In this guide, we'll explore the process of creating a cheat for the popular game . The intention behind this guide is purely educational, and I do not endorse cheating for malicious purposes. With that out of the way, let's dive in. Dead Cells First, I wanted to create a guide on creating a cheat for , but I found that somebody has already done it and described it in this excellent learning resource[1]. Wesnoth Source code: https://github.com/matejsmycka/cell-generator Approach The Dead Cells game uses cells as currency for unlocking new items. With each run, you start with 0 cells. I will try to change the cell value to some arbitrary number. We have multiple possible approaches to changing cell value: Code Caves DLL injection External cheat I chose an external memory manipulation cheat because it does not require changes in the original binary, which Steam could recognize.
Now that we have chosen the approach, we need to define the necessary steps to perform to get a persistent cheat. Find the dynamic address of a cell counter. Get static values that point to our dynamic address. Create a program in that automates the process. Rust Finding a dynamic address using Cheat Engine "Cheat Engine is by far the de facto "industry standard" for . It bundles together essentially every possible tool that could be required into one neat little package."[2] - GamePwn PandaSt0rm We can attach to our running game. To get relevant dynamic addresses, you need to play the game, get some cells, and then scan for new values in memory. We don't know the type of value we are looking for, but it will likely be a number. After a few scans, you are left with multiple addresses that seem relevant. CheatEngine DeadCells Try modifying values to see if it changes in-game value. However, to update the game GUI, you need to play and get or spend some cells; changing its memory doesn't update the game GUI counter. And voila, the cell counterchanged. But this is not persistent. We need to perform a pointer scan to get reliable pointers. Defeating dynamic memory allocation (DMA) Because modern operating systems use DMA, we have to find a location that doesn't disappear after restarting the process. We will use another feature, to get a static pointer. CheatEngine pointerscanner A good resource on how to use is here . pointerscanner unknowncheats.me In order to find out static clues to dynamic location, you need to: locate dynamic address perform pointerscan close game open game load the last pointerscan and look for the value of the cell counter. repeat steps 3-5 until you get a reliable multilevel pointer. It consists of the base address of some modules, for example, and multiple static values called offsets. Now, we have multiple values which point to our dynamic memory location. game Kernel32.dll+0x00048184 Unsafe rust I chose Rust language because a lot of resources are written in C++, which is similar. However, I consider writing Rust more fun than writing it in C++. Python is also a solid option. After trying multiple libraries, I chose to go with a library named [3]. toy-arms This lib is sort of a wrapper around low-level memory and process functions, so I don't have to use Windows Foreign Function Interface ( ) directly. I ended up with the following script. FFI The code can be found . here Here is pseudocode, which explains individual steps. function main():
    proc = getProcessByName("deadcells.exe")
    client = proc.getModuleInfo("libhl.dll")
    moduleAddr = client.baseAddress + 0x00048184
    offsets = [0x6B8, 0x4, 0x18, 0x68, 0x480, 0xC, 0x358]

    cellCounterPtr = followPointerChain(moduleAddr, offsets)
    cellCounterValue = readMemory(cellCounterPtr)
    newValue = 99999
    writeMemory(cellCounterPtr, newValue) And below is the actual code of . main fn main() {
    let proc;
    match Process::from_process_name("deadcells.exe") {
        Ok(p) => proc = p,
        Err(e) => {
            println!("{}", e);
            return;
        }
    }
    let client: Module;
    match proc.get_module_info("libhl.dll") {
        Ok(m) => client = m,
        Err(e) => {
            println!("{}", e);
            return;
        }
    }

    let module_addr = client.base_address + 0x00048184;
    let offsets = [0x6B8, 0x4, 0x18, 0x68, 0x480, 0xC, 0x358].to_vec();

    let cell_counter_ptr: usize = follow_ptr_chain_u32(&proc, module_addr, &offsets);
    let mut cell_counter_value: u32 = 0;
    let _ = read(
        &proc.handle,
        cell_counter_ptr as usize,
        size_of::<u32>(),
        &mut cell_counter_value as *mut u32,
    );

    println!("Current cell counter value: {:?}", cell_counter_value);
    println!("Enter a new value:");
    let mut input = String::new();
    io::stdin()
        .read_line(&mut input)
        .expect("Failed to read line");
    let mut new_value: u32 = input.trim().parse().unwrap();
    let new_value_ptr = &mut new_value;
    let _ = write(&proc.handle, cell_counter_ptr, new_value_ptr);
    println!("Cell counter UI will be updated after sub/add cell ingame event.")
} Due to endianness, reverse your offsets found by CheatEngine. NOTE: After compiling and running the Rust binary, the Powershell window will pop up. Possible improvements: Some nice GUI could be implemented (for easier usage), or other in-game values could be changed, like the freezing value of health, but these are rather simple implementations, considering that the main logic was implemented. Wrap-up Writing in Python with libraries like [4] would be easier, but Rust libraries' low-level and non-mature nature made me understand it in more detail. Game hacking is a great intro to As , I recommend trying something similar for everybody. pyMeow Windows API. a Linux guy [1]: - Game hacking academy https://gamehacking.academy/about [2]: - Intro to game hacking https://www.hackthebox.com/blog/intro-to-gamepwn-aka-game-hacking [3]: - Rust game hacking library https://github.com/pseuxide/toy-arms [4]: - Python game hacking library https://github.com/qb-0/pyMeow

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Creating Cheats for Dead Cells Using Unsafe Rust

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Matěj Smyčka

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Creating Cheats for Dead Cells Using Unsafe Rust

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Matěj Smyčka

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