Nintendo has filed a rather interesting patent that may change online gaming for the Big N. This patent is for tech that will target cheaters by attempting to identify any software modifications through implementing an attestation program that continues to check for possible code changes to the software.
“The technology described implements attestation programs that employ “code reuse” techniques. In particular, the technology relates to auto-generating attestation programs for, among other aspects, detecting whether a program has been modified. In one non-limiting example, the technology uses a tool that scans a software program (e.g., a video game) code for usable code sequences. The tool can automatically combine code sequences to generate a large number of attestation programs of different variety (e.g., memory checks, hashing).”
The patent filing goes on to note how attestation tools are useful for online multiplayer and competitive play over the internet and brings up how “unfair advantages” result in games being much less satisfying for all users, and that these modifications can also come with certain security risks.
“Such cheating is egregiously prevalent where the gaming environment is extended to gaming particularly multiplayer gaming over the internet. In particular, users are able to modify software in a way that enables them to have advantages over other players on different systems across a multiplayer game. These unfair advantages result in the game being much less satisfying to the user thereby affecting the overall human-user experience and interaction in the game. Moreover, such modifications to the game program create certain security risks for the game system.”
What do you make of this news?