ConcernedApe's cozy farming game Stardew Valley has taken the gaming world by storm. It's a unique take on the farming genre, where players inherit their grandfather's farm in Stardew Valley. On top of the farming, gathering, and mining aspects of the game, Pelican Town also has many NPCs that can be befriended and eventually married. It's very open-ended, there's no wrong way to play, and fans have really latched onto it. It's such a rich game with such a specific vibe, so many characters and storylines, not adapting it into a television show would be a real missed opportunity.
What's really impressive about Stardew Valley is that even though it was fully made by one person, it's vast. This game is so full of storylines and Easter eggs, little hidden things, and events. There's so much material that could translate into episodes of television, both for short-term and long-term storylines. An episode about the Flower Dance or the Dance of the Moonlight Jellies, or any of the other seasonal festivals, can be a great basis for smaller storylines. Other wider storylines can make up an overarching plot, such as long-term romances or character struggles, or the even bigger plotline of stopping Joja Corporation from taking over the small town. These are complex enough stories that writers can get a fair amount out of them, but they're also simple enough that they aren't easily complicated or convoluted.
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The vast amount of characters to have storylines with is the main opportunity that should be taken advantage of when it comes to a television adaptation of this game. There are 45 NPCs in Stardew Valley, and some have more developed storylines than others but there's a lot to work with there. For example, the character of Shane has a storyline that involves him being an addict and struggling with mental health issues. Other characters have romances with each other that develop over the course of the game, whether it's Clint being too shy to profess his love to Emily or the ongoing affair between Mayor Lewis and ranch owner Marnie.
Speaking of romance, one of the greatest appeals of Stardew Valley is that all 12 of the characters that players can marry are eligible regardless of gender. A lot of these role-playing games where can players can marry one of the NPCs in the game are contingent on the gender the player chooses. It's probably safe to say that society is at a point where most people would think that's weird and really not as inclusive as it should be. Television also doesn't have the greatest record for being the most inclusive, and this could be an opportunity to have the original characters made for the TV series explore some more sexually fluid relationships in a way that hasn't really been shown before.
The game has an incredibly cozy and relaxing vibe, but it's also kind of quirky and offbeat with some darker elements. Thinking about what a television adaptation would look like, the first thing that comes to mind is Gravity Falls. While the Disney Channel animated series has a completely different plot to Stardew Valley, there's this element of characters moving to an unfamiliar town and realizing that there's something kinda weird about it. It also has that really charming and cozy feel that matches the vibes that one would really want in an adaptation of this game.
This is actually pretty common in a lot of television, animation specifically, like the miniseries Over The Garden Wall, all versions of the Moomin franchise, and really popular series like Adventure Time. Looking at the live-action comparisons, shows like Schitt's Creek and The Good Place come to mind. They're comedies and while a Stardew Valley wouldn't have to go the sitcom route, these examples have that more idealistic, homey, and cozy/comforting vibe. People are pretty stressed out right now because of so much going on in the world, and latching onto things that are cozy and relaxing and familiar, but they of course also have to be good and different enough to make people want to get invested in them.
Some sort of adaptation of Stardew Valley feels kind of inevitable because of how strong of a fanbase it has. Influencer platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Twitch are filled with content creators streaming their games and revealing hints and Easter eggs. It's really formed a community. A board game version was recently released, with a lot of success and some pretty good reviews, but no movie or television show has ever been reported to be in the works. Of course, because of its fanbase, any adaptation would get a lot of attention, and that means it would also be a lot of pressure and a big undertaking for anyone who wanted to do it. There's just so much material there that people have already proven to have resonated with, something really great and interesting could be done with it and it has true potential to become a big success.
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