Month: September 2020

Ryan Reynolds Brings Rick Moranis Out of Retirement for New Commercial

Ryan Reynolds is known for a lot of things. He’s Deadpool, he made that Green Lantern movie years ago, he’s the voice of Pikachu, and he’s one of the main reasons people probably know about cellphone service company Mint Mobile.

He can now add “person able to coax actors out of retirement” to his resume as well after bringing comedy legend Rick Moranis out of his acting retirement for the latest Mint Mobile commercial.

“It’s hard to believe that Mint Mobile has gone so long without an unlimited plan so to introduce it, we brought in an actor that we’ve all gone too long without: Rick Moranis,” Reynolds says before the famed actor steps onto the screen.

Moranis plays into this and asks Reynolds what he wants him to do and it’s at this point that Reynolds reveals he’s brought him out of retirement because he’s just a huge fan like the rest of us. Moranis leaves the commercial just as quickly as he walked on and the video ends with a quick slide showing Mint Mobile’s actual reason for the commercial: its new unlimited plan.

Does maybe 5 seconds of this video revolve around the actual unlimited service plan? Yes. Does the other 35 seconds focus on Moranis? Yes, and we are all very thankful for it. Perhaps Moranis enjoyed this job enough that he’ll return to acting but chances are he won’t as Moranis has been pretty good at actually staying retired.

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We do, at least, know that he’s coming out of retirement for some time in the future to appear in Disney’s Honey, I Shrunk the Kids sequel. For more Moranis, check out our list of the best 1980s movies streaming on Netflix, of which Moranis is featured in some, and then check out what we think the 10 best ’80s action movies are.

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Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

The Walking Dead Is Finally Coming To An End, New Spin-Off Announced

After 11 seasons and countless deaths–both human and zombie–AMC’s premiere horror series The Walking Dead is coming to an end. However, this announcement doesn’t mean the end of the zombie-infested world the network has built: It’s just the beginning.

The Walking Dead will finish with Season 11. The final season will consist of 24 episodes, which will begin in late 2021, according to Variety. The new episodes will run through late 2022, so while the announcement of the show’s end may come as quite a shock, there are still two more years of The Walking Dead coming to AMC.

However, joining The Walking Dead universe is a new spin-off focusing on the characters Daryl and Carol. That show won’t hit AMC until 2023, though. The series doesn’t have a title yet, but it will see Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride reprise their roles from the main TWD series. Both Daryl and Carol are the only cast members who have been on the show since Season 1.

The new series is co-created by Angela Kang and Scott Gimple–who is also developing an anthology series with the working title of Tales of the Walking Dead. Previously, Kang has been a writer and producer on the main TWD series. She’ll be the showrunner of the Carol and Daryl show. “I look forward to digging in with our brilliant writers, producers, directors, cast and crew to bring this epic final chapter of Robert Kirkman’s story to life for our fans over the next two years,” said Kang. “The Walking Dead flagship series has been my creative home for a decade and so it’s bittersweet to bring it to an end, but I could not be more excited to be working with Scott Gimple and AMC to develop a new series for Daryl and Carol. Working with Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride has been a highlight of my career and I’m thrilled that we get to keep telling stories together.”

This new show will join The World Beyond and Fear The Walking Dead. The World Beyond was delayed by the coronavirus, but it now has a premiere date of October 4. Additionally, Fear The Walking Dead will return for Season 6 on October 1. During Comic-Con@Home, we got to see the first trailer for the new season.

Sid Meier Confirms Nuclear Gandhi Is Sadly Just A Myth

In all of gaming lore, there is no tale as whimsical as that of Nuclear Gandhi, the story that tells of how a programming quirk turned the famously non-violent Indian leader into an aggressive warmonger with a penchant for nukes. While there have been attempts to debunk the story over the years, Sid Meier has finally come out and said that Nuclear Gandhi is, in fact, a figment of our collective imaginations.

The original story, for those who are unfamiliar, claims that in the original Civilization, Gandhi was given the lowest possible aggression rating, as befits a figure of his reputation. However the bug occurred when a player adopted democracy, which would reduce aggression automatically by two. With Gandhi already at an aggression rating of one and the program unable to handle negative numbers, it would cycle back around to give the Indian leader an aggression rating of 255, the highest in the game. From there, Gandhi would become a fearsome monster as soon as he had possession of nukes.

In subsequent games, the story claims, the programmers gave Gandhi a higher aggression as an easter egg, calling back to the original story. The only problem is–none of it is true.

Sid Meier has written in his memoir, as quoted by Bloomberg, that there was no such bug in the original Civilization, and that the story itself is based on an incorrect premise–though he does enjoy the joke. “It’s one of those mysteries that it’s almost fun to keep mysterious,” Meier said.

This attitude was mirrored in a letter sent to Chris Bratt, a journalist who investigated the myth of Nuclear Gandhi for People Make Games last year. “In some ways, it may be best not to know,” Meier’s letter to Bratt read. “Given the limited technology of the time, the original Civ was a game that took place mainly in the player’s imagination… I’d be reluctant to limit what that player can imagine by introducing too many of my thoughts,” he said.

Now, the cat’s out of the bag on the original story–but if you would rather believe that Nuclear Gandhi actually happened, I’m sure Sid Meier wouldn’t mind.

Now Playing: Making Life Epic: A Lookback at Sid Meier’s Beloved Classics

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Madden 21 Is Free To Play This Weekend To Celebrate Kaepernick’s Return And NFL Season Start

Looking for something to play this coming weekend but don’t want to spend any money? EA Sports is offering Madden NFL 21 for free this Thursday through Sunday to celebrate Colin Kaepernick’s return to the game and the start of the NFL season.

The free weekend runs from Thursday, September 10 through Sunday, September 13, and presumably all platforms are supported–PS4, Xbox One, and PC.

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Kaepernick’s return to the Madden series seemingly came out of nowhere. He is currently not signed to any team, and he hasn’t been in the Madden series since 2016 when he played for the San Francisco 49ers.

The QB became the focal point of controversy after taking a knee during the national anthem in 2016 to raise awareness of police brutality and racial inequality in America. He’s not currently signed by an NFL team although he has said he hopes to continue his playing career in the NFL.

Madden 21 added a series of new player-specific celebrations, and Kaepernick’s is the raised fist as a symbol of Black Power that he used during his last season in the NFL.

Players can use Kaepernick as a QB for any team in Madden 21’s Play Now mode. Additionally, players can sign him to their team in Franchise mode.

Although he hasn’t played professional football in years, EA used historical data and other simulations to give Kaepernick an 81 OVR rating.

Madden NFL 21 received some of the worst review scores in years, including a 6/10 from GameSpot, but if you’re curious, the low price of $0.00 may be an attractive option.

The NFL season begins on September 10 with last year’s Super Bowl champions the Kansas City Chiefs taking on the Houston Texans.

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Don’t Expect Any PS5 Announcements This Week

While this week has been big for next-gen Xbox news (even if Microsoft didn’t actually intend to announce it this week), Sony has made it clear that they will not be following suit–at least not immediately. While there will be new PlayStation news, Sony has promised it will be about the games and the PSVR, not the new console.

Earlier this week, a reputable leak revealed the long-rumored Xbox Series S, along with a price of $299 and a November 10 release date. The leak led Microsoft to spill the beans, confirming those details were correct and officially launching the Xbox Series S. The leak suggested the Series X would also release on November 10, with a price of $499, though those details haven’t yet been confirmed by Microsoft.

Anyone expecting Sony to immediately follow suit with their pricing and release date for the PS5 will be sorely disappointed, however. In a post on the PlayStation blog, Sony Interactive Entertainment’s Gillen McAlister announced a PSVR spotlight, which would include new game announcements and updates focused on the PSVR throughout the week.

A disclaimer in the post reads: “this is all about the games. So to manage expectations, there’ll be no PS5-related news.” While Sony has previously confirmed that the current PSVR headset will work with the PS5, this disclaimer also likely refers to the rumored second-gen PSVR 2.

With some of the next-gen Xbox details now out in the open, however, it’s only a matter of time until Sony drops official news on the PS5. In the meantime, check out everything we currently know about the PlayStation 5.

Now Playing: PlayStation 5 – The Future Of Gaming Teaser Trailer

Destiny 2 Festival Of The Lost Event Skins Have Leaked

With Halloween still a while away, a handful of Destiny 2‘s Festival of the Lost items for 2020 have been leaked by a dataminer. The early promo images show a Dracula-themed Warlock, werewolf Hunter, and Titan as Frankenstein’s monster.

Festival of the Lost has been a yearly event in Destiny 2, offering unique items, a new limited currency called “candy”, and a bunch of Halloween masks to unlock. It’s likely the Festival of the Lost in 2020 will run along the same lines, so check out last year’s event to know what kind of challenges and rewards you can expect.

The leaked images show new Halloween costumes for each class, as well as a witch-themed shell complete with a broomstick and cat for Ghost.

Dataminer Ginsor has also posted a video of one of the masks that will be available to players for this year’s festival, the Exo Stranger mask. As with previous years, it’s likely that mask-wearing will be key to completing Halloween-themed events, and we can expect a number of different options to be revealed.

With the Festival of the Dead usually running in the last few days of October, we’re unlikely to see an official announcement from Bungie for at least another month. Players aren’t expecting the festival to be overly ambitious this year, as it comes close to the release of Beyond Light, Destiny 2’s next big expansion due to drop on November 10.

Now Playing: Destiny 2: Beyond Light Trailer | Gamescom 2020

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Xbox Series S: No, Microsoft Did Not Intentionally Leak The News

One theory about the Xbox Series S that has gained traction on social media is that Microsoft intentionally leaked the console to the press to put pressure on Sony. That’s a bunch of baloney according to Xbox developers who worked on the announcement.

Microsoft’s Brad Rossetti said on Twitter, “We all tried so hard to not leak; running global programs is hard and the leak is so frustrating. Yeah great, you got a scoop, but so many better try hard to keep it under wraps for so many reasons.”

Meanwhile, Xbox’s senior marketing manager, Josh Munsee, joked on Twitter that the Series S announcement went exactly as the company planned it.

Following a series of leaks, Microsoft officially announced the Xbox Series S after midnight PT on September 9, and that right there should be evidence enough that revealing the console this way was not the plan. Even before the leaks this week, the Xbox Series S had been an open secret thanks to numerous leaks and reports over the months.

The announcement of the Series S might not have gone to Microsoft’s plan, but the console has been received in a positive light, due in part to a lower price point than many imagined.

The Series S costs $299 and it will be an attractive system for those looking to buy into next-gen without breaking the bank. The console lacks a disc drive, and that may prove to be a deal-breaker for some, however.

The Series S launches on November 10, and that is the same day that Microsoft will reportedly launch the more powerful Xbox Series X for $499 USD.

While Microsoft has begun to share its launch plans for the next-gen Xbox consoles, Sony is keeping that information a secret for now. We still don’t know when the PS5 and the Digital PS5 will release or how much they will cost.

Now Playing: Xbox Series S – World Premiere Price And Release Date Reveal Trailer

Daily Deals: Get 450% More Battery Life for Your Nintendo Switch for Only $24

The Nintendo Switch Labor Day deals continue with the lowest price ever on a 20,000mAh power bank that’s a perfect match for the Switch. You can also get several AAA Nintendo Switch video games like Mario Maker 2 or Splatoon 2 for 33% off.  Even bigger news is that Super Mario 3D All-Stars is up for preorder. You don’t have to wait months to play this game… it’s out in just 10 days.

Deals for September 8

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More Video Game Deals

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PS5 Preorder Guide

The PS5 is out within the year (at least, that’s what we assume) and yet preorder info has been scant. Fortunately for you, we have a preorder guide up with everything we know so far. As soon as we know exactly when preorders go up, we’ll make sure that you’ll have a chance to get your order in.

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Eric Song is IGN’s deal curator and spends roughly 1/4 of his income on stuff he posts. Check out his latest Daily Deals Article and subscribe to his IGN Deals Newsletter.

Nintendo Reportedly Asking Developers to Make 4K-Ready Games, Suggesting Switch Upgrade

Nintendo is reportedly asking developers to make 4K-ready games, which could suggest that a new, higher-resolution console is on the way

A Bloomberg report about Nintendo’s plans to boost Switch production includes a brief mention of Nintendo’s apparent request. Third-party developers have reportedly been asked “to make their games 4K-ready,” which implies the company is at least considering a model of the console that can output at a higher resolution than Switch is currently capable of.

That report comes shortly after we heard rumours of a new Nintendo Switch model with a better display. Those rumours say the console is currently in production, and is due for release in Q1 2021. Rumours of a Switch Pro have been bubbling for some time, with numerous reports arriving in January suggesting that the console would launch later in 2020. Nintendo was quick to bat away these rumours, noting that they had “no plans” to launch a new Nintendo Switch model this year.

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As for the current Switch models, Bloomberg notes that, after recovering from the effects of the Coronavirus on its supply chain, Nintendo has apparently increased production of the console once again to meet demand, with 30 million units set as the new goal for this fiscal year, according to the report’s sources.

In other Nintendo news, demand for the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection has made it the second best-selling game of 2020 on Amazon, coming in just behind Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The Nintendo Switch eShop also just received a series of customer-friendly improvements, such as being able to cancel pre-orders without payment up to a week before release.

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Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.