In the pantheon of 3D platformers, Rare’s Conker’s Bad Fur Day is a bit of an outlier. It has the bones of an exploration game with the muscle of a puzzle-platformer and the brains of an action-platformer. But its most noticeable departure from tradition has to do with collecting. Unlike its most comparable titles (Banjo-Kazooie, Super Mario Odyssey, etc.), Conker’s Bad Fur Day lacks collectibles. One could call its health-giving chocolate bars and life-giving squirrel tails “things to collect,” but outside of those, there are no items strewn about Conker’s world that one must gather up en masse.

That is, except for its worst kept secret – money!

Hidden around the lands of Conker’s Bad Fur Day are wads of very grumpy money that are usually heard before they are seen. Some of the cash is doled out to Conker for completing tasks, while some he must locate out in the world, with placements ranging from obvious to obscure. The money itself is no secret, but in a world without collectibles, why must Conker collect it? After all, in a Mario game one can collect coins, but doing so isn’t absolutely necessary for the sake of the game. Is collecting money absolutely necessary in Conker’s Bad Fur Day? Because some cash is stuck in some extremely challenges spots; places that can be so difficult to reach, it’s easy enough to say “forget it” and move on. Does one really need to break themselves and poor Conker to obtain every last wad of dough that can be found?

The secret is yes! For the love of money, yes, yes, and YES! While the game keeps track of how much money Conker finds, throughout the bulk of its runtime, it doesn’t ever explain why Conker needs it. There aren’t any interim rewards given for collecting it, and there certainly isn’t any place in the game he can spend it. Further, no hints are given as to why Conker must maintain and grow his bankroll. And yet, without any compelling reason whatsoever, one simply must obtain these often annoyingly placed, angry bundles of cash whenever they are seen or heard.

But why??

I explain why in my playthrough of the game; and I could say SPOILERS here, but again, this is hardly a “secret” secret anymore.

If you didn’t feel like watching, of course I’ll explain. To reach the game’s “haunted” level and progress any further at that point, Conker must provide exactly$2,210 to a barrel near the Windy level’s windmill that will open the appropriate path.

Happy money hunting!

All images and video captured by author during Xbox gameplay of Conker’s Bad Fur Day via Rare Replay (© Rare).