If you own one of Amazon's smart speakers, you're more than likely interacting with Alexa on a daily basis. This intelligent intelligent assistant that can help us with our day-to-day tasks, become our agenda, provide us with information on a specific topic and much more. But what would you think if we told you that he has been hiding something all this time? Today we want you to know the Alexa hidden modes andCourse how can you activate them.
Alexa, what modes do you have?
It is more than likely that, in your day to day, the commands you use with Amazon's intelligent assistant are related to playing a song, asking for the weather or the time. But, as we have already let you see, the possibilities of this assistant go much further.
Even if you have come to this article because you are researching the possibility of getting a smart speaker, you have to know that interacting with the Amazon virtual entity is as simple as saying “Alexa”, followed by the question or action that you want it to take.
If you want to know what Alexa is capable of, you can ask her directly. If you ask the question "What can you do?" So that she herself can tell you about some of the tasks in which she can help you. Or, in the event that you want to know the modes available to her, she can ask you the question “What modes do you have?”. Although now we will list a list of the main and most interesting ones.
On the other hand, if you have any doubts about what it would be like to live with Alexa in your home, some time ago we made a video on our YouTube channel in which we told you about our experience. Take a look and you will surely be surprised.
Alexa's Best Hidden Modes
The ways that, until now, Alexa was hiding from you are many. What's more, its number of available modes is increasing every so often, so this list will grow more and more over time.
Here we show you the best Alexa hidden modes and how you can activate them.
Super Alexa mode
This mode is possibly the best known of all since it has been given a lot of hype on the internet. Still, if you were expecting Alexa to turn into a super intelligent entity with this mode or to transform into a cyborg or something like that, we are sorry to break the bad news that none of that will happen. This mode is just a easter egg in memory of the famous konami code them gamers They will know what we are talking about. The Super Alexa mode therefore only has a recreational purpose as a wink (especially for the gaming community); it is of no practical use. And it is that, at most, the assistant will pronounce some of these sentences:
- “Woooooo good job, Super Alexa mode on”
- "Congratulations, correct exact code"
- "Super Alexa mode activated. Startup of reactors, online; enablement of advanced systems, online; breeding dongers, bug; missing dongers, miscarrying"
- "Ting, tin, tin, the code is accurate, downloading updates"
How to activate Super Alexa mode
These are the steps to follow to activate it:
- Say out loud: “Alexa, turn on super Alexa mode”
- The assistant will inform us that it is a super secret mode that requires a code to function
- To this, you will have to answer (as if it were the key combination for a cheat / unlock a video game) the following bar code: “Alexa, up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start.”
- The assistant will automatically inform us that the activation begins, followed by different sound signals.
Ready. If instead of "start" you say "start" nothing happens and the code works the same. Of course, if you make a mistake and instead of twice up (for example), you alternate between up and down or change the order from left to right, you will be able to verify that nothing happens.
The history of the Konami code
Journalist Jorge Méndez was in 1986 when Kazuhisa Hashimoto, a programmer working at Konami, was working on a port of Gradius for the NES. During the testing phase of the video game, which he uses to see that there is no programming error, he found that the game was really complicated and that forced him to start the games frequently. For this reason, Hashimoto created a code that would allow him to have a series of advantages such as the power to increase the player's life and power-ups. Thus, the players who were to try the title would find a series of extra aids that would make it much easier for them to carry out their work.
That was how the Konami code or Konami Code was born, through the need to create a kind of back door or method that would allow access to a series of tricks and advantages of a video game. And yes, the combination that had to be done on the controller was the same as we have seen before: up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start (start).
Of course he didn't just stay in Gradius. Once discovered, he stayed in many more games, both belonging to its sequels and other titles from Konami itself and even other developers. And it is that the Konami Code was even able to transfer to the company itself. Many games today make use of this combination to activate special modes or access options that would otherwise remain hidden. What's more, as we've seen, Alexa even winks at her to activate her own Super Mode, which isn't really that super. Or in services like Google's Gmail and social networks like Facebook among many others.
soccer mode
In this case, activate the soccer mode It won't be "as simple" as super Alexa. This is one of those ways in which Alexa will ask us a previous questionnaire and, for its start, we will have to guess at least 2 of its 4 questions correctly. Depending on what you know about soccer, the questions will seem easier or more difficult. However, we anticipate that you don't have to be Maldini to emerge victorious from the quiz.
The questions will vary between a wide list of questions. Once we achieve it, Alexa will indicate it to us and begin to release us a speak in the purest style of a football commentator. As you may be imagining, to start Alexa's questions it will be as simple as saying “Alexa, activate soccer mode”. You can try this mode several times, as there are different responses configured with which you can have fun listening to Alexa for a while. Of course, if someone from Amazon is reading us, please, raise the level. There are many Alexa users who are able to memorize the line-up of the bottom team in the Turkish second division, so giving this mode a touch of difficulty would be great.
familiar ways
Alexa is capable of imitating or putting herself in the shoes of various members of our house. This is achieved through the different family modes available to her, which are:
- Parent mode: If you want Alexa to unleash a string of typical parenting phrases on you, just say "Alexa, turn on parent mode." She will tell you that she needs a secret code that she can give you a clue to. If you don't want to eat your head too much, the name you have to spell backwards is "Alcántara", the surname of the father of the series "Cuéntame".
- mother mode: As in the previous mode, if you want to hear mythical mother phrases, you can activate this mode by saying “Alexa, mother mode”. To get it, you will have to answer some questions correctly.
- baby mode: If you activate it, you will hear Alexa crying like a baby.
- Child mode: with this mode Alexa will become a spoiled and talkative child.
- teen mode: In the same way, by changing the way she talks a bit, Alexa can become a teenager thanks to this mode.
- granny mode: However, if you miss your grandmother, you can ask Alexa to speak like a grown-up person and say typical grandmother phrases thanks to this mode.
Of course, some of them may not be available at the moment depending on the region where you reside.
Madrid way
Madrileños of the world, Alexa can become one of yours. If you want it to do it, you just need to say the command “Alexa, turn on Madrid mode” and correctly answer a series of questions that the assistant will ask you “Do you consider yourself an expert in Madrid? Are you a cat or a madrileño from three to the room? ».
If you manage to activate it, Alexa will sing you a very special song.
Galician way
There is another very similar mode called 'Galician Mode', in which Alexa will give us a song if we are able to guess true or false to some questions (with their corresponding words in Galician, clear). Its activation is the same as that of Madrid: “Alexa, turn on Galician mode”.
Those of us in the south are also looking forward to Alexa also activating an Andalusian mode, if only to see what artificial intelligence thinks of our topics. In the meantime, it will be time to wait.
love mode
The Amazon assistant also has his little heart, and he shows it to us thanks to this mode. If you want to start it you just have to tell him “Alexa, turn on love mode”. Again, to get started, Alexa will ask you a series of questions related to love and romance, of which you will have to answer 3 of the 4 questions correctly. Alexa will ask us about poetry, novels and historical data on romanticism to verify that we are true romantics and that she can trust us to show all her feelings.
By activating this mode we will enter a very cloying moment lived from the point of view of the assistant in love. Every year, those of Amazon tend to improve this mode every Valentine's Day, so do not hesitate to try this mode on those dates even if the situation is a bit uncomfortable. Also, if you liked the movie Here, this mode will make you smile. Of course, activate this mode in private, it is not going to be that someone thinks that you are having an affair with your Echo Dot. What you were missing now, come on.
Halloween mode
An Alexa mode could not be missing for this date so marked on the calendar. In this case, it is activated after the command "Alexa, activate Halloween Mode".
Once activated, Alexa will tell you typical phrases of witches, ghosts or wizards. Undoubtedly, one more way to celebrate this terrifying party.
In Halloween Mode, you'll notice that Alexa has a somewhat wobbly voice. It's normal, don't worry. But if you really want to be scared, then say "Alexa, turn on Scary Mode."
Batman mode
This other Easter Egg is one of the nicest we have in the Amazon assistant. It is activated after saying the command "Alexa, tell me a line from Batman». You will be able to listen to as many as you want, and all with the peculiar voice of the superhero.
Self Destruct Mode
This is another funny little joke that the Alexa developers have implemented in the voice assistant. To activate it you just have to say “Alexa, activate self-destruct mode«. But no, your Echo won't blow itself up. She'll tell you something different every time, from that she can't do it to one of the times she says she's going to explode, but she stops almost at the end. However, the funniest sentence in this mode is one in which Alexa tells you that she will listen to you, but she asks you as a confidence exercise to stop the command at the last moment. And it's better for her to give the poor thing a hand, because with everything she does for you, it's not a plan to give her a hard time.
Other modes that (maybe) you can use
As we have already mentioned, Alexa is including many more modes with each passing day. There are even modes that depending on the region you live in you can use them or not.
We see this case very clearly with the following modes if you live in Latin America:
- northern mode: is activated by the command “Alexa, activate Norteño mode”.
- caribbean mode o Coastal mode: To activate this hidden function of Alexa, you will have to say “Alexa, activate the Caribbean mode”. Unfortunately, Alexa won't make you a piña colada, but she will start speaking to you in an accent that only the locals in the area will understand, as well as words from the Mexican Caribbean.
- taco mode: Every good Mexican worth his salt is grateful for its great gastronomy. If you want to bring out the spicy side of Alexa, feel free to unlock it by saying "Alexa, activate Taquero mode".
- yucatecan way: after saying the magic words “Alexa, activate the Yucatecan mode”, Alexa will start talking to you just like they do in Yucatan, which is characterized by its accents and its 'Bombs'. If what you like are word games, this is your mode.
- chilango mode: This special mode takes a tour of all the Mexican accents. It is activated by the command "Alexa, let's start the route of Mexican accents".
- mexican mode: this last mode will release typical expressions of this fantastic country.
- Guadalajara mode: something similar to what we have seen with the chilango mode occurs. After activation, it will review the most common Mexican accents. It is activated with the phrase 'Alexa, activate the tapatío mode'
These, if you live in Spain, for example, when trying to play them, Alexa will tell you that it does not have them yet, or that they are not available in our region. However, in countries on the other side of the pond they do work.
Discover more with the Skills & Tools
If you liked these Alexa modes, but they have become short, you have a whole world to discover with the skills. In fact, these Alexa modes that we have just presented to you are nothing more than Skills directly programmed by Amazon and that do not need to be activated by the user.
Alexa skills allow you to use different services and applications together with the voice assistant. However, there are also a lot of games, curiosities and children's applications that you can activate and play just as you have with Alexa's hidden modes.
To view the Alexa Skills catalog, do the following:
- Open the Alexa app on your mobile phone
- Go to 'More' in the bottom right corner
- Tap on 'Skills and Games'
- Tap the 'Categories' tab
- Explore each category at your leisure. The skills most similar to what you have just seen are included in the 'Games and curiosities', although there are also curious things within 'Curiosities and Humor.
Once you spot a skill that interests you, enter it and activate it. The skill screen itself will tell you what the trigger word necessary to start the program.
Create your own modes with Blueprints
If all of this isn't enough for you, you'll be surprised to learn that you can even create your own automated Alexa responses. Making it is not complicated, although it requires some time and a lot of imagination.
Blueprints is the tool that Amazon has so that you can prepare Alexa with the responses and automatisms that you can think of. How is it used?
First of all, you must enter the official website of blueprints. Then, log in with your Amazon username and account. It is recommended to do it from a computer.
This tool is not only for making fun modes, but it is also designed to create useful tools for Alexa. However, we will stay with the 'Games' tab, which has the options Inspiration, Jokes, Compliments and Decisions.
What you have to do next is enter any of them and fill in the different text fields, which are used to configure Alexa's responses. The possibilities are limitless, so you can give free rein to your imagination.
Now you know all the modes that you can activate in Alexa. You can try them with family, friends or even by yourself if you get bored and want to explore all the options that the virtual assistant has. And now that we've come this far, what mode would you like Amazon to add to Alexa? If you have come up with any, leave it to us in the comment box. It sure is a lot of fun to see what other ideas you can come up with to further improve this voice assistant. For now, we say goodbye. If any new mods come out, you'll see them here as soon as we spot them.