Stardew Valley's Mr. Qi is ConcernedApe Theory Explained

gamerant.com:

While some Stardew Valley theories analyze the most microscopic elements of the game, others take a look at it as a whole. For example, some players have posited that the player actually died at Joja at the beginning of the game and are actually in a form of limbo, the afterlife, or their own head the entire time. This would explain a number of classing farming simulator elements, but it's also a bit of a cop-out that can be applied to many fictional stories and can even pull interest.

Another Stardew Valley theory, however, says that ConcernedApe and Mr. Qi are one and the same person and that Stardew Valleyitself is just a simulation made by Mr. Qi, a mysterious NPC who is only unlocked once a player puts a battery pack in the lockbox in the tunnel. A number of his dialogue lines reveal that he may be sentient, but furthermore, some fans have taken it a step further and believe that, should Mr. Qi have special knowledge or power in the world of Stardew Valley, he might actually represent ConcernedApe in-game.

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Mr. Qi first appears when players put batteries into the lockbox, which can be reached by navigating to the tunnel, and near its middle, there is a hidden panel where the lockbox is located. After opening it, players will start The Mysterious Qi questline, consisting of three more quests: putting 10 beets inside Mayor Lewis' fridge, putting a Solar Essence in the sand dragon's mouth at the desert, and interacting with the lumber pile next to the farmhouse. This random assortment of quests will lead players behind Sandy's store at the desert, where players will get access to the casino. Mr. Qi can be found here from then on as well as in his walnut room on