- Google has an Easter egg surprise for fans who search for HBO’s apocalyptic show, “The Last of Us.”
- A mushroom button pops up at the bottom of the screen and fills the results with fungus with each click.
- The show’s fungus is based on the parasitic Cordyceps fungus that takes over the body of its host.
Google has a fungal Easter egg surprise for fans of HBO’s apocalyptic show, “The Last of Us” — all you need to do is Google the title of the show.
Typing “The Last of Us” into Google’s search bar on desktop or mobile brings up a mushroom button at the bottom of the page.
Clicking it begins to fill the screen with fungus.
Fungus starts showing up at the bottom of the screen after clicking the mushroom button the first time.
The more you click on the mushroom, the more fungus spores pop up.
The more you click on the mushroom button, the more fungus shows up.
HBO’s hit show is set in the post-apocalyptic US after a mutant parasitic fungus takes over the world, and is based off of “The Last of Us” video game. Over four million people tuned into the show’s premiere on January 15, with HBO saying it is the second-largest premiere of its streaming era.
At the beginning of the show, two scientists on a talk show in 1968 discuss pandemics, and one warns that fungus is a larger threat to humans than viruses and bacteria. He explains that some fungus can alter human minds the way it does to insects, like ants.
The fungus in the show is based off the parasitic Cordyceps fungus, which mainly infects insects like ants and moths. Searching for “Cordyceps” on Google also gives you a mushroom button.
The infections on the show are inspired by carpenter ants who turn into zombies after being infected by the Cordyceps parasite. Like carpenter ants, the characters on “The Last of Us,” go through four stages of infection.
“The Last of Us” currently has a 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and the first season will cover the first story in the video game. The show’s creators, Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin, have both said they don’t plan to continue the show past where the game ends, which means there could be a second season based on the video game’s sequel.
