The Top 10 Halo Easter Eggs You Probably Missed

The Halo series is one of the most popular shooters in the world, winning hundreds of awards and praise. Yet, there are still secrets most fans don't know are hidden within Bungie's magnum opus for the Xbox. To fill you in, here are the Top 10 Halo Easter Eggs that you probably missed. From loving little gestures to smart mouthed Grunts, there's a lot of ground to cover. Let's roll out Spartans!

The Megg Easter Egg -- Halo: Combat Evolved

Megg is one of the oldest and most obscure Easter Eggs in Halo: Combat Evolved. The required set of actions to trigger it are so specific, it's impressive people figured out how to find it. Megg is also the first of several hidden Easter Eggs left for loved ones in each Halo game.

A second Megg easter egg exists in Halo 2, but merely requires you complete the level "Cairo Station" without losing your shields once, on Legendary difficulty. One you reach the final room, a sound clip will play: "Megg, please report to the red courtesy phone. Megg, to the red courtesy phone."

Grunt Playtime -- Halo 2 / Halo 2: Anniversary Edition

This is a rare Easter Egg that has two versions across the Anniversary and regular editions. In the original version of Halo 2, if you looked closely during the opening cutscene, a Grunt could be seen playing with toys. Depending on the difficulty, he might be playing with different things.

• Easy -- A stick and rock (a reference to a line said by Sgt. Johnson ironically only heard on Legendary Difficulty)
• Normal -- Two plasma grenades
• Heroic -- A campfire
• Legendary -- A Master Chief action figure and a Grunt action figure

In the new Halo 2: Anniversary version, which you can view above, the grunt instead fights over a plush toy, held out of reach by a Jackal. They are Didact (Easy), Librarian (Normal), Master Chief (Heroic), and Rampant Cortana (Legendary).

While the new version is easy to find, the original was very hard to see, if you even knew what to look for. As a result, it often is missed even by players who repeatedly run through the game.

Happy Birthday Lauren! -- Halo 3

While it might not be the most amazing Egg on its own, Happy Birthday Lauren! is the latest Easter Egg found in Halo 3. Unlike most of the Easter Eggs on this list, it was only just recently discovered. Much like Megg, it's a heartfelt message to a loved one. To unlock the Easter Egg, you just need to have the right date and time, then load a level in Halo 3.

The Secret Grunts -- Halo: Combat Evolved / Halo 2 / Halo 3

Bungie sure loves their Grunts, so much so that they've hidden a different talking Grunt in every core entry of the series. First there's the Thirsty Grunt at the very end of Halo: Combat Evolved. Then there's the Cowardly Grunt in Halo 2, when Arbiter starts fighting the Brutes. Finally, in Halo 3, there is the Last Grunt, who is the last enemy in the game (and arguably the most hilarious). You can see them all in the video above.

Caveman Family -- Halo 3 / Halo 3 ODST

Another odd Halo 3 era Easter Egg series was the Caveman. The Caveman first appears as two separate Easter Eggs in the first level of Halo 3. You can find a whole family of primordial humans hiding around a secluded ledge.

One of the Cavemen is holding a toy bear, which was meant for a cut Legendary Easter Egg where Master Chief would have grabbed the bear right before going into cryosleep. Later, you can encounter a lone Caveman, visible on a cliff by himself.

The Easter Egg also made its way to Halo 3: ODST in the form of a single Caveman. According to Halo Nation:

"The internal name for the 'cavemen' is "The Gorillehto". Originally an internal email prank, photoshopping Marcus Lehto's face on a female gorilla."

The Siege of Madrigal Easter Egg -- Halo: Combat Evolved, Halo 2, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST

Shockingly enough, there was a time before Bungie made Halo games. Long before Master Chief was a twinkle in Cortana's eye, Bungie made the Mac-exclusive Marathon series. Seeing as they love to sneak tons of references of Marathon into Halo (to the point fans began to suspect the Halo series was meant to be a loose prequel trilogy), it seems fitting we include the longest running one: Siege of Madrigal.

You see, Siege of Madrigal is one of the songs from Marathon, and can be found in every Bungie-developed entry in the Halo series in certain locations. It can be found in Assault on the Control Room in Halo: Combat Evolved. It can also be found on the Halo 2 multiplayer map Ivory Tower. Another appearance can be found in The Covenant in Halo 3. There are three places you can find the song in Halo: Reach, in a club, as elevator music at random, and as part of another Easter Egg.

However, the most eventful appearance that exclusively focuses on the song is its appearance in Halo 3: ODST. What makes it so special? Well, as you can see in the video above, it prominently features former Bungie composer Marty O'Donnel, dancing with hearts to a comedic jazz remix of the theme. The same hearts would also later appear as an unlockable armor aesthetic in Halo: Reach.

Microsoft Sam -- Halo 3

No, your ears are not deceiving you. Hidden away at the end of the Scarab battle in The Covenant, on the opposite side of the gate from where you can hear Siege of Madrigal, hides MS Sam. The famous text to speech program spouts a number of in-jokes and references.

This Easter Egg has become so hard to find posted on the web, I almost began to think my memory had failed me. Yet here it is, in all its glory. Do yourself a favor though, and skip to 2:44 in the above vid. You'll be glad you just got to the good stuff.

Half-Naked Guy -- Halo 2 / Halo 3

Back when Halo 2 first released, it was given an M rating for the usual violence and gore reasons, but also a new reason: partial nudity. Everyone assumed the ESRB Rating Board meant Cortana, who looks far more realistic than in the first game. Instead, it was over an Easter Egg of Bungie co-founder Jason Jones, posing half-naked, hidden in the opening cutscene.

Not to leave a bit of silliness alone, Bungie then later included another cardboard cut out of Jones in Halo 3, hidden in a hard to access room.

Red vs. Blue "We Need Ammo!" -- Halo 3

Famous Halo machinima Red vs. Blue has had a number of Easter Eggs and cameos in the core series entries, but none quite top this Halo 3 secret. Across Easy/Normal, Heroic, and Legendary difficulties, three different pairs of actors from the show seek to play out individual skits around the simple of act of trying to open a door and get some ammo. I'll just let you enjoy the above video, and say no more.

Tribute Room -- Halo: Reach

It's rare for a franchise to have as devoted a fanbase as Halo has, so it is fitting that when Bungie had to let go of the reigns of the franchise, they left a passionate goodbye to their fans in the form of this Easter Egg. Not only does it feature the third Siege of Madrigal Easter Egg, but it is a room full of terminals recording and recognizing the greatest fan efforts, from fan series like Red vs. Blue to charities like Fight the Flood.

The room is also plastered with images from past entries and plenty of in-jokes. Concept art for Reach's protagonists Noble Team can even be found. If you're a big fan of Halo and haven't heard of this Easter Egg yet, I sincerely advise watching the video above and maybe even checking out the Easter Egg yourself.

Like the Easter Eggs we found? Want to see more? Have you found any we missed? Let us know in the comments below!