Games That Reward You For Playing On Your Birthday

Highlights

• Certain video games commemorate players’ birthdays with unique bonuses, such as special greetings, items, and cutscenes.
• Games like Harvest Moon and Tomodachi Collection allow players to receive gifts and enjoy special cutscenes on their birthdays.
• Other games like Animal Crossing and Metal Gear Solid 2 have features that celebrate the player’s birthday, such as unique dialogue and greetings.

Everyone celebrates birthdays in their own way, but nevertheless, a birthday is a special day that shouldn’t be forgotten. While friends and family may have their own busy lives, everyone can count on the comfort of video games to remember that special day and celebrate it in their own fun and unique way.

Every time players are prompted to input their birthday before starting a game, one can’t help but wonder, “is there going to be a fun birthday bonus?” In case any gamers were wondering what series/titles make the effort to remember their dear players’ birthday, this list will name a few great games that commemorate it as well as what kind of bonus to expect on their special day.

Updated on February 5, 2024, by Christine Mendoza: As the new year begins, gamers new and old may be gearing up to dive into both brand-new and classic titles to start 2024 off as strong as possible. Prompting players to input their birthdate at the beginning of a game isn’t as common practice in more modern video games, which makes the few titles that do celebrate player birthdays that much more significant. For curious gamers who want to know which consoles to dig up and which games to log into on the day they level up in the real world for a fun celebration, a few new titles have been added.

18 Harvest Moon: A New Beginning

What To Expect: Unique greeting, item, (cutscene)

Villagers in Harvest Moon have their own birthdays the players can acknowledge with a special gift, so it’s only natural that the player gets the opportunity to celebrate their special day as well. Harvest Moon villagers with at least 20,000 friendship points (FP) can gift various items (ranging from animal treats to medicinal items) to the player on their birthday as a sign of gratitude.

However, if the player is married/dating, they will also get the chance to receive a unique cutscene where the player is treated to a special birthday dinner with their family.

17 Tomodachi Collection

What To Expect: Unique cutscene, greeting

While North American Nintendo fans may be familiar with Tomodachi Life, they may not know its predecessor, Tomodachi Collection. It debuted back in 2009 for the DS, four years before its 3DS sequel, Tomodachi Life. Tomodachi Life was eventually brought over to North America after its Japanese release, but Tomodachi Collection remained a Japan-exclusive game.

Tomodachi Collection, similar to its sequel, celebrates players’ birthdays with a fun news report and unique cutscene complete with other miis as party guests, singing to the player around a big, delicious birthday cake.

16 Kirby Squeak Squad

What To Expect: Unique start screen

Upon first booting up Kirby Squeak Squad on the day of the player’s birthday, the game will immediately cut to a special “Happy Birthday” greeting screen, complete with confetti, right after pressing start on the start screen.

Kirby and friends are all present, forks in hand, ready to dig into a giant birthday cake! The adorable cake is adorned with chocolate lettering and blue and green birthday candles. The greeting even comes with moving confetti and a little musical tune that plays as well.

15 Animal Crossing (Original)

What To Expect: Unique dialogue, greeting, random items, special item

Fans of the original, first-ever Animal Crossing game may remember the game making players feel remembered and celebrated on their special day, despite the Gamecube’s more archaic graphics. In the original Animal Crossing, the player immediately be greeted by the villager they have the highest friendship level with as soon as they leave their house to venture off for the day. The excited villager will then greet the player and give them a present.

However, the villager that greets the player isn’t the only one that gifts the player on their special day, they’re just the only one that hand-delivers their present. The rest of the villagers will send letters with gifts attached in the mail, including a special birthday cake item from the player’s elusive (but sweet) mom.

14 Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX

What To Expect: Unique cutscene, greeting

As soon as players open up Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX on their birthday, they’ll be greeted by the Hatsune Miku herself! Miku will appear with a tasty cake, topped with chocolate, whipped cream, strawberries, and candles while an adorable theme plays in the back! The lower Nintendo DS screen will have a big birthday greeting, complete with the player’s name as well.

Using the DS’s built-in microphone, the player can then blow out their candles for real! As the candles go out, the adorable Miku on the upper screen will then shout out a little, “Happy birthday!” before the cutscene greeting fades to black. But the fun doesn’t end there; the rest of the vocaloids featured in the game also get their turn to present their own birthday cake and greeting as well!

13 Pokemon X & Y

What To Expect: Unique cutscene, greeting

In Pokémon X & Y, the player is celebrated the moment they enter the Pokémon Center. If they visit the Pokémon Center at any time during their birthday, they will notice that the lights will be dimmed. Once the lights turn on, streamers, confetti, stars, hearts, and even smiling Pikachu faces will dance across the screen, followed by the beloved Nurse Joy greeting the player by name.

Nurse Joy will give the player a sweet message and heart-warming birthday wishes for their Pokémon journey before sending them off to enjoy the rest of their special day.

What To Expect: Unique greeting

The Metal Gear Solid 2 birthday Easter egg is a bit tricky to come across. When first logging into the node as Raiden at the beginning of the Plant chapter, the player has a chance to input a few details about themselves such as their name, blood type, nationality, and birthday. The player will only see this birthday greeting if they happen to play this specific part of the game on the day of their birthday.

If the system’s internal clock reads that the current day is the player’s birthday, a small birthday greeting and a candle-lit cake will appear at the bottom right of the screen. However, this greeting isn’t just for the player. A similar birthday message will appear if the player examines a dog tag of a soldier whose birth date that matches the internal clock.

11 Mario & Luigi: Dream Team

What To Expect: Special item

To make players feel amazing on their special day, Mario & Luigi: Dream Team gifts them unique items they can’t get anywhere else. There is an entire set of gear dedicated to celebrating players’ special day of birth.

The “Birthday Gear” line is made up of Birthday Boots, a Birthday Hammer, Birthday Wear, and a Birthday Ring. Each of these unique items grants the user incredible buffs, like an increase of striking power by a whopping 400%. To keep things fair, the Birthday Gear only grants buffs on the player’s day of birth.

10 Castlevania: Portrait Of Ruin

What To Expect: Special purchasable item

Many gamers would be surprised to hear that Castlevania has a birthday Easter egg, as the series doesn’t seem like the type. While there is no formal cutscene or gift (as the player is still meant to purchase the special item), the player can still have their cake and eat it too.

If the player accesses Vincent’s shop on their birthday, they will find a birthday cake available for purchase, only for one day of the year. This item isn’t just for show and can be bought in multiples. It restores 573 HP (“573” being a Konami inside joke) and can even be sold for $750! However, no one can truly put a price on something so precious.

9 Gran Turismo (Series)

What To Expect: Unique greeting, special item

Players have been given a reason to log in on their birthday throughout the Gran Turismo series. In GT5, GT6, GT Sport, and GT7, players received prize cars upon logging into the game on their date of birth. Along with a greeting, the player typically gets a prize car or ticket used to redeem a prize car for their special day.

In GT6, the player’s birthday car was directly tied to their year of birth; they got a car made in the year (or the closest year) to their own birth year. However, by GT Sport, the birthday car no longer was affected by the year of the player’s birth. Players were gifted a wider range of cars to celebrate their day.

8 Pokemon Sword & Shield

What To Expect: Unique cutscene, greeting

In Pokémon Sword & Shield on the day of the player’s birthday, the celebrations will begin once the player enters a Pokémon Center. Upon entering, the player will be greeted by tons of confetti, Pikachu-shaped balloons, and a personalized birthday greeting as well. Not only that but there will also be a Pokeball-shaped cake (complete with colorful, lit candles) behind the nurse in the Pokémon Center for the rest of the day.

Another bonus players can experience on their special day is checking the memories of the Pokémon that are in the current party, as it will state that the Pokemon remember celebrating the player’s birthday with them! The last small bonus in the game is finding a small lit candle on certain dishes that are cooked on camp throughout the day.

7 Death Stranding

What To Expect: Unique cutscene

At the beginning of Death Stranding, players are prompted to input their birthday and are warned that it will affect a condition called DOOMS. In reality, the date doesn’t truly affect the player’s overall experience with DOOMS but instead allows for the game to treat the player on their special day. The BB and Lisa both get their special day mentioned, so it’s only natural that the player gets the same honor.

In addition to a delectable cake (that slowly gets eaten over time), the player has a chance to trigger a unique cutscene when exiting a safe house. These cutscenes of Cliff speaking to the BB aren’t anything new, but on the player’s special day, Cliff will break the fourth wall, just to wish the player a happy birthday and gift them a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

What To Expect: Unique cutscene(s)

After rushing back to Mother Base due to an unforeseen emergency, Boss returns to find the place completely empty. As Boss gets out of the helicopter, he draws his gun in response to the sounds of supposed gunshots which are actually celebratory fireworks for the man himself!

Suddenly, Kaz, Ocelot, and a few other Diamond Dog soldiers come out with an adorable Diamond Dog-branded cake to serenade Boss on his special day. Ocelot even gifts Boss a fancy cigar (which he welcomes in place of his Phantom Cigar), but Kaz insists on blowing out the cake before indulging in a smoke.

If Quiet is at Mother Base, she’ll have her own special way of greeting Boss as well; this time a bit more dangerous, but definitely her style. In a cutscene where Boss is casually walking around the base, Quiet sends over a big barrage of bullets his way, spelling “HBD” on a big wooden crate full of cigars. Quiet gives Boss one last gift as she takes a shot and lights the end of his cigar before taking her leave.

5 Wii Fit/ Wii Fit Plus

What To Expect: Unique greeting

A blast from the past, Wii Fit, was a great way to keep healthy, exercise, and make sure to have fun while doing it as well. At the beginning of the game, when making a profile, the game asks for many pieces of relevant information in order to properly assess each player’s status and current goals. One of the pieces of information the game asks for is the player’s birthday.

Upon logging in for the day’s workout session, the adorable mascot, the Wii Fit Board itself, will have a tiny party hat on and be jumping for joy to greet the player on their special day! Not only will it greet the player, but it’ll also give a small, uplifting message about how age shouldn’t get in the way of fitness and that the key to good health is consistent exercise.

4 Fire Emblem (Series)

What To Expect: Unique greetings, letters, bonus items

A handful of the Fire Emblem games feature some kind of bonus on the player’s birthday; for Fire Emblem Three Houses, Byleth gets to celebrate his/her special day with some kind letters from friends. The letter will include a unique birthday message from each character, along with a gifted item. These gifted items will also change, depending on if the player’s birthday occurs pre-timeskip or post-timeskip.

In other titles, there are little bonuses that can be found on the player’s birthday; such as in Fire Emblem Fates, the player can make their rounds, interacting with their teammates to get a nice little voice greeting from their favorite pals.

3 Animal Crossing: New Horizons

What To Expect: Special items, unique cutscene, mini-game, and performance

In all Animal Crossing titles, there is usually a special treat for players on their birthday but the surprise in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the best one yet. In ACNH, the player is greeted by a villager as soon as they leave their house. They’ll then be escorted over to the villager’s house where they are greeted by a small party just for them! Not only is there cake, decorations, and great music, but there’s also a fun piñata mini-game that the player can partake in as well.

From here, the player will be given a collective gift from the villagers present at the party (usually a unique birthday-themed furniture item or wearable) as well as get the chance to hand out the birthday cupcakes (obtained by the piñata) to other villagers around town. Famous musician, K.K. Slider will also make a special appearance to perform a birthday number just for the player.

Lastly, the player’s loving mother will also send a handmade cake in the mail to display as well. Luckily it didn’t get damaged along the way!

2 Tomodachi Life

What To Expect: Special item, unique cutscene

On the player’s birthday, the player’s look-alike Mii will call them on their cell phone to follow them for a surprise. When the player arrives at the Mii’s apartment, a handful of favorite Miis will surround the player and sing to them, while one Mii (the Mii that is ranked first on the island’s “Pampered” rating) will be holding a delicious birthday cake.

After their little birthday serenade, the Miis will bring out some fun party poppers and set them off while saying their own little greeting. After everyone’s made their birthday wishes, the player then gets a birthday cake as well as a special birthday greeting on the Tomodachi Life Mii News broadcasts.

However, if the player feels a bit devious, they can blow out the candles via the Nintendo 3DS’s microphone before the Miis finish their song to give them a little surprise!

1 Genshin Impact

What To Expect: Special item, unique dialogue/greeting

While it is customary for all the playable characters in the game to send the Traveler a gift to celebrate their own birthday, come the day of the Traveler’s birthday, things are different.

On the day of the Traveler’s birthday, the player can check their mailbox for a fun surprise in the form of a beautifully decorated cake. In addition to this sweet treat, the player can also check their party’s voice lines to find everyone’s individual birthday greeting as well.

Each Genshin Impact character may have their own way of celebrating a birthday and greeting the player, but each of them makes sure to show how grateful they are for the Traveler and their presence in their lives.

Bonus: Mario Kart

While the Mario Kart games don’t formally celebrate player birthdays, they do still have a fun treat for any gamers who happen to be playing on their special day. Instead of greeting players with a cutscene or voice line, the Mario Kart series features a pink, shoe-shaped kart named “Birthday Girl”.

The cart first appeared in Mario Kart 7 and even adjusted colors to certain characters; turning the cart orange for Daisy, blue for Rosalina, and purple for the Honey Queen.

However, the cart may not work for anybody’s birthday as the Birthday Girl goes by the name “Royal Ribbon” in the British English version of the game.

Bonus: Wii U & DS (Pictochat) UI

A few Nintendo systems from the past (namely the Wii U, DS, and DSi) have had small greetings programmed in their UI (user interface) main menu. The Wii U’s start-up menu plays a small celebratory tune to greet the player on the day of their birthday.

The Nintendo DS and DSi both incorporated little birthday greetings upon starting up the Pictochat application, displaying a unique little message, written in special rainbow text.