Video Game Abbreviations
58 abbreviations · part of Arts & Entertainment Abbreviations
Abbreviations for video game genres, business models, industry events, age ratings, classic consoles and core game mechanics. They appear on store pages, rating labels, patch notes, reviews and in conversations among players and developers. Chat slang typed during matches, such as GG or AFK, is covered in the texting and internet slang section.
| Abbreviation | Stands for | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 4X | Explore, expand, exploit, exterminate | Strategy subgenre in which players build an empire from small beginnings, exploring the map, expanding territory, exploiting resources and exterminating rivals. |
| AAA | Triple-A | Highest level of minor league baseball, one step below the majors, made up of the International League and the Pacific Coast League. |
| AO | Adults Only | ESRB rating for games suitable only for adults 18 and over, with prolonged intense violence, graphic sexual content or real-money gambling. |
| AOE | Area of effect | Ability, spell or attack that hits every target within an area rather than a single target, such as an explosion, fire field or healing circle. |
| ARG | Alternate reality game | Interactive narrative played in the real world through websites, phone numbers, emails and physical clues, with players collaborating online to solve puzzles. |
| ARPG | Action role-playing game | RPG with real-time combat, where the player's own reflexes matter alongside character stats. |
| BR | Battle royale | Multiplayer genre in which many players drop onto a shrinking map and fight until one player or team remains. |
| CERO | Computer Entertainment Rating Organization | Japanese video game rating body, using letter grades A (all ages), B (12+), C (15+), D (17+) and Z (18+, legally restricted). |
| CRPG | Computer role-playing game | Role-playing game originally made for personal computers; today the term usually means isometric, party-based PC RPGs with deep dialogue and tactical combat, such as… |
| DLC | Downloadable content | Additional content for a game delivered online after release, such as new levels, story expansions, characters, outfits or weapons. |
| DPS | Damage per second | Measure of how much damage a character, weapon or ability deals over time, and by extension the role of a damage-focused character in a team, as in "we need one more… |
| E | Everyone | ESRB rating meaning the content is generally suitable for all ages, with at most minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and infrequent mild language. |
| E10+ | Everyone 10+ | ESRB rating for games suitable for ages 10 and up, with more cartoon, fantasy or mild violence, mild language or minimal suggestive themes than an E game. |
| E3 | Electronic Entertainment Expo | Video game industry trade show held in Los Angeles from 1995 to 2019, plus an online edition in 2021, where publishers and console makers made major announcements. |
| EA | Early access | Release stage in which players can buy and play an unfinished game while it is still in development, giving feedback and funding progress. |
| ESRB | Entertainment Software Rating Board | Self-regulatory organization that assigns age ratings and content descriptors to video games and apps in the United States and Canada. |
| F2P | Free-to-play | Business model in which a game can be downloaded and played without paying, with revenue coming from optional purchases such as cosmetics, passes or currency. |
| FOV | Field of view | Extent of the observable world visible at one time, measured in degrees. |
| FPS | First-person shooter | Shooting game viewed through the eyes of the player character, with the weapon shown in the foreground. |
| GaaS | Games as a service | Model in which a game is updated and monetized continuously for years after release with new seasons, events and content, rather than sold as a finished product. |
| GBA | Game Boy Advance | Nintendo's 32-bit handheld console, released in 2001, the successor to the Game Boy Color. |
| GDC | Game Developers Conference | Annual professional conference for video game developers, held each March in San Francisco, with talks, postmortems, the Game Developers Choice Awards and the… |
| GOTY | Game of the Year | Award given to the best game released in a year by critics, publications and award shows, and an informal label of praise, as in "this is my GOTY." Publishers also sell… |
| HP | Hit points | Number representing a character's or enemy's remaining health; reaching zero means defeat. |
| HUD | Heads-up display | On-screen information overlaid on gameplay, such as health, ammunition, maps, scores and objectives. |
| JRPG | Japanese role-playing game | RPG made in Japan or in the Japanese style, typically with a fixed party of characters, a linear story, anime-influenced art and often turn-based combat. |
| K/D | Kill/death ratio | Statistic dividing a player's kills by their deaths, used to measure performance in shooters such as Call of Duty, Halo and Fortnite. |
| M | Mature | ESRB rating for games suitable for ages 17 and up, which may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content or strong language. |
| MMO | Massively multiplayer online game | Online game supporting hundreds or thousands of players in the same persistent world at once. |
| MMORPG | Massively multiplayer online role-playing game | Role-playing game played online in a persistent shared world with large numbers of players who quest, trade, form guilds and raid together. |
| MOBA | Multiplayer online battle arena | Team strategy game in which two teams, usually of five players, each control one hero and try to destroy the enemy's base along defended lanes. |
| MP | Mana points | Resource that powers spells and special abilities in role-playing games, shown as a blue bar in many titles. |
| MTX | Microtransactions | Small in-game purchases made with real money, such as skins, currency, loot boxes or time-savers. |
| N64 | Nintendo 64 | Nintendo's 64-bit home console, released in 1996, known for its four controller ports and early 3D classics including Super Mario 64, GoldenEye 007 and The Legend of… |
| NES | Nintendo Entertainment System | Nintendo's 8-bit home console, released in North America in 1985, which revived the US video game market after the 1983 crash. |
| NG+ | New Game Plus | Mode unlocked after finishing a game that lets the player start again while keeping items, levels or abilities, often with harder enemies or new content. |
| P2W | Pay-to-win | Game in which spending real money gives a significant competitive advantage, such as stronger weapons or faster progress, rather than only cosmetic items. |
| PAX | Penny Arcade Expo | Series of gaming conventions for players rather than industry insiders, featuring game demos, panels, tabletop rooms and concerts. |
| PEGI | Pan European Game Information | Age-rating system for video games used in most European countries, with ratings of 3, 7, 12, 16 and 18 and content descriptors for violence, language, fear, gambling… |
| PS5 | PlayStation 5 | Sony's fifth home video game console, released in November 2020, featuring a fast solid-state drive and the DualSense controller with haptic feedback and adaptive… |
| PvE | Player versus environment | Game content in which players fight computer-controlled enemies, such as quests, dungeons, raids and campaign missions, rather than other players. |
| PvP | Player versus player | Game content or combat in which human players fight each other, as opposed to fighting computer-controlled enemies. |
| QTE | Quick time event | Game sequence in which the player must press a displayed button or combination within a short time to succeed, often during cutscenes or action set pieces. |
| RNG | Random number generator | Randomness in a game, such as loot drops, critical hits or spawn locations, determined by a random number generator. |
| RP | Rating Pending | ESRB placeholder shown in advertising and preorder listings for games that have been submitted for a rating but not yet rated. |
| RPG | Role-playing game | Game genre in which players control characters who grow stronger through experience, equipment and choices, usually within a story-driven world. |
| RTS | Real-time strategy | Strategy game genre in which players gather resources, build bases and command armies simultaneously, without taking turns. |
| SNES | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Nintendo's 16-bit home console, released in North America in 1991, home to Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Metroid and Donkey Kong… |
| T | Teen | ESRB rating for games suitable for ages 13 and up, which may contain violence, suggestive themes, crude humor, minimal blood, simulated gambling or infrequent strong… |
| TAS | Tool-assisted speedrun | Speedrun created with emulator tools such as frame-by-frame input and save states, producing theoretically perfect play, often impossible for humans. |
| TBS | Turn-based strategy | Strategy game in which players take turns to move units and make decisions, allowing time to plan. |
| TCG | Trading card game | Card game in which players collect cards, build decks and play against each other, with packs sold in random assortments. |
| TGA | The Game Awards | Annual video game awards ceremony held each December, produced and hosted by Geoff Keighley, combining awards with major game announcements and trailers. |
| TPS | Third-person shooter | Shooting game in which the camera sits behind or over the shoulder of the player character, showing the character on screen. |
| TTK | Time to kill | Average time needed to defeat an opponent with a given weapon or in a given game, a key measure of shooter balance. |
| TTRPG | Tabletop role-playing game | Role-playing game played with dice, character sheets and conversation, usually around a table or online, such as Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder and Call of Cthulhu. |
| VN | Visual novel | Interactive story game consisting mainly of text, character portraits and backgrounds, with player choices leading to different routes and endings. |
| XP | Experience points | Points earned by defeating enemies, completing quests or playing matches, which accumulate to raise a character's level or rank. |