There’s nothing quite like playing a game for the first time, just getting to know the ropes and seeing everything with fresh eyes. It never is the same to play the game over again, as you now know the secrets, what to expect and when to expect it, and there’s usually very little in the way of variation between gameplays.
In Stardew Valley, there are many moments the RPG gives us that become the reasons we all love playing it in the first place. But, save a few special moments you can have if you choose a different NPC to romance, they’re all the same thing every time you play. If we could forget the game and start over, these are the moments we’d love to see again.
10 Catching A Legendary Fish
Not everyone enjoys fishing, but for those who do, catching the legendary fish is the ultimate fishing goal. There are five total, one available in each season and then one in the sewer. They’re the most difficult fish to catch and take a lot of time and effort in order to do so, with bobbers and fishing meals to help.
Once you catch them, though, most of them don’t reappear. Playing through again to try and find the right places and times to catch the fish, as well as working to get to a high enough level in order to catch them, is something we’d love to experience again.
9 The Mysterious Qi Quest
Everyone always wonders what’s hidden behind the bouncer in Oasis when you first visit the desert. It’s something that isn’t even clear if it's an area you can access. Then, you can discover The Mysterious Qi Quest, made by Mr. Qi himself, which features several different riddles you have to solve to continue onto the next one.
It can be challenging to get the right materials to the right places, but in the end, you unlock the casino hidden in Oasis. This is a big deal, as even Sandy is surprised that you’re a casino member. Playing it over again from the start would bring back the original challenge of the quest when you don’t already know the answers.
8 Completing Grandpa’s Shrine
At the end of your second year in Stardew Valley, Grandpa’s spirit returns to evaluate your success on the farm. He uses a point system to do so, expecting you to have reached certain milestones by then. When you get all four candles lit, you earn the Statue of Perfection, which generates iridium ore daily.
Though it’s a small moment in the game, it’s still important to your character, and it is a nice moment to tie the story back to the beginning when he first gave you the farm. Not knowing what it does when you first discover it though is half of the fun, so it would be nice to experience the whole moment again.
7 Dance Of The Moonlight Jellies
Though there are many festivals throughout the year in the valley, the moonlight jellies always visit the last day of summer. Most other festivals have some kind of activity for you to do, but this one doesn’t have much at all.
Even so, it’s undeniably beautiful as the glowing jellyfish come close to the beach, including several baby jellyfish and the rare green jellyfish. Though you can experience it over and over again in just one playthrough, it’s never as special as the first time you see it.
6 Asking A Character To Dance
The Flower Dance is the second festival you ever get to experience in the game, as it’s the second Spring festival. By then, you’ve definitely acquainted yourself with the characters, but more often than not, it’s still too early to ask anyone out to dance and they will reject you. You then have to wait a whole year to get to dance together with your favorite bachelor or bachelorette, a moment that you’re sure to never forget.
To put that much effort into it, making sure you get your relationship high enough in the next year, it’s a great moment to witness for the first time all over again.
5 Arriving in Stardew Valley
The beginning of the game is quick to set the scene — your grandfather gives you the deed to his farm before he dies, and it’s the place you go to after getting burnt out at work and needing an escape.
There is no feeling like the first time you watch these cutscenes, working yourself to death in the office before finally getting on the bus and finding yourself greeted by Mayor Lewis and Robin. It’s a new chapter in your life, a fresh start, and it would be even greater if we got to experience that fresh start anew every time.
4 Completing The Community Center
Early on in the game, you’re tasked with trying to collect items for the Junimos who have taken residence in the old Community Center, after which they will begin to restore each room. When you finish all the restorations, you get a cutscene in which everyone is enjoying the building once again, and they finally kick JojaMart out of the valley for good.
After all the hard work and materials you put into it, it would be great to get to have that fulfilling moment again as you bring the valley back to life.
3 Heart Events From Favorite NPCs
There are 34 different characters that you meet throughout the game that keep track of a relationship level with you. As you talk to them and bring them gifts, you begin to gain their approval, and at certain heart milestones, you can experience different cutscenes with them and learn more about their stories.
These heart events are a great way to bond with them and show your growing friendship, but they’re always the same every game. Being able to experience our favorite heart events all over again without knowing they’re coming would let us fall in love with them all over again.
2 Unlocking Ginger Island
After restoring the Community Center or choosing to buy all of the upgrades from JojaMart, Willy tells you about the old fishing boat he has, giving you a chance to restore it. Though expensive, it takes less time to put together than the Community center, so before you know it, you’ll have the boat back in working order.
Though Ginger Island has many unique items to keep your game going, the travel cutscene only happens once, so you have to play it again if you want to watch Willy sail you through the ocean and away from the valley down to the island.
1 Romancing And Marrying Our Favorite NPCs
Even though there are 12 different bachelors and bachelorettes to choose from, we all have our favorites. Choosing someone else in our next playthrough seems next to impossible to do, despite the change it would bring to the house and the gameplay. Getting to romance them all over again for the first time would be a great experience.
Not only do you get to see their normal heart events again, but experiencing the reactions to the proposals, the wedding, and their fourteen heart events one more time would help you see why they’ve become your favorite.