Hipster Whale changed mobile gaming forever back in 2014. It sounds dramatic, but look at the App Store today; that blocky, voxel aesthetic is everywhere. Yet, even years later, people are still obsessively trying to figure out how to get secret characters in Crossy Road. It isn’t just about the completionist itch. These characters often change the entire environment, turning the bright day into a neon-soaked night or adding weird sound effects that make the grind feel fresh again.
Honestly, some of these unlocks are downright mean. They require specific movements, precise timing, or just plain luck. You can't just buy them with coins. You have to earn them.
The Hipster Whale and Other Founding Secrets
Let's start with the namesake. The Hipster Whale is basically the mascot of the studio, but he’s a literal "whale" in the game sense. To find him, you have to stop looking at the road and start looking at the water. Occasionally, instead of a log, you’ll see a blue whale with a brown camera around its neck floating down the river.
Jump on him. That’s it.
You’ll likely die immediately after because you’re out of position, but once the run ends, he’s yours. Then there's Gifty. You need to play as the Festive Chicken. Run until you find a clearing with a large Christmas tree. Get close enough to it, and it’ll explode with gifts. This isn't just a visual flair; that explosion is your ticket to unlocking Gifty.
💡 You might also like: Thinking game streaming: Why watching people solve puzzles is actually taking over Twitch
If you’re a fan of PAC-MAN, the crossover characters are some of the most mechanical unlocks in the game. To get The Prototypers, you need to play as any of the PAC-MAN characters and eat 2,500 pellets. Not in one go—thankfully—but over time. It’s a grind. But Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde have much more specific requirements. For instance, to get Inky, you have to play as PAC-MAN and get crushed by a bus 50 times. It feels counter-intuitive to play badly on purpose, but that's the charm of Hipster Whale's design.
How to Get Secret Characters in Crossy Road: The Location-Specific Grinds
A lot of people get stuck on the UK and Ireland update characters. They are notoriously finicky. Take Loch Ness Monster. Much like the Hipster Whale, Nessie appears in the river, but only when you are playing as a UK or Irish character like the Leprechaun or the Piper. She’s rare. You might go 500 steps without seeing her.
Phone Box is another one. You’ll need to find a large open clearing while playing as a UK character. You’ll hear a faint ringing. Follow the sound. If you find the red booth and get close to it, you’ve done it.
The Chinese New Year update added some of the coolest visual shifts. The Dragon is unlocked by playing as a Chinese New Year character and passing through a specific set of firecrackers that appear on the road. It’s chaotic. The screen fills with smoke and sparks, and if you survive that window, the Dragon joins your roster.
📖 Related: Why 4 in a row online 2 player Games Still Hook Us After 50 Years
The Weird Ones: Totem and Archie
If you’ve played Monument Valley, you know the Totem. Getting him in Crossy Road is a nod to the game’s puzzles. You have to play as one of the Monument Valley characters—Ida, the Storyteller, or the Crow. Occasionally, the Totem will be floating in the river. You have to jump on him. Unlike logs, he sinks quickly, so you need to be fast.
Then there’s Archie. Archie is a bit of a legend in the community because his unlock method sounds like an urban legend. You play as Archie (the dog) and you have to hop through a series of logs in a specific pattern. Actually, it’s simpler: just play as any character from the Archie collection and score over 30 points, but for the secret version, you often have to interact with specific environmental triggers that only appear in the "River" biome.
Why Some Unlocks Feel Broken
People often complain that they "did the thing" but the character didn't unlock. Usually, it's because of the character you were using. Most secret characters are "set" specific. You can't unlock a UK secret while playing as the Korean Pop Star. It’s a common mistake.
Also, the "Death" characters like Ace of Spades require you to play as a specific character (the Gambler) and find a specific item (the card) in a deck that appears randomly on the ground. If you blink, you miss it.
👉 See also: Lust Academy Season 1: Why This Visual Novel Actually Works
The Psycho Cat and the UK Update Mystery
One of the more frustrating ones is Psycho Cat. To get him, you need to play as the Lucky Cat and eat a specific number of fish. But it’s not just any fish—they appear randomly and replace the standard coins. It’s a test of patience.
The Leprechaun is another "collection" based unlock. You have to find a four-leaf clover while playing as a UK character. These clovers are tiny. On a phone screen, they look like a smudge. But if you walk over one, the game rewards you with that tiny green man.
Practical Steps for Completionists
If you are serious about clearing the board, you need a strategy. Don't just hop aimlessly.
- Focus on one "Set" at a time. Spend a day only playing as Australian characters. This increases the spawn rate for the "Drop Bear" (who will literally jump on your head and kill you, which is how you unlock him).
- Turn your sound up. Many secrets, like the Phone Box or the Totem, have specific audio cues that trigger before they appear on screen.
- Don't worry about your high score. When hunting for the Hipster Whale or Nessie, stay near the rivers. Pace back and forth if you have to. If you move too fast, you might miss them floating by just behind you.
- Check your version. Crossy Road updates frequently. Some characters that were "secret" in 2018 have been moved to the standard prize machine, while new ones are added with almost every holiday.
Getting every hidden hopper is a massive time sink. But there's a reason we're still talking about it. The game doesn't hold your hand. It expects you to experiment, to fail, and to occasionally get crushed by a train while staring at a weird-looking tree. That's the core of the experience.
To start your hunt, pick the Lucky Cat or the Festive Chicken. These two have the highest "yield" for finding environmental secrets because their specific biomes are cluttered with interactable objects. Keep your eyes on the water, keep your ears open for ringing phones, and stop trying to cross the road for a second—sometimes the best stuff is happening right where you're standing.