Horses, one of the only ways to get around the Stardew Valley map quickly, have long been neglected by the game. Despite the fact that horses are the one animal that players probably spend the most time with, as they traverse around Pelican Town running errands and finishing quests, they get the worst treatment. Horses are unable to roam, spend all their time exposed to the elements, and can’t make friends with other horses.
Reddit user Chromatic_mediant recently posted a pasture they made for their horse to explore and enjoy, pointing out how unfair it is that horses are the one animal that can never roam. By dedicating an ample amount of space to their horse and decorating it with grass, hay, barrels, and a space heater, they made it clear how sad the typical stable setup in Stardew Valley really is.
Stardew Valley Horses Don’t Get To Roam
A Smart Gameplay Mechanic, But A Sad Sight
Horses are the one animal in the game that doesn’t have any amount of free roam, which, for gameplay purposes, does make sense. Horses will always stay exactly where the player left them during the day, making it easy for players to hop back on their horse and not waste any time traveling. In fact, the only thing players can feed their horses are carrots to make them faster. As the original poster pointed out, “the game treats the horse more like a vehicle than an animal”.
While this does make getting around easier for players, it does make a sad situation for the horse, especially with its open stall and lack of friends. Ever since update 1.6, when players could adopt more than one pet, every animal on the farm has had access to a buddy. Except, of course, for horses. Chromatic_mediant expressed their sadness over this situation in single-player games, writing “I also wish you could buy multiple horses, they get lonely irl”.
After 9 Years, Stardew Horses Deserve Better Treatment
Horses Should Get Better Housing After All This Time
Stardew Valley is a long-running cozy game, and in the nine years since its release, the game has received plenty of updates. The only substantial change horses have received in that time is that players can now place hats on them, which is very cute, but doesn’t improve their living situation very much. At the very least, they should be able to roam around on the farm near their stable.
User SeaLab_2024 wrote that they were going to make a dedicated area for their horse too, stating “I always feel bad that he’s just there”. User Agressive_Dolphin also chimed in, writing “I’ve always felt bad for my horse living in a stall as that’s actually really unhealthy for irl horses”. Having such a small area for the lonely horse is a sad sight, especially compared to the cozy barns and coops all other farm animals in Stardew Valley get to enjoy at night.
Stardew Valley
- Released
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February 26, 2016
- ESRB
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E for Everyone (Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood, Mild Language, Simulated Gambling, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco)
- Developer(s)
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ConcernedApe
- Publisher(s)
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ConcernedApe
