Stardew Valley Free Download Officially Confirmed

The creator of Stardew Valley has officially announced that the Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade will be completely free on release, outside of Japan.

If you missed the news from the recent Nintendo Direct, Stardew Valley will be getting an upgrade for the Nintendo Switch 2, and Eric Barone has confirmed owners of the Switch version will not be charged extra to upgrade.

The new upgrade will feature several new additions to the game, including mouse controls using the Joy Con 2 controllers, giving players a similar play style to their PC counterparts.

This upgrade for Switch 2 will also bring Game Share to players, allowing several farmers to go about their day using only one copy of the game.

Previously, the original Switch version of Stardew Valley only supported two-player splitscreen co-op, whereas now, with this update, four players can enjoy the fun of farming and exploration.

At first, players were concerned they would be hit with a cost to upgrade the game, as several titles from Nintendo and third-party developers have pushed out a cost to access the enhanced versions of games.

However, Eric Barone, known online as ConcernedApe, took to social media to clarify and reassure fans.

In his Twitter post, he announced, “This will be a free upgrade for those who already own Stardew Valley on the Switch.”

Only in Japan will there be a charge, simply due to laws there regarded free digital products, but it’s likely a very low cost will be attached.

When asked why it would cost to upgrade in Japan, Barone said, “I don't really understand it tbh, and I wanted the upgrade to be free for everyone.”

It has always been the intention of the creator to keep every update free and accessible to all, so it’s no surprise this upgrade is completely free.