Software Egg: Hidden Features in Apps & Games

Hi, I’m Harris K. If you searched for ‘software egg‘ and are confused, then you have come to the right place.

A software egg is a hidden surprise that developers secretly place inside their apps, games, or websites. In this article, I will tell you what they are, where they come from, and share 30+ real examples you can test right now on your own devices.

What is a Software Egg?

Short answer: A software egg (Easter eggs) is a hidden feature, message, mini-game, animation, or joke that a developer intentionally placed inside a piece of software. You may also see it called an Easter egg. Both terms mean the same thing.

You will not find software eggs listed in any help menu or user guide. They are deliberately hidden. To trigger one, you usually need to do something specific, such as pressing a certain key combination, typing a secret phrase, clicking a logo multiple times, or visiting a particular page.

Think of it this way. Imagine you buy a board game, and tucked under the insert in the box, the designer left a handwritten note just for people curious enough to look. That note is the software egg. It is a reward for the curious.

Software Egg: Key Facts at a Glance

What Forms Can a Software Egg Take?

Software eggs (Easter eggs) show up in many different ways:

• Hidden mini-games (example: the Chrome dinosaur game when you go offline)
• Secret messages (text left by developers inside old games or apps)
• Fun animations (pages that spin, flip, or do something unexpected)
• Developer credits (names of the people who built the software, hidden inside it)
• Pop culture references (movie quotes, game references, inside jokes)
• Secret menus or modes (like Tesla’s Rainbow Road screen on Autopilot)

Software eggs appear in browsers, mobile apps, video games, operating systems, cars, and even spacecraft software. They are everywhere once you start looking.

What is the Origin of the Term “Software Egg”?

Short answer: The term comes from the Easter egg hunt tradition, where children search for hidden eggs. In 1979, Atari manager Steve Wright applied this idea to software after developer Warren Robinett hid his own name inside the Atari game “Adventure” without the company’s permission.

Here is the full story, because it is worth knowing.

In 1979, a programmer named Warren Robinett was building the game Adventure for the Atari 2600 home console. At the time, Atari had a strict policy: games would carry the Atari brand, not individual developer names. Warren Robinett disagreed with this. He wanted credit for his work.

So he coded a secret room into the game. To find it, players had to carry a specific invisible dot to a specific wall in a specific room. If done correctly, a hidden passage opened and the screen displayed the words: “Created by Warren Robinett.”

By the time Atari discovered this, the game had already shipped to hundreds of thousands of homes. Pulling it from shelves was not practical. An Atari manager named Steve Wright stepped in with a decision that changed gaming history. He said: let us keep it. In fact, let us encourage more of them. He called these hidden features “Easter eggs,” borrowing from the Easter tradition of searching for hidden prizes.

That decision gave birth to a tradition that lives on in nearly every major software product made today.

Verified historical note: The oldest confirmed software egg  predates Warren Robinett’s by more than a decade. In 1967-1968, programmers on the TOPS-10 operating system added a response to the command “make love.” The system replied: “not war?” It was a nod to the anti-war peace movement of the 1960s. This is widely cited in computing history as the first known software egg.

Why Do Developers Hide Software Eggs?

Short answer: Developers hide software eggs (Easter eggs) for five reasons: to express creativity, to get credit for their work, to reward curious users, to build team culture, and to generate word-of-mouth attention for their product.

1. To Show Personal Creativity

Writing code for months on a single product can feel repetitive. A software egg (Easter egg) is one of the few places where a developer can add something purely for fun, with no business requirement attached. It is a signature, like a painter adding a small personal symbol in the corner of a canvas.

2. To Get Credit for Their Work

Warren Robinett’s story resonates with developers because many of them work on products where their names never appear publicly. A software egg is a quiet, personal way to say: “I built this.”

3. To Reward Curious Users

Most users never find software eggs. The ones who do are usually the kind of people who read through settings menus, click on unusual things, and push software beyond its intended limits. Developers enjoy rewarding that kind of curiosity.

4. To Build Culture Inside the Team

Some software eggs are internal references that only colleagues will understand. Finding one months after launch can feel like a greeting from a former teammate. It builds a sense of shared identity among the people who built the product.

5. To Generate Organic Attention

When someone finds a software egg, they share it. They post it on Reddit, make YouTube videos, write blog posts. Companies like Google and Tesla have benefited enormously from this. A well-placed software egg generates thousands of hours of free coverage that no ad campaign could replicate.

Worth noting: Google, Microsoft, and Tesla now have internal teams whose job it is to plan and build software eggs intentionally. What started as a solo act of rebellion by one programmer in 1979 has become an organized part of product culture at the world’s biggest tech companies.

Are Software Eggs Safe?

Short answer: Yes. Software eggs (Easter eggs) are completely safe. They are placed there on purpose by the companies that made the software. They do not contain viruses, they do not collect your data, and they do not change anything on your device. They are purely for entertainment.

It is worth being clear about the difference between a software egg and other things that might seem similar.

Software Egg vs. Software Bug

Software Egg vs. Malware or Virus

If you are activating a software egg by following steps you found on a trusted website, you have nothing to worry about. The only risk with software eggs is that they sometimes stop working after a software update.

30+ Software Eggs You Can Try Right Now

Short answer: Some of the most popular software eggs (Easter eggs) include Google’s “do a barrel roll” search trick, the Chrome offline dinosaur game, the Microsoft Edge surf game, Android’s hidden version animation, and Tesla’s Rainbow Road mode.

I have personally tested every example below. They were confirmed working as of early 2026. Some may change with future updates, so if one does not work, check the comments section for the latest status.

Google Search Software Eggs

Open Google.com in any browser and type one of these search terms exactly as written:

Google Chrome: The Dinosaur Game

The Chrome dinosaur game is probably the most widely played software egg in history. Google built a full side-scrolling running game into the Chrome browser, accessible any time you lose internet access.

How to play it:

1. Open Google Chrome
2. Disconnect from the internet, or type chrome://dino into the address bar
3. Press the spacebar to start
4. Jump over cacti by pressing spacebar
5. Duck under flying pterodactyls by pressing the down arrow key

The game gets faster as your score increases. The maximum possible score is 99,999, after which the counter resets to zero.

Microsoft Edge: The Surf Game

Microsoft Edge has its own hidden browser game, available any time.

How to play it:

1. Open Microsoft Edge
2. Type edge://surf into the address bar and press Enter
3. A full surfing game loads. Use the arrow keys to play

Microsoft Teams: Snake

Open any chat conversation in Microsoft Teams and type /snake. A classic Snake game launches directly inside the chat window.

Android Phones: The Version Easter Egg

Every version of Android has its own hidden Easter egg, accessed the same way regardless of which version you have.

How to find it:

1. Open Settings on your Android phone
2. Scroll down and tap “About Phone”
3. Tap “Android Version”
4. Tap on the version number quickly, 7 times in a row
5. A special animation or mini-game appears on your screen

Each Android version has a different egg. Android 11 has a cat-collecting mini-game. Android 14 has a space-themed visual animation.

Tesla Cars: Multiple Hidden Features

Tesla vehicles, made by Tesla Inc., contain some of the most elaborate software eggs found in any consumer product.

• Rainbow Road Mode: Activate Autopilot four times in quick succession. The driving display switches to a Rainbow Road theme from the Mario Kart video game series, complete with music.
• Cowbell Mode: Found in the settings of certain Tesla models. When turned on, your turn signal makes a cowbell sound instead of the standard click.
• Sketch Pad: Double-tap the Tesla “T” logo on the screen to open a drawing application.
• Romance Mode: Go to “Easter Eggs” in the main menu. Romance Mode displays an animated fireplace on the large center screen and plays romantic background music.

The Konami Code

The Konami Code is the most widely recognized software egg trigger in history. It was created by Kazuhisa Hashimoto, a developer at game company Konami, in 1986. He originally added it to the NES game Gradius so he could test the game more easily by giving himself full power-ups. It shipped in the game by accident.

The code: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A

It became famous through the NES game Contra, where entering the code gave players 30 extra lives. Today, hundreds of websites, apps, and games respond to this code in some way. Try it on BuzzFeed’s website for a fun reaction.

Mozilla Firefox: The Book of Mozilla

In Firefox, type about:mozilla into the address bar and press Enter. You will see a page that looks like a passage from an ancient religious text, titled “The Book of Mozilla.” This fake scripture has been part of the Firefox browser since 1998 and is updated with each major version release.

Minecraft Software Eggs

Minecraft, developed by Mojang Studios (owned by Microsoft), has several well-known Easter eggs:

• Use a Name Tag item to name a sheep jeb_ and it will cycle through every color of the rainbow continuously
• Name any animal or mob Dinnerbone and it will immediately flip upside down
• Name a rabbit Toast and it will display a black and white skin pattern, added as a tribute by developer Ryan Holtz to a friend’s lost pet rabbit
• On Halloween night (October 31st in real-world date), certain mobs in the game spawn wearing carved pumpkins on their heads

Slack Software Eggs

Slack, the workplace messaging platform made by Salesforce, has several command-based software eggs:

• Type /unicorn in any message box to trigger a unicorn animation across the screen
• Type /shrug to automatically insert the kaomoji ¯_(ツ)_/¯ into your message
• Type /tableflip to insert the classic (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻ emoticon

How Do I Find Software Eggs in Any App?

Short answer: The four most reliable ways to find software eggs (Easter eggs) are: checking the “About” section and clicking on version numbers or logos, trying the Konami Code, testing what happens when you go offline or hit an error page, and searching Google for “[app name] Easter egg.”

Method 1: Check the “About” Screen

The About section is the single most productive place to look. Many developers hide software eggs directly on the screen that displays version numbers, credits, and logos.

Steps to try:

1. Open the app or program
2. Go to Help in the top menu bar
3. Click “About [App Name]”
4. Try clicking the app logo, version number, or any developer names you see
5. Try holding the click, double-clicking, or clicking rapidly several times

Method 2: Enter the Konami Code

The Konami Code (Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A) works on far more apps and websites than most people realize. Try it on any website or game you use regularly.

Method 3: Trigger Offline or Error States

Some software eggs only appear in specific situations:

• When your internet goes offline (the Chrome dinosaur game is the best example)
• On 404 error pages, which many companies use as a canvas for humor
• On specific calendar dates, particularly April 1st (April Fools Day) and October 31st (Halloween)

Method 4: Search for It

The most direct approach is to search Google for “[app name] Easter egg 2026.” The software egg community is large and very active. Sites like Reddit, YouTube, and dedicated Easter egg databases catalog thousands of confirmed examples. If an egg exists, someone has almost certainly documented it already.

What Software Eggs Are Hidden in Windows 11?

Short answer: Windows 11 contains at least four notable software eggs (Easter eggs): the God Mode folder (which gives access to 200+ system settings), a hidden emoji panel, the Edge surf game, and a way to watch Star Wars Episode IV in text form through Command Prompt.

God Mode

God Mode is a hidden folder in Windows 11 that places nearly every system setting in one location. It is not dangerous or against any policy. Microsoft has never officially promoted it, but it has been present in Windows since Windows Vista.

How to set it up:

1. Right-click on an empty area of your Desktop
2. Select “New” then “Folder”
3. Rename the folder to exactly this: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}
4. Press Enter
5. The folder icon changes to a Control Panel icon. Open it to see over 200 settings categories in one place

The Hidden Emoji Panel

Press the Windows key and the period key (.) at the same time while using any text field. A panel pops up with access to emojis, animated GIFs, kaomoji text faces, and special characters. Most Windows users have never seen this panel.

Star Wars in ASCII Text Art

This one requires a bit of setup but the payoff is worth it.

1. Open the Start menu and search for “Turn Windows features on or off”
2. Check the box next to “Telnet Client” and click OK
3. Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog
4. Type: telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl
5. Press Enter

An ASCII art version of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope begins playing automatically, created entirely from text characters. It was built by a Dutch developer named Simon Jansen and has been running on this server since 2004.

Edge Surf Game

Open Microsoft Edge and type edge://surf into the address bar. The full surf game loads with selectable difficulty levels and game modes.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does “software egg” mean?

A software egg is a hidden feature, game, message, or animation that a developer places inside an app, website, or game on purpose. It is also called an Easter egg. Both terms refer to the same thing. The name comes from the Easter tradition of searching for hidden eggs.

Who invented the first software egg?

The first confirmed software egg dates to 1967-1968 in the TOPS-10 operating system. However, the term “Easter egg” was coined by Atari manager Steve Wright in 1979, after developer Warren Robinett hid his name inside the Atari 2600 game Adventure without company permission.

Are software eggs dangerous?

No. Software eggs are completely safe. They are placed intentionally by the developers who made the software. They do not install anything, they do not access your data, and they do not cause harm. They are entirely separate from malware, viruses, or bugs.

Do all apps have software eggs?

No, not every app has one. Smaller apps and certain enterprise software products tend to have fewer of them. But most major consumer apps from companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple, and others do contain at least one software egg somewhere.

Can software eggs disappear?

Yes. Software eggs are often removed during major updates without any announcement. An egg confirmed working last month may not work today. This is why the software egg community tends to document and share findings as soon as they are found.

What is the most famous software egg of all time?

The Google Chrome dinosaur game is likely the most widely experienced software egg ever made. It is estimated that millions of people play it every day. All you need is the Chrome browser and a lost internet connection. Press spacebar to start.

What is the Konami Code?

The Konami Code is a button sequence (Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A) created by Konami developer Kazuhisa Hashimoto in 1986. It originally appeared in the NES game Gradius and became famous through Contra, where it gave players 30 extra lives. Today it is used as a trigger for software eggs on hundreds of websites and apps worldwide.

Where can I find new software eggs?

The best places to find newly discovered software eggs are the r/EasterEggs subreddit on Reddit, YouTube channels dedicated to Easter egg hunting, and sites like EasterEggs.com. You can also check this website regularly, as I post new findings whenever I confirm them.

Conclusion

Software Eggs (Easter eggs) are one of the most fun parts of using technology. They show us that behind every app and website, there are real people with a sense of humor.

Next time you use your favorite app, try clicking around in unusual places. You might just find a hidden surprise waiting for you!

Whether it is a dinosaur game in Chrome, a surfing game in Edge, or a rainbow sheep in Minecraft – Easter eggs remind us that technology can be fun and surprising.

By the way, I named this website Software Eggs because I love finding these hidden surprises and sharing them with you.

Harris K.

Harris loves digging into software to find what others miss. He has a real passion for sharing Tricks and Hidden Features that simplify your digital life. He writes these guides to help you get more done with less effort.