EA Files Patent for Branching Battle Pass System

Following the launch of Update 1.6, players have been jumping back into Stardew Valley, with one fan encountering a beneficial bug in which they got an unexpected 100 million gold after their co-op partner's character passed out in the game. Stardew Valley Update 1.6 has already received a number of patches to fix bugs that have popped up following the new additions, and some fans are wondering if certain glitches may be more useful if left unfixed.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers can now download the service's newest addition, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members and Star Wars fans who skipped the game's release could be in for a treat.

Nintendo is known to be highly protective of its IPs, and its latest takedown request has targeted Garry's Mod, forcing the sandbox game to remove 20 years worth of content that contains Nintendo related workshop assets. Fans of the Super Smash Bros. gaming circuit and various sandbox titles are highly familiar with Nintendo shutting down games with DMCA takedowns. With Nintendo now requesting all of its assets to be removed from the Garry's Mod section of the Steam Workshop, fans are lamenting the impending loss of community content.

The variety of farm types in Stardew Valley allow players to approach the game in a number of ways, including one fan who devised an intricately structured Forest Farm. With the release of Stardew Valley Update 1.6, both new and returning players have been jumping in to try out each of the different starter farms, leading many to share their farm layouts to assist and inspire others.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, the action-adventure title from Respawn Entertainment, is heading to EA Play subscription service. The game is confirmed to be available on the service via Xbox and PC Game Pass starting April 25. Additionally, Jedi: Survivor has been spotted as being included with the EA Play subscription on PlayStation Store in some regions. The acclaimed Star Wars title is joining EA's subscription service almost exactly a year after its release across PC, PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.

Players continue to push the building limits of Minecraft to the test, including one fan who managed to recreate a playable version of the beloved Balloon Battle game mode from the Mario Kart franchise. Fans have previously made Mario Kart tracks in Minecraft, and this playable battle mode course has once again managed to inspire and impress the Minecraft and Mario communities.

A dedicated group of Banjo-Kazooie fans have created an impressive concept trailer for what they invision a «Banjo-Threeie» game could look like. With recent rumors of Banjo-Kazooie making a comeback, fans have remained optimistic that the beloved franchise may see a new installment. However, there has yet to be any official confirmation on such a project, so some fans have taken the opportunity to showcase the potential of a new Banjo-Kazooie title.

A job listing from EA hinted that Motive Studio's upcoming Iron Man video game will feature an open world. News regarding the ongoing development of the title has been sparse since it was first announced in 2022, with concerns over the project's status rising after EA announced another wave of layoffs last February. Thankfully, a new ad was posted to EA's official online job board, which gave fans hope that the studio hasn't given up on the Iron Man adaptation.

A fan-favorite setting for a war FPS has been realized in Battlefield 2042 with a player designing a custom game mode modeled after Vietnam. The Vietnam-inspired map is available via Battlefield 2042's Portal game mode and can be used for multiplayer matches.

EA's Black Panther game will be open world.

The recently announced Black Panther game in development at EA may be open world, judging from a new job listing posted for the title. Given the amount of open world fatigue some gamers have experienced in recent years, this aspect of Black Panther could prove divisive if done poorly.

With Battlefield 2042 entering its final season, DICE released a roadmap of content and events players can expect to see over the next few months. It has been a bittersweet week for fans of EA's Battlefield 2042, as the developer DICE not only releasing a seventh season, but confirming that the game is quickly approaching its end. With how bad the game's launch was in 2021, most fans probably didn't expect it to last as long as it did, but Battlefield 2042 improved over time, fixing the various issues and continued adding new features and content to help the game reach new heights while fostering a bigger community.