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A two-dimensional image or animation overlaid into a scene. The foundation of early 2D games, making up everything from props to the player-controlled character.
In many games there is a ranking system, the players with the highest point value are listed in a "high score" table.
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.
Health is a value that gauges how much damage players can take in a game before they die or pass out. Also known as life in some games. Health is usually represented by a bar or a percentage instead of an exact amount. Found in most non sport games
Who needs 2D when we've got 3D? 3D, or 3 dimensions, is what we're used to seeing in almost every game these days, letting us do all sorts of awesome stuff like run in circles!
Retroachievements is a community created and curated site that adds Achievements and Online Leaderboards for supported emulators and platforms like Raspberry Pi
Game Over originally appeared in pinball machines, and later, arcade machines. When players lose at a game, it is game over.
It's arguably the one move that symbolizes the medium to those outside it. The ability to jump, be it onto a building, a platform, or a skull, is one of the all time most important abilities ever put in a video game.
These games are based off of established licenses, such as movies, comics, or TV shows. Examples are the James Bond 007 and Spider-Man franchises.
Games whose titles consist of a single word.
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.
Games where the characters are 2D bitmap images (sprites), but the environment and scenarios are made in a 3-Dimensional space. This technique was commonly used on consoles like the PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Nintendo DS. Many 90's First-Person Shooters and early 3D RPGs also used this technique. Some used it as a stylistic choice like Paper Mario and Rakugaki Showtime.
The main line of distinction between victory or failure in video games, death is the process of a biological being ceasing to be alive.
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.
From Beat-em-ups to fighting games to modern FPS, one dude hitting another has made an enjoyable pastime.
PSone Classics are titles that were initially released for the original PlayStation, and re-released digitally for later PlayStation hardware.
The continue is a classic gaming concept, and usually arises when the player "dies" or fails in the game. Usually some loss is tied to a continue, in a form of a "life" or something of other value.
First-Person is a vantage point that attempts to simulate looking through a game character's eyes. It is most commonly found in first-person shooters, racing games, and visual novels, and to a lesser extent in other genres, such as RPGs, 3D platformers, and adventure games.
A sequel (also called a follow-up) is a game that carries forward the gameplay concepts, and often the story, of a previous game to which it is officially linked.
Originally created in China, mahjong is a draw-and-discard game using a vast assortment of special tiles. It is popular throughout Asia and has many regional rule variations.
Female characters who are designed with highly idealized figures and proportions, outfits that are revealing and/or form-fitting, and prone to ending up in completely over-the-top poses designed to show off their bodies.
The 1995 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles California on May 11-13.
Games that used 3D polygonal renders of CGI characters/objects/enviroment for it's sprites and graphics, Famously done in Rareware's Donkey Kong Country trilogy and Killer Instinct series. This technique would reach the height of it's popularity on the GBA.
A concept in games with multiple characters, a screen with pictures of all playable characters with the possibility of stat listings.
An unofficial translation of a video game, created by people not associated with the original development team.
Multiple endings is a term used to describe different outcomes or conclusions to a game based on the previous actions of the player.
A non-interactive sequence within a game most often used for plot advancement.
This concept is for games in which at least one of the main characters is male.
Video game combat in which combat actions are performed in real-time, rather than through a turn-based structure.
Bosses are enemies that fight you at the end of a level or at a significant point in the story.
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