Cheat Codes
The most basic type of cheat code is one created by the game designers and hidden within the video game itself, that will cause any type of uncommon effect that is not part of the usual game mechanics.
Activation methods for cheat codes might include entering a code at a password prompt or a pressing a combination of game controller buttons, such as the "Konami Code", or by passwords that can be typed in to get the desired effect or bring up a cheat menu. Other entry points may be a developer console, a code entry dialog, at title screens, or in-game. Effects might include unlocking a character or improving a character's performance: for example providing a car with greater acceleration, entering god mode or noclip mode, or visual gags with no practical purpose, such as "Tutu Qwark" in Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal.
Unlike other cheating methods, cheat codes are implemented by the game developers themselves, often as a tool to playtest certain aspects of the game without difficulty. One of the earliest known examples of this type of cheat is the Konami Code, created in 1986 by Konami developer Kazuhisa Hashimoto as he worked on porting the 1985 arcade game Gradius for use on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Hashimoto is quoted as saying "The arcade version of Gradius is really difficult, right? I never played it that much, and there was no way I could finish the game, so I inserted the so-called Konami code."
Read more about this topic: Cheating In Video Games
Famous quotes containing the words cheat and/or codes:
“Hunger shall make thy modest zone
And cheat fond death of all but bone—”
—Cecil Day Lewis (1904–1972)
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)