handled it was the best possible. If you have another SDT, I will be watching!

[@celestineblue]

Nothing changed really, just twisted the story telling bit. But like they said if they scrap the whole ep, nooblit would still be gone and haboo would still be in so... That was my thought too btw at the start, but as he explained more I understood it more. Good day 😊

[@heatherr.2070]

Honestly, it seemed like it was best for everyone for Nooblit to be out at that point. He needed to focus on his family and his own mental health, and it would've been really unfortunate to lose an episode due to that fact. I personally already assumed something similar to this had been planned for the episode; it starts with explaining that Nooblit had to sit out the episode for something important coming up, and while I didn't realize that any of it was "scripted," I thought Blade as Nooblit was picked for elimination specifically to try and give Nooblit an out. It's an incredibly fun show regardless, and if that was the only major hiccup that needed to be planned around, then you guys clearly did an incredible job at making this show, and we're all so excited for a season 2. All the love to everyone involved, and especially Nooblit and his family

[@BlueDavrial]

Honestly the substitute, no matter how cool of a dude like BLaDE they are, winning an elimination match being the thing to be scripted and changed is like the SMALLEST least offensive scripting change you could possibly do. Especially when the alternative put everyone in a tough spot. This change is not only completely understandable but honestly was the right move, period, IMO.

[@sylviak.1094]

Thanks for sharing this, even though it may have been tough! I absolutely loved the Trials and all of the hard work you, Em, and the competitors put into it. And King Nooblit, my thoughts and heart are with you and your mom. ❤

[@AbLaV]

Z, you sound like you expect us to be so angry with you for scripting something, but you don't need to worry. While King didn't let you know before recording that he was gonna be gone, he was going through something that is very upsetting and I understand him not coming to record. And I understand choosing someone else to fill his place, and then scripting one thing. Don't worry, we support you and King anyways

[@fountainfaerie]

This sounds like such a rough situation for you guys to be in, my heart goes out to Nooblit through this time 💗 I think everyone watching totally understands and honestly was a good way to deal with the situation. There's always room for things to go wrong or not to plan, and you did a great job at solving that :)

[@AlexisEmilyChin]

I think it’s a show of integrity how the original plan was to fudge the results so Nooblit wouldn’t look bad, even though no one had heard from him. It is an absolutely understandable and unfortunate situation. Wishing him and his family well ❤️

[@pachicletafuego]

The trials were such an exciting experience and I really loved the aspect of it not being scripted, like you said it was one of the main selling points it had, but you don't need to worry about this, we understand the tight schedules you all were in to bring us this amazing series. I think it was handled in the best way possible and everyone's actions are understandable. The honesty is very much appreciated! My heart goes out to Nooblit and his mom

[@simplyed88]

Zach your care and concern for your community comes through clearly in this message... you made the best of an unfortunate situation and I don't think this reflects badly in any way on the Trials... which were completely amazing!!!

[@chlo780]

I love the playfulness of Z’s normal videos and then the sudden switch to professional! You handled this very well Z and prayers for King and his mom!

[@alkemi5522]

look on the positive side - we got Blade's OooooOOOooooOOOooo~

[@_emilytruelove]

You did what was right for the trials, the audience, and your fellow creators! I don't think this hurts my enjoyment of the trials at all and I appreciate you being honest about it. Side note: I initially thought this was a late April Fool's joke and was very confused for about 5 minutes.

[@Double_Jae]

Hope you come back Z, we miss you

[@Galassssss]

No

[@nikkiknack]

Appreciate your transparency! A potential solution would’ve been for Haboo to play as King as his sub after Blade has to leave, but under the circumstances this makes total sense. Poor King.

[@MooshAttack]

Thank you for being so transparent. You all put SO much work into this and I hope you think it was worth it, because I do think it was and I think a lot of your viewers can agree. You put SO much work into this that I think it over shadows any amount of scripted that occurred. If you think about it, reality TV shows that are similar on television are incredibly more scripted. You did amazing with this whole production. So sorry to hear about Noob, that’s not an easy thing to go through. 💜💜 I wanna say thank you to the whole Stardew team. You all rock and helped bring this all together. This was legit my boyfriend and I’s favorite thing to watch each Saturday. This is seriously the best community of people.

[@stevenh3656]

It would’ve sucked to have Haboo go out to a sub (even one as great as Blade), this was a good choice and I think you handled well

[@karigirl34]

We absolutely understand, and it doesn’t affect my love for or view of The Trials. Things like this can happen in the production of anything and that was a good way to handle it that allowed Nooblit to have peace during that time and allowed the competition to continue. Plus Calico Jack is so luck based that it’s not like Haboo couldn’t have won that on that round anyway. All is well! My thoughts are with Nooblit and his mom. Have had a few people close to me recently get diagnosed as well, and your priorities really do change. Sending love his way 💕

[@MisterVercetti]

Totally understandable given the circumstances. Thanks for being so forthcoming about it, and thoughts and prayers with KingNooblit and his family.

[@caitlin4816]

Thank you so much for being forthcoming about what happened! It doesn't take away from the trials at all, and I appreciate your integrity.

[@longlongs4]

its a bummer it had to go that way but the series was still great, you made it work. Our hearts go out to Nooblit and his family

[@emmalution]

you were put in a super difficult position, this is completely understandable. the trials were GREAT and you (along with everyone else) did an amazing job!

[@KorokSeeds]

Just adding my support here. The trials were the best content I've seen in a long time, absolutely brilliant stuff. You absolutely made the right call in a tricky situation, and it was probably good for nooblit to have one fewer commitment to worry about when he needed to focus on himself and his family. Love to him, his mum and everyone involved in the trials

[@meganpatterson9444]

It sounds to me like you did the best you could with a tough situation. It must have been a nightmare to deal with at the time, but I think you handled it the best way you could. Speaking from experience, it is really difficult to get many people together at the same time, so I can definitely see how something like this could have happened. It makes sense that the decision was made the way that it was. I think as long as the other competitors were on board with it, that is all that really matters. I don’t feel like it takes away anything from the trials. I really appreciate your transparency regarding this. The trials were a blast to watch, and I can’t wait for Season 2!!

[@octo_contra]

Trials were absolutely lit Z, I'm crazy impressed that you only had to quick-fix once with that many people to wrangle, and I would have disqualified nooblitt as soon as BLaDe was supposed to pinch hit for him in the elimination round also FYI the main channel link is broken, I think there should be a /c/ in between youtube and the channel name, better mess with that

[@cherrixx2639]

stuff happens in a production. You did what you had to do to keep things moving. My prayers for Nooblit and his mom

[@VictoriaGrace97]

You did the right thing here, don’t question it. These things happen and you handled it perfectly. All my positive thoughts to Nooblit, I’m so sorry for his family having to go through this. 💙

[@ConnieJasperson]

It's all good, Z. It was a great series. That was a positive solution to a tough situation, for you, and especially for Nooblit, and for the series as a whole. As you say, Haboo would have moved on anyway, and this way we got 8 episodes!

[@Spasaymoostard]

Haboo was probably going to do the honorable thing in the end anyway and split the prize if he one without this asterisk.

[@LexieMichelle]

The trials were amazing!!!! You did your best. I’m not disappointed by a thing. I pray for Nooblit’s mom and family.

[@lindwurmchen]

I think everybody completely understands the situation you were in and I also think you handled it as best as you could have. I'm so sorry for Nooblet that he had or has to go through that and although the situation was unfortunate for everyone, you made the best of it and no one's mad at you or anybody else involved.

[@BlathersIsAHoot]

I think you made the right decision, it's a tough situation to be in. Losing all of the footage from that episode would've been such a shame and at the end of the day, we watched it to be entertained. I think disclosing it just gives me MORE faith that everything else was unscripted. Really hope you do another one in the future!!

[@ayyoallie]

These things happen, and it sounds like you really tried to do what was best for the competition and for the remaining competitors. Like, at the end of the day, we're spectators, and we enjoyed what you put out. But it's so much more important that the people involved in the competition didn't feel like they were slighted by this situation. And if they all agreed, there's not much else that you can (or should) do. Thanks for the transparency!

[@prench]

in telling us this bit was scripted, you actually majorly boosted your integrity and our trust in you haha. pretty funny that fudging the results would make us trust you MORE. but yeah, you handled this super well! i think it was the best decision.

[@sammygamer6383]

To add onto other comments that have been said in here, we also don't know what the outcome would have been if King was there regardless, Haboo could have been the winner, especially with how much BlaDe knew about that game. It could have been Haboo in the situation. And I think the fact that Haboo ended up distributing all of the earnings between everyone could make up for any sour taste people may have even after hearing this, since, despite the fact he was "supposed to lose" in a situation where he was going up against someone who wasn't even King, he didn't profit anymore than the other competitors in this monetarily. That's just my two-cents on this to add to what I've already seen be said, just to add more to it. Thank you for your honestly, I honestly don't expect anything less from you at this point. Keep up the good work in the Stardew Valley community!

[@Fera1igatr]

you dont have to worry about how you are coming off with the decision and how the trials seem because of that as that was the right decision i believe. i hope that king nooblit and his mom are holding up alright. you did a great job z you handled the situation well

[@AreweAble]

Honestly? You handled that really well, and I think the solution makes perfect sense. You were producing a show, and frankly, it's not our (the viewers) business what /exactly/ is going on behind the scenes as long as you aren't hurting anyone, and in this case, it seems you were protecting people. I'm glad you decided to listen to the competitors, and I hope KingNooblit is okay.

[@McNike308]

All good Z, u all did ur best so we dont mind at all! Very professional organization and management behind a fun format like the trials. Never thought about it but very very good job from all of u an Z in particular to get everything together in the end. Best wishes for nooblet

[@lukeboulding4971]

Thanks for the honesty! Things happen in life that are uncomfortable and people are unable to do anything about it. Personally, you made the right call by getting him out by making blade lose. You shouldn't be upset or disappointed in the decision as you did the best you could with what you were given and still made a fun and entertaining series. So don't worry about it, I think that the decision even added to haboo storyline in the series were he was so close but never got eliminated. I hope king nooblit mum cancer has gotten or is getting better and my thoughts and prayers are with her and nooblit's family! ❤

[@WabaStreams]

Transparancy can be a hard thing when being a content creator and I give you mad props for being open about this; In my humble opinion it elevates you as a genuine creator and someone I would love to learn from. Keep at it mate

[@katgrace8834]

Hey man we totally get it! Those situations happen and you guy’s handled it very well. Not mad about it at all and you guys are awesome. Keeping his family in my prayers

[@Skorea77]

Thank you for sharing. We get it completely. ❤️ 🙏🏻

[@fiveafterseven]

Sending love to KingNooblit and his mom

[@carneth]

The way I see it, the fact that you shared this with us keeps the genuineness and integrity of the Trials intact. It sounds like an incredibly difficult decision, and I think you handled it well by getting a consensus from all of the competitors and choosing the option that made the most sense under the circumstances. Haboo did an incredible job throughout the Trials and easily demonstrated his knowledge of Stardew. I don't think this diminishes his win at all, and I hope he doesn't feel like it does. I loved seeing BlaDe give Haboo a run for his money in Calico Jack. It was a close game regardless of who won, and it was super fun to watch because it was such a nail-biter, so I'm glad the episode wasn't cut altogether. I hope we get to see BlaDe back as a full competitor in S2. My thoughts are with King Nooblit and his family as well. I hope he takes care of himself first and foremost. The Trials were so much fun to watch, Z. Thank you for all of your hard work, tough decisions included. I loved watching it so much that I bought a shirt, and I can't wait for the next season!

[@AuthoressPluto]

it was fun, it was entertaining and I completely see where you are coming from... still would have preferred the results to not be changed though. Still love you and your work and hope to see more in the future.

[@blokvader8283]

I'm so sorry to Nooblit, 1000% fair that he didn't show up, it's awful that he was eliminated after that happened. But I absolutely love the fact that BlaDe is so cracked that he had to purposefully throw in the actual video for content's sake. That's mental to think about lmao I know a lot of people were gonna be disappointed that BlaDe (the CalicoJack predictor machine) lost, when that wasn't even what happened lol

[@shetlandponygirl]

Z i love you and your content, that won’t change ❤️ Sending my love to King and his family ❤️

[@milenamartins21]

Thank you for being honest about that Z, I believe most (if not all) of us understand, but I just really appreciate the honesty!

[@gaminggrangran3341]

No harm done! Thank you for sharing!

[@neonsilver1936]

I liked the series and I understand. A group of consumate professionals for agreeing to do what was right for the content and a honorable thing to reveal when there was no pressure to do so. People would have felt lied to if you hadnt, so this was a good call, Z.

[@lostfroglet7015]

I’m glad to know that Blade did win that, felt like he deserved it after all that’s his challenge to a tee. I think this only makes the trials better and I’m looking forward to hopefully getting to see Haboo and Blade go up against each other no holds barred for real next trials if they happen.

[@skye0017]

How can we be mad at you? Thanks for sharing that! I'm sorry you were put in this situation but you guys still ended up making amazing content. I just can't be mad, things like that happen sometimes...

[@kaushikraikar1105]

If this was MasterChef, nooblet wouldn't even have gotten a substitute, he would've been kicked off anyway. So you handled it well and kept it entertaining.

[@mahekfathima8793]

am I the only one who isn't sad/mad whatsoever about the fact that it was scripted at all lmao It was so entertaining and well made (especially Seanie's villain story), I don't mind

[@MrCynthis]

Worlds most honest reality producer right here 👏👏👏

[@justafan6535]

I hope his mother is doing okay.

[@allofashes]

Z WITH GLASSES

[@Rikrobat]

I really appreciate that we get to hear what had happened, and I don't think it's much of a problem. If we run the situation in another lane where Nooblit did make it, there's no way to prove that he and Haboo would have been in the elimination challenge together for the circumstances to be exactly the same. I agree with others that cutting that episode entitely would have been a loss in so many ways, both in terms of hard work from the competitors and the audience losing those interactions. It's sad and unfortunate that Nooblit was so exhausted that he slept through the meeting time, especially with everything he was dealing with. Ultimately, I think you and the rest of the players made the best decision that you could, and it's good that all of you are still friends.

[@Spurrrg]

Its all good. The series still turned out really good and honestly its not a big deal to script something if its the only option left. Getting the episodes out should be priority.

[@reith6073]

Let’s face it I just recently watched the Stardew valley trials back to back. It flowed well showed a great story and you got put in a bind. I had no idea that the calico Jack was scripted after the fact.

[@LithiumThiefMusic]

Hey no worries, the trials were my favorite thing on KZbin this year

[@Nektarios37]

I hope KingNooblit can be back for season 2

[@ingridplata2411]

Honestly the most surprising thing is that the Haboo v Lichat Junimo Kart wasn't scripted. Anyway, great to hear that you all want to disclose what happened but I do not mind at all

[@Nathannorris744]

I like how you handled the situation but in the future you might want to consider stopping him from even being in the elimination challenge. Get them to vote someone else

[@MM-jf1me]

Makes sense, but thank you for the transparency! Hope you and yours are doing well, Zach. Take care of yourself.

[@jonas.christoph]

Z with glasses???

[@abacustomss]

I’m going to be honest, I don’t really care, you could of told me that WAY more was scripted and I would not have minded at all, it doesn’t take away from the fact that it was an incredibly enjoyable series and I was routing for the blueberry boy from the start so I am so glad he won :)

[@AreweAble]

same tbh it was great and entertaining if he came out and said it was all scripted I would be more impressed than anything else lol

[@evelynkammerzell8784]

while I'm still pissed Therm didn't win, this feels like a fair balance

[@bunnyskye7593]

I appreciate your honesty, and it really does stink for Nooblit. Sending my love to him and his family 💖

[@Cymricus]

i would be okay not knowing this tbh

[@nnik6755]

TLDW: KingNooblit's mother was diagnosed with cancer, which is why Blade was substituting for him. They fudged the results and voted Nooblit out to keep Haboo in because he was MIA for several hours with no word on why he didn't show up for the recording and Blade couldn't stay for any more recordings. Understandable, strange choice to put this on the second channel

[@Jarhead986]

Im just trying to find out why comments are turned off on every video on his main channel, What did this creep do

[@Garrys_Soul_Recovery]

turns out one of his discord mods was abusing people in Z's discord server, which is now dissolved. a lot of hate and issues came from this which caused Z to pretty much disappear from the internet and disable comments on the videos. google "what happened to unsurpassable z" and youll find the document in the stardew valley subreddit.

[@Galassssss]

​@@Garrys_Soul_Recovery is it really his fault tho? Fyi i dont know the full story my country wouldn't even let me on subreddit bcs of some idk privacy problems (i live in indonesia)

[@Garrys_Soul_Recovery]

@Ryzz505 no it's not his fault at all. He just waited so he could make sure he made the right decision. With something like this appearing out of nowhere, I'd say he was in shock and wanted to guarantee that the allegations were true. Certain people didn't appreciate that. So now he's been wrongfully cast out.

[@samuelmyllyaho6066]

@@Garrys_Soul_Recovery I found out a year ago or so. I was so frustrated with people's reaction. He's a separate person and a good youtuber in my mind. That discord admin really ffed his youtuber dreams badly..

[@Garrys_Soul_Recovery]

@samuelmyllyaho6066 100% agree. This shouldn't have gotten to the point it did. But I hear he helps with another church based youtube channel, so I guess it all worked out in some way

[@Obbliteration]

You did the right thing. Nooblit was technically disqualified

[@soelemon]

why... everything reminds me of him... have been taking a break and now i get to know this... techno we miss you, rest well. I wish Nooblit and his family is doing good rn

[@tewi8210]

def best decision in a rough outcome

[@GeekandGlory]

I think it was handled very well, especially since everyone agrees that it was the right way to go. I do agree with another comment that it does make more sense that Haboo split the winnings. I very much enjoyed watching the trials.

[@zzenzyy]

We are not mad Z we promise

[@PlexitGames]

Aged like spoiled milk

[@n4ttyyy]

Less rigged than I thought it was lol

[@hasmikkhachunts1741]

I had so much fun watching the trials 2 years after the whole thing went down! I wouldn’t be upset even if it was scripted lol

[@jplayzow]

I feel like you did what you could with what you had besides losing to some rng isn't a fun way to go out

[@dennisthegamecatmanguso6953]

With or without the scripted win, Haboo deserved to win. Especially the sharing of the pot!

[@xaviertheboy88]

its good it can get hard

[@ki11ershark]

I can definitely understand the tough spot you were in and I can see why you made the decision. Though at the same time I do kinda think Haboo deserved to go out as he should have. Personally, from day one I was kind of upset he was involved just because it felt like a lot of not-speed runners/record-breaking players against him and I was disappointed he won and I do feel a bit salty knowing he lost that elimination challenge now... I think maybe it would have been fine to give King another chance if he wanted it, or made it a special occasion where Haboo got out but King also had to drop from the trials for personal reasons. I know a lot of reality TV shows and game shows are scripted and such, but I think just being honest in the moment goes a long way and I wouldn't have been upset if King's stand-in won and then King had to leave anyway in the beginning of the next episode. Anyway I'm certainly not super upset and it was all still fun. I just think next time your audience likely won't be upset by honesty in the situation.

[@LucyTobler]

[@Dan55888]

Damn Nooblit, communicate dammit.

[@fink7968]

Hah, this isn't really very egregious. Maybe don't pick the player who is extremely familiar with the games code and speedruns it competitively to sub in for a casual yter next time for fairness

[@Fera1igatr]

i think it was more for timetabling reasons

[@nishantguiney1814]

well now im pissed cause i wanted Therm to win but it's alright I guess but what you could of done is made it so Haboo just fills in for King Nooblit cause he had to go do something and Blade wasn't available

[@lukeboulding4971]

Thanks for the honesty! Things happen in life that are uncomfortable and people are unable to do anything about it. Personally, you made the right call by getting him out by making blade lose. You shouldn't be upset or disappointed in the decision as you did the best you could with what you were given and still made a fun and entertaining series. So don't worry about it, I think that the decision even added to haboo storyline in the series were he was so close but never got eliminated. I hope king nooblit mum cancer has gotten or is getting better and my thoughts and prayers are with her and nooblit's family! ❤