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- Global Online Conference Gamedev World Streams Free All Weekend with More Than 30 Guest Speakers
  June 21, 2019NewsTrading convention halls for internet tubes brings developers together across languages and borders Conventions that focus on marketing games to players exist in abundance, while developer-focused meetups on the same scale are limited to GDC. Rami Ismael, half of development duo Vlambeer, wants to change that with Gamedev.world, a streaming-only conference starting today and runs through June 23 in several languages. Among the more than 30 scheduled speakers are Conrad Roset, the creative director of Gris, talking about his process, Osama Hussein of Sumo Digital discussing Arabic language in games, artist Gabby DaRienzo on overcoming creative blocks, and more. The breadth of topics covered during throughout the weekend range from managing life as a parent while developing games, to finding publishers beyond your local environment, to lessons learned from the quest log in the recently released Pathologic 2. Ismail and his partners first announced Gamedev.world back in January of this year, promising all talks would be streamed, or at least closed-captioned and translated, into Arabic, Simplified Chinese, English, French, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. This allows speakers to use their native language without losing any of the audience. It’s also completely free of charge, combating one of the most common complaints that events like GDC are prohibitively expensive for smaller devs when accounting for tickets, travel, time off, etc. Factors that affect international devs, such as fraught borders and language barriers, don’t matter when all of the content lives online. Game development is a beautiful thing for everyone, and this free-to-watch event is a way I'm trying to give back for all the beautiful stories & lessons learned from people who can't get visas, people I don't share a language with, people who make games despite everything. — Rami Ismail (@tha_rami) June 21, 2019 In addition to a constant, 3-day livestream, venues around the world are hosting watch events for the duration of Gamedev World. Check the website for a list of venues (relatively) near you, or visit the livestream for new speakers, new topics, and new perspectives throughout the weekend. ...

Features

- The Konami Code and What Came After Part 3: Cheat Codes, New and Old
  May 15, 2019FeaturesSince the invention of the Konami Code, cheat codes have permeated console and computer games alike. Existing as an effortless way to change your gameplay experience, cheat codes can do anything from altering your character’s appearance to giving you unlimited ammo or immunity. There are hundreds of cheat codes that have existed over the years, and I’ve picked just a few of my favorites to highlight here to demonstrate the scope of what cheat codes are capable of. Console Cheat Codes Staying true to the Konami Code, most console cheats give players items or stat boosts that will help them win the game more quickly and easily. Others, however, are just for fun, adding an extra element of hilarity to what might otherwise be a very serious or intense game. My favorite game series of all time is the Spyro the Dragon trilogy, so I know their cheat codes like the back of my hand. They also have perhaps the best mix of helpful and aesthetic cheat codes in any games that I’ve encountered. The most essential of their helpful cheat codes is the 99 Lives Cheat. It does exactly what it says on the tin–entering a code during the pause menu gives Spyro 99 lives. When you’re stuck fighting Gnasty Gnorc or you just need a safety net as you soar over a wide chasm, this cheat really comes in handy. And when you inevitably run out, just pause the game and enter the cheat again, as many times as you need to finally defeat Ripto. Speaking of Ripto, if you need an extra hot boost at any point when playing Spyro 2: Ripto’s Rage, just enter a cheat code in the pause menu to activate Spyro’s Superflame breath. Unfortunately, this cheat code does come with some stipulations; it can only be activated once you collect all 10,000 gems and all 64 orbs in the game. But hey, not everything can be that easy, right?Spyro’s cheat codes really shine in their aesthetic warping codes. Do you want Spyro to have an extremely large head? There’s a cheat code for that. Slap a pair of sunglasses on him, give him tiny wings, and even change the color of his scales, all with a few simple button presses in the pause menu. One of the better practical cheat codes I’ve found is one for the NES Super Mario Bros. game. Normally, when you run out of lives in this Mario game, it’s game over for real; you’re sent back to the very beginning of the game no matter where you are in any of its 8 worlds. The way around this is incredibly easy: after dying and returning to the main menu, hold down the A and Start buttons, and you’ll return to the first level of the last world you were in. Informing my mom of this code earned me a surprised and frustrated scream, so apparently it was never that well advertised when the game first came out in 1985. If anyone still has an NES out there, you’re welcome. I’ve saved the best for last. The strangest and most hilarious cheat code perhaps in existence comes from International Superstar Soccer on the SNES, Mega Drive and PlayStation. This one required you to play with a friend, or at least have two controllers. In the title screen, enter a code using the second controller, and all of the officials in the game turn into dogs. Dogs! Officiating a soccer game! Truly, video games and cheat codes were the best inventions ever, of all time. Cheating Hardware There was another pretty great invention that came about right around when video games were hitting their stride in popular culture. The Game Genie was originally conceived in 1990 for the NES, and was then adapted for the SNES, Game Boy and SEGA Genesis. The Genie was inserted in the game cartridge slot, between the console and the cartridge. It was sold with a booklet of codes for a variety of different games, and these were entered in the menu that popped up on the Genie. As more games were released, some gaming magazines created paid subscription services that released new codes every quarter. Game Genie codes worked like most other cheat codes at the time. They made the player more powerful, gifting them with unlimited ammunition, invulnerability, and even allowing them to skip entire levels. Other codes unlocked hidden features that were scrapped and rendered unreachable by developers. Players eventually began to experiment with the Genie to create their own codes by inputting random sequences in the hopes that one would work. There were some major drawbacks to this, as messing randomly with the Game Genie could cause corrupted save data or freeze the game. Plus, every code tried had to be written down, as there was no way to check codes after they were input. This methodical madness did work a few times, and the randomly discovered codes could then be further modified to find other, more useful hidden codes. The Game Genie worked, and worked well, which is exactly why Nintendo had to step in and take legal action against it. Nintendo was vehemently against use of the Genie with their games, but ultimately lost the court case against Codemasters (the company behind the Genie) because the courts ruled that using it did not result in a work that was derivative from the original produced by the game company. SEGA, on the other hand, fully endorsed the Game Genie, so long as it didn’t work with games that had save features. Its success, as well as the constantly developing and improving world of video game consoles, called for a second Game Genie. The Game Genie 2 was much more powerful, and was designed to work with the SNES. It allowed players to find cheat codes on their own more easily, to selectively activate cheats during gameplay, and automatically save their game and restore high scores into the memory of the Genie itself. Ultimately, a prototype of the Genie 2 was completed but never brought to market, and is now owned by Richard Aplin, one of the original creators of the first Genie. Computer Cheat Codes As console games and their cheat codes were evolving, computer games had to keep up. Computer cheat codes developed similarly to console cheats, in that they were often left in by developers after playtesting. Some codes were more purposeful, specifically placed to give players a much needed boost. The cheat codes featured in the Sims games are probably the best examples of purposeful cheat codes and the most widely known. The EA site for the Sims has an explicit “How to Cheat” page, with instructions on how to bring up the Cheat Console and a list of the available cheat codes. They even state on the page, “Cheating is a big part of the game…it’s even something we kinda, sorta, actually encourage.” The Sims games already boast a high level of freedom in terms of character creation and the actions that can be performed in the game. Their cheat codes give players the chance to push the boundaries of what the game can do, or just make their lives easier. Next to the Konami Code, the Sims’ “motherlode” cheat code is one of the best known cheat codes that exists. No one I know has played the Sims and not used this code. After pulling up the Cheat Console, just enter the word “motherlode” and 50,000 simoleons (the game’s currency) will appear. The best part is that there’s no limit to how many times you can use this code. Max out your money right at the beginning of the game and the sky’s the limit when making your Sim’s dream house. If you can’t find the furniture or other items you really need to complete your new home, there’s even a code to unlock all items, and another to reveal seasonal or limited editions items that shouldn’t be available. The original Call of Duty on the PC also has an in-game cheat command console, though the available cheat codes are slightly limited. There are codes to automatically give you any weapon available in the game, as well as codes that allow the player to select the map they wish to play on. Of course, cheat codes don’t stop at just unlocking items. There are cheat codes that make the player more powerful, even going so far as to make the player an unkillable, unstoppable machine. I’m talking, of course, about DOOM’s famed God Mode cheat code. Entering the code makes the player invincible. Sure, maybe that takes the fun out of the game, but when you’re on your second or third playthrough and just trying to get all of the items you missed, or exploring the world, it’s nice to not have to worry about dying every few minutes. These All Sound Great. What Happened? Computer cheat codes have likely fallen away in most games (other than the Sims) due to the rise of computer hacking and fan made game mods. When you can get right into the details of a game, why use limited cheat codes that can only change a few things in your gaming experience? With some knowledge of code and a bit of imagination, you can alter the very fundamentals of the game itself and change everything and anything. As for console games, the reason for their cheat codes’ disappearance is more deeply rooted in the types of games that have risen to popularity over the years and the benefits and perks that developers give to players. There’s no need to search for cheat codes when the game will give players a serious penalty for doing so, or when better weapons and gear can be gained with a click of a button and a small fee. In the next part of the series, we’ll really explore what might have cause cheat codes to fall from power, and what players and developers alike have created to replace them....

Reviews

- Pokémon Quest is a Treat, Hands Down or Hands Off
  June 1, 2018News / ReviewsOnce more, the world has Pokémania thanks to The Pokémon 2018 Video Game Press Conference. The surprise release of Pokémon Quest was something we just couldn’t miss out on. Pokémon Quest, which debuted May 29th alongside the announcement of the two Pokémon Let’s Go! versions due this November, offers Switch owners an engaging adventure that doesn’t require much attention to enjoy. What it lacks in the core game’s systems-driven combat is made up in charm and a surprisingly effective hands-off approach to progression. Small parts of the game feel needlessly obscure, but players with an open mind will find a (free!) experience to tide them over until November. The game opens on the enigmatic and colorful Tumblestone Island without much preamble: you are following tales of an ancient civilization that left behind unspoiled riches just waiting to be uncovered. As your humble little boat docks, your Silph Co. brand drone flits across a cubic voxel landscape to surveil things. It passes idyllic green plains full of frolicking monsters recognizable as Pokémon, even with their cubic proportions, before malfunctioning. A clean wipe of its data prompts the beginning of the game’s tutorial, which has you befriend one of five Pokémon – the original generation’s three starters, plus Pikachu and Eevee – before exploring the island’s immediate surroundings on foot. This is where fans will begin noticing differences between Quest and main entries to the Pokémon franchise. The monsters on Tumblestone Island do not need to be battled and subsequently capture in balls. Instead, you befriend them without much fuss. Your first friend is soon joined by two others drawn to your base camp by the aroma of sizzling soup in a huge cast iron pot. Yes, catching new Pokémon in quest requires you to first cook a meal that appeals to the particular taste buds of the island’s wild denizens. Once fed, your initial team blazes a trail through First Steppe, the aptly-named introductory zone. Exploration is automatic, requiring no direction from the player. Your friends seek out and attack targets on their own, but you can choose when to deploy any of the special attacks or when a temporary retreat, called Scatter, might help you avoid a devastating blow from the enemy. Initially, I scoffed at the button that would further automate the game by allowing my team to even use their attacks at their own discretion. It removed my ability to call shots or dodge attacks and felt like removing the only part of the game I was actually playing. But experience made a fool of me because Quest, I think, functions as a neat bridge for between strategy and idle gameplay. Exploration comprises half of Quest’s core loop, where you venture into the wilderness to defeat foes to collect natural goodies and Power Stones, which are vital to the other half of the game. In between treks, you are given the chance to kit out your team with any of the stones you have collected, which boost their two stats: Power and Hit Points. As you progress your Pokémon will unlock additional slots, and the game will reward you with more powerful stones. Thus the loop closes: Exploration gives you experience and stones, which you then equip to allow your team to overcome harder challenges for ever better gear. It’s simple, but effective. By removing the micromanagement of HP and move sets, swapping during battle, and the other intricate systems that comprise the main series’ combat, Quest allows players to enjoy the game without devoting too much of their attention to it. This makes it the perfect transit game, as each stage takes perhaps five to seven minutes to complete. I played it while preparing a delicious Enchilada One Pot dinner for my partner and me, watching my fledgling squad of adventurers tear through a pack of rowdy Rattatas while I caramelized onions. Collecting the cooking materials and stones took only a couple of taps; with a few more touches of the screen they were out again, and I was back to heating water for the noodles. To be sure, this won’t appeal to everyone. I’ve already read plenty of complaints online that Quest is basically a phone game ported to the Switch. And that is…not entirely false? A mobile version was indeed announced in late June so that players need not even bring their Switch with them to enjoy traipsing around the bright environs of Tumblestone. But I contend that criticism is actually a selling point thrown into the wrong light. Why want it to be anything more than a game you can “play” while your hands are busy folding laundry or petting your cats? The game does borrow monetary microtransactions from the mobile gaming market in the form of PM Tickets, which are used to speed up the timer on the soup pot as well as purchasing decorations and larger boxes for both Pokémon and Power Stones. Additionally, players can purchase Expedition Packs in one of four varieties: regular, Great, Ultra, and a 3-pack bundle. Included in each are decorations, certain Pokémon with unique moves, an extra cooking pot, and a bonus to both your battery and the number of daily bonus PM tickets you earn at the shop. It should be noted that players have access to all Pokémon and content in the game for free. The Expedition Packs just help speed along your progression. I have enjoyed my experience with Quest, despite minor quibbles. Of all the systems that are thoroughly explained in the tutorial, cooking recipes are left for you to suss out on your own by burning through your early reserve of ingredients, hoping for something other than Mulligan Stew. Trees, stone mounds, and other terrain crumbles when attacked, but doesn’t offer any real tactical advantage to you or your foes. Is it a cute choice or a vestigial part of what was once a more robust arena design? Finally, the game can feel needlessly grind-heavy if you’re giving it your undivided attention. I breezed through the first two areas, only to hit a wall that forced me back to the training yard. Expect to repeat lower-power areas, if only to level up your team and allow the timer on your stews to wind down. But for every mark against it, Pokémon Quest excels in selling a vibrant and world full of actual creatures. Back at camp all of your friends frolic in the open grass, cavorting children at a playground. I saw my Ponyta hitching a Pidgey-back ride from the hapless bird, while later on my Wartortle, Charmander, and shiny Growlithe stunted into a three-Mon tower. Oh, yeah: apparently there are shiny Pokémon! The Switch has proven to be a wonderful console for providing all manner of game experiences, from sprawling RPGs to platforming masterpieces to weird indie gems. Why not add an ostensibly free, mostly idle game full of Pokémon that are weirdly reminiscent of tiered wedding cakes? Developer: Game Freak Publisher: Nintendo Date of release: May 29, 2018 (Mobile release late June) Platforms: Nintendo Switch (Mobile later)...