Black ops multiplayer takes aim at cheaters

http://www.joystiq.com/2010/09/03/call-of-duty-black-ops-multiplayer-takes-aim-at-cheaters/

Treyarch is less worried about carving off and isolating one particular group of players: cheaters. Watching the team at Infinity Ward struggle with Modern Warfare 2's bizarre glitches and griefers, Vonderhaar said, "There's a whole layer where those exploits come from that you have to move down deeper into the code so that they're not as forefront." Some of what cheaters exploit is actually some of the "same tools that game designers use to help balance the game," we learned. It's left high-level and gets exposed. Part of Treyarch's strategy is simple: "push those things deeper and put them behind the wall, and that will take care of a lot of [the glitches] right away."

Another tool in the Treyarch anti-cheating toolbox: The new Theater mode. Combining the game's reporting structure with the ubiquitous game-saving structure gives Treyarch -- and specifically Treyarch's new full-time employee tasked with looking at the reports -- the ability to investigate purported cheating through the eyes of the cheater. If it's a bug, the team can learn how to reproduce it and, as a result, fix it. If a player is abusing a bug, then they can also take punitive measures. The end result of both courses of action should be the same: a more reliable experience for those of you who don't cheat.

In fact, Theater "started as a bug tool," Vonderhaar said. A funny bug was being sent around the office -- specifically, a guy's face was "stretched out and distorted"– and the team loved it and thought, "We have to share this with people. This is too good. We cannot hold this as a bug tool. This is something we can give to people to use." And so they did!

The Theater provides players with six slots to store clips and screenshots to share with friends. While Vonderhaar said, "I'm sure the business people are kicking around various ideas" for more slots, "the six slots you see on the floor, that's what comes with the game." Curiously, the stations we saw at the event listed 18 slots in some areas and just the six in others.

In fact, Theater "started as a bug tool," Vonderhaar said. A funny bug was being sent around the office -- specifically, a guy's face was "stretched out and distorted"– and the team loved it and thought, "We have to share this with people. This is too good. We cannot hold this as a bug tool. This is something we can give to people to use." And so they did!


I was with them until I read that .

Partially you need to understand that the theater section didn't start as any d@mn bug tool...it started as the programmers being human and having played Halo 3 said, "we gotta get that feature into our game". Period. Once you start thinking your consumer base is ignorant and start lying to them you not only lose respect-- but your own dignity.

Note to Treyarch: It's not like you just created the wheel guys....you merely opened a Merchant Tire shop to sell what already existed. Don't go all "Barney Rubble" on me here...Jeez!

Secondly, anyone that has played Halo 3 knows that there are cheaters/glitcher and the theater mode isn't going to help a lot with that.

So...next!

kool, I hope and I hope, that the games not full of cheaters. the wager gametype has me concerned that "someone" will find a way to wager a ton of cash and then lose and not really lose the cash(bet),causing a ton of 12yr olds boosting. waw only really had glitchs and not a bunch of cheating game machanics

S7 K1ll3rKlown wrote:In fact, Theater "started as a bug tool," Vonderhaar said. A funny bug was being sent around the office -- specifically, a guy's face was "stretched out and distorted"– and the team loved it and thought, "We have to share this with people. This is too good. We cannot hold this as a bug tool. This is something we can give to people to use." And so they did!


I was with them until I read that .

Partially you need to understand that the theater section didn't start as any d@mn bug tool...it started as the programmers being human and having played Halo 3 said, "we gotta get that feature into our game". Period. Once you start thinking your consumer base is ignorant and start lying to them you not only lose respect-- but your own dignity.

Note to Treyarch: It's not like you just created the wheel guys....you merely opened a Merchant Tire shop to sell what already existed. Don't go all "Barney Rubble" on me here...Jeez!

Secondly, anyone that has played Halo 3 knows that there are cheaters/glitcher and the theater mode isn't going to help a lot with that.

So...next!

I wouldn't say it was a stolen idea. It's been in the public domain a while now and ultimately it's going to end up in most games if the consumer wants it. A dev can't just take the moral high ground on features that they didn't originally pioneer. There'd be a lot of mediocre game if they did, not to mention the ass-raping's the publishers would give them...especially ActiBlizzion.

However, as a programmer, recording the game data and then being able to play it back isn't that much more work than just recording it. It'd just need some polish and a decent UI.

this is all that matters

Another tool in the Treyarch anti-cheating toolbox: The new Theater mode. Combining the game's reporting structure with the ubiquitous game-saving structure gives Treyarch -- and specifically Treyarch's new full-time employee tasked with looking at the reports -- the ability to investigate purported cheating through the eyes of the cheater. If it's a bug, the team can learn how to reproduce it and, as a result, fix it. If a player is abusing a bug, then they can also take punitive measures. The end result of both courses of action should be the same: a more reliable experience for those of you who don't cheat.

and that is way its going to be WIN ..f#ck you cheater u say your not modded ok let me pop open theater mode and watch from your own two eyes then send it off to tryarch for the BAN HAMMER

Wow sounds like a nerve was struck.... we know Halo is awesome... no need to defend it... as I have heard around... basically 'Halo' is this generations 'Star Wars'

I love Star Wars more then halo......

i love mself more

S7 Glock wrote: 'Halo' is this generations 'Star Wars'

agreed first two where awsome and then the next ones are all about making cash and aren't as good.

Halo 3 was better than Halo 2.

S7 Glock wrote:Wow sounds like a nerve was struck.... we know Halo is awesome... no need to defend it... as I have heard around... basically 'Halo' is this generations 'Star Wars'

Me thinks someone missed the entire point...
It's not about defending Halo (F*ck Halo and the horse she rode in on) it's about these developers creating a well known, already proven and tested theater mode in their game then pretending that there was some "guy with a stretchy face" that made them decide to put it in game. Why not call a spade a spade and say there is this great addition in Halo that we thought would go great with our gaming system where the player can go back and watch his kills from different angles. Done. Everyone is happy...you told the truth, and didn't try to assume we're all stupid like we haven't seen this somewhere before. The whole excuse of the "stretchy face bug" causing your moment of epiphany is ridiculous and I'm not sure about you, but when someone insults my intelligence I take offense to it and call them out.

Again.....Note to Treyarch: It's not like you just created the wheel guys....you merely opened a Merchant Tire shop to sell what already existed. Don't go all "Barney Rubble" on me here...Jeez!

Yeah, somewhere in the back of their minds someone wanted to include this feature in the game, Even if they used a purposefully created stretched face on accident so they can give themselves an excuse to use a cool feature from a competitor, but not really...stretchy face better be in the game! I hope Klown you still play the game and not hold this shenanigan against them, lol. We need you Klown!

I'll be there day one brother...love what I'm seeing from Black Ops.
I'm not knocking them in anyway, just don't accept the "stretchy face" BS excuse.

i hear ya klown. i also agree that this "probably" just a borrowed idea from a game that made it popular.

but regardless of where it came from, its a nice feature. i just wish it had more than just 6 slots.



but about your earlier comment about f*ck halo:

no no no.... no f*ck halo.... halo is awesome!! ... you hater!

in Soviet Russia HALO f#ck YOU!!!!!

Everyone knows that since Halo 3 came out we've all been saying every game should have it. I love CoD but Treyarch really isn't a good enough game dev to be trying to say they 'innovated' a new feature like this.

S7 Sticky wrote:in Soviet Russia HALO f#ck YOU!!!!!

Funny, I always thought that was in China LOL

S7 Tico wrote:i hear ya klown. i also agree that this "probably" just a borrowed idea from a game that made it popular.

but regardless of where it came from, its a nice feature. i just wish it had more than just 6 slots.



but about your earlier comment about f*ck halo:

no no no.... no f*ck halo.... halo is awesome!! ... you hater!

It will have more than six slots but might incorporate the credit cash system to unlock more slots.

S7 R0LLING THUND3R wrote:

S7 Tico wrote:i hear ya klown. i also agree that this "probably" just a borrowed idea from a game that made it popular.

but regardless of where it came from, its a nice feature. i just wish it had more than just 6 slots.



but about your earlier comment about f*ck halo:

no no no.... no f*ck halo.... halo is awesome!! ... you hater!

It will have more than six slots but might incorporate the credit cash system to unlock more slots.

and i am sure you can more then likely upload to the website then DL to your hard drive so you can upload more

Using it as a tool to catch cheaters is a great idea but a lot for one employee to handle effectively. That was a lame origin story they came up with though.