Game Genre Guide: Glossary and Terms

This Game Genre Guide provides terms and descriptions for different game genres, subgenres, and related concepts for clarity and reference. These definitions do not function as navigational tags on the site.

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A B C D F G H I J K L M O P R S T V W

A

  • Action: Games focused on combat and physical challenges that test reflexes.
    Examples: Call of Duty, Super Mario Bros.
  • Action-Adventure: A mix of combat, exploration, and puzzle solving.
    Examples: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Tomb Raider.
  • Adventure (ADV): Narrative-driven games centered on exploration and puzzles rather than combat. Examples: Famicom Detective Club, Death Mark, Monkey Island.
  • Arcade Flight Shooter: Aerial combat games focused on speed and cinematic dogfights instead of realistic flight physics. Players perform extreme maneuvers and carry massive payloads to destroy large enemy forces. Examples: Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, Project Wingman.
  • Arcade Racing: Fast-paced driving games that ignore realistic vehicle physics to focus on high-speed action. Gameplay relies on exaggerated mechanics like extreme drifting, nitro boosts, or spectacular crashes. Examples: Burnout 3: Takedown, Ridge Racer, Need for Speed.
  • ARPG (Action Role-Playing Game): RPGs that use real-time combat systems instead of menus. Examples: Xenoblade Chronicles 3, Dark Souls, Final Fantasy XVI.

B

  • Battle Royale (BR): Multiplayer games where many players compete to be the last standing, scavenging weapons and resources. Examples: Fortnite, PUBG, Apex Legends.
  • Beat ‘Em Up: Side-scrolling games focused on hand-to-hand brawling against groups of enemies. Examples: Streets of Rage, Battletoads, God Hand.
  • Boomer Shooter: Fast-paced, retro-style shooters with large arsenals and complex level layouts. Examples: Dusk, Blood: Fresh Supply, Rise of the Triad.

C

  • Card Games: Strategy games using digital cards to represent characters, spells, or actions. Examples: Hearthstone, Marvel Snap, Slay the Spire.
  • Character Action: High-speed combat games that reward stylish combos and mechanical mastery. Examples: Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance.
  • CRPG (Computer Role-Playing Game): Deeply complex RPGs inspired by tabletop systems, often featuring isometric views and heavy choice.
    Examples: Baldur’s Gate 3, Fallout, Divinity: Original Sin.

D

  • Doujin: Self-published works created by individuals or small circles. These games focus on passion projects and are the Japanese equivalent of indie titles.
    Examples: Touhou Project, Tsukihime, Higurashi When They Cry
  • DRPG (Dungeon Role-Playing Game): First-person RPGs focused on grid-based exploration and party management. Examples: Etrian Odyssey, Wizardry, Undernauts: Labyrinth of Yomi.

F

  • Farming Simulation: Daily-life games focused on managing crops, livestock, and social relationships. Examples: Stardew Valley, Harvest Moon.
  • Fighting: Competitive games where two characters fight in a small arena until one is defeated. Examples: Tekken, The King of Fighters, Virtua Fighter.
  • Flight Sim: Games that use realistic physics to replicate the experience of piloting aircraft. Examples: Microsoft Flight Simulator, X-Plane.
  • Free-to-Play: Games that are free to download and supported by optional purchases or ads. Examples: Warframe, Phantasy Star Online 2.

G

  • Gacha: Games featuring a luck-based system to unlock characters or items.
    Examples: Genshin Impact, Fate/Grand Order, Zenless Zone Zero.

H

  • Hack & Slash: Melee combat games focused on defeating waves of enemies with weapons. Examples: God of War, Dynasty Warriors.
  • Hero Shooter: Team-based shooters where players choose characters with unique special abilities. Example: Overwatch, Valorant.
  • Horror: An umbrella category for games designed to create fear or tension.
    Examples: Resident Evil, Silent Hill, Outlast.

I

  • Immersive Sim: Games that provide highly interactive environments and multiple ways to solve a single problem. Examples: Deus Ex, System Shock.
  • Indie: Games developed by small, independent teams or individuals.
    Examples: Assault Spy, Hollow Knight, Stardew Valley.
  • Interactive Movie: Cinematic games where the player makes choices to change the outcome of the story. Examples: Detroit: Become Human, The Walking Dead.

J

  • JRPG (Japanese Role-Playing Game): RPGs from Japan that often feature party-based stories and stylized art. Examples: Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Persona.

K

  • Kart Racing: Lighthearted driving games featuring mascot characters, exaggerated tracks, and offensive items used to attack opponents.
    Examples: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Crash Team Racing, Diddy Kong Racing.
  • Kusoge: A Japanese term for games that are technically poor, broken, or unintentionally strange. Despite their flaws, these titles often gain cult status among enthusiasts for being so bad they are good. Examples: Deadly Premonition, Hoshi wo Miru Hito.

L

  • Light Gun Game: Rail-based shooters originally designed for gun-shaped controllers.
    Examples: Duck Hunt, Time Crisis, House of the Dead, Virtua Cop.

M

  • Masocore: Games with extreme difficulty that require mastering complex mechanics through constant trial and error. Examples: Nioh, Ninja Gaiden, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
  • Metroidvania: Action-platformers with large maps where progress is tied to finding new abilities. Examples: Hollow Knight, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Super Metroid.
  • MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online): Online games with huge persistent worlds shared by thousands of players. Examples: Final Fantasy XIV,World of Warcraft, Guild Wars.
  • MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena): Team games where players control a single unit to destroy the enemy base. Examples: League of Legends, Dota 2, Heroes of the Storm.
  • Movement Shooter: Shooters that prioritize speed, dashing, and vertical agility. Examples: Titanfall 2, Ghostrunner.
  • Mystery: Narrative games focused on gathering clues and solving crimes. Example: Master Detective Archives: Rain Code.

O

  • Open World: Games with massive environments that players can explore freely.
    Examples: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Red Dead Redemption 2, Elden Ring.
  • Otome: Romance-focused stories aimed at a female audience with multiple paths to follow. Examples: Angelique, Hakuoki, and Jack Jeanne.

P

  • Party: Social games made for groups, often consisting of various mini-games.
    Examples: Mario Party, Overcooked!, Smash Bros.
  • Platformer: Games where the primary challenge is jumping between surfaces and avoiding obstacles. Examples: Super Mario Bros. and modern titles like Celeste.
  • Point and Click: Adventure games navigated by clicking on the environment to find items and solve puzzles. Examples: Dracula: The Last Sanctuary, Grim Fandango.
  • Port: A version of a game moved from its original platform to a new one.
    Examples: Persona 4 Golden (PC Port).
  • Psychological Horror: Horror games that focus on mental states and unsettling themes over physical threats. Examples: Silent Hill f, The Evil Within, Soma.
  • Puzzle: Games challenging logical thinking, pattern recognition, or problem-solving. Examples: Tetris, Candy Crush Saga, and Portal.

R

  • Racing: Competitive vehicle driving games focused on speed and crossing a finish line.
    Examples: Forza Horizon, F1 24, Dirt 5.
  • Racing Sim: Realistic driving games that strictly follow real-world physics and handling.
    Examples: Gran Turismo, iRacing, Assetto Corsa.
  • Rail Shooter: Shooters where the game moves the player forward on a fixed path.
    Examples: Star Fox 64, Panzer Dragoon.
  • Reboot: A total restart of a series that ignores all previous story events.
    Examples: Tomb Raider (2013), Doom (2016).
  • Reimagining: A version of a game that updates both the graphics and the core gameplay mechanics. Examples: Resident Evil 2 (2019), Final Fantasy VII Remake.
  • Remake: A game built from the ground up with new assets while keeping the original story. Example: Resident Evil (2002)
  • Remaster: An updated version of an older game with higher resolution and sound quality. Examples: Metroid Prime Remastered, Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age.
  • Rhythm: Games where players must time their actions to a musical beat.
    Examples: Beat Saber, Guitar Hero, Osu!.
  • Roguelike: Games with procedurally generated levels and permanent death for the player character. Examples: Shiren the Wanderer, Slay the Spire.
  • Roguelite: Games with roguelike elements that still allow for permanent upgrades between runs. Examples: Hades, Dead Cells.
  • RPG (Role-Playing Game): A broad category focusing on character stats, leveling, and narrative choice. Examples: Mass Effect, Final Fantasy.
  • RTS (Real-Time Strategy): Strategy games where players manage resources and units in real-time. Examples: StarCraft II, Age of Empires.
  • RTT (Real-Time Tactics): Strategy games that focus on battlefield combat without resource gathering. Examples: Aliens: Dark Descent, Wargame.
  • Run and Gun: Action games on foot that combine platforming with constant shooting.
    Examples: Contra, Metal Slug.

S

  • Sandbox: Open-ended games that prioritize player creativity and building over specific goals. Examples: Minecraft, Garry’s Mod.
  • Shooter: A broad category for games focused on aiming and combat with ranged weapons. Examples: Call of Duty, Overwatch.
  • Shmup (Shoot ‘Em Up): Flying or vehicle-based shooters where you dodge projectiles in a scrolling screen. Examples: Ikaruga, Gradius.
  • Simulation: Games designed to replicate real-world systems or activities.
    Examples: The Sims, Cities: Skylines.
  • Stealth: Games that reward players for avoiding detection and using quiet takedowns.
    Examples: Metal Gear Solid, Splinter Cell, Thief.
  • Strategy: A broad category for games that require planning and resource management.
    Examples: Civilization VI, XCOM 2.
  • Survival: Games focused on staying alive by gathering food, water, and building shelter.
    Examples: The Forest, Ark: Survival Evolved.
  • Survival Horror: Horror games that limit your resources to make you feel vulnerable. Examples: Resident Evil, Fatal Frame, Dino Crisis.

T

  • Tactical RPG (TRPG): RPGs with turn-based combat played on a grid-like map.
    Examples: Final Fantasy Tactics, Fire Emblem.
  • Tactical Shooter: Realistic shooters that require slow movement, teamwork, and careful planning. Examples: Rainbow Six Siege, SWAT 4.
  • Third-Person Shooter (TPS): Shooters where the camera stays behind the character’s shoulder. Examples: Gears of War, Vanquish.
  • Turn-Based RPG: RPGs where characters take turns to perform actions.
    Examples: Dragon Quest XI, Final Fantasy X.

V

W

  • Walking Sim: Exploration-heavy games with a focus on story and no combat.
    Examples: Gone Home, Firewatch, and What Remains of Edith Finch.