It’s just about that time again. After months of buildup, we’re likely just weeks — if not days — away from theofficial launch of Android 14. New Android versions are exciting for plenty of reasons, from new features to theofficial statuesGoogle places on its campus, but one of our favorite elements has to be the annual Easter egg. I mean,this year’s space-themed exploration game is pretty incredible, even if I have no idea what I’m doing while I play it.
Since the days of Gingerbread, Google has hidden secrets in the settings menu for aspiring sleuths to discover, usually based around the dessert-themed codenamedu jour. Not every one of these is a runaway success, though; for every awe-inspiring addition, there’s one that makes you question whether Google’s phoning it in. From ancient internet memes to clever puzzles, here’s a look at the good, the bad, and the downright ugly across the history of Android Easter eggs.
Best: Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Let’s start out with something fun. The Easter egg hidden in Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich wasn’t Google’s first — we’ll get to that later — but it remains one of most creative secrets that doesn’t morph into some kind of interactive game. Launched in 2011, Ice Cream Sandwich combined its eponymous dessert with the hottest meme of the year: Nyan Cat.
Everybody’s favorite Pop-Tarts/cat hybrid was a huge viral hit in the spring of that year, and Google itself delivered a Bugdroid-flavored take on the concept in its Android 4.0 Easter egg. While we’d eventually see these hidden gimmicks morph into even more creative concepts, this feels like where it really all began.
Worst: Android 3.0 Honeycomb
Eighteen months before Ice Cream Sandwich combined Google’s tablet and smartphone UIs into one shared OS version, Android 3.0 Honeycomb took the world by… drizzle. This dedicated big screen experience, designed specifically to help Android slates compete with the still-new iPad, was a bit of a bust, though it did give us a preview of the Tron-esque Holo interface that would eventually move to phones with ICS.
Aw, the old AP watermark…
And speaking of Tron, here’s the Easter egg. It’s… fine. It’s a blue bee featuring the Bugdroid’s iconic head. It says “REZZZZZ…” when you activate it, because Tron: Legacy (admittedly an underrated gem) was a relatively new release at the time. But it’s hard to not want more from something like this. Clearly, Google should’ve licensed Derezzed from Daft Punk — maybe that would give this Easter egg the energy it so clearly needs.
Best: Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
One year after hitting it out of the park with Ice Cream Sandwich, Google returned with its Easter egg for Android 4.1, Jelly Bean. Frankly, this is one of my favorite Android OS updates ever — it’s when it really started to feel like a cohesive, modern OS for the first time — and while even better secrets were on the horizon, this one is plenty cute, and by far the most complex Google had offered up to that date.
In what would become a mainstay feature of Android’s Easter egg, this one first delivers a simple cartoon jelly bean before eventually kicking off a quick screensaver after pressing and holding on said bean. You can drag and drop any of the jelly beans scattered around your screen, delivering some excellent interactive elements. While it would eventually be outclassed by later additions, I’m pretty fond of this particular Easter egg. It’s simple, it’s cute, and it helped get us to where we are today.
Worst: Android 8.0 Oreo
Let’s jump way into the future. It’s 2017, and Google is about to drop Android 8.0 Oreo, its second-ever branded version. When the Easter egg finally arrives in DP4, you prepare yourself for a cute — if obvious — cookie-related secret. And instead, you find yourself staring at this terrifying octopus, a deep sea creature staring directly into your soul.
You get it, right? Android 8.0, eight legs? Yeah, it’s a little sweaty. Maybe the branding deal hadn’t been finalized yet. A couple of months later, when Android 8.1 launched,Google would eventually swap in an Oreoin place of the orange circle that initially hid this octopus of doom. But even then, a long-press would eventually bring you right back to the bottom of the sea. No thanks, Google.
Best: Android 5.0 Lollipop
Continuing a pretty good streak of Easter eggs for Google — Android 4.4 KitKat’s sliding puzzle barely missed this list — Android 5.0 Lollipop might be my favorite Easter egg of all time. It’s also really easy to explain: it’s just a Flappy Bird clone.
Google’s Material UI-themed OS update included a quick lollipop graphic to tie in its dessert codename, but a long-press would lead you to a copy of 2014’s most viral hit, Flappy Bird. And since this wasmonthsafter the initial game had been pulled offline by its creator, it actually gave Android users the chance to revisit the title before the year was up. Come on Google, put this minigame on the Play Store.
Worst: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
I’m not sureMarshmallow’s Easter eggis “bad” so much as it’s lazy. It’s the same exact Flappy Bird minigame as seen in Lollipop, but with a new theme — and played right-to-left instead of left-to-right. But in the fall of 2015, it just didn’t hit the same. Considering this followed aliteral shrugused as a placeholder, it’s hard to describe this Easter egg as anything else.
You know what take on a hit mobile game would’ve been cool? Pac-Man 256. Sure, it only arrived on the Play Store a month before Marshmallow’s stable build launched, but you know what? Google could’ve made it work. A huge missed opportunity.
Best: Android 7.0 Nougat
Thankfully, Google rebounded in 2016 with itsmost complex Easter egg to date. As if hearing my complaints about Marshmallow, Android 7.0 Nougat launched a take on Neko Atsume, a popular (at the time) cat collecting game on phones. After tapping on the N that appears from the version number, you’ll gain the ability to collect kittens within the Quick Settings menu, all of which you can view at any time.
Google eventually revived this with Android 11, combining its “Android Neko” game with that version’s smart home controls. This time around, you could give out food, water, and treats right alongside your other shortcuts. Unlike with Marshmallow, Google’s double dip here felt a lot more justified, and with several years passing between versions, it was just as fun to see it make a comeback as the original had been in 2016. Still, since Nougat first debuted this minigame, it’s taking the prize.
Worst: Android 9 Pie
Android 9 Pie’s Easter egg comes in two forms. This first is downright boring; abasic P appears on screen, allowing you to cycle through colors. Yawn. Snooze.
The second Easter egg arrived a couple of months later, but as a Pixel phone exclusive. After tapping the P a few times, you’d gain access to… apretty basic drawing tool. Out of all of the Easter eggs to reserve as an exclusive for Google hardware, this is certainly a choice.
Best: Android 10
Hoo boy, this one’s complex. What seems to start off as a basic logo Easter egg — like Android 9 Pie before it — quickly turns into something else entirely. If you drag and rotate the 1 and 0 in “10,” thereby turning it into a “Q,” youcan access a Nonogram game. Not familiar with Nonogram? You might know it better by Picross, Paint by Numbers, or literally dozens of other games.
The goal is to fill in specific grids to create a new image by referring to the clues on each axis, eventually creating one of various symbols taken directly from Android. It’s a fun one, reminiscent of the puzzles Google usually attaches to its I/O announcements, and frankly, I’d love to see the company revisit something like this.
Worst: Android 12… and Android 13
Look, I get it. Android is a mature operating system now, right? And Google, for all its previous fun and games, has to put childish things behind it. For as exciting as Android 12 was at launch, though, couldn’t it have received a better Easter egg? Sure, showing the logosurrounded by various colorswas a fun way to highlight Material You, but without much in the way of interactivity — aside from ahidden widgetyou could add to your home screen — it felt a little empty.
That feeling only grew with Android 13. It’s effectively the same Easter egg, butwith emoji in place of colors. I guess it’s a creative replacement, doubling as a shout-out to Emoji Kitchen, but like much of what Google shipped in 2022, it was a little difficult to feel trulyexcitedabout.
Weirdest: Android 2.3 Gingerbread
Are you aware of what the very first Android Easter egg was? Google didn’t start its tradition with Android 1.0 in 2008; instead, it would take until 2010’s Android 2.3 Gingerbread launch for the company to start hiding little secrets around the OS. But instead of a creative game, a cute logo, or even, I don’t know, an MP4 file of the Gingerbread Man from Shrek,Google stuck this JPEGbehind the Android version number in settings to create its very first Easter egg.
Yeah, talk about a weird start to an annual tradition. It’s pretty funny to look back on now, but imagine discovering this by accident at two in the morning. You’d be pretty scared too. Personally, I think Google should return to this zombie theme sometime in the future — maybe for Android Z in 2028.
What’s next for Android’s Easter eggs?
If you haven’t already, you shouldcheck out the Android 14 Easter egg. It might not steal attention away from Starfield this fall, butPixel 8buyers will be ecstatic to know there’s a worthwhile secret hidden on their future phones.
