Cheat codes music video driving code#
The so-called Konami Code - named after both games’ developer and publisher - is a sequence of button presses: The Konami Code: Making Cheat Codes InfamousĪlthough codes were placed in games for a variety of reasons before the release of titles like Gradius and Contra on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), these games made the idea famous. This all served as a kind of precursor to the gaming guide craze of the 1990s, which saw titles like Nintendo Power and Tips & Tricks becoming staples at school lunchroom tables. The fun of gaming wasn’t just about high scores, but about comparing cheat codes, too. In turn, players began to share their third-party cheats with each other through word-of-mouth. With the cheat code trend gaining steam, some gaming companies began to actually help players cheat by pointing out the memory addresses of certain game values. Instead of aiding their character, some of these adventurous gamers buffed their enemies. However, changing values without knowing which memory addresses corresponded to which value led to some rather random in-game changes, too.
Players who used POKE commands could effectively store any value to a game’s memory - thus, the third-party cheat was born. The cheat, known as the “6031769” code, was based on developer Matthew Smith’s driver’s license number. What Was the First Cheat Code?Īlthough it’s often difficult to distinguish the line between a cheat code and developer tool, most video game experts agree that the first legitimate cheat code was for a ZX Spectrum platforming game called Manic Miner (1983). But sometimes these codes can handicap players to provide them with a more challenging experience. For the most part, cheat codes help the player - as in the case of invincibility or infinite ammo cheat codes. Put into simpler terms, they modify what a player can and can’t do. In essence, a cheat code modifies a core function of a game that affects gameplay in some way. In honor of National Video Games week, we’re taking a look back at the history of cheat codes in video games, from contentious alterations, like Fortnite’s aimbot, to classic cheats, like the Konami Code. Gamers have discovered unintended “codes” by exploiting bugs in a game’s software.
Cheat codes music video driving software#
Other times, they’re inserted through third-party software after a game’s been produced. Sometimes, cheat codes are purposefully included in games by the first-party developers who created them.