Mass Effect 3 might have a darker tone than the previous games in the franchise, but that hasn't stopped BioWare from slipping in a few amusing easter eggs to keep eagle-eyed players entertained. Some are clever references to past events, some are hidden rewards for things you did in the last two games, and some are just plain hysterical, but they're all worth keeping an eye out for.
To make it easier to see them for yourself, we've put together this guide of the seven best easter eggs fans have discovered so far, along with instructions on where and how to find them. And don't be surprised to see a follow-up post with even more sometime soon. With a game as intricately detailed as Mass Effect 3, the community will probably be discovering new secrets for months to come.
Finally, be warned that some of these easter eggs contain spoilers, ranging from the relatively mundane (which characters rejoin your crew, which areas you'll be revisiting) to the fairly egregious (gigantic plot points). Read on at your own risk.
If you head to the apartments in the Citadel's Presidium Commons, you'll find an ad for a movie called Blasto 6: Partners in Crime, featuring the loose cannon Hanar Spectre, Blasto, and his by-the-books Elcor partner. Interact with the poster, and you'll be treated to nearly ten minutes of audio clips from the film.
If you played Mass Effect 2, you may have heard a similar (albeit much shorter) ad for the first Blasto movie, The Jellyfish Stings. That would imply they've made five sequels in the six months that passed between the two games. Guess these movies are really popular.
If you head to the docking area on the Citadel, you'll find a bootleg VI designed perfectly to reflect the image and personality of Commander Shepard. Well, at least whatever twisted version of Commander Shepard the programmer had in mind when he built the thing. The VI spouts off some pretty hysterical dialogue, and if you listen to enough of it, Commander Shepard — the real Commander Shepard, that is — will start to get a little self-conscious.
On the crew deck of the Normandy, there's a memorial to all the fallen crew members. If you look closely, you'll notice that any squadmates you who died in the previous two games are listed among the names of the dead.
If you purchased a pet space hamster from the Citadel gift shop in Mass Effect 2, you can actually get him back again in Mass Effect 3. Just head down to the Normandy's engineering deck, then go down the stairs to where Jack slept in the second game.
Listen for a squeak. When you hear it, look down. If you're quick enough, you can catch your space hamster as he scurries across the ground. After that, he'll be in your cabin, right where he was in the last game. It's just a shame that he doesn't count as a War Asset.
Sadly, all that time you spent collecting every last fish for your aquarium in Mass Effect 2 was a waste, as they don't carry over into Mass Effect 3. The good news is, really dedicated players can keep the priciest specimen in their collection, the Prejack paddle fish.
To get it back, you'll need to import a save file that meets a fairly stringent list of prerequistes from the last game. First, you'll obviously need to purchase the fish from the shop called Memories of Ilium. Next, you'll need to have kept it alive until the end of the game. Third, you'll need to seduce Kelly Chambers enough that she'll agree to look after your fish. Finally, you'll need to make sure she survives the ending sequence at the Collector base.
If your imported save meets all those criteria, you'll be able to meet up with Kelly at the Citadel refugee camp. Talk to her, and she'll return your prized paddle fish.
Partway through the campaign, you'll need to travel to the Salarian homeworld of Sur'Kesh. Once you land and regain control of Shepard, find a computer terminal and attempt to activate it. A nearby soldier should politely ask you to stop. If you keep doing it, he'll lose patience and the conversation will slowly get more and more ridiculous.
If you always thought it was strange that Commander Shepard was the only one getting nasty on the Normandy, you'll appreciate this final easter egg. Provided you're not romantically involved with either Tali or Garrus, late in the game they'll hook up, and you'll actually be able to walk in on the two of them doing some — ahem — calibrations in the main battery.
The conversation that follows is amusing, but don't watch this video if you're early in the game, as it's easily the most spoilerific on this list.
Metro: Last Light and The Problem of Ranger Mode
P vs Z Garden Warfare 2: classes and game modes overview
Killzone: Mercenary Walkthrough
Battlefield: Bad Company Guide
Project CARS (2015) will have 74 Vehicles, full Car List