Konami Code Creator Kazuhisa Hashimoto Dies At 61 (polygon.com) 16
Kazuhisa Hashimoto, a producer credited with implementing the fabled "Konami Code" that gave players godlike cheats in Contra, Gradius, Castlevania, and other Konami games for the Nintendo Entertainment System, died on Tuesday. He was 61. Polygon reports: Hashimoto was a programmer and producer for the home console port of Gradius, which in 1986 was the first video game to use the Konami Code. Hashimoto put it in the game as an aid for his playtesting, memorably saying that he "obviously couldn't beat it." For unclear reasons, the Konami Code was left in the shipped game, and was later used to playtest other games made by the publisher.
Contra, which launched on the NES in 1988, sold much better than Gradius and is more closely associated with the Konami Code's origins. In it, cheat-code sharers discovered video gaming's Charm of Making -- up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start! -- and were blessed with 30 lives, absolutely critical to a super-tough one-hit-kill side-scroller like Contra. Nostalgia for the Konami Code, if not gratitude for its usefulness to many difficult games of the day, led to its inclusion in numerous other works. A Wikipedia entry on the code counts more than 100 Konami games with the cheat or some version of it inside them. Another 22 games made by other publishers included the code as a tribute, often revealing an Easter egg or secret message. It has also shown up elsewhere in popular culture, most recently in Google Stadia's website (and on its controller), and as a pastime Easter egg in Fortnite in October.
Contra, which launched on the NES in 1988, sold much better than Gradius and is more closely associated with the Konami Code's origins. In it, cheat-code sharers discovered video gaming's Charm of Making -- up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, start! -- and were blessed with 30 lives, absolutely critical to a super-tough one-hit-kill side-scroller like Contra. Nostalgia for the Konami Code, if not gratitude for its usefulness to many difficult games of the day, led to its inclusion in numerous other works. A Wikipedia entry on the code counts more than 100 Konami games with the cheat or some version of it inside them. Another 22 games made by other publishers included the code as a tribute, often revealing an Easter egg or secret message. It has also shown up elsewhere in popular culture, most recently in Google Stadia's website (and on its controller), and as a pastime Easter egg in Fortnite in October.
Up Up Down Down :( (Score:2)
Foolish me (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Video games are bigger than movies, TV shows, music and books. Of all five, they're the only medium which is interactive by design (things like Netflix's 'Black Mirror: Bandersnatch' and "Choose Your Own Adventure" books being exceptions).
Stop watching movies and TV shows, stop listening to music and stop reading books, real life is calling.
Quick! (Score:2)
Someone punch in the code to bring him back!
Did he try his code in Gradius 3? (Score:2)
Tragic.
I can still hear the sound... (Score:2)
Nothing makes you feel old like dying heroes, kids.
Re: (Score:2)
He died fairly young, especially in a country renowned for long lifespans. Any word on why?
Re: I can still hear the sound... (Score:1)
Most probably his heart stopped beating and giving oxygen to the rest of his body - especially his brain, leading to death.
Re: (Score:2)
Brilliant non-answer. Still doesn't explain the cause of the heart stoppage.
a moment of silence (Score:3)
up up down down left right left right b a b a
play on friend, play on...
Re: (Score:2)
b a
So much for immortality (Score:2)
I guess it doesn't work after all. :(
"absolutely critical" (Score:3)
"...30 lives, absolutely critical to a super-tough one-hit-kill side-scroller like Contra."
LMAO.
Re: (Score:3)
Kids these days, eh?
First of all, Contra on the NES is nowhere near "super-tough". Secondly, "one-hit-kill" was the standard in the majority of games back then.
Sure, you can name Zelda, Metroid and Mega Man as exceptions, but in most games, getting hit meant instant death. A lot of games didn't even have "check points" and some games didn't even have game saving at all. Power off the system and you have to restart from the beginning.
It's Been My Slashdot Signature For Years (Score:2)