I don't think the question is silly or frivolous at all. Further I believe discussion of the rules is always a good thing. I don't suscribe to the argument that 'if you can walk into an arcade and do it' that it's ok. You can walk into an arcade and perform a multitude of actions to give your self an advantage in a game - some of them we consider ok others we ban. As for being disadvantaged for not being able to do start at the higher level - I disagree. You aren't disadvantaged if everyone has to start from level 1.(posted 9450 days ago)Unfortunately in case of 'alternant start' games there are a wide variety of games that allow this feature. In some games it is painful to watch someone start on a high level that they can't handle (i.e. lose all their lives in under a minute) and claim a high score. In other games it would be painful to make someone sit through an hour of the earlier levels just to prove that they can show mastery at the more difficult levels - life is too short. In my opinion it is probably best to leave this one alone and use the philosophy that when you drop in your virtual coin into the game, if you are offered a choice - select whatever takes your fancy, and may the highest score win.