Haunted Chocolatier: Eric Barone calls the game an action RPG and town game in GQ interview
Eric Barone says in a GQ interview that Haunted Chocolatier is leaning more toward an action RPG, while still being a town game.
- Barone says the game is about adventure, finding equipment, getting stronger, monsters, and boss fights.
- Haunted Chocolatier was announced in October 2021 and still has no official release date.
What happened
Eric Barone, better known as ConcernedApe, has shared new details about Haunted Chocolatier, his next game after Stardew Valley, in an interview with GQ. Eurogamer, IGN, and GameSpot report based on that interview that Barone describes the project as more of an action RPG, while still calling it a town game.
According to those reports, Barone said Haunted Chocolatier is about adventure, finding equipment, and becoming stronger. He also confirmed that monsters and boss fights are part of the game. GameSpot summed up his explanation as a project for players who spent most of their time in Stardew Valley in the mines.
The game was announced in October 2021 and still does not have an official release date. The sources provided also note that the project has been in development for more than five years, but Barone did not give a launch window.
In the same interview, Barone also said Haunted Chocolatier is more “metaphysical” than Stardew Valley. What he meant by that was not further explained in the available coverage.
Timeline
2021-10: Eric Barone announces Haunted Chocolatier as his next game after Stardew Valley.
2021: The official Haunted Chocolatier website goes live with the first project information.
2021-10-30: Barone posts a blog update on combat, shields, and stuns in Haunted Chocolatier.
2026-10-12: Eurogamer publishes coverage of Barone’s GQ interview, in which he describes Haunted Chocolatier as a town game with more action RPG elements.
2026-10-12: IGN and GameSpot report on the same interview comments, mentioning adventure, equipment, monsters, and boss fights.
Background
Haunted Chocolatier is Eric Barone’s next major project, following Stardew Valley. Since its 2021 announcement, the game has been positioned by Barone as a new project with a different focus from his breakout hit.
These new comments make it clear that Barone sees the game as a mix of town building and action RPG systems. The emphasis on adventure, equipment, monsters, and boss fights points to more combat and progression than many players may have expected from a new ConcernedApe game.
One constant remains: there is still no official release date. The available sources say the game is in development and that early gameplay has been shown, but there is still no concrete launch timing.