Haunted Chocolatier, but it also deserves to have its own true sequel. Content that's been added through patches helps keep Stardew Valley interesting to players by giving them new things to do, but a full sequel would be entirely different. A true sequel could show players what happens in the future after the Community Center has been restored, or it could even explore another small town at risk of losing its roots to the greed of Joja Corporation.
Stardew Valley is an RPG farming simulator that played a significant role in the genre's recent resurgence. The quaint story of a player revitalizing the small Pelican Town and building relationships with its residents is classic when it comes to farming sims, and Stardew Valley has an undeniable charm that sets it apart from others. Even big titles like Animal Crossing can learn from Stardew Valley with how well it represents its genre.
While Haunted Chocolatier is acting as a successor to Stardew Valley, it appears to have a much heavier focus on crafting. Emphasizing crafting isn't a bad thing, but it will give Haunted Chocolatier a different feeling than the farming and gathering gameplay loop of Stardew Valley. It also seems that Haunted Chocolatier will have more supernatural elements to it, given its name and the presence of ghosts throughout its trailer. In short, regardless of the similarities and possibilities of shared lore, Haunted Chocolatier will not be a true sequel to Stardew Valley.
Stardew Valley's Mods Show A Sequel's Potential
The modding community is one way to see what players want in a game. Stardew Valley's 1.6 update will better mods, which can sometimes clash with the original content of a game and end up not working properly. Some of the mods available for Stardew Valley, like Stardew Valley Expanded by FlashShifter on Nexus Mods, could practically act as sequels, and it would be interesting for the game to embrace that. The Community Center being revitalized doesn't mean that Pelican Town's story is over. There are still monsters in the mines, and Joja Corporation certainly wouldn't give up monopolizing a small town so easily.
Instead of restoration, a Stardew Valley sequel could shift the player's goal to maintaining and protecting the way of life they've returned to Pelican Town. Players in Stardew Valley choose between Junimos and Joja Corporation, and a true sequel could explore the player having chosen the Junimos and now needing to protect and maintain the work that they've put into Pelican Town. Haunted Chocolatier looks like it will be a fun game, but the feeling and focus will be too different for it to be considered a sequel. With more left to explore in Pelican Town and its surrounding areas, Stardew Valley deserves a true sequel.
Source: FlashShifter/Nexus Mods
