Easter Eggs in Games

"Chicken looks at you quizzically.

Not to say that World of Warcraft doesn't have Easter eggs, of course. In fact, the game's packed with in-jokes, many appearing as NPC names like goblin zepplin operator Hin Denburg (oh, the humanity!). There's a series of quests that bears a pronounced resemblance to the Zelda games, too. But perhaps the most appropriately themed quest starts on a farm over in the low-level human zone, Westfall.

On that farm, you'll find some chickens. Entertain one by performing the chicken dance (type "/chicken" repeatedly) and you'll get a simple quest. Follow the instructions and you'll be rewarded with your own pet prairie chicken that will follow you about faithfully until you put it away.

Entertaining a chicken in World of Warcraft

You'll be the envy of all your friends -- especially if you play as a Horde character on a player-vs.-player server, because grabbing one will require the cooperation of a friendly Alliance player. Good luck with that.

"Snake? Snaaaaaaake!"

Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear series is packed with secrets, Easter eggs, and hidden goodies. We'll pass swiftly over the opportunity to watch Meryl working out in her undies (yes, really, and no, we're not going to tell you how) and move on to more savory pursuits. Like, did you know that Mario and Yoshi make a guest appearance in Twin Snakes, on top of a desk in Otacon's office? Shoot Mario and you'll gain some health back.

Perhaps the most elaborate MGS Easter egg turns up in Snake Eater -- it's a zombie-bashing minigame that bears absolutely no resemblance to anything else in the game. To access it, save your game in the cell immediately after the torture scene. Reload that game and you'll be in Guy Savage's world. Snake wakes up after the game is over, and expresses relief that it was all just a dream -- though, honestly, having just been brutally tortured and imprisoned, we're not sure Guy's reality is any better than Snake's in this case.