Leaked code from an eagerly awaited new computer game could be used to make some online players unbeatable, experts say.
US computer games company Valve Software revealed on Thursday that its computer network was apparently breached before source code for the game Half Life 2 was posted online.
The first edition of Half Life, released in 1998, went on to become one of the most popular and critically acclaimed computer games of all time. The core engine of the game was also used to build a number of other popular games, such as Counterstrike. The follow up, Half Life 2, has taken has taken five years to develop.
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Valve Software鈥檚 founder Gabe Newell said in a statement posted online that his email account was apparently accessed by someone else. Covert surveillance tools installed on the company鈥檚 network also indicated an outside job, he said.
The leaked code is thought to include the game鈥檚 physics engine, which provides realistic movement and was key to Half Life鈥檚 success, as well as its sound effects system. These components are not enough to construct the game in its entirety but could, in theory, be used to put cheats into bogus versions of the game that could be used in online tournaments.
Having access to the underlying code from which the finished game is built might let a programmer write cheats straight into the game, says Ross Atherton, deputy editor of UK magazine PC Gamer.
鈥淲hen you played online there鈥檚 nothing anyone could do about it,鈥� he told 快猫短视频. Currently, cheats have to be written as add-ons and can be blocked by game servers.
Online hunt
Another concern is that the code for such a successful game could be used to reveal how its best aspects were achieved. 鈥淚f I was a developer I could use this code to understand how they do certain things with Half Life,鈥� he says.
Computer gamers have been enlisted by Valve Software to identify servers hosting the code so that they can be shut down and to help trace the source of the leak. 鈥淭he community has been remarkably swift at tracking down the sources of the leak,鈥� Newell said in his posting. 鈥淲hat would be most helpful now are IP addresses of the people who were responsible for the intrusion.鈥�
Half Life 2 was due for release in September, but was then delayed until 28 November. Some fear the leak could set the release back further.
Nick Gibson, an industry analyst based in the UK, says the games community would rally behind Valve Software and report anyone who tries to use it. 鈥淰alve is very respected and Half Life 2 is the most eagerly anticipated game of the year,鈥� Gibson says. 鈥淪hould someone try to do anything, I think they would be tracked down very easily.鈥�