10 Video Games HIDDEN Within Other Video Games

“MediEvil” (1998) “MediEvil” (2019)

MediEvil was a cult classic from the early days of the PS1 that had its fair share of fans who were happy to see Sir Daniel Fortesque get a second, second lease on life with a one-to-one remake in 2019. However, the devs didn’t completely forget the fallen knights' roots. By completing all 19 Lost Souls objectives given to Sir Daniel throughout the game’s levels, players will be able to unlock the original MediEvil from the main menu and relive the classic adventure of Sir Daniel. It would have been nice if the developers had included a way to swap back and forth between the remake and the original ala Master Chief Collection but it’s still a nice nod to the past and the classic days of the PS1.

“Maniac Mansion” (1987) “Day of the Tentacle” (1993)

Medievil isn’t the only one who doesn’t forget its roots. During the height of LucasArts as a point and click adventure comedy powerhouse, Tim Schafer and his team delivered a follow-up to their classic Maniac Mansion with Day of the Tentacle. Hidden in plain sight, players can access a computer hidden in the back of Ed’s room and can then play the full version of Maniac Mansion. Maniac Mansion might not have stood the test of time the way Day of the Tentacle has, but it's still a great time capsule that shows the evolution of the studio in only a few short years while paying homage to their early days of hilariously obtuse video games.

“Doom” (1993) “Doom Eternal” (2020)

The phrase “Can it run Doom?” has become a meme at this point with die-hard fans getting the classic FPS to run on everything from a refrigerator to a pregnancy test, and clearly the devs took notice and answered the question of “Can Doom run Doom?” After completing the main campaign, players can return to the Doom Slayer’s room and boot up the original DOOM and play the game in its entirety. You can also unlock DOOM II at any time by inputting the password “FLYNNTAGGERT” which is a clever nod to the Doom Slayer’s true name in the novelization of the Doom series. Neat bit of trivia there for you. The Doom Slayer is so hardcore he even unwinds by slaying the demons of hell.

“Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis” (1992) “Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings” (2009)

Indiana Jones has had no shortage of adventures in gaming and while not all of them have been worthy of the name of history’s greatest adventurer, even the mediocre ones have something worthwhile in them. This is exactly the case with The Staff of Kings which hides within arguably the best Indy storyline this side of the original trilogy, The Fate of Atlantis. Sadly, this only works on the Wii version which is its own archaeological find these days, and is also the only way to play this point and click adventure on consoles. Unlockable through the main menu via a series of button presses, much like some other entries on our list, you have to suffer through a bit of a forgettable game to replay a great one.

NES Games “Animal Crossing” (2001)

Animal Crossing was a revelation back in 2001 on the GameCube, taking all the best aspects of cozy farming simulators and letting players design everything in their living space while working off their eternal debt. You know, just like in real life! Well also just like in real life, to unwind from a hard day of decorating and paying your bills, it's nice to kick back with a classic video game. Within Animal Crossing, players could find, collect or be gifted more than a dozen classic NES games which were playable within Animal Crossing itself such as Punch Out, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, Excitebike and more. The Nintendo of today would NEVER give these classics away for free. We truly had no idea how good we had it back then.

“Geometry Wars” (2003) “Project Gotham Racing 2” (2003)

Now here’s one you wouldn’t expect to find within a racing game. Project Gotham Racing is most well-known for its arcadey racing with a focus on driving stylishly to build up Kudos points from completing specific challenges, but there’s something else hidden in the game that has taken on a life of its own outside of the critically acclaimed racing series. Hidden in the back of the garage is an arcade cabinet which players can access called Geometry Wars, a retro inspired space shooter that proved so popular it arguably outlived the series it started in with Geometry Wars 2 becoming one of the most downloaded games on Xbox Live Arcade and a franchise spanning five entries. Pretty impressive for a game that most players completely overlooked.

Atari Games “Call of Duty: Black Ops II” (2012)

One of the few times a developer advertised their hidden games as this was originally a pre-order bonus before eventually being made available for the masses, simply knowing the games exist is only half the challenge of unlocking them. While on the Nuketown 2025 Map, players need to find and shoot the head off every single mannequin within the level in under two minutes, which is sure to take multiple attempts to find the best path as well as every single mannequin. Once completed, the map board near the center of the map will change to a retro Activision logo and the player’s hands will become pixelated as they hold an Atari 2600 controller and now have access to classic Atari titles such as Pitfall II, Kaboom and River Raid. Even more surprising is how well some of these games manage to hold up after all these years.

OG Ninja Gaiden Trilogy “Ninja Gaiden Black” (2005)

Ninja Gaiden Black is rightfully remembered for its tough but rewarding combat, but for those who only grew up playing the modern Ninja Gaiden series, they have no idea what punishment is. To even earn the privilege of reliving the classic NES Ninja Gaiden trilogy, players will need to track down 50 Golden Scarab collectibles hidden throughout the game which can be just as challenging as the base game itself. After finding and collecting all 50 Scarabs, you will then need to find the hidden “Arcade Ninja Gaiden” item and can then relive the glory days of sprite-based violence and endless restarts thanks to the game’s endlessly spawning ninjas. We never said it was fun, just neat.

“Virtua Fighter 5: Final Round” (2006) “Yakuza 6” (2018)

Sega are no strangers to hiding some of their classic games in their titles with the practice even dating back to playing an arcade accurate version of Outrun in Shenmue and again in Shenmue 2. This practice continues in Sega’s modern games as well as in Yakuza 6, where in between savage beatdowns of random street punks, Kiryu can visit an arcade and play several Sega classics including Space Harrier and Outrun again. (They really love that one.) The most important game in the arcade however is also one Sega’s best fighters, Virtua Fighter 5: Final Round fully arcade feature complete. Considering this title is no longer available anywhere, this is the only way to revisit one of the all-time great arcade fighting games. Maybe this was how Kiryu learned his classic fighting moves all along. Except the bike. That one’s all him.

“Timesplitters 2” (2002) “Homefront: The Revolution” (2016)

Homefront: The Revolution, a sequel to a mediocre first-person shooter released in 2011 that does its best “Red Dawn” impression and imagines a future in which North Korea invades the United States would have been yet another forgettable FPS had it not been for one secret hidden within the game. Found in the hideout, players can play the first two levels of Timesplitters 2, originally released back in 2002 and widely considered one of the best first-person shooters of the era. While this would have been cool enough, the devs let fans know there was a code to unlock the entire game and in 4K no less which immediately prompted hacker Lance McDonald to find the code and release it for everyone to enjoy. You just have to suffer through a bit of a bland FPS to play the better one. A small but worthy sacrifice.

What was your favorite game within a game? Share your favorites in the comments below.