The Cheating Dilemma The numbers are the payoffs, in millions of dollars per day, that each player receives given the combination of strategies played. If Russia plays “Cooperate” and Saudi Arabia plays “Cheat,” the payoff to Saudi Arabia is $500 and the payoff to Russia is $200. In this game, Cheat is a better strategy for each player no matter what the other player’s strategy. Thus, the equilibrium of this game (shaded) is (Cheat, Cheat).