10 Creative Ways Video Games Fought Cheaters

3. Your Opponents Are Notified If Game Data Is Modified - Spaceward Ho!

team fortress 2
Delta Tao Software

Classic sci-fi strategy game Spaceward Ho! came up with an elegantly simple but quite delicious solution to deal with players who tried to do the most dishonourable of things - cheat during multiplayer matches, the scoundrels.

Simply, the game would just drop all the pleasantries and grass you up to the opposing player.

According to the game's chief designer Joe Williams, the dev team worked hard to ensure that, if they couldn't stop players cheating in multiplayer games outright, at least they could ensure the other player knew exactly what they were up against.

And so, if the game detects any sudden change in a player's stats or game data, the other player will be informed that they're playing against a damn, dirty cheater.

Williams amusingly went on to point out that if you're cheating against the CPU, though, there's no such penalty, for obvious reasons. Bless.

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Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.