Home Alone is a 1991 action game based on the 1990 movie of the same name. Several versions of the game were released, including on the NES, SNES, Game Boy, Master System, Sega Genesis, Game Gear, and MS-DOS. Uniquely, most versions were completed by different developers, with Bethesda Softworks and Imagineering Inc. taking charge of the NES and SNES versions respectively.
Despite being released on the back of arguably 1990’s most popular movie, the Home Alone game didn’t fare well with critics. Many felt it was lazy, and not worthy of the film, which went on to become a cult classic.
Home Alone Premise
©Screenshot from Home Alone.
One of the most interesting things about the Home Alone game is how it changes across versions. At its core, it remains the same, with you playing as Kevin to stop Harry and Marv from breaking in by setting a series of traps. However, this is presented differently across different platforms.
For example, in the SNES version of the game, you have to avoid Harry and Marv while taking the valuables from the house down to the safe in the basement. With each level, you must take more objects, making it more difficult to succeed as you progress. In the NES version, you must avoid Harry and Marv for 20 minutes to win. To stop them, you can set up different traps, as seen in the movie, to give yourself the room needed to succeed.
Regardless of which version you play, the overall objective remains the same – avoid Harry and Marv!
Home Alone Main Characters
©Screenshot from Home Alone.
The main characters in the Home Alone game are the exact same as in the movie. Kevin McCallister is still the young boy left at home by his family, and it’s still Harry and Marv attempting to break into his house over the holidays. The game is extremely surface-level compared to the movie, so the focus isn’t really given to Kevin’s family here. Instead, it’s Kevin, Harry, and Marv who get all the screen time.
- Kevin: After being accidentally left at home by his family over the Christmas holidays, Kevin is left to defend his home from criminal break-ins using his cunning and creativity.
- Harry and Marv: The bumbling criminal duo are set upon robbing Kevin McCallister’s home, but are met with multiple stumbling blocks in the form of traps set by the child.
Home Alone Titles in the Series
©Screenshot from Home Alone.
There’s no denying that Home Alone is much more popular as a film series than as a video game. These games were mostly released when video games were often released as cheap movie tie-ins to cash in on the popularity of a franchise name, as opposed to a product that could stand alone.
Luckily, the premise of Home Alone lends itself well to the video game medium. Setting up traps against intruders is great fun, which is obviously at the heart of any game set in this series. That said, we’ve not seen Home Alone as a video game for some time. The movie series itself has suffered through a few attempts to return, with none quite capturing the magic of those originals.
With this in mind, we don’t think it’s likely that we’ll see another Home Alone game any time soon.
- Home Alone (1991)
- Home Alone 2 (1992)
- Home Alone (2006)
Home Alone Cheat Codes
©Screenshot from Home Alone.
So there are plenty of cheat codes for Home Alone on the NES and SNES, but there’s a big catch. They can’t be performed on the base versions of the game, which don’t have cheats. To use these, you must have a Game Genie, a cheat cartridge that these days might be tough to get hold of.
However, if you’re lucky enough to own a Game Genie, these are a bunch of Home Alone cheat codes that you can use on the NES, with a separate set also available on the SNES!
Home Alone Trap Cheats (NES)
These cheats affect how Harry and Marv interact with the traps in-game.
| Cheat Code | Cheat Name | Cheat Effect |
|---|---|---|
| AAAAKA | “The Ghost Code” | When Marv is hit by a trap, he returns in-game with all-white clothing. This is to make it seem as though Marv has died, and returned as a ghost. |
| PIEEGG | “The Unlimited Traps Code” | Kevin gets unlimited traps to use, and gains access to four previously glitched traps. Will make it much harder for Harry and Marv to catch Kevin. |
| PIGASS | “The Low IQ Kevin Code” | Makes Harry and Marv resistant to most traps, and stops Kevin from using certain ones. This will speed up Harry and Marv massively. |
| NAVEGP | “The High IQ Bandits Code” | Marv and Harry avoid all traps, making them completely ineffective. |
| KEVYOU | “The Confidence Code” | Turns every trap in the game into a bucket. Also makes it so that Kevin can only set up one trap at a time, making the game much harder. |
Home Alone Invisibility Cheats (NES)
These Home Alone cheats affect the visibility of different characters in the game. This can have a huge effect on the game’s difficulty.
| Cheat Code | Cheat Name | Cheat Effect |
|---|---|---|
| EEEELO | “The Free Code” | Marv and Harry are completely despawned. You can now explore the game map freely without having to worry about the duo. |
| YEPEII (Harry) or YESEII (Marv) | “The Free Codes” | Either Marv or Harry is completely despawned. You can also use both codes to despawn both, like the code above. Perfect if dealing with both at the same time is too difficult. |
| TOPEZO (Harry) or EOKAPS (Marv) | “The Invisible Codes” | Either Marv or Harry is made invisible. You can use both to make both invisible, too. Note that this doesn’t despawn the two – it simply makes them invisible. They’re still coming for you, you just can’t see where from. As a result, this makes the game much harder. |
| VVVVVY | “The Disappearing House” | Makes every part of the house outside of your current view invisible. This makes navigation extremely tough. |
| EEAELL | “The Truly Home Alone Code” | Turns Kevin and Harry invisible, and turns Marv into Kevin. ‘Kevin’ will roam the house looking you. |
| PEPEAL | “The Invisible People Code” | Makes everyone invisible. This makes the game nearly impossible to complete. |
Home Alone Color Change Cheats (NES)
These codes change the color of different elements of Home Alone. This is purely visual, and doesn’t affect gameplay in any way.
| White | Black | Blue | Purple | Orange | Pink | Grey | Aqua | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin | AXXAGA | TXXAGE | PXXAGA | LXXAGA | YXXAGA | IXXAGA | IXXAGE | GXXAGE |
| Marv | AXXEGA | TXXEGE | PXXEGA | LXXEGA | YXXEGA | IXXEGA | IXXEGE | GXXEGE |
| Harry | AXXEAA | TXXEAE | PXXEAA | LXXEAA | YXXEAA | IXXEAA | IXXEAE | GXXEAE |
| House | AXOEGA | TXOEGE | PXOEGA | LXOEGA | YXOEGA | IXOEGA | IXOEGE | GXOEGE |
Home Alone Miscellaneous Cheats (NES)
These cheats have a bunch of miscellaneous gameplay effects in Home Alone in NES.
| Cheat Code | Cheat Name | Cheat Effect |
|---|---|---|
| AOPEGU | “The Group of Bandits Code” | Creates copies of Harry and Marv around the map. They aren’t trying to capture Kevin, making it harder to tell who the real Harry and Marv are. |
| OOOTTO | “The Early Call Code” | Police arrest Marv and Harry as the game starts. |
| EXGALS | “The Shoes Code” | Kevin is changed into a pair of shoes. |
| GAVEGN | “The Haunting Code” | Marv is turned into a ghost when he chases you, with creepy music beginning to play. |
| YXYEII | “The Teleporting Code” | When Marv sees you, he teleports to you and captures you instantly. Makes the game near-impossible. |
| KEEAKX | “The Slow Criminals Code” | Decreases the walking speed for both Harry and Marv. |
That’s all for the NES cheats for Home Alone. Now, we move on to the SNES cheats, which also require a Game Genie to use.
Home Alone Cheats (SNES)
| Cheat Code | Cheat Effect |
|---|---|
| DF2B-AFD4 | Start the game with one life instead of three – makes the game much harder. |
| D42B-AFD4 | Start the game with two lives instead of three. |
| D92B-AFD4 | Start the game with five lives instead of three. |
| DB2B-AFD4 | Start the game with nine lives instead of three. |
| 492B-AFD4 | Start the game with 25 lives instead of three. |
| 9D2B-AFD4 | Start the game with 50 lives instead of three. |
| BB2B-AFD4 | Start the game with 99 lives instead of three. |
| DD21-DFD4 | Start the game with infinite lives. |
| C220-D464 | Gives you infinite power. |
| DF66-04A7 | Gives an extra life with one pizza slice instead of eight. |
| D466-04A7 | Gives an extra life with two pizza slices instead of eight. |
| D766-04A7 | Gives an extra life with three pizza slices instead of eight. |
| D066-04A7 | Gives an extra life with four pizza slices instead of eight. |
| D966-04A7 | Gives an extra life with five pizza slices instead of eight. |
| D166-04A7 | Gives an extra life with six pizza slices instead of eight. |
| D566-04A7 | Gives an extra life with seven pizza slices instead of eight. |
| DD2A-A76F | Gives you infinite baseballs, slingshot ammo, and rifle bullets. |
| 3DB1-07D5 | Gives you power boost on jumps. |
| ADB1-07D5 | Gives you super power boost on jumps. |
| DF23-A764 | Requires only one item to complete Level 1 instead of 24. |
| D923-A764 | Requires only five items to complete Level 1 instead of 24. |
| FD23-A764 | Requires only 10 items to complete Level 1 instead of 24. |
| F923-A764 | Requires only 15 items to complete Level 1 instead of 24. |
| 4D23-A764 | Requires only 20 items to complete Level 1 instead of 24. |
| DF23-A7A4 | Requires only one item to complete Level 2 instead of 30. |
| D923-A7A4 | Requires only five items to complete Level 2 instead of 30. |
| FD23-A7A4 | Requires only 10 items to complete Level 2 instead of 30. |
| F923-A7A4 | Requires only 15 items to complete Level 2 instead of 30. |
| 4D23-A7A4 | Requires only 20 items to complete Level 2 instead of 30. |
| 4923-A7A4 | Requires only 25 items to complete Level 2 instead of 30. |
| DF2E-ADD4 | Requires only one item to complete Level 3 instead of 35. |
| D92E-ADD4 | Requires only five items to complete Level 3 instead of 35. |
| FD2E-ADD4 | Requires only 10 items to complete Level 3 instead of 35. |
| F92E-ADD4 | Requires only 15 items to complete Level 3 instead of 35. |
| 4D2E-ADD4 | Requires only 20 items to complete Level 3 instead of 35. |
| 492E-ADD4 | Requires only 25 items to complete Level 3 instead of 35. |
| DF2E-AD04 | Requires only one item to complete Level 4 instead of 35. |
| D92E-AD04 | Requires only five items to complete Level 4 instead of 35. |
| FD2E-AD04 | Requires only 10 items to complete Level 4 instead of 35. |
| F92E-AD04 | Requires only 15 items to complete Level 4 instead of 35. |
| 4D2E-AD04 | Requires only 20 items to complete Level 4 instead of 35. |
| 492E-AD04 | Requires only 25 items to complete Level 4 instead of 35. |
| DF69-DFAD AB69-D40D D769-D46D | Automatically start on Level 2. |
| DF69-DFAD AB69-D40D D769-D46D | Automatically start on Level 3. |
| D769-DFAD AB69-D40D D769-D46D | Automatically start on Level 4. |
Home Alone Cheat Code FAQ
©Screenshot from Home Alone.
Can I Use These Home Alone Cheats on Any Platform?
No. Because the above cheats for the game require the use of a Game Genie cartridge, you’ll need to use them on the NES or SNES version of Home Alone.
Do Game Genie Cheats Work Across Versions of Home Alone?
No. The NES Game Genie cheats can only be used on the NES version of the game, and the SNES Game Genie cheats on the SNES. The cheats aren’t cross-compatible due to the big differences in the game across platforms.
Can I Use Game Genie Cheats on Emulators for Home Alone?
It depends. Some emulators support Game Genie codes, while others don’t. You just have to make sure you’re using one that does, and all of the above codes will work for the NES and SNES versions of Home Alone.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Screenshot from Home Alone..