This article aims to describe from a sociological point of view the phenomenon of cheating. It does not attempt to release any kind of debate about cheaters and cheating.

Reminder from the author: I am not a psychologist nor a sociologist. I just enjoy to read and think about video game psychology. The resources I use are retrieved from my university course notes. Keep in mind I am an amateur although I use true concepts and existing ideas from the sociological and psychological field.

Woah, this guy is good! Damn he beat me again... I wish I could know how he did that! How did he know I was there? If only I could see what's going on in his mind I could probably be better... Maybe I could just go watch him play against someone else or ask for his demo? But that won't change the way I'm doing right now...

Like a complex puzzle or an impossible maths problem, we always wonder what is the answer. We ask for clues, we want to know what is happening on the other side of our screen. What is the only and simplest way to know in real time what the opponent is doing in order to become better than him? What if... we could see through walls? Oh but that's not fair right? But if it's not fair, why are there cheats? Why does our game have cheats if we cannot use them?
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