I think it's more about the validation received from other peoples giving the cheat-maker an ego boost, which is real to them regardless of whether the people u

I think it's more about the validation received from other peoples giving the cheat-maker an ego boost, which is real to them regardless of whether the people using their cheats are truly giving them any meaningful credit. That aside, I'm not sure exactly what you mean by social credit, but in some communities the creators of hacks and cheats(at least the people making fun, constructive cheats - not aimbots and the like) are highly esteemed. They are regarded somewhere alongside competitive players/speedrunners but in a more shadowy background roll(which many people may find cooler/more valuable). They also tend to have universal support among the community rather than being on one team or the other like, for example, tournament players. This is all true in the communities I've witnessed at least, I don't play many esport type games though.