He’s surly, grumpy, unhealthy, but still seems to have garnered a sort of cult following in the Stardew Valley community. I’m not going to unpack that though, seeing as how I’m a writer, not a therapist. So here’s some mods to improve your Shane-lovin’ gameplay (or, dare I say, shaneplay).
10. Shane Girl
Check Out This Mod You had to have known this one was coming, dear reader. Everyone knows that if it exists, there’s a genderbent version of it. And that holds water even for our beloved Shane. Perhaps a Shania in this case? If you prefer your alcoholic chicken farmers to be of the female variety, this mod might just be for you. It redoes both the sprites and portraits for a very well-rounded mod. Dialogue is altered to recognize Shane as female, as well.
9. New Dialogue for Shane
Check Out This Mod Hey, you! Yeah, you! Are you tired of the same old low effort voice lines? Well you probably shouldn’t have married Shane, but I’ve got a Band-Aid solution for you. This mod adds over 75 new voice lines for the guy. Now you can get something a little deeper than “buhh…” when you click on him. Stop eating pizza rolls, man. I’m sure Leah can hook you up with a salad.
8. Clean Shane’s Room
Check Out This Mod Listen, I’m sympathetic. It’s really hard to keep a room clean when you’re suffering from crippling depression, which Shane no doubt is. Give the guy a break from cleaning (or more likely just living in his nest) by downloading this mod that cleans it for him. It gets rid of the laundry and spilt beer, muddy footprints, and random junk that just lies around, and organizes things neatly.
7. Shane’s New Job
Check Out This Mod Working at Joja Mart would suck. But being unemployed isn’t a great feeling either – a sentiment echoed by Shane himself. Here’s a mod that makes it so after the community center is built and Joja Mart goes out of business, Shane begins to work at the Saloon. While I’m not sure working a bar would be the greatest for Shane health-wise, it has to be better than sitting around all day. At the very least, Gus and Emily would be good to him!
6. Better Married Shane
Check Out This Mod Okay so, have you ever noticed how weird Shane acts when you marry him? Often even at max hearts, he acts like he doesn’t even like you. It’s pretty unsettling, considering he was all gung-ho to get married in the first place. I do get that there’s only, like, six unmarried women in town aside from the farmer, but please. This mod changes his dialogue to make it seem like he, you know, actually likes his spouse. And other villagers will also comment on the fact that you’re married. There’s even an optional way to make it so they all remember your anniversary!
5. Marriage Dialogue Overhaul
Check Out This Mod Here’s another very similar mod to the last one, but now we’re focused on changing the way that married Shane communicates (read: making married Shane communicate). This mod includes 95 lines of new dialogue, meaning it’s a pretty large and comprehensive mod. You’ll be able to talk to the sweeter Shane you (apparently) fell for, rather than the surly, grumpy jerk that vanilla Stardew brings after marriage.
4. Alternative Shane Outfit
Check Out This Mod Here’s a small update that just changes the outfit Shane wears. Now he’ll be donning a brown jacket and pants. If you thought his shorts and hoodie combo was a lil ugly, this mod might be for you. He looks actually handsome with this fix! Sometimes, you really do just need some new threads to liven things up. Go Shane!
3. Shane’s White Coop and White Mailbox
Check Out This Mod Another smaller fix here, but it’s a very nice one. Rather than having a weird ugly coop, this mod replaces the vanilla one with a lovely cottagecore-style white one. It also changes the default mailbox to match! It’s really nice for when you want a soft & aesthetically pleasing farm, rather than the typical farmcore style. Which there’s nothing wrong with, of course.
2. Non-Alcoholic Shane
Check Out This Mod Stardew Valley does a good job of covering a topic as difficult as alcoholism. It isn’t straightforward, which is a bit more realistic than the alternative. Shane quits drinking for a bit, but then starts again, but with more moderation. There’s a myriad of reasons why that wouldn’t be something some people want in their games, though – so here’s a mod that removes it entirely. Once Shane stops drinking, he’s stopped drinking for good. No beer, only Joja Cola.
1. Alternative Shane Portraits
Check Out This Mod Listen, if the game had started with this as the portrait, I’d never have dunked on Shane so hard – because holy moly. Not only is the art style great, but Shane looks amazing. He looks much more mature now – and frankly, way more attractive. Even if you don’t want to use the mod regularly, I highly recommend you check this one out just for the aesthetics.
