So, how do you guys keep the game fun?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Mr.SourFapple, Jul 21, 2017.

  1. Mr.SourFapple

    Mr.SourFapple Space Spelunker

    I'm gonna start out by saying I absolutely love this game to pieces, and am very excited for its development and any other projects ConcernedApe will work on in the future but I've only put about 80 hours into it while others put well over 500. I dunno, just after Grandpa clawed his way up from spirit realm to basically tell me I suck I just stopped playing. (Don't worry Grandpa, It's not your fault.) The first 50-60 hours was my first week with the game, getting up to 80 took months. Yesterday, after I was done rearranging my farm I found myself lost again. My problem is I guess it doesn't have a fun tedium to it, like state of decay or minecraft for example. I know I haven't done everything, but I just don't have the patience to do it. Any ideas?
     
    • Marco93

      Marco93 Star Wrangler

      Well, I keep playing because I want to complete all the achievements.
      Also because I want to make my "ideal" farm, with paths, flowers, decorations ecc.
       
      • Lilliput

        Lilliput Supernova

        Speaking for myself, I like to role-play within the game, set up my farmer as a specific character with tastes, habits, and little quirks that I try to stick with. I'll decorate and theme the farm accordingly, and plan activities based on my theme. Modding helps a lot, because you can play with different graphics or change the way some aspects of the game work.

        Even so, I understand your feeling. I don't play the game nearly as much as I did last year, and that's normal too. The game cost less than a take-out pizza, so, the fact that I got so much entertainment from it is an incredible value to begin with. I'm hopeful that when multi-player is released, that'll breathe some new life into it by making it a /social/ activity, something to share with friends.

        My advice is, don't force yourself to play it if you're a little tired. Set it aside for a bit, take up some other activities, and come back to it when you're in the mood. Don't feel any pressure to play when you're not feeling up to it!
         
        • LuthienNightwolf

          LuthienNightwolf Oxygen Tank

          Mostly modding for me. Making the farm look pretty with different mods and being able to change things out from one playthrough to the next keeps it interesting. I also choose a different focus for each farm - like, one year I did a big dairy cow farm, on another I did a chicken ranch, my current farm is all dairy goats, next one will be mainly a cherry orchard. Aside from what's already been mentioned, the general gameplay is still pretty similar each time and it does get a bit repetitive once you've knocked out all the major goals. I don't normally play a farm past four years because I run out of things to do.
           
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          • sunlite

            sunlite Pangalactic Porcupine

            I think modding helped me maintain my interest, but even then I don't play too often. It's okay to play at a slow pace, I started a new farm in April and I'm still in fall year 1. Mainly because I haven't had much time to play, but also because sometimes I need a break, read a book or something.
             
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            • Seismothesaurus

              Seismothesaurus Scruffy Nerf-Herder

              I have over 400 hours and half of those have been thanks to mods, I think. I was almost starting to burn out before mods breathed new life into the game. And then I got into making my own mods, so I'm getting my SV fix even when I'm not feeling like playing it, and that extends the whole experience.

              But it depends on what you want from the game. I guess that's the question--what do you feel is lacking and is there something you can do to fix that?

              Wanting to get all the Steam achievements was a driving force in keeping me going on my main save. Along the way, I got really into farm design. Think of some way you can make your farm better--whatever that means to you--every day or every week. If you like to organize and design, work on your building layout. Start categorizing your crop planting in a way that's visually or functionally appealing.

              Set reasonable goals like "get enough iridium to change my crop layout" or more ambitious ones like "work on finishing this collections tab."

              Develop a theme and a set of rules you have to follow (I think a lot of us do this when we start a new farm, rather than just doing everything over again with a new map).

              Start your own community improvement project. Decorate the town with paths and plant some more trees. Get to know all the people. Grow things they like and gift them.

              If nothing else, take a break. Hang out on the forums and get inspired by what other people do, or check out fanart or what have you. The "show off your farm" thread is good for that.

              [ETA: Jooooin uuuuus on Planet Slime.]
               
                Last edited: Jul 21, 2017
              • Borodin

                Borodin Oxygen Tank

                Mods, playing to different skills at different times, not bothering with minmaxing. (Which isn't to say it's bad. It's just not my way to play.)

                Some activities yield a more randomized result--the caverns, for example, and fishing, especially in areas that contain some of the legends.
                 
                  Last edited: Jul 22, 2017
                • Trevs

                  Trevs Astral Cartographer

                  Mods pretty much keep me going. Designing mods definitely inspires me. I see a lot of things I want to change in the game, so I go ahead and make those changes. Like right now, I want to shrink the farm maps because I usually don't focus much on farming when I play, and having the massive map goes to waste annoys me, so I just want to reduce the size of the maps and make them a bit more concise so that I can fill them out and still have functionality.
                   
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                  • Yaushibee

                    Yaushibee Subatomic Cosmonaut

                    Trying to complete my collections and earning all the achievements is what I've been keeping myself busy with in-game now that I've reached year 4, though sometimes I go weeks to months without actually playing Stardew if I'm not in the mood and that's ok! Like the others have said, if you're not feeling the game atm, take a break from it. It'll all still be there when you feel like getting back into it.

                    Alternatively, try going into the skull caverns (or the regular ones) to see just how far down you can go in a single day. Play the arcade games and aim for a certain score. Make a new farm that is a different type than your last one with a farmer whose personality/appearance is polar opposite to your last, bonus points if you try to romance a villager you normally wouldn't. Aim to craft every item in game (I know this one is going to keep me busy for a long time). For one season, plant only wild seed for crops and see what you get. Try to fill up the greenhouse with all ancient fruit plants. Make a cute themed room out of a shed or just refurnish your farmhouse. Complete Mr. Qi's quest if you haven't already. Try to collect one of every single item in the game. For one year or season, only plant flowers instead of regular crops. Have a favorite item in the game? Collect 999 of them (or a more manageable number like 25 if its hard to find). Try to catch a legendary... with a bamboo pole! Don't sell or ship any items for an entire year and then at the end of that year, throw all the items into the shipment box and see how big of a payout you get. And here is my last suggestion, try to grow at least one giant crop per season.
                     
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                    • StardewMe

                      StardewMe Aquatic Astronaut

                      I have 280 hours or so in game, but maybe 30 hours of those are vanilla. Mods have simply kept this game going because the options are endless.
                       
                      • Lil' Mini

                        Lil' Mini Phantasmal Quasar

                        I always love a fresh start, so making a new character and developing him/her for the first three years is always fun for me. After that I tend to notice the very definition of insanity as nothing new ever happens and the villagers repeat the same dialogues again, and again, and again, and aga- *cough*. However, just like what StardewMe and possibly some more (didn't bother too check) wrote before me, mods certainly spices things up a bit. :proper:
                         
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                        • pink_stardrop

                          pink_stardrop Void-Bound Voyager

                          For me it's also modding, especially all the custom farms. Currently I'm going through all custom farms and make them look all nice and pretty :) Also I like changing the graphics for the buildings and animals, my current favourite are the medievil buildings!
                           
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                          • Jerev

                            Jerev Pangalactic Porcupine

                            I had 317 hours fun without mods. By then I had found and built my perfect farm type (orchard). So I decided to take a break, but still visit this forum because it's one of the nicest places on the internet. Also everyone is talking about Stardew Valley which is a huge plus. Anyway I got sidetracked.
                            Yesterday I installed 15-20 mods and started a new farm. On top of that I plan to write a "first spring" guide.

                            Long story short: look up mods until one gives you a great idea for a new playstyle.
                             
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                            • Ipielle

                              Ipielle Title Not Found

                              I have been trying to get all the steam achievements and complete all the quests. Then I created a new game and tried to do the Joja questline. After that, I created more games with different romance, farm layouts, goals and play style. Right now, I'm roleplaying with a crazy story I invented and I'm thinking about writing a stardew valley fanfiction with it. it's rather fun since I have several limits I defined for myself for this specific game and I'm trying to make it into a story.
                               

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