Stardew Valley creator Eric Barone says that he is currently focused on creating a new, unrevealed game rather than fresh updates for his immensely popular farming simulator.

Speaking recently to Zach Hartman on Twitch (as reported by Eurogamer) following the conclusion of the first official Stardew Valley Cup, Barone explained that he's currently not working on future Stardew Valley updates because he has been focused on a new game.

"I'm not saying there's going to be another Stardew Valley update," Barone added during his response to a fan's question surrounding future updates and marriage options within the game. "I don't even know at this point. Right now I am focused on my next game. So, we'll see."

Whilst Barone kept details surrounding the new title close to his chest, he did provide fans a few details to mull over in the lead-up to an official reveal, which he then teased may end up coming sometime in the near future.

"I may announce it fairly soon, what it is – no-one knows at this point," he said during the stream. "What I will say is that it's another pixel art game, a top-down perspective similar to Stardew Valley. In some ways, it is kind of similar to Stardew Valley, but it's also not a farming game. It's something different."

As previously mentioned, details surrounding the new game come off the back of the first Stardew Valley Cup. The event, which was co-ran by Barone and Hartman, marks the game's first official competitive tournament and had a prize pool of just under $40,000. Following the conclusion of the stream, Barone congratulated the winning team, Sandy's Candies on Twitter.

Congrats to Sandy's Candies for winning the Stardew Valley Cup! It was a lot of fun. Hope everyone who watched had a good time!

— ConcernedApe (@ConcernedApe) September 4, 2021

Stardew Valley has seen monumental success since its initial release in 2016, building up an impressive and dedicated community. The game has not only reached almost every major modern platform gaming has to offer through ports for Switch, mobile, and home consoles, but this year it also received its own board game.

If Barone's new title features the farming simulator's charm, charisma and replayability, then he'll undoubtedly have a loyal fanbase ready to flock toward it – and another winner on his hands.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Sonic Colors: Ultimate recently launched across Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and PC. However, following a range of issues predominantly affecting the Switch version of the game, the development team at Blind Squirrel Games has promised to patch the title.

The studio thanked fans for their feedback on issues that have been cropping up within the game on Twitter before announcing that it was "preparing a patch for release as soon as possible".

We appreciate all the feedback we've received about Sonic Colors: Ultimate so far. We're listening and preparing a patch for release as soon as possible.

If you're experiencing any issues with Sonic Colors: Ultimate, please submit them directly to: https://t.co/oZOXuzhuRm

— Blind Squirrel Games (@Blind_Squirrel_) September 5, 2021

Sonic the Hedgehog social media manager, Katie Chrzanowski also went on to thank fans for their patience – although noted that the team had seen some graphical issues in the game that were being caused by a Nintendo Switch emulator outside of the studio's control. Despite some errors being caused by the use of an emulator, a number of reports from players detailing issues have also arisen that don't fall into this category.

Across Twitter, fans have posted clips sharing their torrid time with Sonic Colors: Ultimate on the Nintendo handheld. Reports from players are varied, with issues seeming to range from glitchy level clearance screens to players falling through the map. If you're currently playing through Sonic Colors: Ultimate and would like to flag any issues you come across with the game, then you can do so on Sega's support page.

I no longer feel safe playing #SonicColorsUltimate. #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/kJV69xS6KP

— Trendy Brendy 🐊 (@TrendanBrendan) September 4, 2021

Fan feedback hasn't been the only concern that Blind Squirrel Games has had to deal with following the launch of Sonic Colors: Ultimate. The company was called out for not crediting Godot Engine, a free open-source software engine that they used to help develop the game. The studio acknowledged the mistake on Twitter where it said, "We are very sorry about this oversight and are committed to properly crediting all technology that we use." The studio then went on to say that the credit had been somehow missed following its internal checks but that it would be added in during an upcoming patch.

If you're looking to purchase a copy of Sonic Colors: Ultimate for Nintendo Switch (or perhaps with the current issues a different platform) then make sure to check out our review of the game where we not only gave it an 8/10 but also said that as a base game it "still remains one of the best examples of how a modern Sonic game should be."

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

Two developers associated with Tripwire Interactive have distanced themselves from the publisher after president John Gibson stated his positive views on Texas' controversial new anti-abortion law. One developer has cancelled all of its contracts with the publisher as a result.

Gibson, Tripwire's co-owner, tweeted that he was "proud" of the US Supreme Court for affirming the law before further going on to say that, while he "doesn't get political often," he felt that it was important to "go on the record as a pro-life game developer".

Proud of #USSupremeCourt affirming the Texas law banning abortion for babies with a heartbeat. As an entertainer I don’t get political often. Yet with so many vocal peers on the other side of this issue, I felt it was important to go on the record as a pro-life game developer.

— John Gibson (@RammJaeger) September 4, 2021

Since then, developers that have worked alongside Tripwire on a number of titles have been quick to set out their own views on the president's comments. Shipwright Studios, which contributed to both Maneater and Chivalry 2, laid out its response to Gibson in a statement, going as far as cancelling its contracts with the company.

"While your politics are your own, the moment you make them a matter of public discourse you entangle all of those working for you and with you," Shipwright Studios said before going on to confirm that it would take actions to "begin the cancellation of [its] existing contracts [with Tripwire] effective immediately."

pic.twitter.com/v1m8hzT77q

— Shipwright Studios (@shipwrightstdio) September 5, 2021

In addition to Shipwright, Chivalry 2 lead developer Torn Banner Studios also set out its contrasting views. A statement from the studio reads:

"We do not share the opinion expressed in a recent tweet by the president of Tripwire, publisher of Chivalry 2. This perspective is not shared by our team, nor is it reflected in the games we create. The statement stands in opposition to what we believe about women’s rights." Unlike Shipwright Studios, Torn Banner Studios has not elaborated further as to whether this will affect its relationship with Tripwire going forward.

Texas new anti-abortion law, which was recently upheld by the US supreme court, amounts to a near-total ban on abortions in the state. The law forbids the majority of abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, including those resulting from incest or rape. Enforceable across Texas, the new law allows members of the public to sue clinics that breach the ruling and awards them $10,000 per illegal abortion if they are successful.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.

The Jackass cast have endured a long list of gruelling injuries over the course of their careers, with the estimated total cost of their afflictions coming out at $24,263,000.

A new study, commissioned by Nova Legal Funding, has presented approximations for how much has been spent on each of the Jackass cast's injuries, sustained before, during and in-between filming of all series and movies. Johnny Knoxville came out on top with an estimated medical bill of $8.66m, followed by Ehren McGhehey with $7.38m, and Steve-O with $5.82m.

Dave England was next on the "Jackass Injury Rich List" with an estimated injury tab of $1.65m, followed by Jason "Wee Man" Acuña who reportedly tallied up $675k in injuries, rounding out the top five injury-prone pranksters. Bam Margera wasn't included in the study due to ongoing reports regarding his mental health, and his exclusion from Jackass Forever.

To create the list, Nova Legal Funding called upon their internal experts to assess each reported injury sustained by select members of the Jackass cast, to work out the average cost of their injuries. The accumulative total for all injuries came to an estimated $24,263,000, though this figure only accounts for the reported injuries sustained by the main Jackass crew.

The adventurous team have had to break out the bandages and grab the gauze for their on and off set stunts time and time again, with traumas spanning 28 broken bones, 36 head injuries, and one alligator related injury. Knoxville is said to have sustained 16 concussions in his life, including a brain haemorrhage in 2020 during filming for Jackass Forever.

McGhehey, who was the second Jackass member featured on the list of the cast's most expensive injuries, has suffered three broken necks and nine knee surgeries, adding up to around $3.8m alone while Steve-O has fractured his skull, costing an estimated $1.75m in medical bills, and broken his teeth seven times, costing a further $350,000 to repair.

"We wanted to show how much these painful accidents cost in medical bills, so fans of the show can appreciate the financial and medical consequences of living such an adrenaline-fuelled life," said Ron Sinai, founder and CEO of NLF, whose experts estimated the Jackass crew's medical bills to be closer to $38m when taking all other factors into consideration.

Jackass began life as an MTV series that ran from 2000 to 2002 before migrating to the big screen for 2002's Jackass: The Movie. It was followed by two sequels, Jackass 3D in 2010 and Jackass Number Two in 2006, as well as some direct-to-DVD specials, and the 2013 Oscar-nominated spin-off Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa, released 11 years after the first movie.

Paramount announced in 2019 that a fourth Jackass installment was set for production, and scheduled Jackass Forever for March 5, 2021. However, the fourth entry in the extreme stunt franchise has been delayed multiple times, with the most recent calendar shift moving the slapstick reunion from its former October 22, 2021 release date to February 4, 2022.

Adele Ankers is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Developer Bioware is reportedly considering a switch back to Unreal Engine for its next installment of the Mass Effect series, leaving EA's Frostbite engine behind.

As reported by GamesBeat, series publisher EA recently published a listing on its website for a technical director to work on the Mass Effect franchise. In among a wealth of other requirements, the listing cites that experience with Unreal Engine 4 [and beyond] would be seen as an asset for potential candidates.

While this alone doesn't confirm that the developer is definitely moving away from EA's Frostbite engine – which was used to create Mass Effect: Andromeda – GamesBeat reports that multiple sources have said that this is because "everything is on the table when it comes to tech for a new Mass Effect".

Mass Effect's first three entries were all built using Unreal Engine 3. The studio made the switch away from Unreal Engine, which is owned and licensed out by Epic Games, to EA's own Frostbite Engine for the 2017 launch of Mass Effect: Andromeda – its last standalone entry into the series.

The game launched to mixed reviews and many felt it lacked the brilliance of its predecessors – not to mention came with some awkward animations and visual bugs that fans weren't used to. Whether a change in engine would provide the series with the lift that many fans will hope for remains to be seen. However, with Bioware reportedly considering its options carefully for Mass Effect 5, fans will feel optimistic about the series' future.

Mass Effect 5 was originally announced in December during The Games Awards. The reveal provided little information about what can be expected from the game although Bioware had previously said that a veteran team was working on the series next chapter. Make sure to check out the title's announcement trailer below.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.