Stardew Valley 1.6 update released, hits record-high player count

Stardew Valley is a popular farming/life simulation game, and its latest update is attracting more players than ever.

Released this week, the update (colloquially dubbed the "1.6 update") introduces a lengthy list of updates, patches, bug fixes, and tweaks to Stardew Valley. Some of these include new festivals (like a three-day-long Desert Festival), new items, new options for pets (including putting hats on cats and dogs), new characters, new dialogue options, and lots of other goodies. 

There are also quite a few patches, including doubling the number of players supported in the multiplayer mode from four to eight. Speaking of supported players, the update prompted many to fire up the game. According to SteamDB, Stardew Valley hit a record of 147,612 concurrent players as of today at 10:00 AM EST (2:00 PM UTC), obliterating the previous record of 94,879 set back in January 2021. It's likely that the player count could hit higher numbers as more people download the update. 

Stardew Valley sees players escaping a corporate job in the city and taking ownership of their grandfather's farm in the whimsical and magical town of Stardew Valley. Players can clear the land, plant crops, raise farm animals, and explore the wilderness. They can also interact with the residents of the town and build relationships with the denizens of the valley, eventually marrying someone and starting a family all while growing a small and successful pixel-styled farm.

Stardew Valley is available on Windows, macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, XBox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation Vita, iOS, and Android. The game retails for $14.99. Note that the 1.6 update has only been released for Windows, macOS, and Linux and is not yet available for consoles or mobile devices.