A crackdown on hackers

Aug 21, 2009 07:09 GMT  ·  By

Developers aren't very pleased with people who don't respect others in online services, especially in games where a lot of the times players resort to cheating and thus ruin the whole experience for the customers who bought the game and wanted to get a nice and fair experience out of it.

As you may know, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was the most recent victim of cheaters and hackers, as they found a few glitches that, when used, made the multiplayer mode almost unplayable. That is why the studio that handled the next title in the Call of Duty franchise, Treyarch, has decided to take some serious action against cheaters and console modders.

The Call of Duty: World at War developer issued a message on the official website of the game in which it said that the most recent update for the game would address a lot of issues caused by people who were playing the game on hacked systems and who were “disrupting the online experience for everybody else.”

“Treyarch has adopted a zero tolerance policy towards console hackers / modders,” the studio said in the statement. “We are actively working with our console partners (Microsoft and Sony) to take action against all proven offenders, up to and including a complete ban from all of their online services. Our number one priority is to protect the experience of our online gaming community (most of you reading this message), and the efforts of console hackers / modders directly target the community in a negative way.”

What is interesting is that the studio advises anyone who wants a more customized experience and the ability to experiment with the game to buy the PC version, which has received many official customization tools. “We understand that a primary motivation in hacking / modding is to bring something 'fresh' or 'new' to the game. That is why the PC platform has a full suite of Mapping / Modding tools, along with plenty of documentation to go along with it. If you are interested in the technical aspect of game modding, check out the PC version of CoD:WaW, where modding is legal, fully supported, and encouraged.”

“For those of you that are currently modding or are considering modding your console, this message should serve as a warning,” the company continues. “For those of you looking to enjoy a safe and fun online experience, please be reassured by it – console hacking is illegal, and will not be tolerated.”

So there you have it modders, at last Treyarch will be wielding the banhammer against anyone who is illegally using the console and messing with anyone online.