Stardew Valley update 1.6.9 was released today for PC, consoles, and mobile, and Barone took to Twitter with a rather alarming warning for those who updated to the latest version: “PSA: There is currently an issue if you start a new farm in the Meadowlands and you open the animal door on day 1 of the coop, your chickens will disappear.
This seems like a pretty specific issue that hopefully won't affect too many players before it's fixed, and Barone clarified that “if you leave the door closed for a day, you should save” your chickens. However, in the meantime, he created the insect canon simply by inventing a wild coyote that hungers for chickens.
“We'll fix this. Lore: There's a wild coyote on the farm on day 1,” he said, eliciting an audible laugh from me. Oh, those sneaky coyotes.
PSA: There is currently a problem, if you start a new farm in Meadowlands and open the animal door on day 1 of the chicken coop, your chickens will disappear. If you leave the door closed for a day, it should save them. We will fix this. Lore: There is a wild coyote on the farm… November 4, 2024
As fun as all of this is, if you've played much of Stardew Valley, you'll know that chickens aren't exactly cheap at 800G each, so if you're starting a new farm in the Meadowlands, be careful not to open the animal door. from your coop until a day of play has passed. Even if money is not a factor, death at the hands of a coyote is no way to treat your feathered friends.
Elsewhere, Stardew Valley 1.6.9 adds Sims-style cheat codes and a “new friend” who can restore some of the game's rarest items “for a price.”.