The next big free upgrade for Stardew Valley now has a release date in March and there's plenty to look forward to. Stardew Valley also just celebrated its 8th anniversary.
Yeah... sadly the gameplay loop gets a bit tired (for me personally anyways) after a little bit and I put it down for a while again. It's not the games fault, I just wish there was a hybrid of this and farming simulator, where it's not hyper realistic, but just more in depth/number crunchy I guess.
Plus other skills to learn to grow the community center. Fishing, tree-chopping, fighting in dungeons. There's a sense of optimization as you learn, grow, and get access to more tools.
It's slightly more action-y than Animal Crossing, but yeah, still a farm game.
The game has the basics and does them well, but i feel like it's missing the hook. It's really good if you're already into the style, but it won't bring anyone new in.