View source for Debug menu

A '''debug menu''' or '''debug mode''' is a [[User interface|user interface]] implemented in a [[Computer program|computer program]] that allows the user to view and/or manipulate the program's internal state for the purpose of [[Debugging|debugging]]. Some games format their debug menu as an in-game location, referred to as a '''debug room''' (distinct from the [[Easter egg (media)#In video games|developer's room]] type of Easter egg). Debug menus and rooms are used during [[Software development|software development]] for ease of [[Software testing|testing]] and are usually made inaccessible or otherwise hidden from the [[End user|end user]].

Compared to the normal user interfaces, debug menus usually are unpolished and not user-friendly, intended only to be used by the software's developers. They are often cryptic and may allow for destructive actions such as erasing data without warning.

== In video games ==
[[Image:Mario64debug.png|thumb|Debugging display in ''[[Software:Super Mario 64|Super Mario 64]].'' This display prints both [[Benchmark (computing)|current memory and CPU usage]] as well as information about the game's state.]]
Debug menus are often of interest to video game players as they can be used to cheat, access unused content, or change the game configuration beyond what is normally allowed.<ref>{{cite web|author1=Jeff Ramos|title=How to access and use Sonic Mania's debug mode|url=https://www.polygon.com/2017/8/17/16163630/sonic-mania-debug-mode|website=Polygon|accessdate=26 March 2018|date=17 August 2017}}</ref> Some game developers will reveal methods to access these menus as bonus features, while others may lock them out of the final version entirely such that they can only be accessed by modifying the program.
[[File:GearheadsToyStats.png|left|thumb|Debug window in ''[[Software:Gearheads (video game)|Gearheads]]'' that enables players to change the specifications of each toy]]
The Cutting Room Floor (TCRF) is a website dedicated to researching and documenting hidden content in video games, including debugging material.<ref name="kakahuate">{{cite web|author1=Jack Yarwood|title=The People Obsessed With Uncovering Gaming's Deepest, Darkest Secrets|url=http://www.kotaku.co.uk/2016/03/29/the-people-obsessed-with-uncovering-gamings-deepest-darkest-secrets|website=Kotaku|accessdate=26 March 2018|date=29 March 2016}}</ref> In December 2013, ''Edge'' described the website as "the biggest and most organised" of its kind, and by that time it had 3712 articles.<ref name="Edge">{{cite magazine|title=The Explorers: The gaming archaeologists digging through the code you were never meant to see|url=http://www.edge-online.com/features/the-explorers-inside-the-underground-world-of-the-archaeologists-who-dig-through-the-code-game-developers-never-wanted-you-to-see/|magazine=Edge|accessdate=26 March 2018|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140218131752/http://www.edge-online.com/features/the-explorers-inside-the-underground-world-of-the-archaeologists-who-dig-through-the-code-game-developers-never-wanted-you-to-see/|archivedate=18 February 2014|date=16 December 2013}}</ref>

== In other software ==

Debugging functions can be found in many other programs and consumer electronics as well. For example, many TVs and DVD players contain hidden menus that can be used to change settings that aren't accessible through the normal menus. Many cell phones also contain debug menus, usually used to test out functions of the phone to make sure they are working. For example, the hidden menu of the [[Engineering:Samsung Galaxy S III|Samsung Galaxy S III]] has test functions for the vibrator, proximity sensor, sound, and other basic aspects of the phone.

== References ==
{{reflist}}

<ref>The Cutting Room Floor - The Cutting Room Floor is a site dedicated to unearthing and researching unused and cut content from video games. From debug menus, to unused music, graphics, enemies, or levels, many games have content never meant to be seen by anybody but the developers — or even meant for everybody, but cut due to time/budget constraints. https://tcrf.net/</ref>
<ref>Skies of Arcadia Dreamcast prototype V0.830 2000/09/05 (sous réserve ) +V0.840 2000/09/14 (sous réserve ) https://www.dreamcastsegainfo.org/skies-of-arcadia-v0-830-2000-09-05</ref>

[[Category:Debugging]]
[[Category:Video game development]]

{{Sourceattribution|Debug menu}}