Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Issue 36
Demo Derby
Game Mess Mornings 04/22/24
GrubbSnax
8-4 Play 4/19/2024: LEAVE IT TO BEAVERS
8-4 Play
The Community Spotlight 2024.04.20
The Community Spotlight 2024.04.13
Community Endurance Run XIV - April 12-14
Game » consists of 20 releases. Released April 1990
Sure, these days have almost every game sporting the newfangled 3D, but way back when, everyone had to live with plain old 2D. 2D, or two dimensions, limit the game to scrolling backgrounds, but some games even now make use of this basic concept.
Achievements are extra challenges added into video games that sometimes carry a point value or unlock bonus material, and are sometimes solely for bragging rights.
Bonus levels, rounds, or stages give players a chance to gain extra points, powerups, or lives. Occasionally bonus stages will play completely different than the rest of the game, like as a slot machine or pinball minigame.
Bosses are enemies that fight you at the end of a level or at a significant point in the story.
A boss fight is a culminating challenge that pits the player against one or more enemies representing a greater threat and/or difficulty than those previously faced. These scenarios typically feature unique antagonists.
A condition in which two male characters are socially close, but not sexually or romantically, and are often partners.
Special codes or button combinations used to gain powers or advantages in a game. Generally hidden.
Cooperative play in games allows humans to play together as a team to accomplish a task. Instead of playing against a human opponent, the team must defeat an AI. Cooperative Play in some games also means 2 human versus 2 human, this occurs in some Billiards games. (Scotch Doubles / Doubles)
Currency has all forms in video games. It is used to buy characters, vehicles, weapons, and more.
An effect that deals damage to anything that attacks or touches the character.
The main line of distinction between victory or failure in video games, death is the process of a biological being ceasing to be alive.
Sometimes you want a challenge, sometimes you wanna coast.
The concept of purchasing media and having it delivered over the internet. No physical representation of this content is given, and although the content resides on the user's hard drive they are typically granted a license to the product, rather than ownership of it.
The controversial practice of incorporating "access control technology" into digital media so as to limit what owners of that media can do with it, most commonly for the stated purpose of preventing piracy.
Any game that represents a society noticeably worse or less desirable compared to those in the present. This can relate to kinds of political and economic organisation, excessive human suffering, social problems caused by technology, or as a result of an apocalyptic event.
A powerful release of energy. This energy is usually expelled in all directions very quickly, typically giving off orange or red flames.
Extreme violence pertains to excessive amounts of blood, gore, or violent acts. These include decapitation, mutilation, dismemberment, amputation, defenestration, disembowelment, torture and much more.
Flip screen (or flick-screen) describes a way of dividing the game world into fixed screens, displayed one at a time. It's commonly found in 2D platformers, especially prior to the 16-bit era.
Sporting events that are set in the future. These sports are often extremely violent and may feature robots, mechs, or cybernetic implants.
Who loves you and who do you love?
Known for their flashy appearance and superficial charisma, game show hosts in video games are often not to be trusted - outside of game show adaptations, at least.
In many games there is a ranking system, the players with the highest point value are listed in a "high score" table.
A concept in a game where the playable character can't run out of ammo, and doesn't need to pick up/buy ammo. In some cases, you still have to reload your weapon, but you will still have an endless amount of magazines.
Games that depict information in formats such as graphs, charts, diagrams, data maps, cross-sections, exploded views, and relational maps. Can be used to inform the player's choices or merely for aesthetics.
A situation where the player-controlled character loses their life immediately. The quickness of that demise is often a stark departure from the balance of power, and sometimes the rules, established by the developers during the rest of the game.
Whether it be a close up shotgun blast, far away sniper rifle, explosive, or backstab, the "one hit kill" is a popular kill strategy. Usually hard to master and even harder to avoid, the instant kill is loved and hated by gamers everywhere.
The concept of lives in video games evolved to let the player get a second chance after failing once. The most recognizable symbol is the heart.
A Multi-Phase Boss is a boss that undergoes a significant and instantaneous change in abilities, attack speed, and/or attack pattern during the fight. These bosses do not fully regain health between forms and appearance changes are usually minimal, if at all.
Two or more characters are featured on the game's box art.
A circumstance in video games where the player will defeat large numbers of enemies without any assistance from AI or other players. This may occur for part of a game or the entirety of it.
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