Eric Barone
American video game designer (born 1987)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eric Lorenz Barone[1] (/bəˈroʊni/ bə-ROH-nee,[2] born December 3, 1987), known professionally as ConcernedApe, is an American video game developer and musician.
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December 3, 1987
Eric Barone | |
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Barone in 2019 | |
| Born | Eric Lorenz Barone December 3, 1987 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other name | ConcernedApe |
| Citizenship | American |
| Alma mater | University of Washington Tacoma |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2008–present |
| Known for | Stardew Valley |
| Spouse | Amber Hageman |
| Website | concernedape |
| Signature | |
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He is best known for solo developing the 2016 video game Stardew Valley. A video game developer with a degree in computer science, Barone handled every aspect of the game, from coding to composing its soundtrack. He worked alone on updates to the game for several years after its release, then later recruited a small team to assist with further development.
He continues to support Stardew Valley while working on his next project, Haunted Chocolatier.
Early life and education
Barone was born on December 3, 1987, in Los Angeles, California, and spent his childhood in Auburn, Washington, a suburb in the Seattle metropolitan area.[3][4] He cited the Harvest Moon series as his childhood favorite that stayed with him into adulthood.[4]
While not musically trained,[5] Barone played music growing up, and was a member of several bands, including a nu metal band and an experimental pop band. For the latter's album, he created his first ever video game, a LucasArts-inspired point-and-click game.[6]
He attended the University of Washington Tacoma and graduated in 2011 with a degree in computer science.[4] Eric Barone is the recipient of the 2019 University of Washington Tacoma Distinguished Alumni Award.[7][8]
Barone practiced basic programming but did not originally consider making video games as a career. Unable to find employment after graduating from college, he initially began developing Stardew Valley in order to practice programming in C#, and planned to put the game on his resume for potential employers.[9]
Career
Stardew Valley
Barone began working on Stardew Valley in 2012 and released it in 2016. He created the game entirely on his own,[10] as its sole designer, programmer, animator, artist, composer, and writer. To complete the game, Barone worked on average 10 hours a day seven days a week[11] for four and a half years.
For part of that time, he lived with his parents to save money before moving out with his girlfriend to Capitol Hill, Seattle.[12] While in Capitol Hill, his girlfriend Amber Hageman worked two jobs to support both of them. Barone worked a part-time job as an evening usher at the Paramount Theatre.[4][12][13]
Barone initially released Stardew Valley on the PC before later porting it to other consoles. As of February 2026, the game has sold over 50 million copies.[14][15]
In 2017, he was named by Forbes magazine in their list "30 Under 30: Games" for his work on Stardew Valley.[16] Since 2019, Barone has been assisted on Stardew Valley by another designer and development team.[17]
Other media
In 2016, Barone released Stardew Valley: Original Soundtrack, which contains the game's official soundtrack.[18]
On August 15, 2020, the orchestral album Symphonic Tale: The Place I Truly Belong (Music from Stardew Valley) directed by Kentaro Sato and performed by the Budapest Symphony Orchestra was released.[19] The album includes 15 tracks from the game's original soundtrack.
In February 2021, Barone and board game designer Cole Medeiros released Stardew Valley: The Board Game, a cooperative board game adaptation of Stardew Valley.[20] After the first printing of the game went on sale, it quickly sold out. Sales were later reopened with several changes.[21]
Barone collaborated with Norihiko Hibino on an album series Prescription for Sleep. The series remixes video game soundtracks with piano and saxophone. The Stardew Valley album was released in May 2021. It includes 10 tracks from the game's original soundtrack and one new track called "Beauty in the Seasons".[22]
In October 2023, Barone announced the first Stardew Valley concert tour, Stardew Valley: Festival of Seasons, featuring a selection of music from the game performed live by a chamber orchestra.[23] In November 2024, Barone announced Stardew Valley: Symphony of Seasons, the second Stardew Valley concert tour, featuring new arrangements of the game's music performed by a 35-piece orchestra.[24]
Barone was the co-author of The Official Stardew Valley Cookbook, which was released on May 14, 2024. The book includes more than 50 recipes adapted from the in-game recipes featured in Stardew Valley.[25]
Barone's musical compositions from Stardew Valley are regularly featured on Northwest Public Broadcasting's video game music radio program, Press A To Play. Music from Stardew Valley was first featured on Press A To Play's second episode Pacific Northwest Independent Games. It was also featured in Indie Darlings and Games We Played in 2020.[26]
Other projects
In 2008, Barone released his first game, known as 17CF Quest, which was also a promotion for the music group 17 Colorful Feathers.[27] The game's main character is found as a piece of furniture in Stardew Valley.
In 2011, Barone created a comic book series called Wumbus World.[28]
In 2014, Barone took a month-long break during the development of Stardew Valley. During this break, Barone used his time to piece together a small mobile game to release on Android. The game was titled Air Pear and was released on March 6, 2014. In the game, players would need to guide a purple pear on a hoverboard between obstacles and compete for a high score.
In October 2021, Barone announced that a new game, Haunted Chocolatier, was under development.[29] In the game, the player will run a chocolate shop. It will have a greater focus on combat than in Stardew Valley. Barone stated that "almost everything in Haunted Chocolatier, including the combat, is completely coded (and drawn) from scratch."[30]
In 2022, Barone collaborated on an animated music video with indie pop band Alvvays for the band's song "Many Mirrors". Barone is responsible for the video's animation and it was his first time working with 3D animation.[31]
In 2024, Barone announced that he played in a Seattle-based steelpan band.[32]
Barone voiced one of the characters in the video game Hollow Knight: Silksong, which was released in 2025.[33]
Philanthropy
In May 2021, Eric Barone funded key upgrades (including watering systems and a greenhouse) for the Giving Garden at UW Tacoma's campus (21st & Fawcett). His donations also established a paid student coordinator role, helping the garden donate 200+ lbs of food annually.[34]
In July 2024, Eric Barone donated at least $25,000 to Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust. The Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust is a 501(3)c non profit organization, which works to steward the 1.5-million-acre landscape that stretches from Seattle to Ellensburg along I-90.[35][36]
In December 2025, MonoGame announced that Barone had supported the project with an initial donation of $125,000, and a commitment to make $1,250 regular monthly donations.[37][38]
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Golden Joystick Awards | Best Indie Game | Stardew Valley | Nominated | |
| PC Game of the Year | Nominated | ||||
| Breakthrough Award | Won | ||||
| The Game Awards 2016 | Best Independent Game | Nominated | |||
| 17th Game Developers Choice Awards | Best Debut | Nominated | |||
| Independent Games Festival | Seumas McNally Grand Prize | Nominated | |||
| SXSW Gaming Awards | Most Promising New Intellectual Property | Nominated | |||
| 13th British Academy Games Awards | Best Game | Nominated | |||
| The Steam Awards | The 'Best Use Of A Farm Animal' Award | Nominated | |||
| The 'I Thought This Game Was Cool Before It Won An Award' Award | Nominated | ||||
| 2017 | The Steam Awards | 'The World Is Grim Enough Let's Just All Get Along' Award | Stardew Valley | Won | |
| 2018 | The Steam Awards | Labor of Love | Stardew Valley | Nominated | |
| 2024 | The Steam Awards | Labor of Love | Stardew Valley | Nominated |
