Best Video Game Cheat Codes in History
The annals of video game history have their quirks, from epic quotes such as “All your base are belong to us” through to the stress-inducing nostalgia of the Sonic drowning music. Video game cheat codes also have their place on the pages of gaming history, and here are some of the best there have been.
1. Blood in Mortal Kombat
It’s easy to forget just how controversial some of the early beat ‘em ups were, with parents and puritans worrying about them causing violence in children. For kids, the main arguments were over which games and which systems were better, and the blood code in the first Mortal Kombat was an undoubted victory for Sega Mega Drive (also known as Genesis) players over SNES fans.
Available only for Sega’s hardware, the blood code did what it said on the tin and added a splash of red to the on-screen violence. But only if you had a Mega Drive/Genesis. SNES players had to do without. Cheat codes in games with gore aplenty have always been popular, with a more recent example being Resident Evil 7.
2. Casino Codes
Casino cheat codes would be perfect, as they would effectively amount to a license to print money. And while they do not exist, there is a way to significantly increase your playing funds immediately through match deposit promotions. First-time players can take advantage of fantastic first-time deposit bonuses when money is initially transferred into a site, with the casino matching at a rate of 100% or even more. In addition, free spins and other little extras can often be thrown in to sweeten the deal yet further. It’s the perfect way to start playing at an online casino.
3. GoldenEye Invincibility
GoldenEye was a fantastic game both in itself and as a milestone in gaming history. It proved a film could be the basis of a great game (still a rarity today), it helped redefine the FPS genre, and it provided both a great single-player campaign and multiplayer fun.
There were also numerous cheat codes associated with this top-class shooter which can be unlocked via particularly skillful feats. All you have to do is beat the Facility in 00 Agent setting and in 2:05 or less for invincibility. Or you can enter the cheat code to make yourself impervious to damage.
It’s particularly satisfying in a game that presents a fair challenge, not least when potentially endless waves of enemies are seriously adding to the stress levels.
4. Doom’s God Mode
Doom was an epoch-defining game for many players, but the ferocity of its challenge did divide gamers between those who felt it heightened the experience and those who were put off, or plain frustrated by being unable to progress. Enter the God Mode that endowed the player with invincibility, effectively turning off the difficulty and allowing players to either cruise through or use it as a practice mode to sharpen up their skills before switching it off and playing for real.
5. Extra Characters in NBA Jam
One of the most fun parts of sports games is playing as your favorite athletes and putting together incredible teams (or deliberately trying to make your team as bad as possible so they crash and burn). NBA Jam has its fair share of players and more than you might expect.
There are different versions, but across the set extra and unusual players that can be recruited include none other than former US President Bill Clinton, Will Smith, and Prince Charles (and many more). If you like sports but don’t take them seriously, this was the perfect code for letting your hair down and seeing who really is sharper at shooting hoops: the Fresh Prince, or the Prince of Wales.
6. Debugging Sonic
Sonic the Hedgehog was once the rival of Mario in the world of gaming, and while the plumber clearly won that battle Sonic had a pretty cool debug mode back in the day (a mode so popular it’s still around in Endless Space 2 and other games).
Using this cheat code players could recreate any asset within the game (such as gifting yourself so many rings collecting them made you fear your console would break it slowed down so much). In later games, gravity could be reversed. Better yet, the code was retained for recent re-releases. For its time, it was incredibly flexible, almost verging on being a level editor.
And the spiky blue hedgehog brings us to the end of our little look at the top gaming cheat codes of yesteryear.