My first week within the game of “Stardew Valley” went off without a hitch. I took my time, sitting inside with my noise-canceling headphones and enjoying the warm, spring weather of Pelican Valley as the Chicago winter roared outside. I started my tiny parsnip farm, met the villagers, got an introduction to the community center, and began clearing the trees and debris from my land. I was especially intrigued by the townsfolk; although some were cold to me at first, I wanted to begin learning about them, their motivations, and their relationships. My avatar would wake up at 6am to the piercing sound of a rooster’s crow. I would wake up, spend a few hours exploring all the corners of my farm, and then visit town to see what my neighbors were up to. It wasn’t until the second week of in-game time that I began to get frustrated with how uncompromising their schedules were.
Tough luck trying to get in here after 9pm on a Tuesday
Each shop and home in “Stardew Valley” has a strict opening and closing time. Try to get into the blacksmith’s at 4:10pm? Too bad, you’ll have to wait until tomorrow. Want to visit Pierre’s store on a Tuesday night? Well, unless you completed the community center, you’re going to have to wait until Thursday at 9am. All the time I spent on my farm in the mornings was cutting into the precious time I had each day to both interact with the villagers and go shopping for seeds. As someone who’s not great at multitasking, it was overwhelming for me to get through my morning farm chores while keeping my eye on the clock. There was so much going on at once: I was still getting used to the controls, menuing on the Switch was confusing, I had to water my plants, my dog was getting in the way, the daily music was playing at nearly full volume in my ears.
The music.
Nearly immediately after waking up, a random selection of music, depending on the season, will begin to play. Each of these tracks is approximately three and a half to four minutes long. In in-game time, this translates to around four and a half hours. As the main character will always wake up at 6am, this means that each song will end at approximately 10:30am, an ideal time for the player to get to town and begin interacting with the villagers. Without realizing it, I began timing my chores to the beginning and end of the soundtrack. When I noticed the piece fading out into the background, I’d begin my trek to town, pleasantly surprised at the surplus of time I had to talk to each villager.
As a first-time player of “Stardew Valley,” getting into the habit of time management was a more daunting task than I had anticipated. However, the flow of the music sets up a perfect jumping off point for the player to understand the mechanics. While performing morning tasks to an upbeat melody, I knew I was doing the right thing. However, especially during my initial plays of the game, walking around my farm in silence made me feel out of place. Listening only to the footsteps of my avatar alerted me to a noticeable change. I would check the clock and make my way to town, where I’d be greeted by another tune. By having the music serve as an unconscious reminder on when to switch tasks, newer players can slowly learn how to time their days in order to be the most efficient. In a game without a formal tutorial, Stardew Valley’s soundtrack serves as an effective way to implicitly teach the player about time management skills.