The list of new features and fixes is pretty extensive, but highlights include two new marriage candidates, the option to divorce your partner, four new starting farm maps (Riverland, Forest, Hilltop, and Wilderness, plus the original Standard farm layout), Coffee as a new spring/summer crop, Evil Shrines (what kind of farm is this?), and a new Cellar upgrade option for your house that lets you age cheese and alcohol.
The update also adds an entirely new quest, along with several quest-related locations, that unlocks the new "magical construction" feature. Magical buildings can be placed on your farm like regular ones, and include things such as obelisks that teleport you to certain locations and a "Junimo Hut" that will automatically harvest nearby crops.
The list of bug fixes is shorter, and I can't say that there's anything in it that really leaps out at me as a major, must-fix issue. Wild plums are now labeled as fruit, you can no longer tap a stump, you'll no longer lose hay to a hopper if you don't have a silo, and your baby should now be born properly even if you pass out in the mines on the eve of birth. Okay, that one is obviously vital.
Barone said he wants to do "a little beta test to catch any bugs" before he pushes the update to everyone. "I am trying to keep this kind of low-key, so I'm just going to be posting about it here... no twitter or reddit this time," he wrote. (Sorry, Eric.) "If you decide to help me out by playing on the beta branch, I appreciate it very much. Thank you!"
To opt into the beta and play with the update right now, right-click Stardew Valley in your Steam library, select Properties, click the Betas tab and then select "beta" from the dropdown menu. Assuming you've done it properly, the [beta] tag will appear next to the title, the game will update, and you'll be on your way. Barone also warned that while it's "very unlikely" playing the beta build will mess with your saves, you should back them up anyway.
