Cracking down on cheating and hacking in online multiplayer games remains a main focus for mobile developer Gameloft, creator of franchises such as Modern Combat and Asphalt, product PR manager Thomas Price told Polygon.
Speaking with us during a demo of Modern Combat 5: Blackout — the latest addition to the mobile first-person shooter franchise — Price explained that the developer remains committed to making its multiplayer a better experience. This includes keeping an even playing field where everyone can compete fairly. As a result, it puts a lot of time and effort into stopping cheaters.
"We have that problem just as much as any online competitive multiplayer game does," Price said. "That's a big concern, because it really does translate into the overall experience of people who are playing it."
Titles like Modern Combat 5 tend to pull in the same players of games like Call of Duty, he said. As a result, cheats found are very similar to those seen in PC or console games.
Although Gameloft tries to stop cheats before they happen, part of fixing them includes a good reporting system for other players to use.
"Cheaters and hackers come up with new stuff all the time," Price said. "It's hard to anticipate what they're going to do. I think it's about having really clear communication between people that are playing the game and anti-hacking team."
As much as players complain about Gameloft's always online requirement for several games, he added, it helps the developer crack down on these problems.
"It gives us sort of a window into what's going on and we can spot people that did something to the code or tweaked it," Price said. "It's really just about being vigilant about keeping an eye out for it and then dealing with it immediately. That's the biggest thing we can do."
Gameloft's upcoming title, Modern Combat 5: Blackout, is expected to launch "soon" for Android, iOS and Windows phones for $6.99.