Hello Oddworld X
This will be a lengthy explanation, so I'll give you the short answer here first. We do not consider this to be cheating based on our rules and guidelines. We will not take action on these individuals.
As you stated in your post, you deserve an explanation. I know I would certainly like one in your shoes. So here we go.
The criteria we use to label someone a cheater as found in the cheater policy (
https://www.trueachievements.com/cheatpolicy.aspx) contains the following:
*** Spoiler - click to reveal ***-Using profile editors or other software to unlock achievements without playing
-Gamesaving, which is the practice of using a save from a different GamerTag
-Knowingly using a hacked lobby to unlock achievements
-Profile swapping, also known as the Second Profile Glitch, which is the practice of transferring a save or game statistics from one profile to another (similar to gave saving, but both profiles have to be on the same Xbox)
-Editing or manipulating game files
-Using any software or patches not released by the game developer and certified by Microsoft
The only item on that list that this comes close to is the last one. This short cut does require PC software to use. However, it does not require modifying the console or the game files to use, which is really what we're after. The software is completely external, and is comparable to using a turbo or programmable macro controller to automate gameplay. Are the people doing this any better or worse than those who use turbo controllers, use YouTube videos to sing into a mic, use chairs as stand-ins for Kinect games, etc? The criteria of the achievements are still being fulfilled.
The second issue is that we have no way to enforce it. Let's say that we hypothetically viewed this as cheating and decided to pursue it. How do we detect it? There would not be achievements unlocked offline that require online play. There would not be achievements unlocking on identical time stamps that would otherwise be impossible to do so. There would not be achievements unlocking out of order. The MIDI files essentially replicate how a "perfect player" would play the game, but this doesn't leave any evidence behind as to how that was done. We could at best wager a guess that someone used the MIDI files if they start and complete what most consider a difficult game in a few hours, but going after people based on guesses and hunches is a really bad path to wander down. Taking action against this would set a very poor precedent.
That's the honest answer to why we're not doing anything about it. This surely isn't what you wanted to hear, but sometimes these things happen where new methods are discovered that bring down a high ratio achievement. Before the glitch was discovered, Far Cry 2 held a TA score around 4500 and the Warlord achievement was sitting at around 18. The achievement took hundreds of hours or a 26 hour non-stop marathon boost to complete. Once a glitch was discovered to get the achievement in around 90 mins, people were pretty pissed as they watched the ratios plummet and hundreds of hours of their time wasted. But it's not cheating, and we just have to accept that this is the new normal. This community has proven that it will find an easier more effective way of doing an achievement if it exists.
With all that said, I understand your frustration. I've been in the same situation before with other achievements and it stings. But take solace in the fact that you can hold your head high and say "I did it the way it was intended to be done", which is something these other people can't say. Don't let a little number called a TA ratio devalue the self-appreciation and respect from others you've earned by doing things the old fashioned way.