153
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What's the difference between "Bug" and "Glitch"?
Highly non-technical answer:
I would say they are effectively interchangeable, though there tends to be a nuance in the way they are used:
The word bug is usually used when an intended game state is ...
- 1,473
130
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Why are people who spend a lot of money on video game micro-transactions called "whales"?
The term "Whale" is borrowed from the casino industry, where it is used to describe a rich gambler who bets extraordinarily large amounts of money. Just like in the game industry, casinos want to "...
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115
votes
What is Stream Sniping?
Stream sniping means watching a player's stream with the intention of queueing for a game at the same time as them in order to be matched with them, either on their side or against them.
In the case ...
- 45.6k
104
votes
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What's the difference between a "Roguelike" and a "Roguelite" game?
A roguelite is not-quite-a-roguelike. It's a fuzzy definition, but it's a starting place. (I've also heard the term roguelikelike.)
Back in 2008, some guys at the International Roguelike Development ...
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104
votes
What's the difference between "Bug" and "Glitch"?
I don't see one answer with sources so far, although perhaps that will change after I post this.
In General
Glitch and Bug are essentially synonymous, but some groups will draw different, subtle ...
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84
votes
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What does it mean for a game to be a skinner box?
The term 'Skinner Box' in game design discussions refers to one of the key findings of the experiments.
Skinner found that the behaviour of the animal could be changed based on how the experiment ...
- 656
79
votes
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What's the difference between "Free" versus "Free to Play" on Steam?
"Free" means the game is free. 100% free with no charge to play it.
"Free to play" means the base game is free and you can play for free but some content will be available that require micro-...
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69
votes
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What does RTC stand for?
RTC is indeed short for "Real Time Clock." What this indicates in terms of flash cartridges is a bit more complex.
Some games shipped with an internal clock chip that kept track of the time even ...
- 119k
68
votes
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What is "OpenGL" and why did a player get banned for it?
OpenGL, or Open Graphics Library is a programming interface that games use nowadays.
It is essentially a library of code that is used by developers to create software utilizing graphics, which ...
- 16.3k
64
votes
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What is "Hammertime" a reference to?
From the status effect wikia page, the effect of Knockdown is:
Cannot Move or Act
You have the reference right. It is a reference to the song "Can't Touch This" by M.C. Hammer, as the lyric ...
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61
votes
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What is the word for when players give all high level advantages to lvl 1 players?
There are several terms to cover the behaviors you are asking about.
Giving Powerful Items = Twinking
Some of the behavior you are describing is called twinking.
In role-playing video games, ...
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61
votes
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What is "radial blur"?
The existing answers are good, but I want to offer a more in-depth explanation of what radial blur is and where it's used.
Radial blur is a particular kind of blurring effect that originates at a ...
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60
votes
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What exactly is the Masamune sword?
The name Masamune doesn't reference an actual sword, but a legendary sword smith called Gorō Nyūdō Masamune. (Altough, his name is also attached to his swords, like Honjo Masamune, Fudo Masamune, ...
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60
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What is the FEAR strategy?
FEAR strategy is probably not a great choice for a normal playthrough of the game.
It means: Focus Sash, Endeavor, Quick Attack, Rattata. The pokemon doesn't have to be a Rattata, but Rattata makes a ...
- 62.3k
56
votes
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What is arbitrary code execution (ACE) and how does it affect speedrunning?
Arbitrary Code Execution (ACE) is a glitch that allows the player to cause the instruction pointer to jump to a section of memory that can be written to by the player (such as the filename, the angle ...
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55
votes
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What exactly is a softlock?
A softlock is an instance where game remains in a playable state, but progressing further or past a certain point becomes impossible. It's an event that can happen to speedrunners where triggers and ...
- 72.5k
53
votes
What is the FEAR strategy?
In a nutshell, the F.E.A.R strategy uses a low-level Pokemon to take advantage of the move Endeavor, which lowers an opposing Pokemon's health to your current health. Couple this with a way to survive ...
- 37.2k
53
votes
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What does the bracketed number mean in longplay titles?
I'm one of the admins for World of Longplays / www.longplays.org.
We are kind of a Video Game Museum documenting games
The number in the bracket is an ever increasing number that gets assigned to ...
53
votes
What's the terminology for pressing down (inward) on a thumbstick?
Another common term I've heard is clicking (in) the stick, which is less ambiguous than "pressing" or "pushing" with regards to moving the stick in a direction.
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52
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What is CP? Why is it important?
CP is an abbreviation for Combat Power. It is an aggregate statistic that represents how powerful any specific Pokemon is, based on their IVs (Stamina, Attack, and Defense) and their current Level.
It ...
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51
votes
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What does the term 'Spot Healing' mean in World of Warcraft?
"Spot healing" just means healing whoever needs healing at the time. Typically healers have a specific assignment such as tank healing or raid healing, in order to prevent overlap and to make sure ...
- 738
50
votes
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What is "bobbing" or "head bob"?
Head bobbing in first person games is swaying the camera up and down as the character walks, to simulate the way a person's body moves up and down while taking steps. When especially prominent, it can ...
- 45.6k
49
votes
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Difference and meaning between "remastered" and "remake"
Although it seems like the terms are often used interchangeably within the industry and marketing, there IS a technical difference between the terms:
A remake typically shares very little of the ...
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46
votes
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What is a "G.O.A.T" game?
G.O.A.T. means Greatest Of All Time.
It's a general superlative, and not specific to gaming, but IME you'll see it most commonly in marketing for games or music. Dictionary.com suggests it's also ...
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45
votes
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What does AoS mean?
It stands for "Aeon of Strife", which was a really popular map from Starcraft. It had a mission where you rescue someone using only heroes, which was the idea that gave birth to DotA (Defence of the ...
- 13.2k
45
votes
Why are people who spend a lot of money on video game micro-transactions called "whales"?
The term originated in casinos, where's high rollers (rich people who play for large stakes) are well-looked after by the casino, in order to ensure that they gamble at their casino instead of some ...
- 5,322
45
votes
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What does DX mean in remastered games?
When "DX" is used in this context, it is short for "Deluxe". This was confirmed on Zelda.com back when Link's Awakening DX first came out.
What does "DX" stand for?
DX ...
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44
votes
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What's the terminology for pressing down (inward) on a thumbstick?
Sony and Microsoft named the thumbstick click as a button itself:
On PS they are commonly known as L3 and R3 (since L1 L2 and R1 R2 are on the back)
On Xbox they are commonly known as LS and RS (...
- 35.6k
42
votes
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What defines a JRPG, and how is it different from an RPG?
Extra Credits, a well-known YouTube channel about game design, made a video series about this topic:
Western RPGs vs Japanese RPGs - I: What Makes Them Different?
Western & Japanese RPGs - II: ...
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Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible