8 Video Game Glitches Too Awesome To Hate
Never forget GTA IV's Swingset of Death.
There are two types of video game glitches - those which actively infringe upon the player’s ability to enjoy the game and perhaps even leave them touting for a refund, and those which inadvertently make the game so, so much more fun.
While most all video game developers would prefer to ship their games entirely bug-free, on occasion they stumble across accidental gold with charming, hilarious, and overpoweringly weird glitches nobody could’ve ever seen coming.
That’s certainly true of these glitches, each of which changed-up gameplay in a wildly unexpected yet deliriously entertaining way.
From flagrantly abusing the laws of physics to turning a self-serious game into a pure laughing stock and perhaps even reigniting the interest of the speedrunning community, these glitches transcended their innate brokenness to become firmly embraced in the fanbase’s warm bosom.
Glitches which provide gamers with a lesser experience are one thing, but these bugs were so bizarre, so ridiculous, and so damn enjoyable that it’s tough to imagine anyone being mad about them.
And mercifully, for the most part the developers appreciated each glitch’s popularity and opted not to patch them out, as in some cases would’ve caused a genuine fan revolt…
8. Speed Up Leon - Resident Evil 4
In 2007, a GameFAQs user by the name of Ditman333 left the Resident Evil 4 speedrunning community positively shook when they revealed a glitch which allowed players to speed up Leon's movements by a factor of 1.5x.
The glitch is performed by equipping the Striker shotgun, aiming it, and then visiting your inventory before the weapon's laser sight appears. Equip any other item before exiting the inventory and Leon will now do everything at 1.5x speed. Simples.
Beyond allowing speedrunners to beat the game considerably faster, the glitch made the game easier for regular players, with Leon able to move around, reload, and fire weapons much faster than before.
Abusing the glitch also allowed players to skip bosses, access out-of-bounds areas of the map, and therefore effectively break the game.
The so-called "Ditman glitch" could be used on all ports of the original version of Resident Evil 4, and while it was unsurprisingly left out of Capcom's recent remake, they did at least pay wink-wink homage to it by giving players an 8% boost to their running speed whenever the Striker is equipped.
While there's a fine line between glitches which show players how the sausage is made and those which make the game so trivial as to be unenjoyable, the Ditman glitch is an all-timer for quite literally changing the game where speedrunning is concerned.
And even if you're a mere filthy casual, it's pretty damn neat too, right?