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Special codes or button combinations used to gain powers or advantages in a game. Generally hidden.
Martial arts are a popular set of skills that many video game characters possess. Martial arts are the cornerstone of any fighting game, and have influenced many platforming and adventure games.
Ever since Pac-Man, games have had us navigating mazes.
Ahh, eating... We can't live without it, and, apparently, neither can some characters. From snakes to dots, games have odd ways of dishing out their dishes.
Extraterrestrials appear in many video games in a variety of styles. Sometimes they're evil, sometimes they're benevolent, and sometimes they're very similar to humans.
The Virtual Console is a platform service that first appeared on Nintendo's Wii and later on the 3DS and Wii U. Games from past consoles are emulated to run on the new hardware with the added benefits of system-level save states and other features.
A type of gameplay where the main goal is to eat or collect a certain amount of stuff. At the same time, enemies will try to eat the player character.
Games whose main character is so egotistical that the whole game just HAS to be named after them.
A heads-up display is a graphical overlay of vital information used in most modern games.
A Palette Swap is when two or more characters share the same style sprite or character model with only minor color or cosmetic changes. Although visually similar, palette swap characters may have very different moves and personalities.
The Z-Machine is a virtual machine, created by Infocom, for running text adventures. Variants are used today to run classic and modern interactive fiction.
Armed forces. The arm of government that deals with fighting wars and protecting a nation from external or internal threats
A game perspective that views the action from above, commonly at a fixed position and/or rotation.
Climbing is a common tradition in games, particularly platformers. There is often a particular type of surface that can be climbed, and it has a recognizably different look than other surfaces in the game. Climbing ladders or stairs doesn't count.
A term used to describe the flow of action in a typical action game, where the pace is pre-defined to feature fast action and require quick reflexes. As the name suggests, these are games where the player character can run and shoot at the same time.
Physical props, clues, or trinkets included within game boxes by Infocom in the 1980s. They were often used to convey in-game information, add value, or as early copy protection.
A powerful release of energy. This energy is usually expelled in all directions very quickly, typically giving off orange or red flames.
A leaderboard is a way for players of any multi-player game to know where they rank within the game's community.
Some games feature protagonists that are not humanoid in nature. These are creatures that do not have human characteristics (i.e. stand on 2 legs, have 2 arms, a body and a head).
A mascot is an iconic character heavily used in the advertising and marketing of a product, franchise, business, or company. Notable mascots include Mario, Sonic the Hedgehog, Ulala, Mickey Mouse, and the Big Daddies.
War is a series of organized conflicts carried on by force of arms between two or more nations or groups. Whether it never changes or has already changed is up for debate.
"Hand to hand. It is the basis of all combat." -Gray Fox
In second person point of view, the action is shot from the perspective of a character that is not the protagonist. It can also refer to second-person in the narrative sense, where the protagonist is the person playing the game.
Being able to travel off one side of the screen and in from the other side.
These games take the select button literally. Pushing up and down (or any other button) to select an option will do nothing.
Legendary, stealthy assassins from Japan's feudal era, who are well-trained in the art of the sword, and who may or may not have access to magical powers.
Never Ending Games is a self-explanatory concept in which a game is unbeatable and never ends, due either to the game having no true ending or because the game is not saved (or truly continued) after the last section of the game.
Whether by item or otherwise, temporary invincibility provides the user a brief moment where they are impervious to attack.
A parallel projection technique used in 2D sprite-based games to fake the appearance of 3D depth.
A digital distribution service owned by Valve Corporation. Originally created to distribute Valve's own games, Steam has since become the de facto standard for digital distribution of PC games.
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