24/7 giant bomb content livestream
905: Wettest Rocks
Giant Bombcast
228: Italian Vision
Best of Giant Bomb
Game Mess Mornings 08/25/25
GrubbSnax
The Community Spotlight 2025.08.23
The Bomb 12 has a new game in the top 3
Giant Bomb is under new ownership. Here's an FAQ.
The Community Spotlight 2025.08.16
The Community Spotlight 2025.08.09
Platform »
Variable and dynamic simulation of weather conditions can be used to add variety, atmosphere (a rainy day in an RPG) and/or challenge (rain on the racetrack in a driving game) to a game.
The Xbox 360 has limited compatibility with original Xbox games through software emulation. Originally there were 213 Xbox games compatible with the Xbox 360, now there are 478.
The foil of almost every early RPG lover, these rodents often live in sewers. While most rats are simple targets, games like Ratatouille make them the hero.
A partner is someone in a duo that shares the same status and/or billing. In video games, you often switch from one to the other because they have different strengths and weaknesses.
Temporarily makes your character or the world around you go faster, either by stepping on an object, activating a power or object, or by collecting a power up. There are many other ways in which a Speed boost can be used and it depends on the game.
A game mode that allows you to train for combos, moves, etc.
Sequels that have the player controlling a different character than the preceding game(s).
A lead character who never says a word, despite being spoken to.
A system that allows players to pay upfront and receive all of the DLC for a game, including DLC that has not yet been released. This lets players receive a discount compared to buying DLC individually.
Charging is the action of pressing & holding down a button or particular direction on the controller. Its purpose is to build up a powerful blast or burst of energy to take out an opponent or cause critical damage.
The concept of a helpless female character in desperate need of rescuing by the protagonist, in most cases from a villain, or from a form of impending doom.
Games that feature characters whose hair movement is governed by a physics engine.
A method of controlling a vehicle or character via a pair of identical sticks. The control resembles that of a tank.
A feature on Xbox Series consoles that allows backwards compatible games to run at a higher framerate than on the original consoles.
Not all bosses can handle the player by themselves. Many use waves of lesser enemies to fight for them while they rest, and some even let these minions do all the work.
A game that takes gameplay mechanics, characters, or story elements from an existing series in a separate and different direction, sometimes changing genres along the way.
A way of attempting to control a population via media.
Complete move list for character actions that are already in the game itself. Usually accessed via pause menu.
Special locations in game that allow the player to manually save their progress.
Used by protagonists when opening a door that is locked, or just for looking really cool.
FMVs are pre-rendered videos used in place of real-time graphics. Using FMV was an attempt to make videogames look "more like movies", sometimes with CGI animation and others with live-action actors speaking directly to players. The downside is that FMV requires a lot of disk space, and live-action FMV in particular can look terrible by comparison.
A flawless victory is a victory in which the winning player has incurred no loss of health, or in other uses, like Unreal Tournament III or Fury, no points scored against the winning team.
A visual obstruction is an extra layer added to the player's viewpoint. Most common in first person games to add to the notion that you are looking through a character's eyes. Obstructions include blood, water and ice crystals.
A term that can be used to refer to RPGs that focus more on the action, or brawler action games which focus on hack & slash gameplay.
Some television shows are ripe for interactive adaptations. Like Grey's Anatomy, or The Young Ones.
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.
A condition in which two male characters are socially close, but not sexually or romantically, and are often partners.
Usually refers to the end of the world.
A large omnivorous mammal that can be white, brown, or black. Despite their ferociousness, they are also associated with being soft and cuddly, as in teddy bears. Bears are also known to eat stairs. Scientists say that because "bears eat stairs" rhymes the bears are naturally inclined to do so.
Any person that is in an Army.
This edit will also create new pages on Giant Bomb for:
Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other Giant Bomb users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll send you an email once approved.
Use your keyboard!
Log in to comment
Log in to comment