I have a hobby of reverse engineering games, specifically to make cheats for them. I want to document the process doing so on my blog, which potential employers will see. I will do so on an old single player game to hopefully avoid any negativity. Also, would the license on the game matter?
I'm still a student, and this would be more geared towards internship applications.
If you're dealing with a hard-core gamer like me, the word "Cheats" will make them see red, so be careful.
That said, reverse engineering is a skill that would pique my interest. As @Paparazzi said above, give it more of a white-hat tone as you have an impressive skill that you want to market and remember that reputation is everything .
Case in point: I once exploited a security vulnerability to do a week's worth of work in an afternoon at a previous employer. I don't phrase it that way on an application or interview. Instead I say:
One time, we were backlogged with a weeks worth of work. I found a way to expedite matters to reduce the time to four hours.
Use "reverse engineering" on an application or interview but never, ever mention cheats.
It's all about the phrasing (and the person you are talking to).
The way you are writing it here? Maybe some negativity, though probably still pretty positive overall. A few managers might think poorly but as a student most will be super excited to see you doing cool things.
Either way, imagine saying it like this instead:
Focusing on the how you are doing this rather than the what will effectively sidestep this problem.
The reality is that if you are applying for internships and can talk about your abilities in skills you have learned doing this you probably will be successful in applying.
A lot of intern applicants haven't done anything remotely interesting other than coursework (which... isn't that interesting most of the time) so you are miles ahead of many (most?) other applicants by your hobby work.
Be careful of the wording. I understand that you still want to call them cheats to get more traffic for your blog, but if you use negative connotations, you may lead them to subconsciously view this in a negative light.
The work you are doing to accomplish this is significantly more valuable than any of the canned programming problems you have solved in your classwork. Doing this and being able to explain how accomplished it should be a strong factor in your favor during the interview process.
