The Triple-I indie showcase dropped a lot of news on April 9, but one announcement came with an unexpected bonus: Graveyard Keeper, the beloved medieval cemetery sim that drew heavy inspiration from Stardew Valley, is completely free on Steam right now.
The free promotion runs until April 13, so the window is tight. Once you claim it, though, the game is yours to keep permanently.
Why the developer is giving it away
The timing is not random. tinyBuild announced Graveyard Keeper 2 at the Triple-I showcase, and making the original free is a straightforward way to pull in players who missed it the first time around. It works as both a celebration and a marketing move. Anyone who plays the original this week and gets hooked is a potential day-one buyer for the sequel.
Graveyard Keeper 2 is targeting a release later this year across PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, Switch 2, and PC. No price has been confirmed yet, but free it will not be.
What Graveyard Keeper actually is
Released in 2018, roughly two years after Stardew Valley reshaped expectations for life-sim games, Graveyard Keeper puts you in charge of a medieval cemetery. Bodies arrive. You deal with them. That sounds grim, and it is, but the game wraps that premise in the same loop of resource gathering, crafting, and town relationships that makes Stardew Valley so hard to put down.
The developers at Lazy Bear Games openly cited Stardew Valley as a major inspiration, and that influence shows in the pixel art style and progression structure. What sets Graveyard Keeper apart is the tone. Where Stardew Valley is warm and pastoral, this one leans into dark humor and the genuinely strange logistics of running a graveyard. There are bodies to embalm, a church to manage, and more than a few morally questionable side activities.
danger
The free offer applies to the base game only. Graveyard Keeper has several DLC packs available separately, including Stranger Sins, Game Of Crone, and Better Save Soul.
The game also runs well on Steam Deck, which makes this a solid pickup even if your gaming PC time is limited.
The Stardew Valley connection worth knowing
Stardew Valley did not invent the farming sim genre, but it absolutely defined what modern players expect from it. The wave of games that followed ranged from uninspired copies to genuinely creative takes on the formula. Graveyard Keeper sits firmly in the latter category. The key here is that it does not try to replicate Pelican Town with a different coat of paint. It uses the structure and then builds something with its own personality on top.
For players who burned through Stardew Valley and want something that scratches a similar itch without feeling like a lesser version of the same game, Graveyard Keeper has been a consistent recommendation for years. Getting it for nothing removes the only real barrier to trying it.
You'll want to check the latest gaming news to stay on top of any further announcements around Graveyard Keeper 2 as its release window gets closer.
Crafting runs deep here
Grab it before April 13
Head to the Graveyard Keeper Steam page and add it to your library before the promotion closes. There is no trial or time limit on play once it is claimed. The game, all its mods, and full Steam Deck compatibility come with it at zero cost.
Graveyard Keeper 2 now has a trailer and a release window. If the sequel lands well, this week's free promotion will look like the smartest move tinyBuild made in the run-up to launch. Check out recent gaming reviews to see how other life-sim picks are stacking up while you wait for more details on the follow-up. Make sure to check out more:
