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This page is a list of common video game terms.
Action Screen[]
The Action Screen (アクション画面 Akushon Gamen), also known as Game Screen (ゲーム画面), is the screen where the player controls a character to navigate through stages and fight against enemies.
Artificial intelligence[]
For more details, see the artificial intelligence in video games article in Wikipedia. |
In video games, artificial intelligence (AI) is used to generate responsive, adaptive or intelligent behaviors primarily in non-player characters (NPCs) similar to human-like intelligence. Artificial intelligence in video games is a distinct subfield and differs from academic artificial intelligence, serving to improve the player's experience rather than machine learning or decision making.
AI is one of the factors of the game's difficulty, as it is responsible for the distinct movement patterns of enemies and bosses. For example, it determines when and why a Met will stay idle, hide under its helmet, reveal itself, attack, and move. Depending on how the AI works, the character may become extremely challenging, like most Devil type bosses, or offer little to no challenge, like Toad Man in Mega Man 4. The AI may respond to specific actions in a set way, a common example being bosses flinching when hit by the Special Weapon or element that is their weakness in several games, but some AIs have exploits that significantly reduce their challenge, examples including Elec Man in Mega Man, Metal Man in Mega Man II, and ProtoMan in Mega Man Battle Network 4.
Playable characters are also controlled by the AI instead of the player during cutscenes and when affected by the status effects Berserk and Confuse.
Boss[]
- See also: Category:Bosses and Category:Mid-bosses
A boss is an enemy from the game that is stronger than the enemies faced before him. Bosses are faced by the player in the end of stages or certain parts of the story, and a final boss must be defeated in the end of the game. Some games contain optional bosses that the player don't need to defeat to proceed in the game, like PharaohMan.EXE in the first two games from the Mega Man Battle Network series. Some bosses from the series were created in the Boss character contest.
Some games also contain a mid-boss (also known as sub-boss and miniboss), a boss that is usually weaker than the main boss of the area, or a normal boss that add an extra challenge, like Proto Man in Mega Man 3 and Vile in Mega Man X8.
Checkpoint[]
Checkpoint is the local point where the player begins the stage when a life is lost, so the player doesn't have to restart the stage from the beginning. In the Mega Man games, the hallway before a boss room is a common checkpoint area. In Mega Man Powered Up, checkpoints are represented by a Retry Flag (リトライフラグ Ritorai Furagu), an orb that releases a flag when touched. In the cancelled game Mega Man Universe, checkpoints were represented by a blue robot.[1] In Mega Man 11, a flag icon appears in the bottom left of the screen when the player reaches a checkpoint.
Command[]
A command (コマンド) is a directive to a program to perform a specific task, such as the input from the player via a controller to perform a task, like making a selection in a menu or controlling a character.
Some games have secret commands with varying effects, the Konami Code being the most famous example. Secret Mega Man commands include:
- In Mega Man 2, holding the jump button before the boss introduction will replace the stars by Pipis. This also works in the Challenge mode from Mega Man Legacy Collection.
- In Mega Man 7, holding down the jump button while starting Shade Man's stage will replace the music by the theme from Ghosts 'n Goblins.
- In Mega Man Legacy Collection 2, using the command ↑, ↓, ←, →, ←, →, ↓, ↑, ↑, and ↓ on the title screens from Mega Man 9 and Mega Man 10 will unlock their former DLCs, which are unlocked normally by completing the games.
- In Mega Man X4, X5, and X6, a command can be used to start with the Ultimate Armor or Black Zero.
- Some games have special passwords that unlock extras when used with a command, such as a fighting minigame in Mega Man 7, loading the Hadoken in Mega Man X, and loading the Shoryuken in Mega Man X2.
Currency[]
A fictional currency is used for several purposes, such as buying, trading, and selling items. Zenny is the currency from the Mega Man games, but P Chips, Screws/Bolts, Energy Crystals, Refractors, Bug Frags and Noise Frags also serve a similar role.
Cursor[]
Cursor is an indicator used to highlight an option in a menu.
Enemy[]
- See also: Category:Enemies
An enemy is a character from a game who is designed to cause damage or hinder the player character in some other way, such as restricting their movement or causing the area to go dark. Most of them can be killed by one of the player's weapons, but others are indestructible and must simply be avoided.
Game Over[]
Game Over is a common video game event where the player's character is defeated, resulting in the end of the current stage and, in some cases, of the game. This usually occurs when the Life Energy gauge is depleted and there are no Extra Lives left, but on rare occassions it may be caused by other reasons. In most games a screen with the message "game over" is displayed when it occurs.
When the player's character is defeated, some games allows to Continue the game from a certain point, usually from the beginning of the current stage. The amount of continues vary between game, some having unlimited continues and others having none.
Heads-Up Display[]
Heads-Up Display, HUD for short, is the interface method by which some of the game's informations can be seen by the player during the game, the most common being the character's health.
Besides the gaming term, a HUD may also refer to the actual data presentation in the perspective from the various robot characters in the franchise. One example of this is with the ending for Vile Mode in Mega Man Maverick Hunter X, which showcased Vile's perspective after he was hit by X's charge shot, which showed a red-toned background and glitched graphics due to Vile being heavily damaged.
Item[]
An item is a game object designed to produce an effect when picked up or activated by the player. Most are beneficial, like recovering health and energy, although "power-downs" exist in some games, such as Poison Mushrooms from the Mario series and Eggman items from the Sonic the Hedgehog series.
Non-Player Character[]
A Non-Player Character, NPC for short, is a character from the game that can't be controlled by the player.
Save and load[]
Save (セーブ) and load (ロード) are features that allow the player to stop the game and continue later by loading the saved game data, or to continue from the last save after a Game Over.
Password[]
Passwords (パスワード) were used to record the game's progress in most Mega Man games released for the NES, SNES, Game Boy, and Game Gear. To continue from a specific point, players must insert the right password in the Password Screen. The passwords are made of dots, icons, or numbers, depending of the game.
Stage Select Screen[]
The Stage Select Screen (ステージセレクト画面) is a recurring screen in the Mega Man and Mega Man X series that allows players to select the stages available in any order.
Sub Screen[]
Sub Screen (サブ画面 Sabu Gamen), also known by other names such as Weapon Select Screen, Status Screen, and Sub Menu, is the screen that appears when the player presses a button (usually the "Pause" button, being nicknamed the "Pause Screen" or "Pause Menu" due to this) in the Action Screen. In the Mega Man franchise, this screen displays varying info about the player's character, such as Life Energy, Extra Lives, Special Weapons, items, and options.
Title Screen[]
The Title Screen, also known as the Menu Screen, is one of the first interactive screens the player sees when starting a game. It displays the game's title and the Main Menu, with the options to start a new game or access a screen to continue the game, like the Password Screen and the Save Data Screen. Additional screens seen after the Title Screen include the Player Select Screen and the Mode Select Screen.
Some Title Screens also contain additional options in the Main Menu, like an Options menu to change game configurations, a gallery, database, challenges, and minigames.
See also[]
- Boss Rush
- Construction
- Challenge
- Ending
- Escape
- Glitches
- Minigame
- Mission
- Opening
- Result screen
- Status effects
- Warning