Stardew Valley 1.6 has taken the beloved farming simulation game to new heights with a slew of fresh features, improvements, and surprises. Released on PC in March 2024 and later on consoles and mobile devices in November 2024, this update has something for everyone. From the introduction of new festivals like the three-day Desert Festival to the addition of a Mastery System that rewards players for maxing out their skills, the game has never been more engaging. Players can now enjoy multiple pets, explore new farm layouts, and even participate in the Raccoon Family Quests. Stardew Valley 1.6 is packed with exciting changes that enhance the gameplay experience.
Key Takeaways:
- Stardew Valley 1.6 introduces new festivals, pets, and farming features, making the game more fun and engaging for players. With new shops, items, and customization options, there's something for everyone to enjoy.
- The update also brings quality-of-life improvements, new quests, and rewards, as well as a Mastery Points system and Golden Walnuts tracking guide. It's a game-changer that adds depth and excitement to the beloved farming simulation game.
Stardew Valley 1.6: A Game-Changer for Fans
Stardew Valley has always been a beloved farming simulation game, but the 1.6 update takes it to a whole new level. Packed with new features, improvements, and exciting changes, this update enhances the gameplay experience in many ways. Here are 50 key facts about Stardew Valley 1.6 that every fan should know.
New Festivals and Events
The update introduces several new festivals and events, adding more variety and fun to the game.
- 01Release Date: Stardew Valley 1.6 was released on PC in March 2024, and consoles and mobile devices got it on November 4, 2024, as version 1.6.9.
- 02New Festivals: Multiple new festivals have been added, including a three-day Desert Festival in spring, two mini fishing festivals (Trout Derby and SquidFest), and an environmental event in summer.
Mastery System and Farm Layouts
New systems and layouts make the game more engaging and customizable.
- 03Mastery System: A new "mastery" system is tied to the Mastery Cave, accessible after maxing out all skills. This system grants powerful perks and items.
- 04New Farm Layout: The Meadowlands Farm features chewy blue grass that animals love. It comes with a coop and two chickens right from the start.
New Shops and Items
Several new shops and items have been introduced, offering more options for players.
- 05Bookseller: A bookseller now visits your town twice a season, offering various books that add to the game's lore.
- 06Lost Items Shop: This shop allows you to buy back items you lose that you can otherwise never get again. It appears in the Lost Woods.
Pets and Animals
Pets and animals have received some love in this update, making them even more enjoyable.
- 07Multiple Pets: You can now have multiple pets if you max out your hearts with your first pet. You can also put hats on your dogs and cats and even get pet turtles.
- 08Pet Gifts: Pets that love you will sometimes give you gifts, adding a new layer of interaction.
Fishing and Foraging
Fishing and foraging have been expanded with new features and items.
- 09Legendary Fish: Legendary fish can now be placed in ponds and produce roe, adding depth to fishing.
- 10Floating Items: Items dropped in water will now briefly float before permanently sinking.
- 11New Crops: New crops like carrots, summer squash, broccoli, and powdermelon have been added. Players can also grow giant powdermelons and Qi Fruits.
- 12Forageable Items: A new forageable item called Moss can be collected from trees and used in new crafting recipes. A new dish called Moss Soup has also been added.
Crafting and Machinery
New crafting recipes and machinery make the game more complex and rewarding.
- 13New Crafting Recipes: The update includes new crafting recipes that utilize the new crops and forageable items.
- 14New Machinery: Innovative new machinery like the dehydrator, the anvil, the heavy furnace, and even an Auto-Petter patented by Joja Cola have been added.
Home and Farm Customization
Personalize your home and farm with new decor and renovation options.
- 15Decor and Renovation Options: New decor and renovation options have been added for your home.
- 16Furniture and Clothing: New furniture and clothing items allow players to further personalize their homes and characters.
Seasonal and Environmental Changes
The game now reflects seasonal and environmental changes more accurately.
- 17Festivals Map and Dialogue Changes: Festivals now have map and dialogue changes every second year, except for the night market and desert festival.
- 18NPC Winter Outfits: NPCs now have winter outfits, adding seasonal variety.
- 19Night Lighting Improvements: Night lighting in non-farmhouse indoor locations is now slightly darker, and farmhouse lighting on rainy days is slightly moody with lights staying on all day.
- 20Light Sources: TVs and trees of the Winter Star now give off light at night, and light sources have been added to window light glows to eliminate "dark but lit" windows.
Quality of Life Improvements
Numerous quality-of-life changes make the game more enjoyable and efficient.
- 21Real-Time World Map: The world map now shows your actual position within the world in real-time. In multiplayer, other players’ positions are also shown in real-time.
- 22Removed Lighting Quality Option: The lighting quality option has been removed, and the game is now permanently set to ultra quality.
- 23Foraging XP: Harvesting berry bushes now grants 1 foraging XP per berry, while harvesting forage crops from wild seeds gives much less foraging experience but grants some farming experience.
- 24Combat Experience: Monsters on the farm now give combat experience, but it’s 1/3 of normal value, excluding slime hutch slimes.
- 25Combat Adjustments: The area of effect of downward-facing melee attacks has been extended, and the side attack of daggers has been slightly extended. The Topaz ring now gives +1 defense, rather than the unused precision stat.
- 26Insect Head Damage Increase: The insect head’s damage has been increased from 10-20 to 20-30.
- 27Kudgel’s Critical Attack Power Increase: The kudgel’s critical attack power has been increased from +4 to +50.
- 28Bombs Affecting Terrain Features: Bombs now affect terrain features like trees and crops within the round explosion radius rather than a square area.
- 29Penalties When Knocked Unconscious: You can no longer lose the Golden Scythe, Infinity weapons, or tools when knocked unconscious. You can also no longer lose more than three items. The amount of money lost now scales to how much you have, making it less punishing if you don’t have much money but more punishing if you have a lot. The maximum lost has been raised from 5000g to 15000g.
- 30Food Buffs Adjustments: Joja cola now gives a very short speed buff, and green tea now gives +0.5 speed.
- 31Mine and Dungeon Changes: Coal nodes have been added to the volcano dungeon, and barrels now spawn on skull cavern levels divisible by 5. The maximum possible effect a bad luck day can have on finding a prismatic slime has been reduced.
New Quests and Rewards
New quests and rewards add more depth and challenge to the game.
- 32Raccoon Family Quests: A chain of quests known as the Raccoon Family Quests has been added. These quests involve a raccoon and his family, providing new storylines and rewards.
- 33Fish Smoker: A new fishable resource has been added, which can be used to craft the Fish Smoker. This is necessary for one of the Raccoon Family Quests.
- 34New Fishable Resources: Additional fishable resources have been introduced, expanding the fishing mechanics.
- 35Goby Fish: A new fish called the Goby has been added, including information on its location, season, and selling price.
- 36Fish Smoker Crafting: The Fish Smoker can be crafted using new fishable resources, adding another layer of depth to fishing.
- 37New Crops Seeds: Seeds for new crops like carrots and broccoli are now available, allowing players to grow these crops and expand their farming activities.
Mastery Points and Mastery Cave
The Mastery Points system and Mastery Cave offer new challenges and rewards for dedicated players.
- 38Mastery Points System: A new Mastery Points system rewards players who have leveled all five Stardew Valley skills (Fishing, Farming, Combat, Foraging, and Mining) to level 10. When using a maxed-out skill, players gain EXP in the new Mastery Gauge. Once the Mastery Gauge is full, players get a Mastery Point that can be spent at the Mastery Cave in Cindersap Forest.
- 39Mastery Cave Quests: The Mastery Cave in Cindersap Forest now offers quests and rewards for players who have earned Mastery Points.
Golden Walnuts and Joja Parrot
New ways to track and find Golden Walnuts make the game more rewarding.
- 40Golden Joja Parrot: A golden Joja parrot can be paid to find all remaining golden walnuts on Ginger Island.
- 41Perfection Waivers: Perfection waivers provide a new Joja way to bypass perfection challenges.
- 42Prize Machine: A prize machine has been added in Lewis’ house, where players can collect prize tickets as a reward for completing quests and special orders, as well as from repeated egg/ice festival wins.
- 43Golden Walnuts Tracking Guide: A guide helps players track down the 130 Golden Walnuts on Ginger Island, including checkmarks to keep track of their progress.
Miscellaneous Changes
Several other changes and improvements have been made to enhance the overall gameplay experience.
- 44Golden Scythe and Infinity Weapons Protection: The Golden Scythe and Infinity weapons are no longer lost when knocked unconscious.
- 45Multiple Golden Walnuts on Ginger Island: The Golden Joja Parrot can be paid 10,000g to tell you the location of a Golden Walnut.
- 46Raccoon Family Quests Rewards: Completing the Raccoon Family Quests rewards players with new items, money, and other benefits.
- 47Fish Guide: A comprehensive guide helps players learn more about the new fish, including the Goby, its location, season, and selling price.
- 48Quality of Life Changes: Clint now refills the player's watering can when upgraded, a UI overhaul for Fish Ponds, and other tweaks make the game more enjoyable and efficient.
- 49Intro Bus Drive Cutscene Improvements: Some improvements have been made to the intro bus drive cutscene.
- 50Hats at Night: Hats are now drawn at the night-time color in the game menu portraits.
Stardew Valley 1.6: A Game-Changer
Stardew Valley 1.6 is packed with fresh features and improvements that breathe new life into the game. From the new festivals like the Desert Festival and Trout Derby to the Mastery System that rewards dedicated players, there's something for everyone. The Meadowlands Farm layout, multiple pets, and Lost Items Shop add layers of depth and personalization. Quality-of-life changes, such as real-time world maps and night lighting improvements, make gameplay smoother and more enjoyable. New machinery, crops, and crafting recipes expand farming possibilities, while the Raccoon Family Quests and Golden Joja Parrot offer new challenges and rewards. Whether you're a seasoned farmer or new to the valley, this update has plenty to keep you engaged. Dive in and experience all the exciting changes Stardew Valley 1.6 has to offer!
Frequently Asked Questions
Was this page helpful?
Our commitment to delivering trustworthy and engaging content is at the heart of what we do. Each fact on our site is contributed by real users like you, bringing a wealth of diverse insights and information. To ensure the highest standards of accuracy and reliability, our dedicated editors meticulously review each submission. This process guarantees that the facts we share are not only fascinating but also credible. Trust in our commitment to quality and authenticity as you explore and learn with us.