The first use of the term “Easter Egg” is widely attributed to Steve Wright, then director of software development at Atari, circa 1980. He was, of course, referring to the now classic hidden credit room in Warren Robinett’s Adventure for the Atari 2600. Since then, people have made it their mission to scour the nooks and crannies of games, looking for any interesting hidden secrets the developers may have tried to sneak in. So, while the kiddos go outside to search for actual Easter Eggs, let’s take a look at 5 of the greatest video game Easter Eggs of all time.
Mortal Kombat Easter Egg
5. Secret Reptile Fight, Mortal Kombat (1992)
In the early ’90s, the fighting game scene was being dominated by Capcom’s juggernaut Street Fighter II. But a new challenger was about to take the genre by storm. Mortal Kombat brought a brutal, bloody style of gameplay to the genre, and would give both Capcom’s and SNK’s various fighting franchises a run for their quarters.
Over the course of the Mortal Kombat franchise’s life, there have been many hidden Easter Eggs to discover. Secrets like “Toasty” and “ABACABBA” are practically synonymous with the game. But the original makes the list because it’s the one that started it all. When you are on the Pit stage of the game, and you see a silhouette fly past the full moon on the stage, win the match with a double Flawless Victory without using block, successfully do the fatality, and you will be transported to the bottom of the stage. Here, you will battle Reptile, a green palette-swapped ninja character with the ability to turn invisible and spit venom.
Like other hidden characters in the series, Reptile would become a selectable character in subsequent sequels. But he started as Mortal Kombat’s OG Easter Egg.
Doom II Easter Egg
4. Romero’s Head, Doom II (1994)
When you talk about the first-person shooter (FPS) genre, id Software will likely immediately come to mind. The original Wolfenstein 3D helped to define the genre as we know it today, but the follow-up, Doom, really put the game style on the map. More variety in level design, better graphics, and faster action made it one of the most cloned games in computer game history. id’s sequel, Doom II, built on the original, allowing even more variety in level design and introducing new enemies and weapons.
Another thing the series is known for is its use of secrets, including hidden doors and switches, which give the player access to weapons, ammo, and power-ups. Beyond that, Doom and its sequels have their share of Easter Eggs that intrepid explorers have managed to dig up. Unlike some games, many of these Easter Eggs require the player to cheat in order to locate them, making them that much more difficult to find. One of the most famous is John Romero’s decapitated head hidden behind the wall in Doom II’s final boss area. In order to see it, you need to use the NOCLIP cheat in order to pass through the wall. But, once you do, you will behold one of the most metal Easter Eggs ever, and a sly in-joke from id Software’s designers.
Batman: Arkham Asylum Easter Egg
3. Warden’s Office Teasing Arkham City, Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009)
Much like movies and television series, video games based on comic properties have been hit or miss. For every game like Capcom’s X-Men: Children of the Atom, there is a Superman 64. Developers Rocksteady Studios managed a home run with the Arkham series of 3D action Batman games. The games told a compelling story, using immersive gameplay, smooth fighting mechanics, and recognizable characters, locations, and technology from the DC universe.
Rocksteady managed to hide a particularly interesting Easter Egg in this first entry in the Arkham series. If you go to the Warden’s office in the asylum, locate the blank wall. Place three explosive gel charges, and you will open a hole in the wall. On the other side, you will find a hidden part of the office that includes clues and blueprints that point to Arkham City, which would become the sequel to Arkham Asylum in 2011. It’s interesting to see the developers teasing the game before pretty much anyone would have known to look for anything related to it. Certainly one of the most interesting Easter Eggs on the list.
Day of the Tentacle Easter Egg
2. Fully Playable Maniac Mansion, Maniac Mansion II: Day of the Tentacle (1993)
Throughout the ’80s and ’90s, LucasArts was responsible for some of the most immersive gameplay experiences on 8- and 16-bit micros. Game series like Monkey Island and Sam & Max, and games like Loom and The Dig, were all incredible point-and-click adventure games that helped to define the genre. One of the most famous, and the one that started it all for LucasArts, was Maniac Mansion. The game engine acronym was even coined because of the game (SCUMM, Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion). The game itself is a love letter to classic sci-fi B-movies from the ’50s, including a mad scientist, a damsel in distress, and a creepy old house. The sequel, Day of the Tentacle, amps up the cheese while keeping the humor and strong storytelling of the original intact.
The Easter Egg here is a type we have seen in other games, such as Donkey Kong 64 and the GameCube version of Animal Crossing, which hide fully playable games within another game. Maniac Mansion II is somewhat unique here in that you get the opportunity to play the entire original Maniac Mansion in the game. This makes it one of the few times where the direct sequel to a game includes the original as an Easter Egg. To access it, you simply have to use the computer in Weird Ed’s bedroom. That’s it. Have fun playing one of the best point-and-click adventures inside the sequel to one of the best point-and-click adventures.
Atari 2600 Adventure Easter Egg
1. Warren Robinett’s Hidden Room, Adventure for the Atari 2600 (1980)
Here it is. One of the original video game Easter Eggs, and the one that led to the term being coined in the first place. Adventure was a classic Atari 2600 game and one of the first action-adventure fantasy games ever released. It has since been viewed as one of the most influential games ever released, introducing features such as open-world gameplay and enemies that continue moving even while off-screen.
While it is not the first Easter Egg hidden in a video game, it has become one of the most well-known, even serving as a key plot point in the book Ready Player One and its movie adaptation. It is certainly one of the hardest ones to find on your own. You won’t trigger it by accident, and there is no real puzzle to solve. First, you must be playing the game on either difficulty 2 or 3. You need to find a single grey pixel hidden in the Black Castle catacombs. Pick it up, and then carry it, along with at least two other objects, to the east end of the corridor below the Golden Castle. The wall at the end will begin blinking rapidly, allowing you to enter a hidden room. Here, you will find the text “Created by Warren Robinett” flashing colors in the center of the room. If you’ve managed to successfully trigger this classic Easter Egg, consider yourself an egg hunter extraordinaire.
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