Deciding to enter the cooperative Stardew Valley experience with my two closest friends predestined our farm for failure. Chris, a self-serious and dedicated gamer, took the liberty of accumulating information from the internet for maximum efficiency. Deven, on the other hand, is the non-gamer of the group and agreed to play out of pure curiosity and a desire to avoid social isolation. Naturally, Chris took the lead in managing our crop purchases, as well as devoting his attention to the progression of the community center and the inclusion of new buildings and equipment at the farm. Deven, seeking some form of mindless forward momentum, jumped into the mines as soon as possible. His journey was certainly marked with immense inefficiency and trial by error. Personally, I became transfixed with the fishing portion of the game and spent the vast majority of my time mastering the art of containing that cheeky fish icon within the border of that sickly green bar. The repetition became hypnotic. As our farm grew in size and complexity, and our resources and desires expanded as the seasons progressed, tension seeped through the cracks of our divided labors.
As the fisherman of the group, I contributed the majority of our financial income, and my ego began to clash with the shared needs of the trio. At every day’s end, the fish count displayed on the screen and the matching coin value only bolstered my sense of value to the farm. Nevertheless, the use of the money fell onto the shoulders of Chris, who I imagined knew best given his experience and pre-established knowledge of the most essential and efficient purchases. As a result, the primary source of income was also last to purchase a backpack, and the tension began to mount. The money I provided dipped more and more with every purchase. I began to notice the gold coin count in the top right corner dropping rapidly even during the dead silence of voice communications. Should I not be privy to how my money is being spent? I began to question the value of Deven’s contributions, likely a result of my isolation from the group. I was less aware of the new opportunities that his progression in the mines afforded us, and the efforts of Chris back at the farm had both literally and figuratively been yet to bear fruit. Match this fact with the increasingly late returns to the farm on Deven’s part, and the stage is set for an internal clash.
By the time Fall rolled around, my ego had been somewhat quelled, a result of my upgraded gear and my general enjoyment of the trancelike fishing process. Having a few legendary fish under my belt aided in my sense of value as well. Unfortunately, the Stardew Valley Fair marked the sudden end of the farm’s progression. The three of us awoke on that fine Autumn morning, anxiously awaiting the festivities of the day. Chris had informed us that a very important purchase was to be made on this day and that every member of the farm would be included. We began to individually accumulate star tokens in order to buy the Stardrop, which increased the daily energy provided to those who consumed it. Increasing daily energy would be a great boon to all of us, and thus was mandatory. Unfortunately, the cooperative experience presents a new complication when it comes to factors outside of the game world. My internet connection, for example, is known in the group for being spotty. In a solo experience, this was no hindrance, but in a cooperative environment, my disconnecting from the farm did not halt the progression of the world. Much to my chagrin the internet, almost as if it was a sentient fan of irony, chose this moment to go out. I pleaded with my friends to leave the game and restart the day, as I had not yet attained the Stardrop. They did not oblige my request, and the tensions of our ongoing labor roles came to the surface. I professed my frustrations regarding my financial commitments to the farm, and they fell on deaf ears. The external factors of the game world had poured gasoline on the simmering embers of our cooperation, and our farm did not make it to winter as a result.
