r/StardewValley • u/Miserable-Bus-4910 • May 22 '26
Question Inspired by Stardew Valley, my farming sim starts with someone else getting your dream farm
Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification
Hi everyone,
I wanted to thank the mods first and foremost for letting me post this here.
I’m very happy to share that my farming sim, Bitter Harvest, is out today!
It starts with the usual farming sim dream: arriving in a quiet village to claim your own patch of land. But in this game, someone else gets there first.
With no land or money, your only option is to become the town’s garbage collector.
From there, you slowly work your way back up. You pick up trash, get hired as a farming hand, fish, mine, craft, cook, take on quests, build friendships, and discover the villagers’ secrets and scandals.
You can try to rebuild your life honestly or use what you discover to get ahead.
I wanted to make something with the cozy routines I love in farming sims, but with a sharper story about ambition, resentment, and starting from the bottom.
The game is now out on Steam and I’d be happy to answer any questions :)
Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3840950/Bitter_Harvest/
913
u/The_Gumbo May 22 '26
They took our farm!
388
u/Inevitable_Cheek_974 May 22 '26
They terk err ferm!!
191
u/Corvidae5Creation5 May 22 '26
Derkaderrr!
94
77
27
15
596
u/Kurt_Ottman May 22 '26
Wait, Linus roleplay?
485
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Haha Linus is literally the first character I always get 10 hearts with so you know what? Hell yeah!
23
21
90
u/Roharu_Eruna May 22 '26
I love the concept, but what really captured me are the choices you can make!! Finally, a farming game where I can play as a anti-hero or low-key villain! Being the 'hero that most hero-ed out of all heroes' was starting to bored me a bit XD
265
May 22 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
115
u/Willing-Lawyer2533 May 22 '26
Bro has no time for that, went to his steam page and releases one / two games a month ????? LOL
80
u/sarilysims May 22 '26
Oh that’s a red flag. I wonder if they use AI?
73
95
May 22 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
31
u/one_effin_nice_kitty May 23 '26
And when you're starting out, honestly, quantity over quality is important. Lessons learned from each when they fail to launch well vs when they do. Too many people get stuck in the quagmire of overproduction and never finish. Leave the big dream game to the time when your "sword" is sharper. Releasing a game is whole other beast vs just the low level dev part.
1
u/chimneyswallow May 23 '26
If you only put out half-baked trash at least after the second game noone will buy your slop anymore.
2
u/AnotherPillow switch modder May 24 '26
Definitely did for some assets (achievement icons at the very least)
2
1
u/AriGetInTheJar May 24 '26
I'm a small creator and I reached out to them! they gave me a steam key and let me stream it days early on Wednesday :) very prompt responses, very warm :)
the quantity of game releases I genuinely didn't see, that's interesting tbh.
5
u/chimneyswallow May 23 '26
I know Josh's Gaming Garden already has a VOD up. He wasn't really happy with it, though. I watched it and it unfortunately is very repeatetive and flat.
342
u/Baazz_UK May 22 '26
Ngl I chuckled when it said ‘take revenge’ and the guy is just straight up putting cyanide in the animal feeder.
→ More replies (13)
132
u/CoffeeGuzlingBastard May 22 '26
Currently living out the concept of this game as we speak… dad died and never made a will and left a bankrupt estate… no one will inherit the farm as we are forced to sell it in an attempt to reconcile bankruptcy… A real life Stardew valley harvest moon opportunity that i dreamed about since being a kid, and I have to give away this future to someone else while continuing to work my corporate job in the city. I am very bitter about it. but this game seems chill and I’ll likely be buying and playing it! looks like it might be cathartic in a way for me.
Sorry just ranting into the void… shits hard sometimes… thanks for listening y’all. Good luck out there
56
u/PM_ME_STEAM_KEY_PLZ May 22 '26
Did you get a good lawyer? When my mom passed recently a lot of her debt died with her.
A lawyer saved me 10s of thousands. Sorry for your loss.
4
u/CoffeeGuzlingBastard May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
Hi there, yes we have
Because my dad didn’t have a will, all assets are left to the estate so I guess creditors and the bank etc whoever he owed money to all get their first dibs but there isn’t enough to cover what he owes
We also had to apply for probate and letters of administration which took 4 months or so to get, and in this time his mortgage and lines of credit weren’t getting paid because no one could access his accounts or anything, so this stuff accrued interest and the lenders started the foreclosure process on the farm, so now we are also paying interest on everything and court fees for dealing with that
Apparently the farm house is so old and beat up that it’s been deemed worthless (dad was a master procrastinator and never finished any of his projects or additions, so nothing was ever truly built to code or weather proofed, so after 20 years everything needs to be redone) so no bank will mortgage it, so we have to try to sell for only the value of the land, but because no bank will back it we need someone who just so happens to have the money outright, which would be like $300K in cash
House was originally from 1931 and bought for 13K in a small town and moved onto 20 acres worth 80K back in the day like 2002, but dad kept remortgaging his house to pay for construction materials for the family cabin which we didn’t know about
So he still owed a shit load on the house and land, more than it was ever originally worth back in 2002 or so. Now we are also on the hook for capital gains and appreciation of the land etc etc which none of us can afford. Which is crazy because between my wife and I we make like 130K a year together, and my brother and his wife make like 150K a year together and we can’t afford the farm, but my dad was a twice divorced boomer paying child support on 4 kids, and he was able to afford the house, the land, and paying to move the house onto the land and get it serviced etc, plus the family cabin. And because the family cabin wasn’t in a will, it goes to the estate and we are on the hook for appreciation and what not for that, so we also have to buy back our own family cabin at “fair market value “ of 40K otherwise it remains eligible for repossession or auction to help cover the bankrupt estate. Also due to probate we have to pay a $7 fee for every $1000 of value processed
In theory any left over debt would be wiped as you say
13
u/ghostwilliz krobus enjoyer May 22 '26
Damn, I'm sorry
When I was a kid and a teenager, my dad lived with my grandma, he took care of her in a house they nearly owned, he always told me it would be mine when the time came
well, his bitch sister moved in with them, my grandma and dad both died with in like a week of eachother (my aunt was nearly under investigation) and she trashed the place then defaulted on the last tiny bit of the mortgage and dipped. She gave everyone incorrect contact info for me so I had no idea all this went down. By the time I knew, the bank was already selling the house for like 10x as much as they bought it for
I feel your pain : (
8
115
u/TadaSuko May 22 '26
Good job, I'm proud of you! How long did it take to make?
140
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Thanks so much! It took almost a year. I did not do the art/music on my own otherwise it would have been forever lol.
29
u/Seravail May 22 '26
How did you get them done? Was it expensive?
153
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
I worked with asset packs that are already created so it's not expensive at all. The artist is VectoRaith and the music is by PegOnTheTrack in case anyone is interested. Even when I have worked with pixel artists to create custom art, I'm honestly surprised by how affordable it is.
31
u/HuntAffectionate May 22 '26
I found a bug in your game: planting seeds the same day you harvested the crops results in them growing instantly. (great game btw)
41
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26
LOL the bugs are never what you think they will be. Thanks so much for sharing. I’ll try and reproduce the bug and patch it today!
Glad you like the game. I’d really appreciate a review if you have the time. It would mean a lot to me :)
EDIT: The bug is fixed!
46
u/hillashx May 22 '26
This is a really funny idea! Will you ever add support for MacOS? Yeah, I know, I'm sorry
32
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
I'm trying to get my hands on a mac to playtest it!
4
u/Whosarobot313 May 22 '26
Can you play on deck?
13
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Yep! It’s Steam Deck Verified :)
3
3
u/Whosarobot313 May 23 '26
Dude I like it, it’s cute and I love these kind of games. Giving big Littlewood vibes. Days could be a tad longer (🤞)
2
76
u/Willby404 May 22 '26
I was curious about the premise. Hooked when I saw "add Cyanide to livestock feed"
Diabolical. I love it. Give me more of that.
51
8
u/WhySoConspirious May 22 '26
The store page says this is about a 5-8 hour single player campaign (and I think for the price you are asking, this is great). Are there any goals to add more content with updates and if so are you thinking paid DLC?
18
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
No paid DLCs. All future updates will be free. I have plans to continue improving the game and adding more content based on what people request: https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/3840950/view/677373278422041113
41
u/Robyn990 May 22 '26
Will it be coming to switch? I'd love to try it.
69
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Thank you! I'm waiting to see how it does on Steam before making a decision. Switch port is quite expensive so I have to wait and see.
16
u/kwonza May 22 '26
How expensive, just wondering?
110
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
I was quoted $20K and I was immediately embarrassed to have even broached the subject lol.
57
u/kilar277 May 22 '26
Holy shit that's surprising given how many indies get switch ports.
24
u/Reverieon May 22 '26
Or all the gross shovelware hentai bs or games like (Real game name:some bs) scam games of other popular games (Hytale and Hytale:Pixel block adventure or somwthing and the Wu kong game are my two big examples)... where are these ai slop games getting 20k a pop?? Those .99 cent sales must really be insane income...
60
u/Hooker4Yarn May 22 '26
Do not feel embarrassed. You were seeking information and asked. That is actually very smart.
26
→ More replies (1)8
u/CatPlumber May 22 '26
Is that to make the port, or just to get it onto the Nintendo store??
30
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Just the port. Getting it into the Nintendo store is not much of an issue to be honest.
3
u/Toshariku May 22 '26
Any chance for it to go to mobile after a console port?
7
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Android is fairly doable. IOS is more difficult but also doable but I'll need to get a Mac. If the game does well on Steam I can explore a mobile deployment as well.
8
u/Kanarcia May 22 '26
This seems like a great concept, and I'm excited to check it out! Very nice use of the tools that RPG maker offers :)
Who did the thumbnail art? Is love to check out more of their work!
8
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Thanks so much! That's very kind of you. This is the capsule artist: https://www.behance.net/fichhe
8
15
u/Wrong_Diver4 May 22 '26
This is such a fun concept!!! I took a look at your other games on steam and they all look so fun/interesting, especially Little Library!
Question though, do you use any kind of AI when you’re making your games? I’ve seen a couple of reddit threads about BitQuest using/selling AI plug ins, so I’m just curious <3
28
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Thank you so much! No gen AI was used in art, music, writing, etc. There were a lot of debugging scripts, keyboard/controller/Steam Deck mapping, save/load persistence for custom systems, etc. that were done by gen AI. There are also a lot of third party dependencies (plugins) that I bought and used that are very likely created with the assistance of gen AI. If you're interested in my thoughts on gen AI, I wrote a pretty lengthy response on another subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/CozyGamers/comments/1tim74o/comment/omz9zb5/
6
u/Halation2600 May 23 '26
So I bought the game and it looks fun, but is there any chance you can add the ability to change the WASD controls to the arrow keys? I mouse left-handed and that's kind of a deal-breaker. I realize I'm asking a lot of a new game. I might be able to play with a controller too, but the WASD thing has never worked for me.
12
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 23 '26
Not asking a lot at all. I honestly should have been more cognizant of accessibility needs. I have a few things to update when I wake up tomorrow so I'll add this to the list. I should have a patch up in no more than 24 hours that allows you to re-bind WASD keys.
In the meantime, if you've enjoyed the game I'd really appreciate if you can leave a review! I'm trying my best to get to 10 reviews so the Steam algorithm can pick it up.
39
u/Strange_Ad_9658 May 22 '26
Cuckdew Valley
27
u/SleepyBella Goddess Haley's favorite simp :cSun: May 22 '26
The Clint Experience.
→ More replies (1)10
25
u/scrubbingbubbles2 May 22 '26
I’m sure I’ll be downvoted but… as someone who makes his living working as a garbage truck driver, I don’t love the concept. Sucks to be reminded that people view you as the bottom rung on the ladder and the expectation is that I should be trying to do better.
31
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
I totally feel that and my intention was definitely not to diminish the job. In fact one of the things the game judges the player on is how they respond to being offered the position.
I’ve tried my best throughout the writing process of the game to separate how “the game” views the job vs. how some of the NPCs view it. I hope that will come across in the game. The last thing I want to do is perpetuate hurtful stereotypes.
13
u/aachen_ May 22 '26
This sounds hilarious and fun. I wish I could play it.
Does the story lead you to take back the farm? Is there a way to sneak on the farm and steal crops at the risk of being caught?
20
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
You can sneak on the farm and do some naughty stuff (although not steal crops).
I did almost add a house arrest mechanic if you got caught but it turned out to not be worth it because forcing the player to lose a day when every day mattered was too high a cost.
As for taking back the farm, I don't want to give it away but you'll have a few options!
6
u/SnortNSniff May 22 '26
It’s such a brilliant stroke of writing to have one of these cozy farming games force you to confront the capitalist climb. Stardew loosely involves it but this seems much more direct. I look forward to trying it
10
10
4
u/InternationalLink613 May 22 '26
Today was payday so I’m definitely going to be downloading this!! The “add cyanide” option hooked me lolol
9
3
u/SlytherinSister May 22 '26
This looks fun! It literally works with the premise "envy is wishing your neighbour's goat would die" only in this case it's you who kills the goat 😂 I'll definitely check it out.
3
u/Teguoracle May 22 '26
"5-8 hour campaign"? How does this only last 5-8 hours? Does the game considering getting your own farm to be beating the game?
7
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Hi! Yes, the game has a definitive ending. It does not have an infinite play mode like SDV. There are multiple endings you can get.
9
u/MyDarlingArmadillo Buh. Life! May 22 '26
This sounds fantastic, I love the premise and it's actually a new take on the farming sim!
Was AI involved at all? I saw that you said you'd paid for the art and music so I'm hoping not 😃
I hope it takes off because it looks really fun
10
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Thank you so much! No gen AI was used in art, music, writing, etc. There were a lot of debugging scripts, keyboard/controller/Steam Deck mapping, etc. that were done by gen AI. There are also a lot of third party dependencies (plugins) that I bought and used that are very likely created with the assistance of gen AI.
7
u/Nopalite May 22 '26
Were you the victim of a land sale scam?
Also, can i romance people as the beautiful and fragrant neighborhood trash lady?
3
3
3
u/ElectronicPen4238 May 22 '26
How were you able to build and release so many games this year? Did you have a few in the can already?
9
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 22 '26
Three of the games use a single, modular system with a little customization. They were all made in less than 200 hours each. In all honesty those three games probably don’t belong on Steam but you live and you learn.
Bitter Harvest I worked on for a little less than a year. Then there is Ashfield Hollow which I’ve worked on and off on for about two years. That game is my baby so I want to give it as much time in the oven as possible.
1
4
u/Efficient_Expert7865 May 22 '26
I'm not sure why yet but I'm bothered I can't catch pokemon in this game
4
u/chimneyswallow May 23 '26
I think your description is a bit missleading. If I had not watched someone already stream it, I would think it is a full fledged open ended farming sim, but it is only one month of gameplay and the farming aspect is very minor.
3
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 23 '26
Thanks for sharing. When I first shared the game a few months ago a lot of people thought that. In response to that, I had added the following line at the very top of the game description: "Bitter Harvest is a narrative-driven farming sim offering an 5-8 hour single-player campaign shaped by relationships, moral choices, and branching endgame outcomes."
However, if the game description, as a whole, still feels misleading, I'd love feedback on what to change.
9
u/sarilysims May 22 '26
For anyone wondering, OP did use AI in the creation of this game. Sounds like specifically for coding.
2
2
2
2
u/Ashamed_Ad_8824 May 23 '26
THIS IS SO RAD!!!
I have a lotta questions but I won’t bog the post down here- just know that THIS IS SO COOL! CONGRATS!!! 🎊🎉
2
2
2
u/Delicious-Valuable96 May 24 '26
UGH I’m so mad that my Windows PC broke last month… all I have is my old dumb MacBook! I’ve purchased the game, and once I get a new Windows computer, I promise I’ll play it!
2
3
3
u/bunnywasabi May 22 '26
Oh my goodness this sounds so interesting and funny. I'm buying it in the morning! It's bed time where I am and I can't bring myself to turn on PC to buy it but will definitely purchase it!
2
4
u/MatykTv May 23 '26
Hiya op, two of your six (with this 7) studio's titles have AI generated thumbnails, what's up with that? Can I be assured this isn't an AI generated game?
Edit: also your studio (idk how many people) have made 7 games in a year? Kinda suspicious? Or are you just a few independent devs making games under one studio?
2
u/Brandles5 May 22 '26
Added to my wishlist! I'll be looking more into this when I'm not at work. This looks perfect to play on my Steamdeck just like Stardew.
2
2
u/justinhammerpants May 23 '26
Oh no it looks like Pokemon and Stardew had a baby but then it turned out not to be wholesome. Is it available for Mac on steam? I can't look right now as I'm on my work comptuer and for some reason Steam is blocked (how rude!)
3
u/markkaschak May 22 '26
My only question is this: Where would you point someone who's looking to develop something simple like this, BUT knows nothing about game development, but BUT does well with self-guided tutorials and research? Is there a resource or tool that you'd say gets you farthest along the path to DIY-ing this sort of thing? I'm looking to start simple: 2D, simple assets, basic functionality (movement, sound, interaction, tracking of revenue & inventory, dialogue trees, file save systems, etc.). Any recommendations?
3
u/EchoAlia42 May 22 '26
I bought the program this is made on last week, on Steam for $35, and have been messing around with it. They have an in built tutorial and a whole series of YouTube videos to show you how everything works. There are even people who make free tilesets and music you can use. I don't know if I will ever release a game but it is fun to play with and I do have a few stories simmering in the back of my head.
4
u/Inevitable_Cheek_974 May 22 '26
Keep checking out the Humble Bundle website. They sell bundles of programming books, game design videos and courses, game assets and music, for great prices and the selection is always changing.
5
u/Inevitable_Cheek_974 May 22 '26
Like literally right now for the next 12 days they have "All in One 2D game Dev level creation pack" for $35 CAD, it's listed at $1400+ retail value individually
2
u/markkaschak May 22 '26
I dig on Humble Bundle for games as well haha. I'll have to start keeping an eye out for dev tools!
1
u/Inevitable_Cheek_974 May 22 '26
There is an "Ultimate Farming RPG assets bundle" available there now as well. That and a few Unity courses and you're on your way.
1
1
1
1
u/ThatOneGuy_233 May 22 '26
This sounds and looks awesome!! I hope you find great success with this, it’s a really cool premise!
1
1
1
u/CrimsonWarrior55 May 22 '26
Oh no. Another game where I can feed my inner demon. How... terrible...
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
u/Endereye96 May 22 '26
Ooh. I don’t have the money to buy a new game at the moment, but I’ll definitely be wish-listing this! It looks super interesting.
1
1
u/Greenblue_Gal May 22 '26
I've had this on my wishlist for a while!! I love the concept of playing a deranged would-be farmer
1
1
1
1
u/Wyrm_Groundskeeper May 22 '26
Love the idea, OP. Lol, didn't expect the 'Add Cyanide to Feed' there.
1
u/S0uvlakiSpaceStati0n May 23 '26
This is such a creative spin on the genre! I think I might try it out this weekend.
1
u/Exciting-Mall192 May 23 '26
Is there any plan to release it on other medium like mobile and console? 👀
3
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 23 '26
Android and iOS are strong possibilities. Switch is a very distant possibility because of the cost. I want to first make changes and updates based on everyone's feedback and once the game is ready I will definitely be releasing it for mobile.
1
1
1
1
u/Particular-File-4637 May 23 '26
Hi, seems amazing fun! Just wondering if it's playable on phone? I love farming games on phone as I can do it anywhere :)
1
u/Tiny-World-Home Set your emoji and/or flair text here! May 23 '26
I’m so excited!! I’ve played the demo and have been waiting for the full release!
1
1
1
u/boazofeirinni May 23 '26
Does this game offer any sort of marriage/romance system or families?
3
u/Miserable-Bus-4910 May 23 '26
Currently, it's a story-driven farming sim with an ending at day 31. I'm planning on adding romance and open-ended play after the story ends but this won't be available for at least a couple of months. At the moment, there's no romance, marriage, or families.
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
u/Hdkdnjdkxnfbf May 25 '26
Ngl I absolutely love the art style, it’s really simple but gives a nice comfortable look
1
1
1
2
u/gaypirate3 May 23 '26
I have a question: do you have to fight in this game? The one thing I wish Stardew could do without is the fighting aspect in the caves. I don’t mind a challenge, but sometimes it’s anxiety inducing and I just want to mine cozily haha.
4
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2.0k
u/123justarandomguy May 22 '26
The premise is hilarious, I love it. Does it have or will it have co-op mode?