The Stardew Valley Switch 2 Physical Edition Is the Kind of Cash Grab I Can Get Behind

The Switch 2 variation of Stardew Valley is presently disposable for preorder from Fangamer, Target, and Best Buy. All retailers person the crippled listed astatine $39.99 with a merchandise day of February 5, 2026.

Some Reddit users are already theorizing that day whitethorn enactment up with the merchandise of Update 1.7, but that seems a small far-fetched. The Fangamer listing confirms the Switch 2 variation includes the 1.6 update of the game, with aboriginal escaped updates “available to download arsenic they’re released.”

While Fangamer notes the last merchandise whitethorn look antithetic from the mock-up, I deliberation we tin spot the main strokes. The listing shows a saltation of the OG’s container art, with the aforesaid workplace and animals but successful a lighter, much pastel colour scheme, which tin beryllium reversed to amusement disconnected a "Joja-themed" cover. It besides comes with an 18-page guidebook, presumably the aforesaid 1 arsenic the existing Switch version.

Stardew, which was primitively released connected Steam successful 2016, got its archetypal carnal merchandise for the Xbox One and PS4 a twelvemonth later. That Switch edition, which besides produced successful collaboration with Fangamer, was released arsenic some a Standard and a Deluxe variation backmost successful 2020.

The caller Switch 2 variation seems to lone beryllium getting the Standard treatment. For now, astatine least. If you bash privation each of the other Deluxe variation goodies, there’s thing stopping you from grabbing that for the OG Switch and past getting the Switch 2 upgrade battalion for escaped done the Nintendo Store.

I’ve already bought Stardew digitally connected my PC and Switch, and I’m inactive decidedly considering grabbing the carnal merchandise for Switch 2. Maybe I'm peculiarly susceptible to currency grabs these days, but conscionable a fewer years agone I was 100% side-eyeing a definite Bethesda crippled for getting a cardinal antithetic editions.

The world is the carnal media scenery has shifted dramatically successful the past decade, and immoderate merchandise connected disc oregon cartridge seems to instrumentality particular... dedication. PlayStation, citing the continued displacement to integer purchases, has committed to abandoning discs altogether.

Nintendo, connected the different hand, precocious reported that astir 40% of purchases of its games are inactive from carnal editions. The world is that I’m consenting to usage the scraps successful my wallet to enactment that.

In the lawsuit of Stardew, a solo-developed masterpiece that’s consistently gotten updates implicit the people of 10 years, I’m adjacent much unfastened to celebrating (and investing in) that preservation.

Stardew Valley precocious celebrated its 10th anniversary. We re-reviewed the crippled backmost successful 2024, giving the cozy masterpiece a well-deserved 10/10. We besides got the accidental to beryllium down with creator Eric Barone (ConcernedApe) earlier this twelvemonth to larn much astir the autarkic developer’s travel to present and what helium plans for Stardew going forward.

While there’s inactive nary nonstop merchandise date, we cognize a small astir what to expect from the adjacent large Stardew update, 1.7, including 2 caller matrimony candidates. The developer has besides confirmed helium is "still grinding" connected his adjacent standalone game, Haunted Chocolatier.

Blythe (she/her) is an Audience Development Coordinator astatine IGN who spends mode excessively overmuch clip successful quality customization screens and tracking down collectibles.