Arcade Golf Game Fraud Scandal Revealed, Probed

Thanks to Highway Games for reprinting The Stinger Report articles on further developments regarding revelations of tournament fraud in arcade game Golden Tee Golf. The situation developed after "Incredible Technologies... ejected eight ranked players following investigation into the manipulation of scores... [following the discovery of] either a software or firmware system to deceive the ITS [networked arcade golf] network." The piece notes that "Over US$12 million in cash prizes has been awarded since the International Tournament System (ITS) [for Golden Tee] began in 1995", although the amount involved in this fraud is rumored to be closer to $20,000, and it's also mentioned: "Efforts to exceed this interface's limits has led to a series of bizarre experiments on personally owned machines ranging from a Belt Sander or even the drive wheel of a motor scooter employed to max out the track ball." In this case, it's theorized that "...fraudsters may have created a firmware mechanism that emulates the movement of the trackball and talks to the game board, so able to generate the optimum power and direction for shots."

Comments

When you mix money and video games...

[PeeweeJD]

This is bound to happen... Need to have punkbuster installed on golden tee machines now...

This is not new either. Back in teh 80's I used to have a plastic comb in the inside pocket of my jean jacket... this comb had all the teeth removed (except at the end)... it was for track and field... I could make my guy run hella fast with that comb... A friend made a battery powered thing to push the buttons that was cool, but did not work to good...

course design?

[h0mer]

I've never played Golden Tee, I'm curious to know how the holes are laid out and what the maximum power is. Is it possible to drive the ball 400 yards if you can hit the trackball the right way? And if so, is hitting a long ball beneficial? Depending on the physics, seems like the ball should bounce right off if a player tried to drive the green.

Either way, I don't see why anyone is surprised by this. Money - supervision = People taking advantage.

Re:Do people have to cheat at everything?

[gl4ss]

the kind of pathetic loser that sees it's time for some $$$.

this doesn't really surprise me at all, rather I'm surprised they would allow such a system in the first place.. it's just asking for some 'improvements' because the game changes at that point, instead of being a game of who's best playing it, it becomes a game of who's best at making the servers think they've won fair and square.

so instead of skill sports it becomes technical(motor) sports.. which wouldn't be that bad if they were open about the possibilities of it. if they don't want that then they can just forget the multiple location playing and hold the tournaments on site, because really that's the only way.

a belt sander?! that seems kinda extreme

[enrico_suave]

An arcade trackball is very much the same technology used in analog mice (i.e. the ones with the balls, lol!) They just make them out of better/stronger parts to take abuse of bar play/patrons (i.e. steal rollers and good ball bearings instead of plastic rollers and bushings).

With that said, I don't see why one couldn't make a very simple electronic interface (instead of bullying yoru track ball with a sander). It's just light choppers blocking a signal from an ir led to a ir reciever led... bypass that and send your own pulses... and wooooooosh (without the physical wooooosh).

Like the previous poster mentioned using spoons/pencils on track and field... I always wanted to hack an atari2600 controller and make a turbo (left right left right) button to conquer Decathalon... my palms are still scarred =P

e.