The fun of Game Genie

Galoob's infamous Game Genie device from 1990 may have been known to help players cheat their way through their favorite games, but it had another use as well, experimenting with bizarre codes such as walking on air, playing as an enemy character, or even going out of the game's level boundary! So for today's article I'll be mentioning some of my personal favorite Game Genie experimental codes, known as....

Dig holes as Fire Mario - Super Mario Bros. 3

This code allows Mario to use his fireballs to empty solid ground and turn the once solid spots into coins, an intriguing way of racking up your coin count (and lives!), though this may be considered as one of those "cheat your way through the game" codes, this is still a bizarre but interesting experiment code on its own.

Invasion of the Contra men! - Contra

This code lets you have a handful of your player character front flipping on screen after you lose your first life, and upon activasion these multiple guys will also take out any enemies they come in contact with! It doesn't work on the hallway stages though, but it's a rather hilarious way of plowing through the game.

Erase the level - Super Mario Bros. 2

Have you ever wanted to give yourself an increased challenge in Super Mario Bros. 2? If so, this code allows Mario and his friends to erase the level backgrounds, why this is considered giving the game a challenge is because it can also remove platforms if you're not careful. However, for every pixel of the background erased it acts as a cherry collected, so it'll spawn countless Starmen.

Enemy randomizer - Kirby's Adventure

Have you ever wanted more enemies popping up in a level? even enemy types that are only in specific ones? This one allows enemies to spawn frequently making for a harder challenge. The only side effect of this code is that it causes warp stars to disappear, making levels impossible to complete.

Drunk drivers? - Super Mario Kart

Ever wanted to see the smart A.I. of the CPU kart racers go dumb in just a matter of seconds? This code allows them to go off-road and collide into walls, although they'll still attempt to get back on the racetrack for a brief few seconds. This might be considered a "cheat to win" code, but back in the day it gave me a few laughs.

Tails ditches Sonic - Sonic 3 & Knuckles

In Sonic 3, or Sonic 3 & Knuckles, the only way to have Tails with you is by playing as Sonic. But thanks to the Game Genie he's a buddy to Knuckles! Now his journey to return the master emerald won't be so lonely. Also with Tails allowing him to get to higher areas, this is a nice alternative to a moon jump code, in which he'll be able to get to certain areas in stages that he wasn't meant to.

Did you ever own a Game Genie and have your own fun using experimental codes? Leave a comment, and I'll see you next article!