Gameshark Cheat Code Compendium Goes Live On Kickstarter

If you grew up playing video games at any time from the late 80s to the early 2000s, then you remember hacking devices like Gameshark, Game Genie and Action Replay….third-party discs or plug-in gizmos that overwrote areas of a game’s code to allow for things the developers never intended. Cheats like infinite lives, invulnerability, and taking out enemies in one hit were now possible — and in the NES era when games were extremely tough, there was definitely a demand. Nintendo wasn’t pleased, and tried to sue to stop the Game Genie from existing, but they were unsuccessful and cheat devices became common in stores wherever games were sold.

Cheat devices pretty much died around the PS3 / 360 generation. What killed them? Several things…for one, the level of complexity in your average game had eclipsed the convenient ability to hack it with just one or two codes. Second, game console makers got better at detecting and rejecting such devices. Third and most importantly, it was the era when online gaming took over, and cheating simply could not be allowed under those circumstances — it had to be fair.

Todd Hays, one of the men involved in the creation of the Gameshark, is putting together a new hardcover book celebrating the heyday of cheat devices and codes. He calls it the Cheat Code Compendium and the crowdfunding campaign is live on Kickstarter starting today. “If you grew up unlocking secret levels, breaking games wide open, or flipping through code books with friends, this brings it all back,” says Hays. “This book showcases the biggest games, the wildest cheats, and the behind the scenes stories from the people who made the cheat code revolution possible, including Todd Hays. It’s built for collectors, retro fans, and anyone who remembers how powerful a single code could make you feel.”

• Massive Collection of Codes: Hundreds of games covered across SNES, Genesis, PlayStation, N64, Dreamcast, Game Boy, and more.
• Behind-the-Scenes Stories: Insider commentary from Todd Hays and others who built the cheat code revolution.
• Device History: Game Genie, GameShark, Action Replay, CodeBreaker, how each one changed gaming forever.
• Code Culture: Walkthroughs, hacks, glitches, exploits, power-user tricks, and the wild west of early game modification.
• High-Quality Print Edition: Full-color, premium hardcover designed as a true collector’s piece.
• Digital Expansion: Special QR codes inside the book unlock bonus codes, extra titles, developer notes, and online-only content (over 400 additional games).

The Cheat Code Compendium can be yours for a $59 pledge. Up it to $99 and gain access to the Gameshark Code Vault, a private online repository of every hack device code there ever was. If you pledge today, though, you can nab the Early Bird tier for the book at just $49. Only 1000 Early Birds will be sold, and as of this writing there are quite a few still available.

The Cheat Code Compendium campaign will run until February 19. Best get your copy before then, as you can’t hack time.