Back 4 Blood: Every Horror Movie Easter Egg

Turtle Rock Studios’ new co-op first-person shooter, Back 4 Blood, is proving to be one of the most successful horror survival titles of the year. Released just over a month ago, the game boasted a player base 6 million strong, even though it recently dropped to a Steam player count lower than Left 4 Dead 2, its spiritual predecessor. With a detailed roadmap that includes a Solo Offline Mode for December, Back 4 Blood developer Turtle Rock Studios has promised a series of updates and content additions to the game in the coming months.

Back 4 Blood takes place in an apocalyptic setting where a parasite called the Devil Worm infects most of humanity, turning them into the vicious undead mutants regarded as the Ridden. Broadly, this concept draws upon multiple types of horror (namely zombie horror tropes and cosmic or Lovecraftian horror), but doesn’t pay much direct homage to anything in itself, nor do the Cleaner characters players use to play throughout the campaign.

Regardless of which character Back 4 Blood players choose, players will find a myriad of references and Easter eggs scattered across every setting in Back 4 Blood that make this game an absolute dream for cult horror fans. Closets, noticeboards, bookshelves and blood-splattered walls across each setting will challenge players to find every reference and to test their true knowledge on cult horror. Some of the references are staggeringly obvious, while others are so subtle that few have managed to notice them.

Back 4 Blood Shows The Way To Crystal Lake

In Act One’s Abandoned level, players will find one of the game’s most iconic horror film references in the game. A short walking distance will take the player to a sign on the road that reads “Crystal Lake” and is a direct reference to the setting of Friday the 13th. Released in 1980, this classic horror film follows the story of Steve Christie, who reopens Camp Crystal Lake, where a group of counselors was brutally killed one by one years ago. The signpost isn’t the only reference to Friday the 13th, though. Throughout the game, some zombies players encounter have T-shirts that depict a hockey mask, directly referencing Friday the 13th’s Jason Voorhees.

Freddy Kreuger’s Iconic Shirt In Back 4 Blood

The road sign players encounter in Back 4 Blood is actually a double reference. While Crystal Lake refers to Friday the 13th, there is a second sign on the same post pointing in the opposite direction, Elm Street. This second sign references another horror classic from the 80s, Nightmare On Elm Street. Although the latter received a number of remakes, the original film, released in 1984, followed the story of Freddy Krueger and his murderous pursuit of Nancy Thompson and her friends in their dreams.

The signpost, however, isn’t the only reference to Nightmare On Elm Street in the game. In that same Abandoned level, players wander into a house for one of the missions, where horror game and movie fans will find another reference to the cult classic. When players go up to the second floor of the house, they will find a highly recognizable, brown-and-red striped Freddy Krueger t-shirt hanging in an open closet, right next to a wall splattered with blood.

“Don’t Forget To Kill Phillip” Reminders In Back 4 Blood

Throughout the game, players will encounter a number of post-it notes of quotes from the 2004 horror and comedy film, Shaun of the Dead. The film in question follows the story of Shaun, a salesman with an uneventful life which takes a drastic turn when he finds himself having to deal with a community of zombies. Some of the post-it notes players might encounter in Back 4 Blood include quotes such as “Don’t Forget To Kill Phillip” or “We Don’t Use The Zed Word.” The most notable reference, however, becomes visible at the beginning of the second Act. Players run into a noticeboard in a safe room with a note that reads “You’ve got red on you.” Fans of the film will recognize this reference in the game as it is the most famous and defining line in the film, repeated in numerous scenes.

Self-Help Books With A Twist In Back 4 Blood

There are several books that add to Back 4 Blood’s collection of horror movie Easter eggs, such as in the character customization tent. One of the books players will find repeatedly is titled “How to Spin Your Head 360 Degrees While Sitting in Bed.” This is an obvious reference to the genre-defining scene from the 1973 horror film The Exorcist. In this scene, a demon called Pazuzu is seen rotating its head 360 degrees while sitting on a bed. The book at the top of the pile titled “How To: Kick Ass For The Lord” is also a direct reference to Peter Jackson’s 1992 Braindead. In that same pile, players will find another horror classic reference in the book just below: “How To Kick Ass When You’re All Out Of Bubblegum.” This is a reference to John Carpenter’s 1988 horror-thriller They Live, in which one of character Nada’s most famous quotes is “I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass… and I’m all out of bubblegum.“

Evil Dead also gets its share of references in Back 4 Blood, with the most obvious one being the cellar door, shut with the bloody hands sticking out. This is a reference to the famous scene which is featured in every Evil Dead film, from the original Evil Dead to Evil Dead 2 and the later Evil Dead remake. In the same scene in the game, we also see a taxidermy deer which Evil Dead fans will also recognize as the possessed deer head which appears in the original Evil Dead film scene.

There is a second reference to Evil Dead in the game that is much more subtle than the first one. Players will see the shed from the 1987 Evil Dead 2 film, and only true fans and perceptive players will recognize the moving lamp and the red light from the horrific scene in the film it is referencing. In the film, this is where Ash tries to get rid of his possessed girlfriend, Linda, with the famous chainsaw. In the scene, we see the swinging light bulb hanging from the ceiling splattered with Linda’s blood, giving the whole room an eery red light, just like the shed in the game.

The Shining’s Coolest Ride In Back 4 Blood

In Act 2, the last floor of the apartments has a striking reference to the cult film The Shining which many players will immediately recognize. The first is the tricycle which players can spot in a corner as they go up the stairs. The second reference is more subtle: When playing as Holly in Act 3, players enter the hedge maze and hear the words “It could be worse… it could be snowing,” which is also a reference to a specific scene in the film.

Players should pay attention to every note, picture, and prop as they explore the game’s locations if they want to find all the Easter eggs the developers so thoughtfully incorporated into the game. Apart from the more obvious references listed here, there are details all over the game that reference dozens of other titles, such as the “They All Float Down Here” writing on the wall referencing the original 1990 IT film. Back 4 Blood’s campaign is filled with references to popular culture, games, and iconic film culture of all kinds, but the developers’ dedication to incorporating cult horror references from the 80s, 90s, and 2000s is something that most players have noticed and thoroughly enjoyed over the last month.

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