The first forms of video game cheat codes (originally called "debug codes") were put in place for video game testing and development purposes. "Debug codes" helped play testers troubleshoot their games before release. Without these debug codes, gamer designers would have to play an entire game just to test a few different areas. Cheat codes allowed them to skip around their game, helping them save time and a lot of frustration.
But as games became more and more complex, they also became easier to hack. Soon an entire industry was built up around the "debug code" phenomena. Cheat codes began appearing in books, on the back pages of magazines, and on special "cheat cartridges" designed just for helping gamers hack their game and implement cheat codes.
The most basic type of cheat code is one that is hidden in the video game itself by the original game designer. These types of cheat codes, when implemented, cause a variety of strange effects that are not a part of the regular game play. (For instances, a cheat code can turn enemies into "zombies" or a video game cheat may give the player unlimited lives.)
One very early example of video game cheats is the ZX Spectrum game Manic Miner from 1983. The game contained the cheat code "6031769," a number rumored to be the game developer's phone number or driver's license number. Manic Miner was a popular video game, and also popularly hard. Whisper the numbers 3061769 around any retro gamer today and you will probably be treated to a litany of nostalgic 80s and 90s video game cheats that are fond to retro gamers' hearts.
Other methods of video game cheats involve special movements made by a video game character, or a special combination of game controller buttons like Up, Down, Left, Right, B, and A keys hit in a sequence or simultaneously. Some of these types of cheats were lengthy and complex. Even more difficult were the movements required in games like the Original Super Mario Brothers. These cheat codes involved performing complex actions to unlock lives or achieve invincibility. For instance, in the Original Super Mario Brothers on level 8-3, if you throw the two turtles on the last stairway into each other multiple times, you will get up to 100 free lives. It's a great cheat, but not the easiest to achieve.
The next wave of game cheats were helped along by gaming hardware such as the Game Genie. The Game Genie basically changed the base code of games on systems like NES Genesis, GameBoy, and Game Gear. This enabled the gamer to be able to accomplish a lot more than the manual codes gamers relied on previously; gamers were able to find new exploits for games that previously would have been unavailable.
Following the Game Genie, the Game Shark was the next evolution in gaming hardware. The Game Shark was designed to help gamers backup their games and find new cheats hidden within the game. This piece of gaming hardware was hugely popular because a Game Shark was available for any kind of gaming system a gamer owned.
Today the video game cheat landscape looks much different. Due to the popularity of Internet video game cheat sites and the willingness of gamers to share their knowledge, video game cheat resources are alive and well and easier than ever to find.
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