On Cheating

This one comes mostly from the vault, which is what we're going to call anywhere else The Beard has refused to shut-up (including the supermarket) over the course of his illustrious life. Not much has changed about cheating since it was invented, though, so this should still make some sense. Some.

Acheatments Unlocked!

Some of you are already thinking: why even care? Don't worry, I get that a lot. The Care Bears care, get over it, you're probably not the Care Police anyways (they're pretty busy with that Mosque thing right now). This is the internet, where people inexplicably care about things™. At the very least, it shouldn't be too hard for anyone that's ever played a game before to figure out why cheating might ruffle some people's feathers. So here are some of the arguments I hear most often:

It's Just a Meaningless Number Anyways

Ever notice how what's "meaningful" changes from person to person? Sure, you can't buy anything with gamerscore, you can't typically trade it for anything, and most people (maybe even most gamers) don't even care that it exists - but is that all it takes to be "meaningful"? Have you ever tried to play a card or board game with your friends or family wherein you all accrue a bunch of meaningless points? Try adding a bunch of points to your score outside the rules of the game, see how well that goes over (if anybody gets upset, relax, just remember to tell them it doesn't matter).

I've even heard some gamesavers use this reasoning themselves, as if they weren't the ones cheating to raise their scores in the first place. The truth is both parties care about that meaningless number, one just feels the need to justify their methods.

Cheaters are Still "Achieving" Something

Sure why not - it's true, isn't it? There are actually more than a few instances out there where cheating requires quite a bit of admirable ability, even cheating at gamerscore probably entails some above average computer skills or something, but if that's all that matters then why not say so? Why not put "great at gamesaving" or "proficient profile glitcher" somewhere on your profile? Well, because some people need more validation than others, and having a high gamerscore is just another way of getting it, whether they deserve it or not (really, it's bad enough when people with legitimate gamerscores do this).

It Doesn't Affect Anybody but Me

It's always good to keep things in perspective, and regardless of who and how many of us care about achievements... they're just achievements, and cheating to obtain them definitely isn't sending anybody home with broken bones or shattered psyches. Having said that, nobody exists in a vacuum (because they're really small), especially when it comes to video games nowadays. Even within gaming, gamerscore has an inherently heavy social aspect all on its own. Think back to my previous example, would your cheating really not affect any of the other players? At best it might just devalue the game, but at worst it can taint the entire community.

It's My Gamertag, I Can Do Whatever I Want

As with so many things, this is what it all comes down to: choice. Of course you can "do whatever you want", and that's something that nobody can truly take away from you, just as I can get unnecessarily serious about this and nobody can stop me. At the end of the day, though, people will dislike us for different reasons: I'll be "the obsessive achievement dork that should really get a life", but you'll be "the cheater." If you're fine with that, great, then be up front about it. If it's something you hide so as to look awesome to the unwitting, then you really might want to reevaluate a couple things before moving on. That, or you could start a blog about it to showcase your personality disorder - works for me!

Sincerely,

Dr. Beard, PhD.