I didn't read the GP's comment the same way you did.
Cheating in a single player game is like looking up a spoiler for the end of a movie. There's nothing wrong with it, but you should be aware the game may not be as much fun afterwards.
I don't think that's a fair comparison, especially when it's a game that has a rich story. Running a cheat might get you to the end of that story faster or easier, but for some that's the only way they will complete the game and get that payoff.
Personally, I'm the type who will play a game straight through for the story and experience of it, then go back and do cheats to expand my enjoyment of the journey.
Again, this is all talking about single player games; cheating in multiplayer games is inexcusable as it will always negatively impact other players and their enjoyment of the game.
I mean, no analogy is perfect. The point I went to get across is, it's fine to both say (A) there's nothing wrong with cheating if you need to do it, but also (B) you really should try to hold yourself back if you can.
To use a real example, Celeste is a very difficult single player game, and so the developers actually built in a cheat mode that any player can enable. I'm not going to lie, there are times I was tempted to turn it on.
But, personally, I'm really glad I held myself back! If I had turned on Celeste's assist mode, it would have cheapened the entire experience for me.
And to mention the other side again: Celeste's developers purposefully added Assist Mode for a reason, so anyone who truly needs it should go ahead and use it. Just, make a real effort to persevere if you can—you just might find yourself doing something that seemed impossible at first.
We all come to games with different skills, different amounts of free time, different levels of anxiety and capacity to learn. The only thing you "should" do is play the game at the level and for the reasons that are fun for you.
AC seems to me like a sandbox game, so there is a lot to enjoy just by interacting with the game that doesn't necessitate grinding for bells or whatever to be able to enjoy it. That doesn't really apply to Celeste, where the fun is mainly in the challenge
There are people that don't plan to watch movies either but want to know how they end. I personally know someone that didn't want to take the time to watch all of "The Infinity Saga" Marvel movies before watching Infinity War/Endgame and looked up plot summaries.
Animal crossing is paced incredibly slowly. I have been playing for weeks and still don't have the landscaping or path tools. I can certainly see how some people just want to play for the town design and decoration aspects without wanting to sink months in to the game.
Sure, but it's harmless compared to cheating in a multiplayer game. Cheating in a single player game may or may not impact your enjoyment, but cheating in a multi player game will almost certainly reduce the enjoyment of others (even if it may increase your own).
It really depends on the mod. The one you describe here I would personally consider cheating if there was a reason for the limitation in the first place. If it saves you multiple dangerous trips for instance.
Cheating is "act dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage."
You're not being dishonest or unfair when you mod or (use a) cheat in a single player game, you're free to do as you please, however if other players are involved, there are categories of mods that would fit that description.
Cheating in a single player game is like looking up a spoiler for the end of a movie. There's nothing wrong with it, but you should be aware the game may not be as much fun afterwards.