In video games, cheating can take the form of secret access codes in single-player games which unlock a bonus for the player when entered, hacks and exploits which give players an unfair advantage in online multiplayer games and single-player modes, or unfair collusion between players in online games (such as a player who spectates a match, removing limitations such as "fog of war", and reports on enemy positions to game partners).
Attitudes towards cheating vary. Using exploits in single-player
modes is usually considered to be simply another form of exploring the
game's content unless the player's accomplishments are to be submitted
competitively, and is common in single-player games with a high
difficulty level; however, cheating in multiplayer modes is considered
immoral and harshly condemned by fair players and developers alike. On
one hand, cheating allows casual players to complete games at
much-accelerated speed, which can be helpful in some cinematic or
one-player games, which can take a subjectively long time to finish, as
is typical of the Role-Playing Game (RPG) genre. While this may be seen as a hasty advantage causing no damage to anyone, in a multi-player game such as MMORPGs
the repercussions of cheating are much more damaging, breaking the
risk/reward curve of the game and causing fair players to lose online
matches and/or character development. Cheating in those types of games
is generally prohibited - though often widespread anyway. In many
circles, the purchasing of items or currency from sources outside the
game is also considered to be cheating. The Terms of Service from many games where this is possible, directly prohibits this activity.
One area where there is little consensus as of yet involves modern Free-to-play
business models which support and are supported by the exchange of
real-world money for in-game services, items, and advantages. Games that
grant excessive advantages only available to paying customers may be
criticised as being 'Pay to win' sometimes considered a form of "cheating" that is actually
legitimatized by the system - whilst games that limit real-money
purchases to cosmetic changes are generally accepted as fair.
Another form of video game cheating is when a player does things to
interact with game objects that are unforeseen by the programmers and
break the intended function or reward system of the object. This can
involve the way enemies are encountered, objectives met, items used, or
any other game object that contains a software bug. One common example is the exploitation of errors in an enemy's pathfinding;
if a player can cause an enemy to become "stuck" in a given terrain
feature, that player can then usually dispatch the enemy from a distance
without risk, even if much stronger, and achieve greater rewards than
the player is intended to be able to at that level of progression.
Another example was common in early first-person shooter
games and involved skipping a weapon's reload timer by quickly
switching weapons back and forth without actually reloading the weapons;
resulting in what was effectively instant reloading. It also can be
accomplished through means of altered game files are substituted for the
normal files, or image graphics changed to permit greater visibility of
the targets, etc. - for example, replacing the colors on a dark-colored
enemy intended to blend in with the background with a bright color
permitting instant visibility and targeting. Generally speaking, there
is often some concern that this is not truly cheating, as it is the
fault of the programmers that such an exploit exists in the first place.
However, technically, as with live sports, it is cheating if the player
is not playing the game in a formally approved manner, breaking
unwritten rules. In some cases, this behavior is directly prohibited by
the Terms of Service of the game.
source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheating
picture:http://www.ypstrps3.org