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A special attack seen in the Persona series where the entire party will strike all enemies on the field after they've been knocked down.
Artificial life-forms ("robots") specifically designed to mimic the appearance of human beings. Although this is a male-specific term, with female-looking machines actually being "gynoids", the term "android" is generally used universally in video games.
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, commonly refers to the programmed behaviors of NPCs in a game, whether it's the fact that a soldier takes cover behind a wall in Gears of War, or that townspeople cheer upon your arrival to their village in Fable.
A character in the game actually increase in size. This may be a temporary or permanent transformation.
Video game controversy revolves mostly around the psychological effects that games with graphic violence or sexual content in them can have on players. Other sources of controversy can range from racism, sexism, politics, or religion.
The Dark Hour is a period of time that occurs between midnight and 12:01AM each night in Persona 3. Only a select few are aware of the Dark Hour and able to enter it.
This concept is for games where at least one of the main characters is female.
Flashbacks take a player into a flashback sequence. Often playable, but not always.
A gynoid, or fembot, is a feminine humanoid robot.
A character type found in RPGs, MMOs, and class based Multiplayer games that focuses on keeping friendly characters alive. Their general role is to heal/buff and resurrect fallen allies.
The process by which characters reach a new level, gain greater attributes, and learn more abilities. It usually involves earning enough experience points by completing a variety of tasks such as quests or by "farming" such as killing other characters for their experience points.
An umbrella term for any sexual orientation or gender identity that is not straight.
Moral dilemmas presented to the player that often have a significant effect on the story or other characters.
Everyone else can keel over as much as necessary, but if the party leader falls, it's game over. Sometimes this makes logical sense, like with perma-death battle systems. But more often then not the main character is one Phoenix Down away from a game over.
Manifestations of a person's 'mask' that he or she shows the world. They can also be described as a representation of the control over a character's shadow personality. These entities appear as famous and legendary characters in the world of mythology. Tremendous power hidden within each one.
If a person is made of metal and has circuitry instead of a circulatory system, then their game belongs on this list.
Colloquial term applied to hyper-aggressive play in all fighting games in North America, coined in southern California during the mid-90s. Popularized by tournament players like Alex Valle.
Sometimes there are robotic characters that are programmed to think they are humans or have forgotten they are robots. Other times robots are meant to blend in with humans while knowing that they are robots. Either way they are eventually revealed to be robots as a dramatic plot twist.
A concept found in the Persona series. After random battles an occasional shuffle time screen will appear where the player can try his or her luck at getting various persona or other bonuses.
An important game mechanic in the Persona series. Social links represent the people you meet, and each are associated with a single Arcana. It is called Community in the Japanese versions.
Featured mainly in fighting games, special attacks usually require more than just pressing a button to activate. They are usually unique or at least varied between characters.
A private extracurricular club at Gekkoukan High School. Its members are individuals with the "potential," the ability to keep their consciousness during the Dark Hour, and call forth their Persona. Shuji Ikutsuki acts as their sponsor.
Stance is an archetype may grant player characters access to unique abilities and attributes.
Summoning involves bringing a distant ally into battle to either perform a single, devastating attack or to fight on the behalf of the summoner.
A tragic hero is a protagonist who makes several mistakes to fall from glory, or is affected by tragedy and seeks revenge or redemption.
Zoning Characters (also called Keepaway Characters) is an archetype that use long range attacks to the control space in fighting games.
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