Game developers are a cheeky bunch. They have been known to hide everything from secret levels to full-length movies inside their games. Sometimes, they take things even further and bury fully-playable games inside other games.
I’ve put together a list of some of the best hidden games within games, including retro and arcade titles that are nearly impossible to find legitimately.
15
DOOM Eternal
DOOM Eternal is the seventh installment in one of the most iconic game series ever created. The first game, DOOM, together with Wolfenstein, pioneered the first-person shooter (FPS) genre, and all the sequels that followed have provided non-stop action for gamers everywhere. Even if you’ve never played any of the games, you’ve probably heard about the original DOOM running on everything from pregnancy tests to alarm clocks.
In DOOM Eternal, you can play both the original DOOM and DOOM 2. To do so, you’ll need to head to the Doom Slayers’ office and interact with the CRT monitor there. Classic DOOM is only playable after you’ve beaten the DOOM Eternal campaign, but you can access DOOM 2 anytime by inputting the password “FLYNNTAGGART.”
Now, here’s a bit of lore for you: in all the DOOM games, the character you play as is never named. Fans of the game just refer to him as Doomguy. However, in the Doom novels, the protagonist is called Flynn Taggart, and the fact that his name unlocks the classic DOOM game feels like a tacit admission that the developers kept the same name.
14
Call of Duty: Black Ops and Black Ops Cold War
If DOOM gave birth to the FPS genre, then Call of Duty raised it. The games simulate military combat across different eras, from World War II to a dystopian future, and are easily some of the most popular in the world.
In Call of Duty: Black Ops and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, you can take a break from slinging bullets to play an interactive fiction game instead. You’ll need to find the secret terminal where the game is hosted first, but once you do, type in the word “Zork” to start the game.
If you’re wondering what a game like Zork is doing in a high-action game like Call of Duty, I can’t help you there, but far be it from me to look a gift horse in its mouth.
13
Homefront: The Revolution
Homefront is another FPS, but this time, set in an alternate timeline where North Korea invades America. It follows the activities of the protagonist, Ethan Brady, as he joins the resistance and attempts to overthrow the occupying army.
While Homefront isn’t particularly well-regarded, it does have one standout feature—a hidden, fully playable port of TimeSplitters 2. Unlike Homefront, TimeSplitters 2 is a beloved FPS classic. Its story follows a space marine traveling through different time periods to retrieve crystals before an alien race can use them to destroy humanity.
Accessing TimeSplitters 2 in Homefront is a bit tricky. First, you’ll need to find the in-game arcade and load up TimeSplitters 2, which initially grants access to the first two levels. To unlock the full version, you’ll need to enter a special code which is different based on what device you’re playing on.
12
Pitfall: The Lost Expedition
Pitfall: The Lost Expedition is a platform adventure game that follows the exploits of Harry, a rough-and-tumble treasure hunter, as he explores the lost city of El Dorado. It was released on the PS2, GameCube, and Xbox, and although it didn’t exactly set the world on fire, it remains a solid game nonetheless.
Locked away inside The Lost Expedition are two extra games—the original Pitfall!, and Pitfall II: The Lost Caverns, both of which were released on the Atari. You can access both games after beating The Lost Expedition, and completing some achievements.
11
Donkey Kong 64
If you’re a fan of arcade games, the Donkey Kong franchise needs no introduction. But for those unfamiliar, Donkey Kong is an iconic Nintendo game featuring a barrel-hurling gorilla that helped define the platformer genre. In Donkey Kong 64, you step into the gorilla’s shoes, embarking on a quest to rescue his kidnapped family.
In Donkey Kong 64, if you collect special items like the Nintendo coin, the Rareware coin, and enough fairy photos, you can unlock both the original Donkey Kong game and Jetpac, a shooter game developed for the ZX Spectrum (a home computer developed in the ’80s).
10
Animal Crossing
You’ve probably heard about Animal Crossing: New Horizons, but it is only the latest installment in a very popular franchise. The original Animal Crossing was released in 2001 for the Game Cube and, much like New Horizons, it’s a cozy social simulation game where you play a human living in a village inhabited by animal characters. The game is open-ended, and you can do anything from chores to fishing and socializing with the villagers.
In the original Animal Crossing, you can obtain up to 19 Nintendo Entertainment System games, including Excitebike, Balloon Fight, Clu Clu Land, Donkey Kong, and Soccer from Nook’s Lottery and other places around the island. Once you get the games, you can play them from within Animal Crossing just like you would on the console.
9
Gotham Knights
Gotham Knights is a 2022 action-adventure RPG developed by Warner Bros Games and set in a universe where Batman is dead. Now it’s up to the rest of the Bat family—Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood, and Robin, to protect the crime-ridden city of Gotham. The game is no Arkham City, but it has a decent story and a well-developed world.
While exploring the world of Gotham Knights, you can make a detour to the Belfry where you will find an arcade cabinet for Spy Hunter—a car combat arcade game developed by Bally Midway in 1983. In the game, Bruce dominates the leaderboard with a score of 300,000, but you’re welcome to try your hand at beating his score.
8
Day of the Tentacle
Day of the Tentacle is a point-and-click adventure comedy game developed by LucasArts in 1993. It is the sequel to the critically acclaimed Maniac Mansion and follows the adventures of three friends as they work together to prevent a mutated purple tentacle from taking over the world. You can play the full Maniac Mansion game on a computer you find inside Day of the Tentacle.
7
Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles
The Castlevania series, along with Metroid, helped define the Metroidvania genre. The Dracula X Chronicles is a PSP remake of an older game in the series—Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. In the game, you play as vampire hunter Richter Belmont, battling through Dracula’s Castle to defeat the dark lord himself.
If you find the right items in the game, you can unlock the original Rondo of Blood on which The Dracula X Chronicles is based, as well as a remastered version of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
6
Metroid: Zero Mission
Metroid Zero Mission is another Nintendo game, this time, developed in 2004, and following the adventures of bounty hunter Samus Aran as she attempts to prevent the Metroids—hostile parasitic creatures, from taking over the universe.
The Metroid games are famous for requiring you to backtrack to unlock areas, but if you manage to complete Zero Mission on any difficulty, you will unlock the original version of Metroid that was released on the NES.
5
Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0 is a beat ’em up style game, where you step into the shoes of junior Yakuza members Kiryu and Majima, experiencing the gritty underworld of 1980s Japan.
Yakuza 0 is packed with minigames, some of which are real-life arcade classics. This was a deliberate move by SEGA to help preserve its games. So, if you track down Club SEGA in the game, you can play fan favorites like Space Harrier, Fantasy Zone, Out Run, and Super Hang-On—just like in a real arcade.
4
Shenmue
Shenmue is another action-adventure game published by SEGA that blends combat, investigation, and open-world exploration. It follows teenage jujitsu artist Ryo Hazuki on his quest to avenge his father’s death. Much like Yakuza 0, Shenmue is packed with arcade titles Space Harrier, Hang On, OutRun, and After Burner.
3
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is the seventh entry in the Wolfenstein series. In it, you attempt to kickstart the second American Revolution and deliver the country from Nazi control. The game was very well-received, winning several awards, and delighting fans of the franchise.
If you explore the home base in Wolfenstein II, you’ll uncover an arcade game where you can play Wolfstone, a game that’s practically identical to Wolfenstein 3D except you play as a Nazi, and you’re hunting members of the Kriesau resistance. The flip makes sense because in the events of The New Colossus, the Nazis have taken over and your home base is a repurposed German U-boat, so it follows that the Nazis would have such a game lying around.
2
Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings
In Staff of Kings, you embark on a quest to find the legendary Staff of Kings—believed to be the very staff Moses used to part the Red Sea. Along the way, you’ll solve puzzles, battle enemies, and overcome obstacles in true Indiana Jones fashion.
The Wii version of the game includes a special bonus: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, letting players experience an earlier adventure in the series.
1
Glittermitten Grove
Glittermitten Grove takes the cake when it comes to games hidden within games. On the surface, it’s a pretty standard base builder game where you sow seeds, pick berries, and light fireworks. It’s so light and whimsical, you’d never suspect that it’s hiding a completely different game inside it.
Squirelled away inside Glittermitten Grove is Frog Fractions 2, the highly anticipated sequel to Frog Fractions, one of the trippiest games ever made. By accessing a secret door in Glittermitten Grove, you can make your way to Frog Fractions 2 proper and proceed to play all the wacky puzzles the game is known for.
If you own any of the games on this list, now’s the perfect time to dust up your old consoles and claim your extra game. Also, if you’re a sucker for old games, you can save yourself some money by buying the corresponding game on this list instead of springing for a physical copy.
