Cheating is Circumstantial

Cheating is an inveterate part of playing games. I remember playing go fish with my dad, lying about the cards in my hand when he asked, then waiting a few turns to ask for them; he taught me that trick. This is the most important aspect of cheating, being able to do so well. It is not only important to the cheater, but also to the other players when cheating is maintained as a part of enjoyable game play. This may seem unorthodox, but it is true nonetheless. This holds true in MMOG’s, there are many methods of cheating in video games, as defined by many players.

There is blatant hacking, which in moderation can level gamers looking for the "get rich quick" version of gaming, or it can have unwieldy results on the servers. They can create custom character stats, and they can vac hack to aid farming. It is not too harmful if done covertly, and although it may be complained about extensively by players who can't hack, it is only that individual gamer's choice in optimizing their experience. On the extreme, there have been hacks in the past that crashed servers. Of course this technically details editing their software with your own, which is copyright infringement.

Less honorable than hacking is the purchase of characters from other users. This is again just that particular players method of getting the most out of their gaming experience, albeit cheaply. On the downside for the player in question, they will have to spend time adapting to the account that they just purchased. This even stretches to sale of in game currency, and items for physical money. It is also an illegal resale according to the user agreements of many MMOG's.

There are certain misconducts in MMOG's that are the result of social ineptitude, often viewed by the victims as cheating. These include kill stealing, and hand in hand with this is "ownership" of virtual space; that is to say, which character has the right to be in a farming area due to being there first. Although not technically cheating, it is a blatant disregard for the socialization of multiplayer gaming.

Last but not least are exploits and glitching. These are often techniques used to take advantage of discrepancies in the game. This may be a sniping spot some hundred feet in the air, or an environmental tweak in which a boss character may become physically stuck. Again, these are not technically cheating, but are often proclaimed as such by players who do not know how to take advantage of them.

A mix between misconduct and exploiting is Kazzak Does Stormwind¹. The players kited him², and were banned for such repeated actions.

In the end, cheating in MMO's has come down to what is fair or unfair to specific players. It is a dynamic definition that is dependant on any one individual's outlook and circumstances.

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1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl0VWJdE01M

2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stYUrIk8Iu0