British gaming studio Splash Damage has announced that it is working on an unannounced Google Stadia exclusive. Unfortunately, the developers won't be sharing details on the project quite yet, but promise more details in the coming months. Splash Damage is known for creating immersive multiplayer games and has had a hand in multiple well-known titles. Most notably, the studio developed the multiplayer maps for Doom 3, worked with The Coalition to develop Gears of War: Ultimate Edition and Gears Tactics, partnered with 343 Industries to develop The Master Chief Collection, and much more. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=google-stadia-review&captions=true"] It seems safe to assume that whatever Splash Damage is working on will likely have multiplayer given the studio's pedigree. However, for now, we will have to wait to get official information. Google Stadia had a bit of a rough launch late last year and currently has over 40 confirmed games for the platform. In December, Stadia acquired Typhoon Studios, the team behind Journey to the Savage Planet. Stadia recently appointed former God of War executive producer Shannon Studstill to lead its new games and entertainment studio, which will focus on delivering exclusive titles to the platform. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/12/31/should-i-buy-stadia"] In the past few months, Stadia has been rather quiet, but with the Xbox Series X and PS5 set to release later this year, hopefully, we'll hear some more from Google's platform in the coming weeks and months. In the meantime, be sure to check out our Google Stadia review if you're on the fence about subscribing to the service. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Andrew Smith is a freelance contributor with IGN. Follow him on Twitter @_andrewtsmith.

Long before he played the captain of the Enterprise-D or the sage leader of the X-Men, Sir Patrick Stewart was a longtime and Olivier Award-winning member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Now Stewart is turning his love of the Bard's work into a series of social media posts to soothe away worries during these difficult times. A casually dressed Stewart first recorded himself reading Shakespeare's Sonnet 116 ("Let me not to the marriage of true minds ..."), which you can watch below:

pic.twitter.com/dA92uM4Hr3

— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) March 21, 2020

Encouraged by the outpouring of support from fans, Stewart tweeted the following day: "When I was a child in the 1940s, my mother would cut up slices of fruit for me (there wasn't much) and as she put it in front of me she would say, 'An apple a day keeps the doctor away.' How about, 'A sonnet a day keeps the doctor away'?" He then posted a video of himself reading Sonnet 1, which you can watch below. This would certainly seem to indicate that we have months of Stewart sonnet posts to look forward to as Shakespeare wrote 154 of them in his lifetime. They were poems on a variety of topics that were published posthumously in 1609.

2. When I was a child in the 1940s, my mother would cut up slices of fruit for me (there wasn't much) and as she put it in front of me she would say, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." How about, “A sonnet a day keeps the doctor away”? So...here we go: Sonnet 1. pic.twitter.com/kDoMNhdqcI

— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) March 22, 2020

For more Patrick Stewart goodness, check out our review of the latest episode of Star Trek: Picard as well as this exclusive clip from the show. Meanwhile, here's how you can help, and stay safe, during the coronavirus pandemic. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=star-trek-picard-the-essential-treks-to-take-before-the-show&captions=true"]

Long before he played the captain of the Enterprise-D or the sage leader of the X-Men, Sir Patrick Stewart was a longtime and Olivier Award-winning member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Now Stewart is turning his love of the Bard's work into a series of social media posts to soothe away worries during these difficult times. A casually dressed Stewart first recorded himself reading Shakespeare's Sonnet 116 ("Let me not to the marriage of true minds ..."), which you can watch below:

pic.twitter.com/dA92uM4Hr3

— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) March 21, 2020

Encouraged by the outpouring of support from fans, Stewart tweeted the following day: "When I was a child in the 1940s, my mother would cut up slices of fruit for me (there wasn't much) and as she put it in front of me she would say, 'An apple a day keeps the doctor away.' How about, 'A sonnet a day keeps the doctor away'?" He then posted a video of himself reading Sonnet 1, which you can watch below. This would certainly seem to indicate that we have months of Stewart sonnet posts to look forward to as Shakespeare wrote 154 of them in his lifetime. They were poems on a variety of topics that were published posthumously in 1609.

2. When I was a child in the 1940s, my mother would cut up slices of fruit for me (there wasn't much) and as she put it in front of me she would say, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." How about, “A sonnet a day keeps the doctor away”? So...here we go: Sonnet 1. pic.twitter.com/kDoMNhdqcI

— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) March 22, 2020

For more Patrick Stewart goodness, check out our review of the latest episode of Star Trek: Picard as well as this exclusive clip from the show. Meanwhile, here's how you can help, and stay safe, during the coronavirus pandemic. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=star-trek-picard-the-essential-treks-to-take-before-the-show&captions=true"]

SPOILER WARNING for Half-Life: Alyx. We’ll be avoiding all story spoilers that aren’t relevant to the tease itself, but know that we ARE discussing a scene from the very end of Alyx if you plan to keep reading.

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/23/half-life-alyx-review"]

[poilib element="accentDivider"]

Half-Life: Alyx launched Monday morning, but it may already be setting up another Half-Life game – and it could be the proper sequel we’ve all been waiting for for over a decade.

As mentioned above, we are about to dive into spoiler land here, so turn back now if you don’t want to know anymore!

Also, if you DO plan on playing Alyx, I'd highly recommend holding off on reading this. It's a pretty awesome surprise to experience yourself.

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-valve-game-review&captions=true"]

Avoiding any specific details that relate to Half-Life: Alyx’s story, the post-credits scene is likely a setup for a new Half-Life game to pick up almost exactly where Half-Life 2: Episode 2 left off 13 years ago.

In the scene, the player sees through the eyes of Gordon Freeman instead of Alyx Vance. It takes place just after the final moments of Episode 2, and Freeman is handed his signature crowbar as a character tells him “we’ve got work to do.”

It’s unclear if this is a setup for a Half-Life 2: Episode 3, a proper Half-Life 3, or – if it’s another VR-only game – something along the lines of “Half-Life: Gordon” in the same way we just got Alyx. Regardless, the message that Valve plans to finally continue this story feels fairly unambiguous – something they’ve even said in interviews recently.

If you do want all the spoiler-filled details (maybe you don’t have VR and just want to know what happens), then we have a full ending explanation here. Also be sure to check out our review of Half-Life: Alyx, and read Valve explaining why it never made Episode 3 13 years ago. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Tom Marks is IGN's Deputy Reviews Editor and resident pie maker. You can follow him on Twitter.

SPOILER WARNING for Half-Life: Alyx. We’ll be avoiding all story spoilers that aren’t relevant to the tease itself, but know that we ARE discussing a scene from the very end of Alyx if you plan to keep reading.

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/23/half-life-alyx-review"]

[poilib element="accentDivider"]

Half-Life: Alyx launched Monday morning, but it may already be setting up another Half-Life game – and it could be the proper sequel we’ve all been waiting for for over a decade.

As mentioned above, we are about to dive into spoiler land here, so turn back now if you don’t want to know anymore!

Also, if you DO plan on playing Alyx, I'd highly recommend holding off on reading this. It's a pretty awesome surprise to experience yourself.

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-valve-game-review&captions=true"]

Avoiding any specific details that relate to Half-Life: Alyx’s story, the post-credits scene is likely a setup for a new Half-Life game to pick up almost exactly where Half-Life 2: Episode 2 left off 13 years ago.

In the scene, the player sees through the eyes of Gordon Freeman instead of Alyx Vance. It takes place just after the final moments of Episode 2, and Freeman is handed his signature crowbar as a character tells him “we’ve got work to do.”

It’s unclear if this is a setup for a Half-Life 2: Episode 3, a proper Half-Life 3, or – if it’s another VR-only game – something along the lines of “Half-Life: Gordon” in the same way we just got Alyx. Regardless, the message that Valve plans to finally continue this story feels fairly unambiguous – something they’ve even said in interviews recently.

If you do want all the spoiler-filled details (maybe you don’t have VR and just want to know what happens), then we have a full ending explanation here. Also be sure to check out our review of Half-Life: Alyx, and read Valve explaining why it never made Episode 3 13 years ago. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Tom Marks is IGN's Deputy Reviews Editor and resident pie maker. You can follow him on Twitter.

Zombieland screenwriters Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese have uploaded script pages from the original movie featuring celebrity cameos that never happened. The writers of the film always envisioned a celebrity cameo during the scene where the four main characters break into a Hollywood mansion. Bill Murray ended up with the role, but Wernick says they wrote out "a dozen or so" scenarios for that scene with different celebrities. Wernick mentions Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Kevin Bacon, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Joe Pesci, Matthew McConaughey and more on Twitter. So far, script pages for Patrick Swayze, Sylvester Stallone and Mark Hamill have been uploaded. "Since we’re all currently living in #zombieland, @rhettreese & I thought it’d be fun to take you behind the curtain, back to the early days," Wernick said in a post on Twitter. "The role Bill Murray played started in the original draft as Patrick Swayze. Patrick tragically got sick and we never had the opp [sic] to offer him the part. But we did WRITE IT. Along with a dozen or so [for different celebrities]. @rhettreese and I are going to post a new scene every day, as written, just, well, just because…" [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/10/15/zombieland-double-tap-cast-rewatch-zombielands-best-scenes-10-years-later"] The Swayze script was uploaded by Wernick in four parts on Thursday. Wernick notes that most of the characters had different names at this time. Jesse Eisenberg's character was originally Flagstaff, Woody Harrelson's character was once named Albuquerque and Abigail Breslin's character was Stillwater. And, Swayze is already a zombie when the characters pull up to the mansion whereas Bill Murray was pretending to be one. The scene starts off with Harrelson's character imitating Road House and ends with Harrelson performing a move from Dirty Dancing that sends Zombie Swayze head-first into a pillar.

pic.twitter.com/2HSZ3OourN

— Paul Wernick (@paulwernick) March 19, 2020

Reese uploaded the Stallone version to Twitter on Friday. "We sent this to Mr. Stallone... but his schedule / better judgment thwarted our plans," Reese said. In this version, all of the characters' names match the ones from the final movie and Stallone is also a zombie from the very beginning. Hamill's version was posted on Wernick's Twitter on Saturday. Hamill is also a zombie the whole time and eventually has his arm cut off in a moment that mimics his dismemberment from The Empire Strikes Back. "So a no-go on Swayze & [Stallone]. Our fearless leader, [producer Gavin Polone,] called: ‘Fire up the [Mark Hamill] draft' We would not be deterred," Wernick wrote on Twitter. "#BillMurray hadn’t yet been mentioned, for we would have never in our wildest imagination thought we could get him." "So we used the force. And got a forceful f*** no," Wernick wrote. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=zombieland-columbuss-full-list-of-rules-to-survive-the-zombie-apocalypse&captions=true"] All's well that ends well. The Zombieland crew eventually attracted Murray to the role and the rest is history. The movie received critical praise on its release in 2009 and ended up making over $100 million at the box office on a budget of $23.6 million, according to The Numbers. A sequel was released in October 2019. The Numbers says the sequel grossed $122 million at the box office on a budget of $48 million. Did you know that Ryan Reynolds almost ended up as a celebrity cameo in Zombieland 2? Also, check out a side-by-side comparison of the original Zombieland cast with themselves 10 years later. For more Zombieland goodness, here are 6 details you may have forgotten about the original movie. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN who LOVES Zombieland and will gladly be in the theater every 10 years for a sequel.

Zombieland screenwriters Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese have uploaded script pages from the original movie featuring celebrity cameos that never happened. The writers of the film always envisioned a celebrity cameo during the scene where the four main characters break into a Hollywood mansion. Bill Murray ended up with the role, but Wernick says they wrote out "a dozen or so" scenarios for that scene with different celebrities. Wernick mentions Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Kevin Bacon, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Joe Pesci, Matthew McConaughey and more on Twitter. So far, script pages for Patrick Swayze, Sylvester Stallone and Mark Hamill have been uploaded. "Since we’re all currently living in #zombieland, @rhettreese & I thought it’d be fun to take you behind the curtain, back to the early days," Wernick said in a post on Twitter. "The role Bill Murray played started in the original draft as Patrick Swayze. Patrick tragically got sick and we never had the opp [sic] to offer him the part. But we did WRITE IT. Along with a dozen or so [for different celebrities]. @rhettreese and I are going to post a new scene every day, as written, just, well, just because…" [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/10/15/zombieland-double-tap-cast-rewatch-zombielands-best-scenes-10-years-later"] The Swayze script was uploaded by Wernick in four parts on Thursday. Wernick notes that most of the characters had different names at this time. Jesse Eisenberg's character was originally Flagstaff, Woody Harrelson's character was once named Albuquerque and Abigail Breslin's character was Stillwater. And, Swayze is already a zombie when the characters pull up to the mansion whereas Bill Murray was pretending to be one. The scene starts off with Harrelson's character imitating Road House and ends with Harrelson performing a move from Dirty Dancing that sends Zombie Swayze head-first into a pillar.

pic.twitter.com/2HSZ3OourN

— Paul Wernick (@paulwernick) March 19, 2020

Reese uploaded the Stallone version to Twitter on Friday. "We sent this to Mr. Stallone... but his schedule / better judgment thwarted our plans," Reese said. In this version, all of the characters' names match the ones from the final movie and Stallone is also a zombie from the very beginning. Hamill's version was posted on Wernick's Twitter on Saturday. Hamill is also a zombie the whole time and eventually has his arm cut off in a moment that mimics his dismemberment from The Empire Strikes Back. "So a no-go on Swayze & [Stallone]. Our fearless leader, [producer Gavin Polone,] called: ‘Fire up the [Mark Hamill] draft' We would not be deterred," Wernick wrote on Twitter. "#BillMurray hadn’t yet been mentioned, for we would have never in our wildest imagination thought we could get him." "So we used the force. And got a forceful f*** no," Wernick wrote. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=zombieland-columbuss-full-list-of-rules-to-survive-the-zombie-apocalypse&captions=true"] All's well that ends well. The Zombieland crew eventually attracted Murray to the role and the rest is history. The movie received critical praise on its release in 2009 and ended up making over $100 million at the box office on a budget of $23.6 million, according to The Numbers. A sequel was released in October 2019. The Numbers says the sequel grossed $122 million at the box office on a budget of $48 million. Did you know that Ryan Reynolds almost ended up as a celebrity cameo in Zombieland 2? Also, check out a side-by-side comparison of the original Zombieland cast with themselves 10 years later. For more Zombieland goodness, here are 6 details you may have forgotten about the original movie. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Petey Oneto is a freelance writer for IGN who LOVES Zombieland and will gladly be in the theater every 10 years for a sequel.

There's a large time gap separating the events of God of War III and 2018's God of War, and now fans will finally learn what happened to Kratos during that lost era. As revealed by CBR, Dark Horse Comics is bridging the gap between the two games in the form of a new series called God of War: Fallen God. Unlike Dark Horse's previous God of War comic, which takes place shortly before the events of the PlayStation 4 game, Fallen God is set further back in the franchise's timeline. The series will trace Kratos' journey after defeating Zeus, Athena and the remaining Greek pantheon in God of War III. Even as Kratos attempts to move on and start a new family, he finds himself grappling with mental instability and the realization that he's his own worst enemy. [caption id="attachment_232441" align="aligncenter" width="696"] God of War: Fallen God #1 cover by Dave Rapoza. (Image Credit: Dark Horse)[/caption] Dark Horse's official solicitation teases:

God of War: Fallen God follows Kratos after conquering Zeus and thwarting Athena. Believing himself to be finally free of his bondage, he sets sail for the desert in an attempt to distance himself from his home and his shame only to find his rage and guilt follow close behind. Kratos rages against the one foe that has proven to be unconquerable—himself. But a war against oneself is unwinnable, and only invites madness.

Fallen God reunites the creative team behind the previous God of War comic, writer Chris Roberson and artist Tony Parker. They'll also be joined by colorist Dan Jackson, letterer John Roshell and cover artist Dave Rapoza. Look for the first issue to release on June 24, 2020. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-god-of-war-review&captions=true"] Fallen God should help tide over fans hungry for a sequel to the 2018 game. Currently we only know that Sony has named a new head of its Santa Monica Studio to oversee a mystery project. Here's a breakdown of what each of Sony's first party studios are working on right now, and our picks for the nine sequels that could make the PlayStation 5 a force to be reckoned with. Let us know whether you'll be reading God of War: Fallen God in the comments below. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/01/07/5-ways-god-of-war-2-could-be-better-than-the-first"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

There's a large time gap separating the events of God of War III and 2018's God of War, and now fans will finally learn what happened to Kratos during that lost era. As revealed by CBR, Dark Horse Comics is bridging the gap between the two games in the form of a new series called God of War: Fallen God. Unlike Dark Horse's previous God of War comic, which takes place shortly before the events of the Playstation 4 game, Fallen God is set further back in the franchise's timeline. The series will trace Kratos' journey after defeating Zeus, Athena and the remaining Greek pantheon in God of War III. Even as Kratos attempts to move on and start a new family, he finds himself grappling with mental instability and the realization that he's his own worst enemy. [caption id="attachment_232441" align="aligncenter" width="696"] God of War: Fallen God #1 cover by Dave Rapoza. (Image Credit: Dark Horse)[/caption] Dark Horse's official solicitation teases:

God of War: Fallen God follows Kratos after conquering Zeus and thwarting Athena. Believing himself to be finally free of his bondage, he sets sail for the desert in an attempt to distance himself from his home and his shame only to find his rage and guilt follow close behind. Kratos rages against the one foe that has proven to be unconquerable—himself. But a war against oneself is unwinnable, and only invites madness.

Fallen God reunites the creative team behind the previous God of War comic, writer Chris Roberson and artist Tony Parker. They'll also be joined by colorist Dan Jackson, letterer John Roshell and cover artist Dave Rapoza. Look for the first issue to release on June 24, 2020. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-god-of-war-review&captions=true"] Fallen God should help tide over fans hungry for a sequel to the 2018 game -- currently we only know that Sony has named a new head of its Santa Monica Studio to oversee a mystery project. Here's a breakdown of what each of Sony's first party studios are working on right now, and our picks for the nine sequels that could make the Playstation 5 a force to be reckoned with. Let us know whether you'll be reading God of War: Fallen God in the comments below. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/01/07/5-ways-god-of-war-2-could-be-better-than-the-first"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons comes with a built-in photo mode, and some fans are using it to recreate a memorable scene from The Lighthouse. The Lighthouse, which stars Williem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, depicts two lighthouse keepers who begin to go insane while stranded at their post. At one point, Defoe's character tells Pattinson's that it is "bad luck to kill a seabird," and now Animal Crossing fans are staging that moment within New Horizons. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="legacyId=20089295&captions=true"] Gulliver the seagull frequently washes up onto player's beaches in New Horizons, and players are supposed to help him repair his communication device so he can get in contact with his crew. Before waking him up, however, some players are using his washed up appearance as an opportunity to reference The Lighthouse. Using the photo mode's black and white setting, and equipping a tool to pose next to Gulliver with, fans are turning New Horizon's charming, friendly art style into a chilling recreation of Robert Eggers' film.

I seen you sparring with a gull. Best leave them be. Bad luck to kill a seabird. #AnimalCrossing #ACNH pic.twitter.com/xAYMviQJNs

— Skeleton McGhee (@SkeletonMcGhee) March 23, 2020

 

bad luck to kill a seabird pic.twitter.com/oCWcyDLbh6

— Sarah  (@damainwayne) March 22, 2020

  For some friendlier news on Animal Crossing: New Horizons, check out IGN's New Horizons review, where we call the game "amazing." Or, if you want help improving your new deserted island home, check out our Animal Crossing: New Horizons wiki, including essential tips and tricks to get started in New Horizons. Story originally reported by Polygon. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/20/animal-crossing-new-horizons-how-to-unlock-everything"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Logan Plant is a news writer for IGN, and the Production Assistant for Nintendo Voice Chat, IGN's weekly Nintendo show. You can find him on Twitter at @LoganJPlant.