Gaming

Playing Dirty: Research Reveals The Nationalities That Cheat The Most At Video Games

Published

5 years ago

May 14, 2021

Reading Time: 3 minutes

UK gamers ranked 16th – more likely to cheat than their Aussie counterparts, but less likely to do so than players in the US
Russia, Italy and Israel are the top three countries that cheat at gaming the most
The US placed as the 11th worst cheaters, with Texas, California and Nevada residents revealed as the three most likely states to use a cheat code
Gamers in Iceland are the most likely to cheat at the Assassin’s Creed series, Turkey takes the crown for GTA, while UK gamers are the biggest culprits for Animal Crossing cheats

Many people use video game cheat codes to boost their chances of winning, but which nation is home to the world’s biggest cheaters? Uswitch did the research to find out, and it’s revealed Russia, Italy, Israel, Japan and Sweden are the top five countries where gamers cheat the most.

The World’s Biggest Gaming Cheaters

By analysing Google search volume data, Uswitch calculated how many people were actively seeking ‘cheat codes’, ‘cheats’ and cheat codes for specific games, in every country around the world, along with every state in the US.

The search volumes were then adjusted to account for each country’s population to create an index score, to make sure the data compared like for like. The results expose the top 20 countries most likely to cheat while playing video games.

The top 20 countries that cheat the most at video games (and the cheating index score):

Position	Country	Index ranking score
1	Russia	18.40
2	Italy	16.58
3	Israel	4.87
4	Japan	4.48
5	Sweden	4.03
6	Romania	3.13
7	Portugal	2.36
8	Turkey	2.34
9	Brazil	2.32
10	Denmark	2.28
11	United States	2.10
12	Ireland	2.00
13	Argentina	1.92
14	Poland	1.77
15	Croatia	1.52
16	United Kingdom	1.43
17	New Zealand	1.41
18	Canada	1.35
19	Australia	1.28
20	Bulgaria	1.13

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Half the countries in the top 20 are in Europe – Italy, Sweden, Romania, Portugal and Denmark all make the top 10, and gamers in the United Kingdom ranked as the 16th most notorious cheaters.

The US falls just outside of the top 10, in 11^th position. Close behind in 12^th is Ireland, Canada comes in in 18^th and Bulgaria rounds off the list in 20^th position.

From Minecraft to Mario Kart – Which countries cheat the most at different games?

The study also looked into more than 50 of the world’s most popular video games to discover which country cheated the most at each game. Interestingly, Iceland features a massive 18 times – being found to cheat the most for a wide array of games, from the stealthy Assassin’s Creed series to beloved titles like Super Mario.

Malta clocks up eight appearances for games including the classic Resident Evil and Tomb Raider franchises, along with Borderlands and Crash Bandicoot. Turkey, Germany and Ireland all have three mentions and the UK appears twice, coming in as the biggest cheaters at Animal Crossing and LEGO Marvel Superheroes.

The no.1 country that cheats the most at different video games (and their cheating index score):

Game	Country	Index ranking score
Animal Crossing	United Kingdom	0.35
Ark	Turkey	0.37
Assassin’s Creed	Iceland	0.15
Battlefield	Iceland	0.09
Bioshock	Iceland	0.15
Borderlands	Malta	0.05
Call of Duty	Belize	0.28
Crash Bandicoot	Malta	0.27
Crysis	Iceland	0.21
Death Stranding	Slovenia	0.03
Doom	Iceland	0.50
Fable	New Zealand	0.04
Fallout 4	Germany	0.66
Far Cry	Malta	0.18
Final Fantasy	Indonesia	0.31
Fortnite	Germany	0.46
Forza	New Zealand	0.03
Ghost of Tsushima	Italy	0.03
Gran Turismo	Indonesia	4.77
Grand Theft Auto	Turkey	2.74
LEGO Marvel Superheroes	United Kingdom	0.44
LEGO Star Wars	Iceland	0.26
Little Big Planet	Ireland	0.01
Mafia	Czech Republic (Czechia)	0.29
Mario Kart	Barbados	0.10
Metal Gear Solid	Iceland	0.12
Minecraft	Turkey	5.40
Mortal Kombat	Indonesia	0.28
NBA 2K	Iceland	0.29
Need for Speed	Iceland	0.18
No Man’s Sky	Iceland	0.15
Pokémon	Barbados	0.70
RDR2	Ireland	1.19
Red Dead Redemption	Iceland	0.50
Resident Evil	Malta	0.07
Rocket League	Iceland	0.29
The Sims	Netherlands	2.12
Skate 3	New Zealand	0.43
Skyrim	Germany	1.15
Sonic The Hedgehog	Ireland	0.03
Spider-Man	Iceland	0.12
Spyro	Malta	0.29
Starcraft	Iceland	0.44
Super Mario	Iceland	0.26
Tekken	Malta	0.04
The Last of Us	Iceland	0.18
The Witcher	Malta	0.07
Tomb Raider	Malta	0.09
Tony Hawks	New Zealand	0.02
Uncharted	Iceland	0.12
Warcraft	Iceland	0.26

Which US states cheat the most at video games?

According to the study, gamers in Texas are more likely to cheat than any other US state, and California, Nevada, Georgia and New Mexico make up the rest of the top five.

When looking at the specific index scores of each US state – although none are as high as Russia’s or Italy’s in the worldwide list – Texas’ score of 2.6 is roughly around the same level as Portugal, which made it to 7^th place in the global analysis.

The top 10 US states that cheat the most at video games (and the cheating index score):

Position	US State	Index ranking score
1	Texas	2.60
2	California	2.25
3	Nevada	2.19
4	Georgia	2.12
5	New Mexico	2.06
6	Hawaii	2.03
7	North Carolina	2.02
8	New York	1.90
9	Maryland	1.88
10	Tennessee	1.81

To see the full research, including the top 50 countries that cheat at video games the most, visit: https://www.uswitch.com/broadband/worlds-biggest-gaming-cheaters/

Arena Racing Company

Arena Racing Company awarded United Arab Emirates Gaming-Related Vendor License

Published

3 days ago

December 20, 2025

Wladimir P.

arena-racing-company-awarded-united-arab-emirates-gaming-related-vendor-license

Arena Racing Company (ARC) has been granted a Gaming-Related Vendor license from the United Arab Emirates’ General Commercial Gaming Authority (GCGRA), an independent entity of the UAE Federal Government with exclusive jurisdiction to regulate, license, and supervise all commercial gaming activities.

The license, operational with immediate effect, affords ARC the opportunity to provide its products and services to licensed operators in the region. Notably, the Racing1 Markets service, an all-in-one horse and greyhound racing solution delivered in conjunction with Racing1 alliance media rights partners at 1/ST CONTENT, Racecourse Media Group (RMG), and Tabcorp, alongside technical partner Pythia Sports. ARC has been added to the list of licensed vendors as per the GCGRA website.

Jack Whitaker, Commercial Manager at ARC, said: “Obtaining this license is a great achievement for ARC and its Racing1 partners. The emerging regulated UAE market is incredibly exciting, and we look forward to showcasing our innovative products and services in the region.”

The post Arena Racing Company awarded United Arab Emirates Gaming-Related Vendor License appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry Newsroom.

Battle of the Tribes

POLYTOPIA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2025 BREAKS RECORD PARTICIPATION AS FINALS DRAW CLOSER

Published

3 weeks ago

December 3, 2025

Wladimir P.

polytopia-world-championship-2025-breaks-record-participation-as-finals-draw-closer

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Celebrated strategy game The Battle of Polytopia confirms its first ever World Championships has exceeded expectations with over 10,000 sign-ups in its qualifying rounds. While no stranger to tournaments, previously hosting smaller scale, local tournaments called ‘Polysseums’, developer Midjiwan’s first step into global esports has been met with extreme success. The inclusive esports event has a $10,000 prize pool and will conclude on 6 December 2025, 14:00-21:00.

The finals will take place in front of a live-studio audience, with expert commentary and a chance to peek behind the scenes at Midjiwan itself. First place will receive $4,000, the runner-up will take away $2,000, the third and fourth place finishers will get $1,500, and the fifth and sixth place $500.

The Polytopia World Championship 2025 is being hosted by eSports platform, Challengermode, who Midjiwan has relied on for its monthly local tournaments since 2022. Midjiwan also partnered with Black Molly Entertainment to help organise and manage the event. Black Molly Entertainment have years of experience managing eSports tournaments, with notable events including the Geoguesser World Cup and CS:GO Pinnacle Cup Championship.

Midjiwan has worked closely with its community to ensure engagement is high with each round, building a bespoke ‘Spectator Mode’ into the game so fans can watch each game live through the game itself. In the spectator mode the viewer has visibility of all players simultaneously, with stats on how many cities, technologies, kills and more available for quick access.

Christian Lovstedt, CEO of Midjiwan commented:
“Polytopia has always been about welcoming all kinds of players into the world of 4X strategy. That’s why our championship is open to everyone – not just pros with sponsors. We’ve been thrilled at the amount of interest this tournament received from our community, reaching participation numbers way beyond our expectations. We’re excited to bring the finalists to Stockholm and can’t wait to see the strategies that emerge.”

The Polytopia World Championship 2025 kicked off in September, with its ‘Battle of the Tribes’ qualifying round – weekly battles where players competed to be the best in each of the game’s 12 tribes. After an exciting six weeks, the top player from each tribe faced-off, reducing the qualifiers to six finalists. These six winners are listed down below.

Tribe	Qualifying Player
IMPERIUS	ArthurL248
BARDUR	slimmingboy
OUMAJI	Dreamlander3000
HOODRICK	Theetat
XIN-Xi	LeLiberateur
LUXIDOOR	Meisterlampe

Recaps of each round of the tournament prior to the finals can be watched on the official Battle of Polytopia YouTube channel.

Part 1: Polytopia World Championship 1st Qualifiers Wrap-Up – BARDUR, IMPERIUS, KICKOO, ZEBASI
Part 2: Qualifiers Wrap-Up – Oumaji Hoodrick Yadakk & Quetzali – World Champoinship 2025
Part 3: Final Qualifiers Wrap-Up – Xin-Xi, Luxidoor, Ai-Mo & Vengir – World Championship 2025
Face-off stream: https://youtube.com/live/GnU6mWPoJiY?feature=share

To watch the finals live on December 6,visit here: https://polytopia.io/stream/

To stay up to date on the Polytopia World Championship 2025, or purchase one of the limited tickets for the live event, visit the official website or join the Official Polytopia Discord.

The post POLYTOPIA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2025 BREAKS RECORD PARTICIPATION AS FINALS DRAW CLOSER appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Betiator

Delasport Unveils a Crash Game for Sports Betting

Published

3 weeks ago

December 3, 2025

George Miller

delasport-unveils-a-crash-game-for-sports-betting

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Leading iGaming supplier Delasport teases a one-of-a-kind sports betting crash game called Betiator – a new in-play experience that merges live sports with the tension and excitement of crash games.

Inspired by the groundbreaking casino genre, the company once again pushes the whole industry to a new phase in evolution by allowing sports bettors to play in the same easy and fun way as fellow casino players. Crash games are booming in the casino world, showing that players crave more emotional, fast, and visually engaging formats – and Betiator brings that same adrenaline-charged energy to the sportsbook.

It changes the scene by introducing a truly innovative way to bet on sports, keeping players at the edge of their seats during the game. Designed to excite both sports bettors and casino players, it marks a defining moment for innovation.

This product comes as a logical next step in the evolution of live betting and the company’s goal to disrupt the iGaming industry. It demonstrates Delasport’s successful commitment to unique innovation: a strategy they call “Going Beyond Content” –building on the success of products and features like SuperPot, My Sportsbook, My Combo, Double My Winnings, and many more.

“Sports bettors deserve the same level of innovation and excitement that casino players get all the time,” Delasport’s CEO Oren Cohen Shwartz says. “At Delasport we’re taking the whole game to a new playing field with Betiator. Live betting won’t feel outdated anymore as we’re bringing in the thrill of the casino to sports betting.”

While details about Betiator remain under wraps for now, Delasport promises a completely new way to experience live sports. Operators and partners eager to see it in action can schedule exclusive demos and discover more at ICE Barcelona 2026, taking place January 19–21, where Betiator will make its official debut.

The post Delasport Unveils a Crash Game for Sports Betting appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.