How To Easily Hack Your Game Scores

Do you have one of those obnoxious friends who always brags about his Doodle Jump high score? Are you tired of being jealous of that guy who has a Tiny Wings high score you just can't seem to beat? Well, my friend, you've come to the right article. I'm going to show you how to manually change scores, and other attributes, in an iOS app. Many games store data (i.e., scores, levels completed, achievements, etc.) in a plist file format. Difficulty: Medium-hard (depends on the complexity of the app). Here's what to do:

1. Download and install Xcode (this can be done without Xcode, but Xcode makes it easier.
2. Go to your iOS device and open the app.
3. Hold down the power button for 5 seconds, then release.
4. Hold down the home button for 5 seconds, then release.
5. Download and install PhoneView on your Mac (the demo works just fine).
6. Unlock your iPhone and connect it to your Mac.
7. Launch PhoneView and wait for it to recognize your iOS device. (Important: stay out of the Disk section).
8. Select "Apps" in the sidebar.
9. Select "Show All Apps."
10. Select the app you want to modify the score for. Note: This method works well only on games that have no levels. Games that progress across levels are much more difficult to modify. Good candidates for this method are games like Doodle Jump and Tiny Wings. A bad candidate, for example, is Angry Birds.
11. Go to Library > Preferences in PhoneView for the app you selected.
12. You are looking for a file name structured like this: com.developername.appname.plist (for example, the file for Tiny Wings is com.andreasilliger.tinywings.plist).
13. Drag that file to your desktop.
14. Right click on the file and duplicate it. It's important to keep a backup incase something goes wrong.
15. Double-click on the file to open it. Xcode will launch and show you the plist file. This is where it can get tricky. I am demonstrating this with Tiny Wings.
16. Look for the items you want to change. There are some things you don't want to mess with. If you don't understand what an item is, don't touch it.
17. When you open Tiny Wings, and go to stats, you'll notice that it shows your scores. The first score in Tiny Wings (your highest score) is located in the plist file as highScoreEntry0. The second score in Tiny Wings is located in the plist file as highScoreEntry1, and so on. Change these to change your scores.
18. You may also change highscoreCoins and highscoreCloudtouches.
19. To give yourself achievements, simply change NO to YES on any entry with name that contains "achievement."
20. Save the document and quit Xcode.
21. Go back to PhoneView.
22. Go back to the location where you originally found the plist
23. Drag the plist you just edited, from the desktop to the location in PhoneView where you originally found it.
24. PhoneView will ask you if you want to replace the document. Click Replace.
25. Go to your iOS device and open the app.
26. View your score.
27. Brag to your friends (optional, but highly recommended).

  Keep in mind, all apps store data differently. Some store data in a very convoluted way. For example, I have yet to understand how to modify save data in Cut The Rope. I've found this is really easy to do in Tiny Wings, Doodle Jump, and Turtle Fly. Remember, each developer stores data in a slightly different way than other developers. Just be smart about how you read the plists. I hope you enjoy this cool way to mess with your friends! Also, remember to set a passcode on your iPhone, so your friends don't mess with your scores. If you ever mess up on a game, just delete and reinstall the app. No biggie.

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