In a landmark decision, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled a third-party tool offering cheating software doesn’t infringe on EU copyright law. Via Euronews, this EU ruling stems from a case involving PlayStation and Datel, which sells cheat or mod tools in single-player games like MotorStorm.
Sony, which had been battling to block the software, argued that the cheats unfairly tampered with their intellectual property. The PlayStation maker described Datel’s tools as ‘like a parasite.’
Datel is well-known among gamers as the creator of the Action Replay and other peripherals which has been running for 44 years since 1980. Its programs can manipulate in-game statistics, from health and money to damage and speed boosts meters, by modifying hex codes running during gameplay. According to the official site, the company has been nominated twice for the Best of British award by the UK-based media MCV.
But, the ECJ sided with Datel, stating that modifying variables in working memory doesn’t alter the source code — a key distinction in copyright law. As long as these cheats don’t manipulate a PlayStation game’s underlying code, they don’t break the law, the court ruled.
“The Directive on the legal protection of computer programs does not allow the holder of that protection to prohibit the marketing by a third party of software which merely changes variables transferred temporarily” explains the judges.
Mods and cheats have long been a controversial topic in the industry. Nevertheless, many players argue that modifying games shouldn’t be a cause of legal concern especially when done in single-player games. Ross Scott, a YouTuber and anti-live service games activist, said such action is ‘a victimless crime.’ He added that modifying a single-player save should be treated like changing the wheels on your car.
In a non-binding opinion, Advocate General Maciej Szpunar stated that using a copyrighted work against the creator’s intentions isn’t inherently illegal under EU law.
“The author of a detective novel cannot prevent the reader from skipping to the end of the novel to find out who the killer is, even if that would spoil the pleasure of reading and ruin the author’s efforts to maintain suspense,” Szpunar explained in April.
This ruling could be a major boost for mod and PlayStation cheat tools creators across the EU, setting a new precedent. It limits how much control game publishers like Sony have over how players modify or interact with their games. It’s a win for player creativity, but the battle between mods and publisher control isn’t over yet, as this decision will likely fuel more debate.
