Are cheat codes cheating?

[Vater Araignee]

Programmers put them in there.

If they where not intended to be used then why put them in?

I propose to you that in fact the are not!

Game shark and genie are another matter.

what do you think?

[Fierce Critter]

They are cheating.

So is following a walkthrough to the letter.

Do I fall back on walkthroughs occasionally? Yes. I admit it.

Would I use a cheat code? Maybe, but I would know I was "cheating".

If something's TOO easy, it's no fun.

The only reason I'd use a cheat code is something like this: I've got a game called MarbleBlaster I got from the dollar store. It's actually a damned good PC game, and I've enjoyed it muchly. But you can't go from one level to another without sucessfully completing the one that came before. There are some levels I've run into that have made the game un-fun for me - so difficult or just plain set-up "unfun" that I'd love to just give up on that level and go to the next obstacle course, maybe revisit the problematic one later. But I can't - I can't even access the next one until I've finished that one. Thus, the game turns reptitive, frustrating and un-fun.

So in this case, I'd love a cheat. I'd love to know how to get into the programming and skip that one level so I can go back to enjoying, instead of dreading playing the game.

Games like RPG's on Playstation, however, I'd never cheat at. What fun is that?

[Head Wreck]

following walkthrough's what the point of playing the game if your not gonna do it yourself, though they are usefull when stuck

cheats: aslo only if your really stuck on something stupid (half life: the fly code was so damn usefull after trying to jump gaps, my fingers dont move exactly when i want em to)

[Daevion]

Yeah, no matter how you look at it its cheating. Like most gamers I've done my fair share of cheat books, walkthroughs, codes, haks,mods, etc. I always attempted to win the game at least once before I cheated my ass off. The novelty of having invulnerabliity or unlimited ammo usually wears off fairly quickly anyway.

[Ginevra]

I've been known to hit a walkthrough or two in my gaming lifetime. Usually because I'm simply stuck and I don't know where I'm supposed to go next or how to solve a particular puzzle. To me, that's just giving yourself a nudge in the right direction. . . . rather like a tow truck pulling a car out of a ditch. Once the car's out of the ditch, it can continue on its way. Similarly, that's how I use walkthroughs.

Daevion, I'm similar to you in that I do try to beat a game first before going God-like.

FC, I know exactly how you feel in that respect. I've had games like that before where they're just simply not fun for a level or two.

I had a situation once where I was playing an RPG game. Icewind Dale, I think it was. My mage was elven. We entered a battle and she died VERY miserably. My cleric didn't have a spell to resurrect her yet and I only had enough gold to buy one scroll for the cleric to use. Unfortunately for me, I bought the wrong one. (One type of resurrect was for humans and another resurrect was for non-humans.) So, now I have no mage and no gold and nothing to sell to get more gold. I was fairly well along through the game and it would have taken me ages to level up another mage. So I minorly hacked the game, resurrected the mage, and gave myself enough gold so I'd *never* have that issue again.

I think that's the worst I've ever cheated during the first run of a game. I enjoy challenging games and I don't like to ruin it for myself if I can help it. Otherwise, it's just a waste of money, no? =)

[JaneDead]

i only play the sims and i know/use the money cheat.

and i use it. and use it and use it and use it.

my sims need to be blingin' yo.

[Soulrev]

I often times "buy" strategy guides but never really use them. I bought the strategy guides for FFX and FFX-2 and might have used them twice, though I got cool posters..

as far as "cheat codes" go I'll usually play the game through once then go back and mess around with cheat codes..

[Jarodaka]

Cheats and walk-throughs are poor substitutes for good game design. Until all game designers turn into Shigeru Miyamoto (read: never), they will be a regular staple of gaming.

[Fierce Critter]

There are two main reasons I'll use a walkthrough. The first involves poor game design primarily. For instance, in Parasite Eve II, there's a spot at the beginning of the game where it looks like there's something on the ground you can pick up. The first time I played it, I tried and tried and tried and tried over and over again to pick that thing up, but no matter where I stood, the "pickup" feature wouldn't activate. So I had to conclude it wasn't "pickupable" after all. Once I got through over half of the game and figured out I needed that which I THOUGHT I could have picked up, I got pretty damned pissed. A walkthrough showed me that, indeed, I should have been able to pick that thing up. Upon replay, I tried again, and finally found JUST the right place to stand to enable the "pickup" command. BAAAD game design.

The 2nd is if I realize I don't care to play the game for gameplay sake, but want to complete it. For instance, Silent Hill. Partway through that game, I was just so unable to deal with the disturbing atmosphere, I needed to quit. But I wanted to see how the game ended. So I printed out an entire walkthrough, restarted it on the easy setting, and followed the walkthrough step-by-step in a matter of a few hours.

I'm debating doing that with the sequels to SH. I like the storylines, but don't know if I want to subject myself to the eerie, disturbing atmosphere just to see where it goes. They're old enough and available super-cheap used, so it wouldn't be a big waste of $$.

[paradox]

key word here being 'cheat'.

id say yea

[Daniel]

There are two main reasons I'll use a walkthrough. The first involves poor game design primarily.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I am so with you here. There have been many RPGs where... I KNOW what needs to be done, but I'm not pushing the right button, or something lame with the interface that prevents me from proceding. I can point to instances of this all the way back to 8-bit Nintendo RPGs I played in the late 80s. A perfect example was in Destiny of an Emperor where I couldn't get Zhuge Liang to join my party. I fucked with this for months before I figured out to just not push any buttons and wait. I knew I needed to be patient and wait, but was I supposed to wait in the house? Was I supposed to wander around the country side and do something else and come back? Was I supposed to stand next to him while he slept? I think I discovered the secret on accident. I just didn't end the conversation bubble with him "Zzzz-ing" away, and eventually.. he woke up! I can think of no other moment of any game that has annoyed me more than that one.

There were a lot of these types of things in the various Final Fantasy games, and if I run into something like that now... I look the answer up immediately. No more will I waste that sort of time trying to crack some weird inteface problem.

[Daevion]

I've been known to hit a walkthrough or two in my gaming lifetime.  Usually because I'm simply stuck and I don't know where I'm supposed to go next or how to solve a particular puzzle.  To me, that's just giving yourself a nudge in the right direction. . . . rather like a tow truck pulling a car out of a ditch.  Once the car's out of the ditch, it can continue on its way.  Similarly, that's how I use walkthroughs.

Daevion, I'm similar to you in that I do try to beat a game first before going God-like.

FC, I know exactly how you feel in that respect.  I've had games like that before where they're just simply not fun for a level or two.

I had a situation once where I was playing an RPG game.  Icewind Dale, I think it was.  My mage was elven.  We entered a battle and she died VERY miserably.  My cleric didn't have a spell to resurrect her yet and I only had enough gold to buy one scroll for the cleric to use.  Unfortunately for me, I bought the wrong one.  (One type of resurrect was for humans and another resurrect was for non-humans.)  So, now I have no mage and no gold and nothing to sell to get more gold.  I was fairly well along through the game and it would have taken me ages to level up another mage. So I minorly hacked the game, resurrected the mage, and gave myself enough gold so I'd *never* have that issue again.

I think that's the worst I've ever cheated during the first run of a game.  I enjoy challenging games and I don't like to ruin it for myself if I can help it.  Otherwise, it's just a waste of money, no?  =)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Brings back memories of Baldurs Gate. I went through BG1 and BG2 completely the first time without cheating. Missed all kinds of treasure as usual. Finally I had the game so moded and haked that I'd start the game with a super mage and solo the entire game, bah adventuring party who needs em when you start the game with a modded out +100 staff of the magi! It was fun gating in demons and watching the things run amok eating all the towns people. That series was a blast to play ( without the cheats ).

[Vater Araignee]

Ok allow me to clarify my self.

I will NOT use a walk through.

I will NOT use a hack / crack.

I will NOT use a trainer.

I will NOT use a mod.

I will NOT use a game genie / shark.

If somebody starts to talk to me about a game level and I haven't passed it "SHUT UP" comes flying out of my mouth.

In the following text Blue= game Red= war

Now what I am saying

I'm a solder fighting my enemy . . . . . .............................................................. I'm a gamer fighting my enemy (ie the game designer)

My enemy Has left their arsenal access codes someplace and I found them ... My enemy Has created arsenal access codes and I found them

Allowing me to defeat them. . . . . ..................................................................... Allowing me to win

Then I did not cheat . . . . . ............................................................................... Then I did not cheat

[Fierce Critter]

Classic example of why walkthroughs are legitimate tools sometimes.

Reached a dragon I CANNOT beat, on a level that is already not fun to play 'cause the graphics are done badly. I'm in a forest, and if I'm not rotated right, I can't see my character through the tree canopy! So I'm fighting half the battles without even being able to see my character. BAD game design.

So I get to this dragon, and I CAN'T go further in the maze-style forest without defeating him - no way arount it. And I'm not getting ANYWHERE fighting him.

So I consult a walkthrough - and no freaking wonder I can't beat him. According to the stats on the beast via the game, he's light affinity-affiliated. So I equip my light-fighting goodies, and I can't beat him.

But according to an online strategy guide, he's EARTH affinity.

WHATEVER!

Grumble. Back to fight the beast later tonight. We'll see if adding earth goodies helps me out here.

[mandelbrotjulia]

I have never understood why people try to apply a sense of morality to their method of playing video games. It's entertainment; the point is to have fun. You're not doing anything that actually matters. Cheating? Cheating is when you are unfaithful to a loved one. Who cares if you use codes or a strategy guide in a game? If a game is too hard then I look for cheat codes, cos I'm not going to resign myself to never seeing the last part of the game that I paid $40-$50 for.

[Ginevra]

I guess it's sort of like power leveling in a game, to some and in some aspects.

I was introduced recently to an online MORPG called City of Heroes. You basically get to play your own superhero who has to help save the town that they are sworn to protect.

There are 50 levels. There are people I've seen who methodically and carefully work on their characters, making sure that they get as much of the storyline as possible (which gives more payoffs, too) and that they know their role in the game. (IE if you make a tanker character, then that's what you do. You tank for your group.)

Then I've seen people who have been *massively* power leveled that have no idea how they're supposed to play their character. They don't know their role in the game, they don't know any of the storyline and while that's not a sin, it makes it harder for other players around them when they group because of those issues.

So, there's the thought that while, yes, it's their own money they're paying for the monthly subscription so it's their own choice to powerlevel or not, but what ramifications does that have on another individual who may have gotten their character to where they are "legitimately".

[mandelbrotjulia]

So, there's the thought that while, yes, it's their own money they're paying for the monthly subscription so it's their own choice to powerlevel or not, but what ramifications does that have on another individual who may have gotten their character to where they are "legitimately".

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hmm, well that's a good point. I wouldn't know, cos I've never played online. I suppose I was just talking about playing a game by myself. Although now that you mention it, sometimes you would WANT to cheat to unlock extra things in the game when they are multiplayer things if you are going to be playing with three other friends. Who wants to play the first 3 levels over and over again?