Cover songs were commonly used in 8-bit video games of the 1970s-1990s for several reasons: 1) Game programmers were tasked with composing music but lacked formal musical training, so adapting existing songs was simpler than composing original music. 2) Tight development schedules meant there was little time to compose original music, so using covers saved valuable time. 3) The limited hardware of 8-bit systems made it difficult to generate complex original music, so simplifying and adapting existing songs was necessary. 4) Copyright laws were less rigidly enforced for 8-bit games, allowing unlicensed use of covers within a "gray area" of acceptability.