Game mechanics are the invisible soul of every game: the full set of rules, systems, and interactions that define what the player can do and feel. Core loop, hitbox, balancing, permadeath… This glossary breaks down these fundamental concepts, simply and concretely.
QTE (Quick Time Event)
A sequence where the player must press a button at the right moment, usually during a cutscene. The game imposes a short, pressured rhythm.
Examples: God of War, Heavy Rain, Resident Evil 4.
Aggro (Aggression)
A term from MMOs: refers to drawing the hostile attention of an enemy. An "aggroed" enemy will charge the player.
Examples: World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy XIV.
Balancing
The process of adjusting numbers, abilities, and rules so that no option is too strong or too weak. A poorly balanced game can make certain strategies useless — or unbeatable.
Examples: every League of Legends update, Smash Bros.
Boss
A powerful enemy, usually placed at the end of a zone, that tests the skills the player has accumulated. Can be an intermediate boss (miniboss) or a final one.
Examples: Ganon in Zelda, the bosses of Dark Souls.
Game Loop / Core Loop
The repeated sequence of actions that forms the heart of the gameplay — what the player does constantly. In a shooter: aim → shoot → reload → move. In an RPG: explore → fight → level up. If the loop feels good, the game becomes addictive.
Examples: Fortnite, Stardew Valley.
Build
In an RPG or strategy game, refers to the combination of skills, equipment, and stats chosen by a player for their character. A build can be offensive, defensive, hybrid, etc.
Examples: Diablo IV, Path of Exile, Elden Ring.
Checkpoint
An automatic save point in a level. If the player dies, they restart from the last checkpoint rather than the beginning. Reduces frustration and controls pacing.
Examples: almost all modern games.
Collision (Collision Detection)
A technical mechanism that detects when two objects touch in the game (a character and a wall, a bullet and an enemy, for instance). Poor collision can create visual bugs or a sense of unfairness.
Examples: visible in all platformers and shooters.
Combo
A chain of multiple actions (hits, spells, movements) that, when executed in the right order, produce an amplified effect.
Examples: Devil May Cry, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter.
Cooldown
A mandatory wait time after using a skill or item before it can be used again. Prevents the player from spamming a single action.
Examples: League of Legends, Overwatch, World of Warcraft.
Crafting
A system that allows the player to create items by combining resources gathered in the game world.
Examples: Minecraft, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Valheim.
Dash
A quick movement, often with a brief window of invulnerability, allowing the player to dodge an attack. Has become a pillar of modern game design.
Examples: Hollow Knight, Celeste, Hades.
Adaptive Difficulty
A system that automatically adjusts the difficulty level based on the player's performance, without explicitly asking them. A struggling player will encounter fewer enemies or find more healing items.
Exemples : Resident Evil 4, Left 4 Dead.
Dodge
An action that allows the player to avoid an enemy attack by moving quickly. Often tied to an invincibility window (iframes).
Examples: Dark Souls, Elden Ring, Bayonetta.
Drop (Loot Drop)
An item or resource left behind by an enemy after death. The drop rate refers to the probability of a particular item appearing.
Examples: Diablo, Borderlands, Monster Hunter.
Game Economy
The full set of resource, currency, and exchange systems in a game. A well-designed economy gives the player meaningful decisions about resource management.
Examples: Civilization, Animal Crossing, Path of Exile.
Farming / Grind
A repetitive action involving replaying the same sequences to accumulate experience, currency, or items. Can be satisfying or frustrating depending on how it's designed.
Examples: Monster Hunter, Pokémon, Final Fantasy.
Feedback
A signal given to the player to indicate that their action had an effect: sound, animation, controller vibration, on-screen text. Good feedback makes every action feel satisfying.
Examples: the "crunch" of a headshot in CS:GO, the visual effects in Hades.
Invincibility Frames (iFrames)
A very brief window during which the character cannot take damage, usually during a dodge or a special animation. Invisible but fundamental in action games.
Examples: Dark Souls, Celeste.
Game Feel
The subjective, immediate sensation of playing a game — the fluidity of movement, the impact of hits, the inertia of the character. A game with good game feel is instinctively satisfying to handle. Hard to define, but immediately noticeable.
Examples: the jump in Super Mario Bros., the gunplay in Doom Eternal.
Resource Management
A mechanic that forces the player to manage limited supplies (ammo, health, mana, time). Creates tension and strategic choices.
Examples: Resident Evil, XCOM, Frostpunk.
Hitbox
The invisible zone around a character or object that determines whether an attack connects or not. A hitbox that is too large or poorly placed is often perceived as unfair.
Examples: crucial in all fighting games and shooters.
HUD (Heads-Up Display)
The interface permanently displayed on screen during gameplay: health bar, mini-map, ammo, points. Its design has a strong influence on immersion.
Examples: the life bar in Zelda, the minimalist HUD in God of War (2018).
Gacha
A random draw system for obtaining rare characters or items, very widespread in mobile games. The gacha mechanic is designed to encourage repeated spending.
Examples: Genshin Impact, Fire Emblem Heroes.
Level Design
The art of designing a game's levels, zones, and spaces: placement of enemies, obstacles, shortcuts, rewards. Good level design guides the player without them realizing it.
Examples: Super Mario levels, the design of Lordran in Dark Souls.
Game Mechanic
A fundamental rule or system that governs what the player can do. Gravity in a platformer, line-of-sight detection in a strategy game — these are mechanics.
Examples: the grappling hook in Spider-Man, building in Fortnite.
Meta
The set of strategies and combinations considered most effective by the community at any given time. The meta evolves with updates.
Examples: "meta" champions in League of Legends, dominant decks in Hearthstone.
Metroidvania
A genre characterized by an interconnected world with areas that remain inaccessible until specific abilities are obtained. A fusion of the Metroid and Castlevania genres.
Examples: Hollow Knight, Ori and the Blind Forest, Metroid Dread.
Permadeath
When the character dies, the run is permanently over. No save reloading. Creates extreme tension and gives weight to every decision.
Examples: Hades, Dead Cells, XCOM.
Onboarding / Tutorial
An introductory phase that teaches the player the game's mechanics, ideally in a progressive way that doesn't interrupt the enjoyment. The best onboarding is invisible.
Examples: the tutorial in Celeste, the first castle in Super Mario Bros.
Open World
A game structure where the player can freely explore a large world without an imposed order, with few or no locked areas.
Examples: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, GTA V, Elden Ring.
Parry
An action that blocks or counters an enemy attack within a very precise time window, often rewarded with a significant advantage.
Examples: Sekiro, God of War, Dark Souls.
Platformer
A game genre centered on jumping and navigating between platforms. One of the oldest and most foundational genres in gaming.
Examples: Super Mario, Crash Bandicoot, Celeste.
Progression
The sense of advancement in a game: the character grows stronger, the player unlocks new areas and abilities. Progression is one of the primary drivers of engagement.
Examples: the skill tree in God of War, leveling up in Pokémon.
Puzzles
Challenges based on thinking rather than reflexes. Can be integrated into the main action or form a genre of their own.
Examples: Portal, The Witness, Zelda dungeons.
Respawn
The act of reappearing in the game after death, either at a checkpoint or after a delay in a multiplayer game.
Examples: all competitive shooters, modern role-playing games.
Rewarding
A design principle that consists of rewarding the player for their actions: through items, experience, a cutscene, or simply a satisfying sound. A good reward system sustains motivation.
Examples: the heart jingle in Zelda, the chests in Borderlands.
Roguelike / Roguelite
A genre characterized by randomly generated levels and permadeath (strict roguelike) or partial progression retained between runs (roguelite).
Exemples Roguelike : Nethack, Caves of Qud.
Exemples Roguelite : Hades, Dead Cells, Slay the Spire.
Sandbox
A type of game that gives the player a high degree of freedom with no imposed objective. The emphasis is on creativity and personal exploration.
Examples: Minecraft, Cities: Skylines, Garry's Mod.
Skill Gap
The difference in level between a beginner and an expert player. A large skill gap means the game requires a lot of practice to master.
Examples: very high in Starcraft II, moderate in Mario Kart.
Spawn
The appearance of a character, enemy, or object in the game world. A "spawn point" is where a player appears at the start of a session or after dying.
Examples: universal in multiplayer games.
Speedrun
The practice of completing a game as fast as possible, often by exploiting shortcuts or bugs. Gives many games a second life.
Examples: Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Portal.
Stealth
A mechanic that allows the player to avoid enemies by hiding, minimizing noise, or staying out of their line of sight.
Examples: Metal Gear Solid, Dishonored, Thief.
RTS (Real-Time Strategy)
A genre where the player manages units and resources in real time, without taking turns.
Examples: StarCraft, Age of Empires, Command & Conquer.
Turn-Based
A system where each player or faction acts in turn, like chess. The opposite of real time.
Examples: XCOM, Civilization, Fire Emblem.
Tower Defense
A genre where the player places towers or defenses to stop waves of enemies from reaching an objective.
Examples: Plants vs. Zombies, Bloons Tower Defense, Kingdom Rush.
Twitch Gaming
A game requiring very fast reflexes and extreme precision. The term comes from the English word "twitch" (a sudden, involuntary movement).
Examples: osu!, Doom Eternal, Super Hexagon.
UI (User Interface)
The full set of visual elements the player interacts with: menus, buttons, inventories. Distinct from the HUD, which is displayed during active gameplay.
Examples: the inventory menu in The Witcher 3, the menus in Persona 5.
UX (User Experience)
The overall quality of the interaction between the player and the game. Good UX means the game is intuitive, clear, and pleasant to navigate.
Examples: the exemplary accessibility of The Last of Us Part II.
Learning Curve
The pace at which the game introduces new mechanics. A curve that's too steep discourages beginners; too flat, and it bores experienced players.
Examples: Dark Souls (steep curve), Animal Crossing (gentle curve).
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