LEAKED: 3 COD Zombies Reckoning Easter Egg Secrets (2025)
Leaked secrets for the new COD Zombies map, Reckoning! Discover the first steps for the Chronos Key, Aetherium Echoes, and Sentinel's Sacrifice Easter eggs.
Alex Carter
Seasoned Zombies veteran and Easter egg hunter with over a decade of experience.
The Zombies community is on fire right now, and for good reason. A massive trove of data, allegedly from an internal developer build for Call of Duty 2025, has just surfaced online. While we always advise a healthy dose of skepticism with leaks, the details within are so specific and plausible that it’s hard to ignore. Buried within the files are tantalizing hints about the next round-based map, codenamed “Reckoning.”
From what we can piece together, Reckoning is set in a war-torn, abandoned research facility in the Swiss Alps, where a temporal rift has shattered reality. The vibe is dark, gritty, and reminiscent of the classic eerie atmosphere we’ve been craving. But the real prize in this leak? Detailed steps for what appear to be three major Easter eggs.
So, grab your Juggernog, because we’re diving deep into the secrets that Treyarch might have in store for us. Remember, these are unconfirmed, but if they’re real, we’re in for an all-time great Zombies experience.
Secret #1: Activating the Chronos Key
The main Easter egg quest in Reckoning seems to revolve around a device called the “Chronos Key,” a relic capable of stabilizing or even rewriting time within the fractured facility. The leaked notes suggest the first major step is a multi-part puzzle that requires keen observation and coordination.
Step 1: Locate the Grandfather Clocks
This feels like classic Zombies. Scattered across the map are three ornate, old-fashioned grandfather clocks that seem out of place in the high-tech facility. According to the leak, you’ll need to find them in these specific areas:
- The Director's Manor: On the second floor of a dilapidated villa that serves as the map’s starting area, next to a shattered portrait.
- Collapsed Clocktower: Ironic, right? This one is found at the base of a fallen clocktower, half-buried in snow and rubble near the path to the labs.
- Specimen Containment: Deep within the research wing, this clock stands eerily pristine amidst smashed containment cells and strange biological growth.
You must interact with each clock. Upon doing so, the hands will spin wildly before locking into a specific time. Each player will see the same time, so teamwork is key.
Step 2: Decipher the Temporal Sequence
The times shown on the clocks are not random. They form a three-part code. For example, if the clocks show 3:15, 7:40, and 11:25, that’s your sequence. The order in which you find them doesn't matter; the code is based on the locations themselves (e.g., Manor time is first, Clocktower second, Containment third).
The leaked dev note says: “Players must translate the temporal signatures into a numerical sequence. Time is the lock; they must find the key.”
Step 3: Calibrate the Temporal Stabilizer
Once you have your three times, you need to head to the heart of the map: the main reactor chamber. Here you’ll find a large, dormant machine called the “Temporal Stabilizer.” On its side is a keypad. You’ll need to enter the numbers from the clocks as a single sequence (e.g., 3157401125). If you’re correct, the machine will whir to life, a beam of energy will shoot into the temporal rift above, and Samantha Maxis (or whoever our guide is) will chime in, confirming you’ve stabilized the first temporal fracture. This officially begins the main quest and likely unlocks new areas or challenges.
Secret #2: Uncovering the Aetherium Echoes
For the lore hunters out there, this side Easter egg seems designed just for us. It’s all about uncovering the story of what went wrong at the facility through ghostly apparitions called “Aetherium Echoes.”
Step 1: Forge the Soul Weaver
This quest requires a new Wonder Weapon, allegedly named the “Soul Weaver.” The leak doesn’t detail how to build it, but it describes it as a crossbow-like weapon that fires bolts of condensed Aetherium. More importantly, it has an alternate fire mode that doesn’t deal damage but instead “resonates with spectral energy.” You’ll need to craft this weapon before you can begin hunting for the echoes.
Step 2: Reveal the Specters
After activating the Pack-a-Punch machine, five spectral figures will begin to appear in specific locations around the map. These aren’t enemies; they’re translucent, flickering figures of scientists and soldiers, frozen in their last moments. They are invisible to the naked eye and only become fully visible when you aim down the sights of the Soul Weaver.
Step 3: Capture Their Stories
To capture an echo, you must shoot the spectral figure with the Soul Weaver’s alternate fire mode. This will trigger a ghostly reenactment of a past event, complete with audio dialogue that reveals crucial story details. Finding all five Aetherium Echoes is said to reward the team with a highly valuable prize: a free Perk slot for every player in the game and a Max Ammo to keep you going. It’s a fantastic reward for engaging with the map’s hidden narrative.
Secret #3: The Sentinel's Sacrifice Lockdown
This last secret is a high-risk, high-reward challenge that sounds absolutely intense. It involves awakening a friendly guardian to help you survive an insane onslaught in exchange for a powerful sacrifice.
Step 1: Gather the Elemental Shards
This Easter egg requires you to have the elemental upgrade variants for your weapons, similar to the Ammo Mods we know and love (Cryofreeze, Dead Wire, etc.). In the deepest part of the map, an area called the “Sanctum of the First,” there is a massive, dormant Sentinel statue made of stone and crystal. Surrounding it are four pedestals, each marked with an elemental symbol.
The entire team must coordinate. Four players, each with a different elemental ammo type equipped, must simultaneously place their weapons on the correct pedestals. The leak stresses this consumes the ammo mod, so you’ll have to buy it again later. This is the “sacrifice.”
Step 2: Survive the Reckoning
Placing the weapons triggers an immediate lockdown of the Sanctum. The Sentinel statue animates, its crystal eyes glowing. But it doesn't attack you. Instead, it acts as a powerful ally. It will send out pulses of energy, stun powerful enemies, and even revive downed players within its immediate vicinity.
This is crucial, because the game will throw everything it has at you: a super-fast, relentless wave of zombies, multiple mini-bosses (the files mention a new enemy type called a “Temporal Shrieker”), and an oppressive environmental effect that slowly drains your health if you stray too far from the Sentinel’s protective aura.
Step 3: Claim Your Reward
If your team can survive the lockdown, which supposedly lasts a full two minutes, the Sentinel will strike a final pose and return to its dormant state. Its chest will then open, revealing the reward: a part for the map’s ultimate Wonder Weapon upgrade. This sounds like the key to truly dominating the high rounds, making the sacrifice of your elemental mods more than worth it.
Final Thoughts
Again, we have to stress that these are leaks. Things can and will change before the final release. But the sheer detail here is compelling. A time-based main quest, a lore-heavy side quest, and an intense lockdown event—it’s the perfect recipe for a legendary Zombies map.
What do you think of these alleged secrets? Do they get you hyped for COD 2025 Zombies? Let us know your theories and thoughts in the comments below. The hunt is just beginning!