Callbacks and references are prevalent in most forms of media, with things like gaming series presenting easter eggs that reference other popular gaming properties. This is also true for Back 4 Blood, a co-op zombie shooter where you complete stages against enemies known as 'Ridden.' Most of these easter eggs are from horror films and games because, well, Back 4 Blood is a horror experience through and through.
The easter eggs of Back 4 Blood are scattered throughout the maps, with some being a little harder to find than others, but they're worth checking out for yourself.
Updated February 28, 2023, by Nico Dagny: Back 4 Blood has a knack for referencing other forms of horror media in the game’s stages, and as more players have joined the fun, more easter eggs have been revealed. There’s a mix of references for every type of player here, from those about iconic horror films everyone's heard of to fan-favorite protagonists who love shooting up baddies. We’ve updated this list to add more of the best easter eggs Back 4 Blood offers.
13 We All Float Down Here
In the many versions of It, Pennywise, the clown says different variations of the line “They all float down here” as a threat towards the children he plans to kill. If you look around during the Pipe Cleaners mission, you can spot a reference to this line on one of the walls with the quote painted onto it.
This reference is at the very start of the level, and you’ll know when you’re at the right place when you see tally marks near the quote on the same wall.
12 Resident Evil Typewriter
During the Garden Party mission, there's a typewriter sneakily hidden away in one of the rooms across from the level's saferoom. And by sneakily hidden away, we mean placed atop a box in a room you'll most likely enter out of curiosity for what goodies await you. Now, this could be any old typewriter since it isn't an item out of the norm to find in someone's house, but it's probably a reference to the typewriters you save at in the Resident Evil series.
It's a nice small nod to the game that shines a light on horror greats that have come before Back 4 Blood.
11 The Evil Dead Blood Light
To find the red-tinted light, you'll need to be playing through the Abandoned level (which features quite a few easter eggs) and enter the shed you'll have to pass at some point in the level. It's simple to find the location of this one since it is on your path towards the end goal of the mission, and the red lights will invoke the curiosity within you to take a peek into the off-putting shed.
The red light looks to reference The Evil Dead, where blood splatters a light bulb and causes the light to shine red upon the walls instead. It's an incredibly recognizable horror scene because of how gorgeous it looks in the film, and the Back 4 Blood version is a cool nod to this.
10 Elm Street And Crystal Lake Signpost
While playing the Abandoned mission (which is extremely difficult to survive, and we're talking from personal experience here), there's a street with a signpost naming two familiar locations. Now, as cool as this little easter egg is, thankfully, you can't actually travel to these locations. If you did, the Ridden would be the least of your ever-growing problems. The two names read Elm St. and Crystal Lake, which reference the films A Nightmare On Elm Street and Friday The 13th.
The addition of these places on the signposts makes the mission eerily uncomfortable. You won't be having any run-ins with Jason Voorhees, but it's the kind of reference to send shivers down your spine.
9 Turtle Rock Studios
If you’ve ever been curious why there are so many references to turtles lying around, it’s because the developers of Back 4 Blood are called Turtle Rock Studios. These turtles are in a reasonable amount of the levels, slyly hidden away, and you likely won’t spot them unless you inspect the environment during gameplay downtime.
Nevertheless, they are usually there as a poster on the wall or a figurine on the shelf.
8 Possession In The Exorcist
In the main lobby, you'll find a table with a walkie-talkie, binoculars, and a stack of books. One of the books is titled "How To: Spin Your Head 360 Degrees While Sitting In Bed," which references the terrifying scene from The Exorcist where Regan spins her head around in an unnatural (and freaky manner.)
Luckily the actual scene of this happening isn't within Back 4 Blood, which is terrific since there's already enough to deal with, with all the Bruisers, Tallboys, and Ogres running around.
7 How To Kick Ass When You're Out Of Bubblegum
At the tent next to where you edit your cards, you'll see a bookshelf with a book reading "How To Kick Ass When You Are All Out Of Bubblegum." This is a reference to John Carpenter's They Live, where the character Nada famously says, "I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I'm all out of bubblegum."
Duke Nukem also famously quotes this They Live line, so it's a reference to both properties. Talk about complex easter eggs in video games.
6 Doom Weapon Skin
This easter egg is a little trickier to uncover since weapon skins take a while to unlock because you must purchase them through supply lines the same way you do cards. The skin in question is the Zombie Slayer skin for the TAC14; its pattern refers to the armor Doomslayer dons in the Doom series.
The skin has a green base, orange splotches and black skulls, and a color palette that forms various Doom iterations. You can purchase Zombie Slayer from tier five of the Grant’s Brew House supply line.
5 Freddy Kreuger Shirt
Aah, if it wasn't already creepy enough that there's one reference to Freddy Kreuger in Back 4 Blood, there's another one! Just in case you wanted some extra spooks for the all-around Halloween experience. In the Abandoned stage, inside a closet is a shirt that looks strikingly similar to the one Freddy Kreuger wears. The zombie apocalypse is terrifying, and all but enemies who attack in your dreams are inherently scary because of the lack of avoidance from them.
It's an easter egg that can be missed all too often if you don't take the occasional breather to search your surroundings.
4 Shaun Of The Dead
A few easter eggs referencing other horror media are littered upon the walls of the Back 4 Blood universe, including numerous quotes from Shaun of the Dead. These quotes are on post-it notes pinned up on bulletin boards you can find on most levels, just like the turtle references.
One of them reads, “Don’t forget to kill Philip,” referencing the character of the same name from the film. Another reads, “And the front door is open, again!” a line pulled directly from the movie. There are callbacks to other films on these boards, including one from Army of Darkness reading “This is my boom stick.”
3 The Shining Carpet
During the Book Worms mission, you can spot a glaring reference to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining when searching for survivors in the apartments. You’ll need to be on the complex's top floor, which is right before entering the room with survivors, where you can see the carpet is the same pattern as the hexagonal one the movie harbors.
Near the stairs, there’s also a tricycle like the one Danny rides on this same carpet in the film, though unfortunately, you can’t use it for yourself.
2 The Evil Dead Hatch
There's a small cabin located in the Hell's Bells map that might resurface a few memories for some of you. Inside the cabin is a bloodied locked hatch with two hands poking out of it. The hatch references The Evil Dead films where zombies are, for some reason, always trying to break out of them.
It's a neat little easter egg, especially since a lot of the Back 4 Blood's atmosphere is so similar to that of the Evil Dead franchise.
1 Left 4 Dead 2 Theme
Found within the Making The Grade level is a piano that, when interacted with, plays the theme song from Left 4 Dead 2. The piano is located in the school auditorium, next to the gym, and is entirely missable if you're not checking everything in your surroundings. There are a lot of Left 4 Dead easter eggs in Back 4 Blood, but this one is special because it instantly brings you back to a time when zombie games were more common than they are now.
The tune hearkens back to a time when you'd stay up into the early hours of the morning playing with your friends and failing to convince yourselves that you'll just play "one more match."