↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A Start

You are a failure to all nerd-kind if you do not recognize this time-honored traditional collection of button presses, otherwise known as The Konami Code.

It's a cheat code that was first implemented by the Konami corporation (now most famous for their work with the Metal Gear and Dance Dance Revolution series) in one of their earlier games: Gradius.

Since then, it has been expanded to multiple titles, multiple platforms and other game companies even found ways to use this code as a cameo in homage to the legendary sequence.

The internet has trifled with many things since its maturity in the early 90's, including scares regarding privacy, information sharing and especially the concept of hackers. The idea is that a hacker can use a sequence of commands and button presses (sound familiar?) to gain access to something the public might not otherwise have permission to see.

The idea isn't far fetched, and is based of a history of hidden content accessible to people by use of codes. As a new-age homage to the Konami Code, some webmasters even program back-doors (yes, those same ones hackers are supposed to use) that are MEANT to be stumbled upon by the average web-surfer.

A friend of mine recently showed me that the Konami Code could be used on Facebook, and that there is a website that lists other sites that have backdoors. Go ahead, visit the site and type in the following -

(While not in a text box) Press on your key pad: ↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← →
Then press: [B] [A] and [Enter]

See what I mean!? Facebook currently shows lens flares via this code. For a short amount of time, the webmasters at ESPN.com had hidden a backdoor that would flash unicorns all over your screen when you entered the Konami Code. Don't believe me?

It's true. Immediately following the broadcast of this segment during Attack of the Show, the webmaster was asked to remove the backdoor from the site. But still, it was a clever little cookie thrown into a jocks' website. The code will undoubtedly live on in infamy forever, but right now it is the neatest little nook on the internet. Give it a shot some time, you might just get a power-up.



Over and out,

David Lucio