Stardew Valley Update 1.6 Adds Creepy New Secret Scene

Highlights

• Stardew Valley has added a creepy new secret scene that punishes players for cheating their way into one endgame area.
• The Easter egg was added as part of the game’s 1.6 update, released on March 19.

Stardew Valley has added a creepy new scene that leaves the protagonist at the brink of death. The addition, which is meant to punish players who glitch their way to the Summit, has been introduced in Stardew Valley update 1.6.

Minor endgame gameplay spoilers for Stardew Valley ahead.

The Summit is a secret location that’s only meant to become available after the player reaches Perfection in Stardew Valley, which essentially requires completing everything the game has to offer. However, fans have long discovered a way to cheat their way to this place by hitting a nearby screen border area with a sword or a scythe. This makes the character advance by a few pixels forward without triggering a loading screen. Continuing to do so eventually lets the character walk out of bounds and past any obstacles, including the giant boulder blocking one’s way to the Summit.

Stardew Valley 1.6 Adds Creepy Punishment for Cheaters

Stardew Valley update 1.6 has finally addressed this glitch, but not by simply patching it out. Instead, Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone opted to add a secret cutscene that sees Mister Qi confront the player about their cheating, calling them self-centered, and labeling their behavior as “despicable.” This interaction takes a creepy turn when the dialogue abruptly ends and the scene transitions to the protagonist waking up in Harvey’s office. The town doctor informs them that someone found them “battered” and “unconscious,” adding that their sorry state warranted “emergency surgery.”

The scene concludes with Harvey asking the protagonist to “be a little more careful next time,” then charging them 500 gold pieces for saving their life. The patch notes accompanying the latest version of the game make no mention of this creepy interaction with Mister Qi, but there is no doubt that it was added in update 1.6. It is currently unclear whether the secret cutscene repeats if the player attempts to glitch their way to the Summit again after already getting beaten to a pulp once. What’s more certain is that this Easter egg extends the already sizable list of exceedingly rare Stardew Valley events most players will never see.

Mister Qi Scolding the Player For Cheating Their Way to the Summit

Social media reactions to this addition are overwhelmingly positive. Most players who took the time to offer their opinion on the secret scene have applauded Barone for patching out the Summit glitch in such a unique manner. The way this fix was handled dovetails with ConcernedApe’s long track record of free high-effort content drops. The fandom has long recognized his dedication and continues to reward it, as underlined by the fact that Stardew Valley reached new popularity heights on Steam following the March 19 release of its 1.6 update.