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GameShark Backs Away From Online Cheat Codes
Thanks to GameSpot for its article noting that the GameShark and Xploder-branded console cheating devices will no longer release codes for online games. According to the piece, creators Fire International "...felt that some of its cheats for games such as SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs [for PS2] were ruining the experience for other online players." We've previously covered Fire International's boasts as "the first source of cheats" for SOCOM, but now a spokesperson for the company says: "We feel that the game enhancements we create are generally used to help individual users complete or get the most out of their games... We want to protect the integrity of online gaming for all who want to play in this environment cheat-free."
Cheating completly ruined Socom online. It became unplayable due to the excessive cheating, and the fact that there was nothing anyone could do to stop it.
My cats breath smells like cat food.
Companies dont just instantly realize that something they did was irresponsible. This sounds like a case of industry pressure behind the scenes being infintely more important than the integrity of online games. All comes down to $$.
The devices will still allow you to cheat online, you just have to get your codes from somewhere else. And if there's one thing that holds true on the Internet it's that there are a heck of a lot of "somewhere else"s.
Read as '''We have been threatened with legal action because our cheats can reduce corporate profits! So no more cheats for you.'''
Right, and bullies pick on you because you're smarter and they feel insecure. It's soothing to hear, but there's not a lot of truth to it. Most cheaters are pretty good at these games. The ones who aren't usually suck even when cheating (in fact, it can be quite hilarious when they demonstrate they can't even cheat properly). Most players aren't looking for something to do all the work for them, they're looking for something to give them an edge. It's a lot like athletes who use corked bats or steroids. I'd certainly call it morally wrong, but on the other hand most people don't seem to care. Witness the lack of uproar over pro sports drug scandals, despite considerably hype by the press and several major (ex-)athletes. Most cheaters probably just don't think much of what they're doing. They aren't out to ruin the game or piss you off; they don't even consider that you might get upset. After all, they reason, it's just a game.
I don't believe that for a second. To cheat online, you usually have to go through a fair amount of work (to mod your console) or shell out cash(Gameshark). Someone that's good at the game isn't doing that. People who cheat are people who either can't compete on a level playing field(real or imagined) or enjoy ruining the game for others. If you really believe that there aren't people who take a huge delight in screwing up someone else's game, then you're living in a fantasy world.
The pro-sports metaphor doesn't work. There's always a huge uproar. Remember when McGuire was on Creatine? How about when Sosa got caught with a corked bat? Those incidents weren't swept under the rug. Online cheating is even worse because it directly affects -me-, not some abtract city/team. It's my game being ruined. It's MY time thats being wasted. And it's not because someone simply wants an edge. It's because the cheater can't or won't compete with everyone else.
If what you say is true, then cheaters would happily leave a game when asked, or start their own servers labeled 'cheating allowed'. But instead they claim innocence or that the other players are the ones with a problem because after all, it's just a game.
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