'There are no leaks', says Stardew Valley creator, taking a hammer to the rumour mill

Stardew Valley 1.7 is a hotly anticipated patch to a game, and for good reason—it's one of the biggest indie sensations of the past decade. Riling up the anticipation is the fact that it usually takes years for big updates like this to drop, with the last major version releasing in 2024.

As such, the inescapable tide of supposed leaks has swept through the internet—which the game's creator, Eric Barone, is very keen to put a blunt full stop to: "Any claims that there are "'leaks' of 1.7 content are fake. There are no leaks," he wrote on X. Welp, there you go then.

Despite the clarity of his statement, though, one fan asked if he could verify the truth of a "leak" where unobtained bachelors and bachelorettes would supposedly get hitched without you if you took too long. Y'know, the one he just said was fake.

Either way, he was happy to oblige: "I have no plans to ever add something like that." Surprisingly, people seemed disappointed—and I can understand that. One of the weird things about life sims like Stardew is the eerie feeling the entire world is just sort of waiting for you to do something.

In real life, though, if you snooze on a potential romance? You very much lose. "Oh big sad. Forever alone Clint," writes one player, to which I'd like to remind them that Clint is becoming a romance option in the 1.7 update. Sad for the friendzoned blacksmith, but not sad enough to date him yourself, huh? I see how it is.

In seriousness, it's a relief to see the rumour mill thoroughly stopped. I'm also keen to see how Clint, who is pretty much a punching bag in the Stardew Valley fandom for his unrequited affections, is developed during his romance path. Also Sandy, who, let's face it, is likely to be the more popular of the pair.