# Eric Barone

Eric Barone (born December 3, 1987), known professionally as ConcernedApe, is an American game designer and musician. He is best known for independently creating the video game Stardew Valley (2016).

## Quotes

* It does help if you can absolutely convince yourself that you're destined for greatness. It's not even an ego thing--it's just a way to prevent doubt and insecurity from hindering you.
** In an interview with Chris Baker of Game Developer, (March 9, 2016)
* I've always been obsessed with creating stuff, I spent my spare time doodling, making music, writing... basically all the different aspects of making a game. I just didn't know at the time that I would find a way to combine all those things to bring a cohesive vision to life.
** In an interview with Chris Baker of Game Developer, (March 9, 2016)
* You should be free to work yourself to the bone, but not to force someone else to do that for you.
** In an interview with Chris Baker of Game Developer, (March 9, 2016)
* There is no "secret" to being successful, you just need to have great dedication and perseverance and adopt a "can do" attitude.
** In an interview with Eren Eroğlu of Atarita, (May 12, 2024)
* My strategy with the community is simple: no strategy at all. I think that, as an indie developer, you should just be yourself and be a real human. I try to act online like I do in real life: treat everyone with respect, and be as honest and straightforward as possible.
** In an interview with Chris Baker of Game Developer, (March 9, 2016)
* I think it's a lot easier to stay driven when you're doing your own project, knowing that there are no limits to how far you can go.
** In an interview with Chris Baker of Game Developer, (March 9, 2016)
* I just persevered and forced myself to learn. You realize the thing that you thought was good actually isn’t. You realize why and you improve on it. And that’s just an endless cycle.
** In an interview with Sam White of GQ, (March 20, 2018)
* It’s very important to me that I make good on my promises.
** stardewvalley.net Developer Blog, (December 14, 2018)
* Making art, making video games, is my way of sharing who I am with the world. My goal, deep down, is that I want to connect with the rest of humanity, and maybe have them connect with me in some way.
** In an interview with Dom Peppiatt of The Guardian, (December 16, 2022)
* My whole goal as a game creator is to create these moments where I want people to feel something, like actually feel this connection to something deeper than you would normally feel like in a video game. I want to go deeper, and connect with people in a real way that’s memorable, that they’ll take with them for the rest of their life. I think music is integral to that.
** In an interview with Andy Brown of NME, (November 29, 2023)
* I’m just making music, I’m not even thinking about what it’s for, and it gives me ideas for the game. It will make me think of a particular scenario or environment, and then I really envision it through the music and put that into the game. That’s my favourite way to develop, actually.
** In an interview with Andy Brown of NME, (November 29, 2023)
* Music is somehow pure, you don’t think of it in terms of symbols. It just exists, it’s like magic. It feels like a way you can almost directly interface with the transcendental or divine.
** In an interview with Andy Brown of NME, (November 29, 2023)
* If you’re creating music from the heart, you're basically tapping into this supernatural power.
** In an interview with Ali Shutler of NME, (January 24, 2025)
* What really makes me feel good, makes me feel like my life has been totally worthwhile, is the fact that Stardew Valley has brought such joy and happiness to people. People describe it as a therapeutic game. Because I know that this little game brings so much positivity to the world... that really feels good.
** In an interview with Ellen Meny of KING-TV, (April 15, 2020)
* It feels like my life has been worthwhile because of Stardew Valley, even if I were to die tomorrow. It feels good to see it manifest in new ways, and see people appreciate it.
** In an interview with Andy Brown of NME, (November 29, 2023)
* I want to create a collection of games during my career, so that when I’m on my deathbed I can look back and see that I created all these wonderful things that brought people joy.
** In an interview with Jesse Singal of Vulture, (March 14, 2016)

## External links

* stardewvalley.net
* Twitter
* Instagram
* Reddit