Konami Code

Orgin

The Konami Code is a sequence of buttons that gave the player an advantage in the game being played when pressed. It first appeared in the NES version of the game Gradius, where it activated all power ups except speed up and double.[1]

Why Was It Made?

The Konami Code was made not as a cheat code, but as a developmental secret. The developer of Gradius for the NES felt that the game was too hard to play during testing, so he created the code for easier playing for the beta testers. The code was accidentally left in the game, and that's how it got to players.

What Does It Usually Do?

Using the Konami Code in a game usually gives you lives, power-ups, unlockables, or an easter egg.

Contra Code

Although Gradius was the first game to use the Konami Code, it was not the most popular. That honor has to go to Contra. On Contra, if the code was imputed on the title screen, you would start off with 30 lives instead of 5 lives. Since Contra was unbelievably hard, the Konami Code was a necessity to players who were not experts at Contra. The Konami Code gained so much fame because of Contra that it was nicknamed "Contra Code".

Important Uses Of Code

WARNING: Some of these games may require variations of the code or a special usage of the code.

Video Games

• Most/all Gradius games use the code. (Most of the time giving all powerups)
• Most/all Contra games use the code. (Most of the time giving more lives)
• Some Castlevania games use the code.
• Some Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles games use the code.
• Several Dance Dance Revolution games use the code. (Most of the time unlocking things)
• Frogger (on the XBox360) uses the code. (Makes frog bigger if not playing with original graphics)
• Metal Gear Solid Two and Three use the code. (Inputting the code at the end of the game will make Solid Snake say something)

+25 HP Medkit

• Half-Life 2 uses the code. (Will give you 25 health points) the Orange Box version uses the code too. (will spawn a medkit that gives you 25 health points)
• Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas uses the code. (Disables Wanted level)
• The arcade machine Ms. PacMan and Galaga (one machine) uses the code. (Lets you play the original PacMan)
• Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones uses the code. (Will make a chainsaw your secondary weapon)
• Quake 4 uses the code. (Completes all objectives)
• Tetris (the Tengen version) uses the code. (changes current block to an l block)

Websites/Programs

• Inputting the code on the popular website digg.com will expand all the comments on the article pages.
• Inputting the code on GameSpot.com will send you to the cheat page for Contra.
• Inputting the code on Google Reader will give you a ninja backround.
• In the browser-based RPG Kingdom of Loathing, the Konami Code needs to be inputted to complete a part in the Naughty Sorceress Quest.

What IS the code?

The code is:

• Up
• Up
• Down
• Down
• Left
• Right
• Left
• Right
• B
• A

(some people choose to include Start, but that is part of the game and not the code)