A former Stardew Valley dev is making his own love letter to the Harvest Moon games. Sunkissed City is set to launch in 2026

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Just a quick clarification about the development of Stardew Valley: Eric Barone (ConcernedApe) originally created the entire game on his own. However, as the game became incredibly popular and updates grew larger, he brought on a small team in 2018 to help. Arthur Lee, known as Mr. Podunkian, contributed to the 1.4 and 1.5 updates for Stardew Valley before starting his own project, Sunkissed City, which was revealed in 2024. Sunkissed City is scheduled to release next year.

A true farming life, but city-style

Sunkissed City is a relaxing life simulation game heavily inspired by the popular farm-sim genre, most famously known through games like Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley. Instead of the countryside, you’ll find yourself in the vibrant Apollo City, filled with interesting people, secret locations, and a community to build up. However, city life isn’t always easy – you’ll have to deal with unusual challenges like wild animals, mysterious disappearances, monsters lurking underground, and other strange occurrences.

In this game, you begin a new chapter as a Peco Pioneer, working with the in-game Pico corporation to revitalize the community and promote environmentally friendly projects. This is a different path than the one offered by JojaMart in Stardew Valley.

The game also has a strong social element – you can make friends, form relationships, and even find love. You’ll also be able to team up with intriguing creatures known as the Keby to help bring life back to the city.

Man, I was really looking forward to Sunkissed City, but it’s been delayed a bunch of times. The developer, Mr. Podunkian, just announced on X that it won’t even be out this year. It’s super frustrating, honestly!

Steam currently says the game will be released sometime in 2026. While that’s a fairly wide window, we’re hoping the release stays on track. We expect to hear more specific details in the future.

Mr. Podunkian created the game Wasted in 2016 and also worked on several other projects, such as Vesper (2021), Dungeon (2009), and Merry Gear Sol!d (2006).

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2025-12-02 02:33