For gamers of a certain age, meaningless character sequences such as Idka, square, AbubAnd UUDDLLRBA akin to long-lost magical spells. They are reminiscent of an era when game developers frequently and regularly allowed players to use cheat codes to customize their gameplay with everything from infinite health and instant level selection to full debug menus or giant avatars with giant anime style heads. There were even external cheat devices which allow players to hack console games using cheat codes that the developers never intended.
While the heyday of cheat code is long past, the idea of allowing players to manipulate their gameplay in a similar way is coming back into vogue with some developers. Last month Square Enix announced upcoming Switch 2 and Xbox ports Remake of Final Fantasy VII Intergrade will include new “simplified development” features. As the name suggests, new options menu will give players the opportunity to complete the game with infinite health, magic and money, faster leveling, maximum damage attacks and much more.
While some reacted negatively to what they mockingly called “cheat mode,” director Naoki Hamaguchi defended the new features. in a recent interview with Automaton. “Personally, I like to try a lot of different games just to keep up with things, but I don’t really have time, so I only get to the end,” he said. “Personally, I believe that in modern digital entertainment the player should have a choice in how they interact with the content. That's why I insisted on it.”
He's right. Players are responsible enough to know when and how to use such options to optimize their progress in the game. At the same time, I think many games could benefit from hiding such gameplay options behind the obscurity of old-fashioned cheat codes rather than seductive built-in menus.
