Overview
When it comes to game terms (ゲーム用語, gēmu yōgo) there are roughly two types.
The first is a term that is almost exclusively used in games. This term is rarely used in daily life, and even if you look in a dictionary, you will usually not find its meaning.
If they are used, it is only in the manga and anime industries, which are related to video games.
Exceptional gaming terms that have become widespread and common include reset button, urawaza (meaning secret trick), and experience points. Some of them can be traced back to tabletop game before the advent of video games.
On the other hand, there are terms that are used in everyday conversation but whose meaning changes when used as game terms.
For example, PK, when used in everyday conversation, often refers to the abbreviation for penalty kick in soccer, but in the game industry it refers to player kill, which has a very different meaning.
There is also a difference between terms commonly used in the game (attack power, stage, boss, etc.) and terms created and popularized by players (canned, discarded, namepurei, etc.).
In some cases, such as the "three values" of Pokémon, the original terminology has spread on its own without the official's active reference to it.
List
Term | Description |
---|---|
# | |
0%_0%_0% | When all data is deleted in Kirby Super Star. |
1CC | Abbreviation of one-credit completion or one-coin clear. |
1UP | Item that resurrects you when you die in the game. |
2D | Games in the two-dimensional perspective. |
2P Color | Game character's second color scheme. |
3D | A game with three-dimensional objects made with of polygons. |
3DS | Short for Nintendo 3DS. Eighth generation Nintendo handheld. |
3D Sickness | Japanese term of simulator sickness, a motion sickness by game. |
⑨ | Touhou Project meme about the character Cirno. |
64 | Short for Nintendo 64. Fifth generation Nintendo home console. |
A | |
An Adult Situation | Really a general term to cover up something that is difficult to explain. |
Arcade Game | A coin-operated game machine. |
B | |
Bishoujo Game / Gal Game | Game genre about interactions with women. |
Bullet Hell | Type of shooting game avoiding dozens to hundreds of bullets. |
Bonus Stage | A special level where it's able to win a reward. |
Buff | An effect to make something stronger. |
C | |
CERO | Japanese video game rating system. |
Clipping | To have physical boundaries in a game. |
Crossplay | Different game hardware being played with each other simultaneously. |
Combo | To build on an action, usually adding on an attack. |
Co-op | Meaning cooperative gameplay, a multiplayer game mode about working together. |
CPU | Has a few terms such as being the processing unit for the PC or AI controlled players. |
D | |
Dark Nintendo | About the more darker elements of Nintendo games. |
Danmaku | Japan's term of bullet hell. Translate to bullet curtain or curtain fire. |
Debuff | An effect to make something weaker. |
Demo | A short playable demonstration of a game. |
DLC | Downloadable content. |
Double Jump | A game mechanic that makes the character jump two times in the air. |
Dolphin | Emulator for GameCube and Wii games with visual improvements. |
D-pad | A control pad for movement. The "D" is short for "directional". |
DSi | Short for Nintendo DSi. Seventh generation Nintendo handheld. |
E | |
Early Access | A game in development mode or close to a full release that is able to be purchase. |
Easy Mode | A state of extremely low difficulty in a game. |
Eight Directional | A way to move eight directions by the D-pad. |
Eroge | Japanese term for erotic games. Mainly used on adult visual novels. |
F | |
Falling Block Puzzle | Games about blocks falling as if they were falling under gravity. |
G | |
Game Over | When you lose in a game. Text saying that usually shows up. |
GBA | Acronym for Game Boy Advance. Sixth generation Nintendo handheld. |
GG | English acronym for "good game". It's a gesture of good sportsmanship. |
GLHF | English acronym of "good luck, have fun". Another gesture of good sportsmanship. |
Glitch | Something in the game that is not suppose to happen due to a bug in programing. |
GOAT | English acronym of "Greatest Of All Time". Is now internet slang. |
GOTY | Acronym for "Game Of The Year", a game award event. |
God Mode | Can not be killed, is invincible. Usually a game cheat or item. |
H | |
Hitbox | Invisible shapes with real-time collision detection. |
I | |
Indie Game | Independent made games made usually by few people. |
Item | Something to obtain and use. |
J | |
K | |
Kaizo | Modded games made to be highly difficult such as Kaizo Mario World. |
Key Item | An item that must be used to progress. |
L | |
Let's Play | Recorded video of a game being played that includes commentary. |
Level | A course for the player to complete. |
Lag | Game delay such as not adding up to the player's input. |
M | |
Masocore | Masochism subgenre by making games unfairly hard. |
Memory Game | A game about memorizing patterns. |
MMO | Massively multiplayer online game. |
MMORPG | Massively multiplayer online role-playing game. |
N | |
Nakige | A game with emotional scenarios to cry to. |
Namepurei / Namepu | A Japanese term for going overly easy on an opponent. |
Nerf | To reduce the capability of a game element. |
Nintendo Hard | Can mean any hard games on the Nintendo Entertainment System. |
Noclip | Game cheat to go through anything and everything. |
No Johns | Meaning "no excuses" at players giving exaggerated reasons for losing. |
O | |
One-Hit Knockout / KO | To defeat an opponent with a single attack. |
Ore TUEEE | Beating weak opponents for self-satisfaction. |
Open World | A world with a lot of space and stuff to do and explore. |
Other Car | Japanese term for ordinary vehicles that do not participate in races. |
Overkill | When a player is dominating in a match. |
Otome Game | Romance games made for women. |
P | |
Press F to Pay Respects | Was a quick time event to press F at a funeral service in Call of Duty. Sense then saying F is a form of comical sympathy and became a meme. |
Puzzle Game | Games testing your problem-solving skills. |
Q | |
Quick Time Event | Fast gameplay after an on-screen instruction is given. |
R | |
Rhythm Game | Video game genre about keeping up with rhythm in music. |
RTA | Japanese used acronym of real-time attack. |
S | |
Sandbox | A gameplay element/genre of creating things in a game. |
Side View | Viewpoint from which a character is seen horizontally. |
Shit Game | Slang for calling a game terrible. |
Shitaigeri | Japanese term of kicking a dead body. |
Soulslike | Difficult games with stories akin to Dark Souls. |
T | |
TAS | A "tool-assisted speedrun" bot used for speedrunning an emulated game. |
Time Attack | A term in motorsport and games meaning the same thing: to get best lap time. |
U | |
Upgrade | A game mechanic to make anything more powerful. |
Urawaza | A term before video games but is mainly used for games now. It means a underhanded trick. |
Utsuge | Like nakige, a game made to make you cry but more depressing. |
V | |
Visual Novel / VN | A game to read comprise of visuals with it. |
W | |
Warp | To teleport or move to one place to another. |
X | |
Y | |
Z | |
Zone | Another word for a level or area. |
External Links
Glossary of video game terms - Wikipedia