Stardew Valley Introduces Voice Acting with New Mod

When Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone launched Stardew Valley in 2016, the charming farm-life simulator was designed without any voiceovers. However, a passionate fan has taken it upon herself to enhance the experience with a mod that introduces vocal performances. Voice actress and software engineer Shannon Hobby unveiled the Stardew Valley voiceover mod as a proof of concept in 2024. Recently, she updated the mod to include voice work for all the romanceable characters in the game. Hobby aims to give every character a voice, although the project is still evolving.

“I’m a voice actor and software engineer, and I’ve combined these skills to create something special for a game that means a lot to me and many others,” Hobby shared in her initial announcement video. “This was a perfect chance to merge my talents and contribute something I’m proud of to the community.” She clarified that the voices in the mod are not generated by AI; instead, they are performed by real actors whom she has compensated personally. The cast includes:

– Ariel Michelle as Emily
– Heidi Tabing as Penny
– David Meyers as Sebastian
– Kemi Haydee Stanton as Haley
– Aiden Dawn as Leah
– Eamon Kinsman as Alex
– Jacob Hopkins as Sam
– GM Hakim as Harvey
– Nia Celeste as Maru
– Emmanuel “Menji” Menjivar as Elliott
– Diana Jurand as Abigail
– Jonathan David Bullock as Shane

Audio editing assistance was provided by Victoria Cheng. Hobby also mentioned that the mod still has some bugs to iron out, including occasional audio cues that fail to trigger as intended. Last year, Stardew Valley saw the release of a Switch 2 Edition, and Barone has announced a forthcoming 1.7 update that will introduce a new farm type and additional features. While a release date for this update hasn’t been set, Barone has indicated that it will take “a while” to complete.