What's Happening with Haunted Chocolatier?

[@goats4life323]

Short answer: its one single guy working on an entire game with probably super high expectations

[@Belkak021]

Didn't he hire a small team a few years ago? Edit: Not saying they are being slow or anything like that but people keep saying he is just one guy where I don't think it's the case anymore

[@bigjedimullet]

@@Belkak021I can think of at least one other game handled by a small team (UnReal World) that takes its time with updates/patches and separate game releases. Honestly, it’s an approach I respect. I would rather have something that took three people five to ten years to complete than something that got pushed out of a AAA studio half finished.

[@BossitroniuM]

@@Belkak021 he had a team for bugs and porting and not content iirc

[@Nebu-lag]

@@Belkak021 from an interview as saw he has a small team to help with the coding for stardew updates, but all the creative work and design is his own

[@derelictgasstation]

It's more like 1 guy releases information about a game way too early and then decides the continue working on a different project for years

[@Busy_Bee619]

As someone waiting for SilkSong, this wait is nothing lol

[@Min0rSet]

Went down to comments expecting Silksong, and damn was I not mistaken. XD

[@Busy_Bee619]

@ glad to meet your expectations lol

[@Palemis]

_Almost 6 years since the first trailer already 😩_

[@TrueSt0ries_]

I can say the same about Cube World. Been waiting for the release of the "right" update, for 11 years now...

[@summergamer7650]

As someone waiting for Elderscrolls 6, I am now a skeleton.

[@HexxyHazel]

Stardew 1.6 was definitely worth the time spent on it, even if the haunted choclatier takes longer

[@ChippyGaming]

I didn't get into this during the video because I didn't want to go off topic too much but I totally agree. Stardew Valley 1.6 was amazing and absolutely my favourite update to the game post launch

[@Belal22]

​@@ChippyGaming no way better than 1.5 ginger island

[@KhanhTheLearner]

@@Belal22 Each update is significant enough that it's really hard to argue which is really the most significant update. I had a lot of attachments to the 1.4 update because that was when I started Stardew, and it felt significantly improved from 1.3 And then 1.5 happened and I was full of anticipation for it. And then 1.6 happened, and you get the idea XD.

[@loke6664]

@@Belal22 Both are kinda necessary to keep people interested. 1.5 added a large new area and a new dungeon but 1.6 added masteries and so many quality of life improvements. I don't think any of the larger updates were bad, but it is hard to say which was the best one. I think we have to wait a while for 1.7 though, that likely wont happen before the Haunted chocolatier comes out.

[@gem9535]

1.6 was a freakin' DLC lmao.

[@Goldtiger142003]

He doesn't need to apologize at all; everyone who's interested knows he takes his time to cook, and as they say, let him cook.

[@laudahl4912]

"Since its announcement 3 years ago there really hasn't been a lot to talk about" me: Laughs in silksong

[@DelusionalDunmer]

cries*

[@purpleapple4052]

me: hoping My Winter Car comes out next month...

[@Gw3mmy]

Slow cooked is better than undercooked

[@zanthe_]

And usually better than pressure-cooked.

[@Gw3mmy]

@zanthe_ 🔥🔥✍️

[@uhToxyy]

This game better be overcooked

[@BCubedus]

It’s really interesting seeing the bts of a solo developer. It’s something that you pretty much never see nowadays

[@ChippyGaming]

I live for it haha, I don't care how long the blog posts take when they wind up being personal/insightful like this one

[@gaelonhays1712]

Evan Debenham of Shattered Pixel Dungeon fame is the only other example I know of. He does pretty consistent blog posts, even between/during major updates. (Cleric class is coming out soon, and I can't wait for it!) Edit: Hold up, strike that, what am I saying? The Bibites and David B. Val's Archaelund! Two games with devlog posts, either on forums or on KZbin itself. (By the way, Exiled Kingdoms, the predecessor to Archaelund, is a brilliant, if relatively short, adventure game. Well worth $5-10.)

[@Greywander87]

I've seen quite a few other "devlog" channels on KZbin, but I think most of those are people developing a game for the first time. Not someone who already has a success under their belt. Understandably, a lot of those channels end up abandoning their projects, or suddenly doing a full rework mid-development. The only example I'm aware of that actually released their game is Hyperbolica, but I'm sure there are others out there. Solo development is just so much work and takes so long to finish, it can be hard to stick with it all the way to the end, or overcome every roadblock that gets in your way.

[@MechagirlSachiko]

ConcernedApe is like those dwarfs in Dwarf Fortress that are taken by fey moods and seclude themselves in a workshop to work tirelessly on a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. You only have a vague idea of what's gonna come out, but you know that, whatever it is, it will be of the highest quality ever witnessed.

[@loke6664]

Hey, don't put too much pressure on the man... But unlike most of the larger game developers you can really feel how passionate he is about his games and I think that is why Stardew is so fun. It isn't some corporate boss who think Overwatch or Fortnight sells well and tells his employees to make something similar but someone who really want to make a fun game.

[@peterprime2140]

Concerned Ape going to die because he couldn't find enough sasquatch leather.

[@spoopyd.8910]

It's a passion project. It needs time and I'm all for it. Besides, I have Stardew to tide me over.

[@ChippyGaming]

exactly, especially with age I've become a super patient gamer

[@spoopyd.8910]

@@ChippyGaming We're reclaiming our attention span with age, bois

[@JoshuaGanoTyraxLightning]

@@ChippyGaming All Game Dev should always be done right, not fast. :)

[@hadx3944]

I love sdv so much that i clicked on this video 10 seconds after it went live, i really hope concernedape can make haunted chocolatier the game he wants it to be

[@unbeardless]

Dude ConcernedApe is the man. I got all the patience in the world for his next masterpiece!

[@likesflower]

were people really asking what's going on? of course it's taking a long time. what do people even expect? it's literally just the one guy making it. so nothing happened, lol. the video thumbnail really made me think the game was getting cancelled, when its just what anyone should expect given his work ethic so far.

[@ChippyGaming]

As someone who tries their best to keep with ConcernedApe news I genuinely didn't fully understand what happened to the game until this blogpost. Like you mentioned, from his work ethic I had assumptions like 'it's just taking time' or 'oh he's taking a break to work on SV 1.6 with the team.' I never truly knew though, thankfully this blog post covered eveything for me so I no longer have to ask aha

[@JameyMcQueen]

​@@ChippyGaming He's made multiple posts before the most recent one. 🤷‍♂️

[@ChippyGaming]

@@JameyMcQueen if you check the website, the last blog post was October 2021 which was over 3 years ago we got a tweet about the game in early 2022 I believe? but I could be remembering that wrong?

[@jetjohnson1106]

Dude we got a game reveal 3 years ago. Yes people are wondering what’s going on.

[@lazy2335]

I appreciate the update, so much. Even if It didn’t answer my main question which was about release date though it did clarify that we probably won’t get one so it has chilled me out. I really appreciate concernedapes honesty and transparency with his development and I wish we’d see more of it from game devs, since it’s become a real issue with aaa games. Personally I really wanna know more about witchbrook.

[@blvck2k263]

It’s good to see a developer try to produce and release a game in its entirety. No half assed releases, no huge patches, no broken features or unplayable content waiting for future release. Plus I haven’t seen or heard anything negative about the wait time it takes for hc to release. Concerned apes entire community is about waiting and patience because stardew valley is all about that. So the fans should be able to wait long enough for a fleshed out game

[@jonklemenc]

Honestly, I just hope concernedApe takes his time and energy and just slowly work on (and eventually release) something he likes. I know we players are going to love it.

[@KhanhTheLearner]

He is a solo developer and he has to make the trade off between working on a new game or updating an existing one. I will wait for as long as he needs because his work is definitely worth the wait. Also, we just got Stardew Valley 1.6 and we all know how big it got, and he has to work on 1.6 for other consoles as well. Haunted Chocolatier is surely getting pushed back, but it's fine. Eric, you don't need to apologize for anything, and please keep up the amazing work.

[@leonardowesselka4124]

LET HIM COOK (the chocolate)

[@GlasiaVD23]

It is so good that no one spams the devs on the SDV forums about HC. On the other hand on the TCF there are some people that spam the devs in every SOTG thread for 1.4.5. This is why I relax on the SDV forums from the TCF if things go south due to 1.4.5 questions. Edit: Abbreviation dictionary: dev = developer (of a game or software) HC = Haunted Chocolatier SDV = Stardew Valley SOTG = State of the Game TCF = Terraria Community Forums

[@ezzy384]

ConcernedApe can take as much time as he needs. I don't care when it comes out, because whenever it does I know that it will be a game that's worth way too much of my time

[@justanotherGus]

Seeing ConcernedApe's passion for his games and the fun of working on it makes me want to be a game dev as well even if not successful

[@ravenman4228]

I mean Stardew Valley on it's own took 4.5 years to make the original version, so I'm willing to be patient, I wouldn't be expect if it takes up to 5 full years and, for the quality that ConcernedApe games are, I'm willing to wait!

[@tdoeswhatever_]

As someone who bought slime rancher 2 two years ago and recently redownloaded it after over a year and a half of having it uninstalled to find that it feels nothing has changed and they’re only on version 0.5, I’m so relieved that he’s doing this on his own completely and will not be doing any early access or anything like that. People need to go back to releasing games when they’re ready.

[@starlightlilly7203]

The 0.6 version is pretty big, I think they were saving most of their effort for it

[@tdoeswhatever_]

@ I’m personally not gonna touch the game or look into it at all until it’s “done”

[@starlightlilly7203]

@@tdoeswhatever_ that’s fair. It’s a shame but you really do hit a wall in most early access games and have to wait for the next update then rinse and repeat

[@tdoeswhatever_]

@ yeah, it was the first and only early access game I’ve bought. Just not for me, I have add I can’t be going back just for another two hours of content every few months, I want the full game to actually be able to enjoy for a good amount of time.

[@Stricken555]

Thank you for taking the time to make this video and update us 🙏 very very appreciated

[@Cyrus_T_Laserpunch]

"Which turned out to be a lot larger than was first expected" could apply to a lot of updates.

[@HaughtyToast]

I'm not surprised. It took him several years to make Stardew so I didn't really question that we weren't hearing anything about it.

[@4eraeI]

is it time the stardew/haunted chocolatier fandom descend into silkinsanity already?

[@callmecourtney244]

The way I'd put my whole life on pause to binge play Haunted Chocolatier lol

[@weaved-matters]

love seeing an update and i cant wait to see what awaits

[@Geronimo742]

I respect Concerned Apes apporch to making a complete game

[@CopperBoy_tv]

i love the art style of character's avatar! I'm glad this game has same art style is like stardew valley!

[@DontStarveEnjoyer]

We dont talk about Haunted Chocolatier (we are patient and know hard work is being put into making it)

[@starlightlilly7203]

I’ll wait as long as it takes. Bro has only put out quality content and charged little to no money. Solid dev

[@JoshuaGanoTyraxLightning]

How is this Vid just now the first i'm ever hearing of this game...? Instantly goin on my Radar.

[@QuantumWaltz]

Honestly I popped it on my watch list three years ago and promptly forgot about it; it gets here when it gets here, perhaps not without flaw or future update, but certainly to the satisfaction of its creator. It's gonna be a blast when it arrives, and until then I'll just be on my lovely inherited farm working the land.

[@GM360]

Every night before I go to bed I listen to the 1st early gameplay song. It’s so calming and keeps me hyped for the game. I’m afraid I’ll be on my mission when it comes out tho

[@hawlkman]

I have no issues waiting, looking forward to it but I am patient.

[@electrobob992]

Let it cook, no need to rush the man just one man working on it.

[@butternutter8106]

Figured it would be a few years, had me worried with that title.

[@Sottoth]

My thoughts about Haunted Chocolatier: let him cook... LET HIM COOK!!!

[@orionofrealms5997]

Dude, THE BOTS ARE NUTS

[@ChippyGaming]

Yeah I'm targeted by them really bad. The second the video goes live I have to block about 100 of them

[@creeperizak8971]

@@ChippyGaming Just know that your efforts don't go unappreciated!

[@Kude1707]

Honestly the only thing I ever want to know is if the project is still being worked on. All he needs to do every few months is just let us know and i am content with that

[@realpatty]

Praying joja is still with us for the second title

[@XANDERcanDRAW]

I haven't gone into Ginger Island anyways. I have so much to do in Stardew Valley.

[@non_binary_deus]

Eric is a really cool developer and I will wait as long as it takes) I am sure that he will make a quality game. And quality takes time.

[@iroh8465]

While silksong... Yeah...

[@Ryuu42069]

Eric Barone is such a gigachad.

[@gem9535]

I love him and whoever he's working with taking their time. They're not letting anyone bully him into an early-release or burn out, and we need to support that. Far too many games have been ruined or cancelled by entitled people who probably wouldn't've even played the game.

[@Hydraina]

THE CHARACTER MENU IS CHOCOLATE OMGGGGGG

[@chilidude5522]

we can wait..just knowing its being worked in is enough

[@Sentient_Bread_Slice]

That title made me think it was cancelled or something and i atarted panicking

[@captainhydrodus4616]

Honestly I don't recall if there was a kick starter for it but I'd love to see HC be just a full expansion for Stardew just to purely push the game to it's limits

[@corruptedplayer]

2:52 CA is making the game mostly from scratch. so the possibility that it is a expansion is not there

[@DorkBoo]

Its not ready yet. There I spared you the whole video

[@LBdaGoatt]

Praying you make a video on Kyora when there's enough info the game looks like Terraria 2.0 I cannot wait to play it

[@BeerfootBandit]

"Thank you all for watching". No man, thank you for the video👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

[@98kazer]

seeing as Stardew cooked like a well-done steak I don't mind the wait, better to have a long wait and get a good product than make the creator rush it make it half-cooked or worse, burnt

[@dahelmang]

Just like Terraria, Stardew Valley keeps on getting updates. ❤

[@SquidBow]

Funny that if we think about Subnautica 2, everybody was so concerned there would be no early access, but this game is like, there would be no early access, so I don't feel presured. We can see completely opposite aproaches

[@johnpett1955]

Eric is more of a quiet developer who takes his time. He definitely should, as he's a solo developer and shouldn't feel overworked, but that's just how it is. He's not like Redigit, who posts about new pets and boulders being added all the time.

[@RurouniTim]

Hytale & Silksong fans: "First time?"

[@Squintis]

The way the thumbnail looked i thought it was canceled or something, phew.

[@connorsnickers1]

Been waiting for the next elder scrolls game since 2011 so this ain’t to bad

[@kernsanders3973]

The difference between this game and stardew valley development, his girlfriend was financially supporting both of them and him working 24/7 on the game. Now? He has Stardew Valley to keep an eye on, update at times, port to different platforms, work on this game, spend time with his girlfriend. who probably quit her job and they spend more time together to make up all the time they were working their waking lives away. Which is well deserved. For people waiting for this game will just have to wait, it will be released when its released. If anyone can pull it off and release a game like this, Concerned Ape is the guy, but he has much more on his plate today than he had back then.

[@Phantom-el6oe]

Game engine is most likely a problem too. If you run a frame debugger on Stardew Valley, you will witness a lot game engine warcrimes. Besides poor optimization (unholy amount of non-state changing OpenGL calls, bad draw batching, lot of texture switching due to sprites being scattered across tilesets), there are many other small but noticeable issues that need to be addressed and probably drive ConcernedApe up the wall as we speak

[@Tonithemeloni04]

Eric can take all the time he needs, we’ve seen enough examples of rushed devs ruining their games

[@DemonicBolt66]

If he puts it up at any point for pre-purchase, I will HAPPILY throw money at it to pre-purchase it! I don't even need early access, just gimme the game when it's ready!

[@Mnya136]

Haunted Chocolatier looks kinda like a stardew valley mod (if that is the game in the screenshots)

[@jerryogpack]

At least he gives some sort of communication with this game, devs of silksong are really bad about anything communication wise, and waiting for that game has been a pain. I contributed some money to the kickstarter at least the backers should be getting some info, but they don’t so I don’t know where my money has been used for

[@dwight3555]

CA is rich, he doesn't need to put it out before he's entirely satisfied with the game, which is clearly a passion project. It will be there when CA is fully satisfied with it, simple.

[@CaptainMorghan4152]

as someone waiting for silksong timesplitters and a (Real not just more maps) Team fortress 2 update this wait is nothing

[@kazulitheseawing3284]

Deltarune was released in 2018, chapter 2 came out in 2021. Game development even with a small team takes time! Much less one person!

The same thing that happened to Silksong 😭

[@Renzo_Benzo]

i literally forgot about this game

[@FlameSpyro]

In summary: When its ready.

[@selensewar]

I'm in no rush. I'd wait 7 more years if i have to. I was never the one to ride on hype trains anyways.

[@Pand0rasAct0r_]

i love that he still supports stardew valley but honestly i would have preferred him working on haunted chocolatier more. as stardew valley is getting old now. After well over 500 hours in it. i wanted to really see his next master piece. so for me while understandable. its sad we likely have to wait yet another 2 years

[@bgsputra7546]

Summary: he told us to let him cook

[@barry5]

As far as i know, the only reason concerned ape released stardew valley was because he was running out of money to develop it, so its not really a suprise its taking a while.

[@BossitroniuM]

As I’m sure most others would agree, for this one, I don’t care how long it takes. It already looks like it will be worth it 100%. If it takes 5 years, I’ll take it. Stardew valley has already proven that there’s quality work and it takes time.

[@saveachip2620]

As someone who had to wait for Elden Ring, this is nothing

[@vbro2105]

I hope chippy revisits planet centauri, 1.0 is launching in a couple days

[@Ryzawa]

People need to have more faith in indie developers, they are what AAA companies could never be.

[@Greywander87]

To be fair, that's mostly because AAA companies are really dropping the ball right now. Historically, we've gotten some real bangers from AAA devs. Either way, it's a huge trade off. AAA devs have a huge budget and (allegedly) experienced professionals working on the project. Solo devs are unshackled by executive meddling and responsibilities to shareholders. Neither should be better or worse, just different with their own problems to deal with. The issue today is that AAA companies have ceded most of their advantages by firing their experienced devs and burning money on "consulting firms" like Sweet Baby and other corporate bloat.

[@Ryzawa]

@@Greywander87 I mean not to slag on AAA games, there's plenty of legendary titles, but there's just something inspiring about the sheer will of a small team fighting against all odds to craft a masterpiece that you don't quite get often with multi-m/billion dollar companies.

[@MemeBeans5]

All ill say is let concerned ape cook he genuinely cares about his game quality and quantity stardew is a really really good game and it took him a long time to make that too, and im gonna bet when this game comes out it's gonna gain alot of postivie reception and top charts

[@unironicallydel7527]

Stardew was great enough as it was. The fact he was still thinking of it, to update it, is commendable. Unfortunately, H.C. has alot of high expectations around it. You can rarely make miracles happen twice. I just dont want him feeling guilty if it doesnt live up to the expectations set by Stardew. For one, its a different game, and 2. Nobody is perfect. This isnt a message to him, but the people I know who have super high expectations for the game.

[@Doomedrpgthecozygamer99]

If you believe Haunted Chocolatier is being put off because of the movie Willy Wonka and the chocolate factory yes I believe so . I think he’s trying a way to do it without legal corporations getting involved. And that does mean putting the game off maybe changing names and or other stuff until unknown date and time we won’t know unless he says so . Currently it’s not known that this is happening but one might think that it is because of the similarities of the two is kinda unfortunately similar.

[@happyhippoeaters4261]

still waiting for Terraria 2

[@Twili-Link2478]

I can't wait to play this.

[@allthingshyper]

Honestly I don't even care which one he works on. Haunted Chocolatier? Cool, a new game I want to play may have news! Stardew Valley? Cool, a game I love to play is receiving an update, and I didn't even have to pay for it. Win-Win!

[@sleepydraculadoesntsleep]

"Let him cook"

[@Slackspider]

Chippy there is a game called planet centauri which seem a terraria starbound with monster collector mechanics

[@ChippyGaming]

I made a video about it over 10 years ago which is kind of wild. I'm not sure if I'll be diving into the game again but I'll keep a distant eye on it for sure!

[@SiberianNinja-Jin]

Honestly, let the man cook. Let the game cook in that oven until it's ready. Unlike the Hollow Knight/Silksong ppl, I have faith ConcernedApe. I do love seeing solo devs just do their thing.

[@strmhie]

apparently, concernedape is VERY stubborn about things being as perfect as possible. thats what i think is going on. hell, stardew valley took YEARS because he kept trying to make it as perfect as possible, down to every little detail. so my assumption is that’s exactly whats happening with haunted chocolatier

[@rainmaker709]

Stardew took over a decade. ConcernedApe might have some help now but he is still doing most everything himself. I will worry about "whats happening with" in another 6ish year. Luckily since it is a bespoke engine, it taking so long won't have a lot of the issues that normally plague such a long dev timeline. Also, I am not a fan of how similar HC looks to SV but then I remember how much rougher the look and feel of the first iterations of SV compared to where it ended up. Still very early in the dev timeline.

[@Cameroo]

Will Grandpa's 'effed up bed return?

[@TalhaOyunda-sb6fy]

Let's go!!

[@deenut5582]

How do we know Eric and Toby Fox aren't the same person?

[@LleytonSPD]

Nothing happened, it’s still being developed

[@flippah4x988]

I know this isn’t terraria but I would like to start a petition to get the nimbus cloud from dragon ball z as a mount maybe 🤔

[@cedriccallier3319]

Looks great 👍

[@Sonyman2000]

Lol I'll be dead of old age before this game is released.

[@witchinggecko4271]

I mean, if the game is even half as good as stardew, I don't really care how long it takes. I'm still playing stardew after all

[@Smiththeinspiringanimator]

Awesome!👏