Joja may be the villain inStardew Valley, but Pierre may only be a few years away from following in their footsteps. Although Pierre doggedly opposes Joja during the events ofStardew Valley, he has more in common with the corporation than he may be willing to admit. While players have more than enough reasons to oppose Joja alongside him, Pierre’s own record of less-than-perfect behavior becomes clear as the game goes on. At times, one can get the idea that ifStardew Valleytook place about a decade in the future, Pierre could have been the villain.
It’s undeniable that Joja is the villain ofStardew Valley’s genre-defining experience. That much is laid out from the beginning, with the player character starting the game in a miserable job at Joja that they quit in favor of a life on Grandpa’s farm. Joja’s influence on Pelican Town is clearly a negative one on the small town. Joja is focused on profits above everything, with the newest branch of JojaMart threatening local business, most notably Pierre’s general store. If JojaMart succeeds in turning Pelican Town into a company town, the community center will be destroyed and the Junimos will disappear, symbolizing Joja’s corrupting influence.
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Pierre’s Ambitions in Stardew Valley Could Turn Him Into His Own Worst Enemy
Although the player is nominally on Pierre’s side whencompleting the Community Center inStardew Valley, he doesn’t do much to draw sympathy for himself. When the player sells him high-quality produce, he’ll claim that he grew it himself while passing the blame for any lower-quality goods back onto the farmer. In addition, he runs a shop at every town festival rather than spending time with his family and neighbors, making it seem like he prioritizes money over being a community member.
In general, Pierre seems to be interested in little other than profit, although Joja’s greater negative impact means it is still clearly the greater evil between the two. Even with that taken into account, the biggest strike againstPierre’s character inStardew Valleycomes in the form of the Pierre’s Prime Produce quest.
For this quest, the player has to grow 25 gold-quality vegetables and give them to Pierre. Once Pierre has the vegetables, he will try to sell them at a horrendously marked-up price, earning scorn from Gus and Caroline. The player themselves even has a chance to comment on his greed in this scene. Pierre’s behavior in this quest paints a poor picture of him, showing that he’s willing to use unethical business practices on his own neighbors for the sake of a little extra cash.
Even if Pierre’s greed isn’t enough to push a player towardsStardew Valley’s Joja Warehouse route, it could prove concerning for the future. Pierre openly admits a desire to open many stores and become extremely rich. Combined with his existing greedy tendencies, his ambitions could see him build another Joja-like threat. After all, he is already willing to cheat and lie to his customers when he personally knows them and has limited resources.
With greater reach and cash flow, Pierre’s negative traits could be amplified, turning him into the same kind of crooked corporate entity that he had to stave off in Pelican Town. It feels like Pierre’s main issue with Joja is that they were competition, rather than any ethical complaint.
WhileStardew Valley’s morality is fairly gray, Pierre easily comes off as one of the most questionable members of the community. With Joja no longer a factor in Pelican Town after the Community Center ending, Pierre will largely control the town’s grocery market. Thankfully he was talked down from his scheme in Pierre’s Prime Produce, but that doesn’t mean that he won’t try again later with another plan. Sometime later inStardew Valley’s timeline, Pierre may end up becoming indistinguishable from JojaMart.
Stardew Valleyis available now for Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and Xbox One.
