Stardew Valley Barone began working on
Stardew Valley in 2012 and released it in 2016. He created the game entirely on his own, as its sole designer, programmer, animator, artist, composer, and writer. To complete the game, Barone worked on average 10 hours a day seven days a week for four and a half years. For part of that time, he lived with his parents to save money before moving out with his girlfriend to
Capitol Hill, Seattle. Barone initially released
Stardew Valley on the PC before later porting it to other consoles. As of February 2026, the game has sold over 50 million copies. In 2017, he was named by
Forbes magazine in their list "
30 Under 30: Games" for his work on
Stardew Valley. Since 2019, Barone has been assisted on
Stardew Valley by another designer and development team.
Other media In 2016, Barone released
Stardew Valley: Original Soundtrack, which contains the game's official soundtrack. On August 15, 2020, the orchestral album
Symphonic Tale: The Place I Truly Belong (Music from Stardew Valley) directed by Kentaro Sato and performed by the
Budapest Symphony Orchestra was released. The album includes 15 tracks from the game's original soundtrack. In February 2021, Barone and board game designer Cole Medeiros released
Stardew Valley: The Board Game, a
cooperative board game adaptation of
Stardew Valley. After the first printing of the game went on sale, it quickly sold out. Sales were later reopened with several changes. Barone collaborated with
Norihiko Hibino on an album series
Prescription for Sleep. The series remixes video game soundtracks with piano and saxophone. The
Stardew Valley album was released in May 2021. It includes 10 tracks from the game's original soundtrack and one new track called "Beauty in the Seasons". In October 2023, Barone announced the first
Stardew Valley concert tour,
Stardew Valley: Festival of Seasons, featuring a selection of music from the game performed live by a
chamber orchestra. In November 2024, Barone announced
Stardew Valley: Symphony of Seasons, the second
Stardew Valley concert tour, featuring new arrangements of the game's music performed by a 35-piece orchestra. Barone was the co-author of
The Official Stardew Valley Cookbook, which was released on May 14, 2024. The book includes more than 50 recipes adapted from the in-game recipes featured in
Stardew Valley. Barone's musical compositions from
Stardew Valley are regularly featured on
Northwest Public Broadcasting's video game music radio program,
Press A To Play. Music from
Stardew Valley was first featured on ''Press A To Play's
second episode Pacific Northwest Independent Games
. It was also featured in Indie Darlings
and Games We Played in 2020''.
Other projects In 2008, Barone released his first game, known as
17CF Quest, which was also a promotion for the music group
17 Colorful Feathers. The game's main character is found as a piece of furniture in
Stardew Valley. In 2011, Barone created a comic book series called
Wumbus World. In 2014, Barone took a month-long break during the development of
Stardew Valley. During this break, Barone used his time to piece together a small mobile game to release on
Android. The game was titled
Air Pear and was released on March 6, 2014. In the game, players would need to guide a purple pear on a hoverboard between obstacles and compete for a high score. In October 2021, Barone announced that a new game,
Haunted Chocolatier, was under development. In the game, the player will run a chocolate shop. It will have a greater focus on combat than in
Stardew Valley. Barone stated that "almost everything in
Haunted Chocolatier, including the combat, is completely coded (and drawn) from scratch." In 2022, Barone collaborated on an animated music video with indie pop band
Alvvays for the band's song "
Many Mirrors". Barone is responsible for the video's animation and it was his first time working with 3D animation. In 2024, Barone announced that he played in a
Seattle-based
steelpan band. Barone voiced one of the characters in the video game
Hollow Knight: Silksong, which was released in 2025.
Philanthropy In May 2021, Eric Barone funded key upgrades (including watering systems and a greenhouse) for the Giving Garden at
UW Tacoma's campus (21st & Fawcett). His donations also established a paid student coordinator role, helping the garden donate 200+ lbs of food annually. In July 2024, Eric Barone donated at least $25,000 to
Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust. The Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust is a
501(3)c non profit organization, which works to steward the 1.5-million-acre landscape that stretches from Seattle to Ellensburg along
I-90. In December 2025,
MonoGame announced that Barone had supported the project with an initial donation of $125,000, and a commitment to make $1,250 regular monthly donations. == Awards and nominations ==