PRINTGaming issue glossary
July 24, 2008 | 12:00 a.m. CST
AI: Artificial intelligence.
Alt: Alternate characters used to replace a player’s main identity, often in MMOs.
Related Articles- A new grip on rehab
- Rated ‘E’ for exercise
- It’s my turn to play
- Kings and queens of strategy
- Girls who game
- Doc hunt
- Tabled obsessions
- For every age
- On the job with a pinball wizard
- Off-screen games
- Where virtual meets reality
- What’s next?
- Bent on experimentation
- Guess who games?
- Table-Top Gamer: Patrick Nolan, 38
- Negin Rising
Arcade: A place where people gather to play games.
Arcade game: A game contained within a large box, usually coin-operated and found in an arcade. Vintage arcade games sell for large sums of money on eBay.
Arcade mode: A mode included in some games that simplifies the game play, meant for casual players.
Avatar: A player’s in-game character, if it’s one a gamer can create themselves. A Mii is an avatar. Mario is not.
Board game: A game played on a board. Think Monopoly.
Casual game: Something designed for quick and easy play, often written in Flash and playable in a computer browser. Solitare is the classic casual game.
Computer game: A game played on a computer. Specifically not on a console.
Console game: A game played on a dedicated gaming machine (a console), such as a Wii or PlayStation. Many games can be played both on consoles and computers.
Controller: Whatever you use to control a game - a term that applies mostly to consoles. The Wii remote is a controller.
Designer: Someone who designs a game, though not necessarily a programmer. Games are generally built by teams of designers.
Developer: The person, team or company that creates video games. Developers often employ multiple teams of designers.
DS: Short for “dual screen,” it’s the official name of the Nintendo DS, a portable gaming system,.
Electronic Arts: A massive and controversial gaming company. Owns official licensing rights to sports games from the NCAA, NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL.
Entertainment Software Rating Board: Creates ratings of games based on their content, to provide a guide for retailers and parents. Ratings do not carry the force of law.
Fanboy/fangirl: A particularly obsessed fan. Can be pejorative, but some fans take pride in the term.
Gamertag: “Screen name” for Microsoft’s Xbox Live service.
MMO: Abbreviated acronym for MMORPG, massively multiplayer online role-playing game, such as World of Warcraft. These games often charge a subscription fee.
Portable game system: Any type of system, such as the PSP, DS, Game Boy, etc., that can be carried with a player.
Role-playing game: Also known as an RPG. A game in which people take on an alternate identity — they play a role as someone else. Dungeons & Dragons is a classic role playing game.
Tabletop game: A game played on a table – think Dungeons & Dragons or the Warhammer series. Essentially any game that a group of people play in person.
Wii remote: The main Wii controller.
Here are two resources that deal with gaming terms in more detail:
Game genres: http://www.igja.org/guide/index.php/First-person_shooter
Game system: http://www.igja.org/guide/index.php/Game_system
Twitter
Facebook
