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Every year, game developers hide secret content in their titles for eagle-eyed players to find — like John Romero’s severed head in Doom II, the elusive “green ninja ” in Mortal Kombat, and a creepy half-naked man in Halo 2. 2013 is no exception.
Browse through the gallery below to see 10 of the coolest, silliest, most amusing Easter eggs of games released in the last 12 months.
Midway through Star World 1, light up two torches with a Fire Flower to gain access to a secret puzzle room. Step on every black square on the ground to reveal an 8-bit image of Link, get a green star, plus listen to an arranged tune from The Legend of Zelda.
After throwing gas grenades under a garage door on the Struck Down campaign mission, look for a trophy case inside a small office to find some interesting accolades. Notice the rupee-shaped award for “Most bushes cut and pots smashed.” This is a nod to The Legend of Zelda. Look around for other fun references.
As you watch Elizabeth through a glass window near the beginning of the game, she briefly opens a tear to Paris, France. The movie theater to the right is playing La Revanche du Jedi, which is French for Revenge of the Jedi, the original title for Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.
On the campaign level Aftermath – Section 5: Straight to the Top, find and shoot three buckets scattered around the building. When you reach the roof, Locusts will wear buckets on their heads with silly faces painted on them.
The case file called Crime Alley Shootings takes Batman to the spot where his parents died to solve the murders of Horace Riley and Clarissa Rodríguez. As you reconstruct the double homicide in Detective Mode, Thomas and Martha Wayne’s corpses become visible for a split second over their chalk outlines. Blink and you’ll miss it.
After you eavesdrop on Pavel in the Venice strip club, a hooker offers to perform a topless lap dance. Resist the urge to accept and instead turn left to find a pipe with hippie lettuce on a table. Hit the wacky tobacky long enough and you’ll eventually pass out.
The city of Los Santos is packed with evidence of extraterrestrial life — like crop circles, a frozen alien corpse, and multiple UFO sightings.
Once you gain access to the diving bell, visit the Antocha Wreck (coordinates: 630,660) and explore the inside of the sunken ship. Find a window on the right side and stay there for a few seconds. You’ll trigger a cutscene where a giant squid attacks a sperm whale.
About halfway through the campaign mission “Tashgar,” you’ll walk past various idle soldiers. Stand near them to hear some pretty interesting conversations featuring the voices of Machinima’s Battlefield Friends.
Enter the Let’s Pretend store in New Baranec and shoot the basement door open. Inside you’ll find a secret room with cardboard cutouts of the development team, as well as a hidden gun called Loud Locust — a reference to Men in Black’s Noisy Cricket.
