Summary
Easter eggs in gaming are hidden things tucked away in secret areas, game files, and code that can entertain, shock, or even scare the player. Whether it’s a ghostly figure staring from behind a wall, a room that defies logic, or a whisper that plays when no one else is around, these spooky secrets walk the line between playful and unsettling. And they are hard to forget, due to how unexpected they can be.
They’re not usually part of the main story, but stumbling across one can cause quite a scare, or leave the player thinking about what they have just seen long after the game is shut off. Here are some of the clever references, bone-chilling scares, and immersion-breaking horrors in virtual worlds that developers added with a twisted sense of humor to keep players up at night.
InDead By Daylight’s Yamaoka Estate realm, specifically, the Sanctum of Wrath map, there sits a shrine and an abundance of Buddha-like statues. Possibly once abundant with worship and pristine, it sits abandoned, moss-covered, and within the entity’s realm. As an eerie detail, the statues will follow the player, never moving closer, but always staring at them.
This could be indicative of the entity’s ever-looming presence and its spectatorship of the realm, and its sacrifices. Its eyes are fixated on the survivors' frantic attempts to survive, and the sacrifices made in its name within a once-holy site. This Easter egg, although subtle, becomes impossible to ignore after noticing it.
As one of the highest-grossing and child-friendly gaming franchises in the world, many would not expect thePokémonvideo games to be creepy (unless they read the Pokédex). However,Pokémonfeatures a plethora of eerie stories and secrets. One scary detail is found in many installments: ghosts. Whether it is the old château inDiamond and Pearl, the girl and her Abra inBlack and White, or the little girl during the battle against Phoebe inOmega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire,these ghosts will send shivers down spines.
The most iconic of these ghost girls is inPokémon X andY. In a random office building in Lumiose City, if the player takes the elevator to the second floor, their screen will flicker black, and a ghost girl will move with no walk animation and say, “No, you are not the one…” She then vanishes, and nothing ever comes of the interaction. It is an unsettling occurrence and leaves questions that have never been answered.
Doom 3stands as the franchise’s “ugly stepchild” due to its departure from the series’traditional run-and-gun chaos. Instead, it leans into a slower pace and a survival horror atmosphere. Despite the divide in fan opinion, many appreciated its tense, atmospheric gameplay and psychological scares.
One memorable moment happens early in the game, after the player acquires their first weapon. Initially, a marine emerges from a bathroom, and everything inside appears normal. But after returning with the weapon, the scene takes a dark turn. The bathroom is now splattered with blood, and when the player looks in the mirror, the screen flashes red as the Doom Marine’s reflection morphs into a demonic form. As if that weren’t unsettling enough, an Imp crashes the party, attacking the player in the confined space.
Kids who grew up in the early 2000s will remember the nightmaresthatFinal Destinationgave them. One of the more notorious deaths happens in the third installment, involving two women, Ashley and Ashlyn. They make the unwise decision of using a sunbed and, due to an unfortunate wooden plank, their tan turns into a death trap that burns them alive.
Crime Scene Cleanerpays homage to this iconic death. The player can find a familiar sunbed and a charred corpse that met a grisly end due to a fallen statue that ironically depicts the Egyptian god of death, Anubis. This is both terrifying, and a nightmare for Kolvalsky’s mop and sponge.
Players exploring Mount Gordo at night may find the ghost of a girl at 11 p.m. If they approach, she’ll disappear, and they will see the word “Jock” written in blood on the ground. Looking up Jock on the internet withinGTA 5, they will find the website of the Conservative Candidate for Governor of San Andreas, Jock Cranley. However, the smoking gun is on an unrelated site, “Who Killed Leonora Johnson?” On this site, there is a news clipping that names the ghost as Jolene Cranley-Evans. She and Jock had marital issues, and according to reports, “she had fallen” to her death during an argument while overlooking the El Gordo lighthouse.
However, what truly happened is also revealed in the paper: Jock wanted to become a stuntman and leave for Los Santos. His wife wanted to remain in Blaine County to look after her parents and run their thriving guest house. This conflict led to disputes, and Jock threw Jolene off the cliff. Her father, Jeb Evans, pled with the police to launch a thorough investigation, but they never did. Now, Jolene haunts the location of her graphic murder.
The innovative shooterHalf-Life 2contains one of the most notorious Easter eggs in gaming. The headcrab zombies' painful screams alone are unnerving, but upon reversing the audio, it becomes outright horrifying. The player is not just killing mindless zombies. Rather, the person underneath the headcrab is conscious, the screams and moans intermittent with hopeless pleas, like “God, help me.”
Headcrabs burrow into the skull of their victims and control the host’s nervous system. Afterward, the host undergoes mutations, notably clawed appendages. This Easter egg confirms that the host is aware of this and in pain, which makes their screams much more harrowing.
PayDay 2at first may seem like a standard FPS about dangerous heists, but there are many downright spooky heists. The most notable scary level is “No Mercy,” based on Mercy Hospital inLeft 4 Dead,where that series' “zombie” outbreak began.
In the No Mercy heist, players see who patient 0 was and observe their worsening condition, as they bleed and grow boils. In addition to witnessing the start of a worldwide outbreak, players can be jump scared byThe Witch fromLeft 4 Dead. The Witch can also be heard crying on several other levels in the game.
Ark: Survival Ascendedis full of eerie details. However, one creepy Easter egg is not well known among the player base. On the aberration map in the hazard zone, a waterfall can be found. The player will need a hazard suit, a pickaxe, and a Cosmo or rock drake to travel up the waterfall. Upon reaching the top, go to the far right and mine the rock to find a crystal cave. Travel to the end, and mine the floor. A secret room is revealed, featuring a freakish number of bones anda giant skeletonsitting in the center.
Some fans have believed this to be the molt of antagonist Rockwell early in his transformation due to his experimentation with the liquid element. However, it is a reference to the horror movieThe Empty Man,and the skeletal totem that appears in the film. The movie has gained a cult-like following, but its poor box office performance undoubtedly contributes to the Easter egg’s misinterpretation.
InPsychonauts, Milla Vodello is the cheerful, stylish levitation coach known for her upbeat personality and disco-themed mind. Her level, “Milla’s Dance Party,” seems fun on the surface — bright lights, dancing, and floating through rhythmic platforms. But hidden deep inside her mind is a creepy and tragic Easter egg.
There’s a secret room in the floating platforms section, where players will see figments of children playing. A memory vault nearby reveals her past: Milla once cared for children in an orphanage that burned down while she was away. Upon entering a toy box in the corner of the room, players are transported to a twisted nightmare. The music stops, replaced by the whispers of the kids asking for help and recalling the pain from the fire. Upon exiting, the music returns like nothing happened.
OMORIis a surreal turn-based RPG that has the player battling people, bunnies, and even shark planes. Players navigate multiple worlds: headspace, a vibrant dream world with childhood friends, white space, black space, and the real world.OMORIisdeceptively dark with a downright heartbreaking narrative. It is not scary in the traditional sense; rather, a psychological horror. However, there are a few jarring jump scares and unsettling moments, like the mirror scare.
This requires the player to interact with the floating mirrors in headspace. Usually, a text box will appear stating, “Your friends smile warmly behind you.” But on an odd occasion, the faces will warp, and a sound queue plays. It is unsettling, surprising, and downright eerie.
