Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it. Video game gameplay is distinct from graphics and audio elements. In card games, the equivalent term is play.
In tabletop games and video games, game mechanics are the rules or ludemes that govern and guide the player's actions, as well as the game's response to them. A rule is an instruction on how to play, a ludeme is an element of play like the L-shaped move of the knight in chess. A game's mechanics thus effectively specify how the game will work for the people who play it.
In video games, a level is any space available to the player during the course of completion of an objective. Video game levels generally have progressively-increasing difficulty to appeal to players with different skill levels. Each level may present new concepts and challenges to keep a player's interest high.
FarmVille is a series of agriculture-simulation social network game developed and published by Zynga in 2009. It is similar to Happy Farm and Farm Town. Its gameplay involves various aspects of farmland management, such as plowing land, planting, growing, and harvesting crops, harvesting trees and raising livestock. The sequels FarmVille 2 and FarmVille 3 were released in September 2012 and November 2021.
R-Type Tactics II: Operation Bitter Chocolate is a turn-based strategy tactical role-playing game released in 2009 in Japan for the PlayStation Portable game console. It is the sequel to 2007's R-Type Tactics. The main part of the game consists of three campaigns, in which the player controls two human factions, then the Bydo Empire.
Playdom was an online social network game developer popular on Facebook, Google+ and Myspace. The company was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area by University of California, Berkeley graduates Ling Xiao and Chris Wang and Swarthmore College graduate Dan Yue. In 2009, the market for games played on social networking sites was valued at $300 million, consisting mostly of online sales of virtual goods.
Game Room was a social gaming service for the Xbox 360 video game system, Microsoft Windows PCs, and Windows Phone 7. Launched on March 24, 2010, Game Room let players download classic video games and compete against each other for high scores. Players on both Xbox 360 and Windows PCs could access Game Room through their respective versions of Microsoft's Live online services. The servers shut down on October 31, 2017.
Every Day the Same Dream is a short, 2D art game that puts the player in the role of a man whose life is about to change. Developed for the Experimental Gameplay Project at Carnegie Mellon University in 2009, the game has been described as "a beautiful game with a very bleak outlook." Italian creator Paolo Pedercini claims it is "a short existential game about alienation and refusal of labor." It has been compared to Passage by Jason Rohrer and Don't Look Back by Terry Cavanagh in that it is "an interesting, potentially fascinating experience." The game is offered as freeware under the Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-SA 2.5.
A social network game is a type of online game that is played through social networks or social media. They typically feature multiplayer gameplay mechanics. Social network games were originally implemented as browser games. As mobile gaming took off, the games moved to mobile as well. While they share many aspects of traditional video games, social network games often employ additional ones that make them distinct. Traditionally they are oriented to be social games and casual games.
CityVille is a defunct casual social city-building game developed by Zynga, and released in December 2010.
Broadly gainful employment refers to an employment situation where the employee receives steady work, payment from the employer and that allows for self-sufficiency.
MapleStory Adventures was a free-to-play, 2D, side-scrolling social network game developed by the South Korean company Nexon for Facebook and launched in July 2011. MapleStory Adventures was a simplified version of MapleStory’s basic gameplay and included creating an avatar, fighting monsters and completing quests. Although the gameplay was altered for the social networking conventions and includes freemium content, the main storyline of the game remains the same. MapleStory Adventures was free to play, but players had the option of purchasing premium content. On July 31, 2013, the game was shut down and removed from Facebook.
Dragon Age Legends was a 2011 freemium Flash game developed by EA2D and published by Electronic Arts (EA) for Facebook and Google+. Set in the Dragon Age universe, Legends was developed as the successor to the 2009 Flash-based browser game Dragon Age Journeys and served as a tie-in to the 2011 main series game Dragon Age II. Released on March 16, 2011, for Facebook and August 11, 2011, for Google+, Dragon Age Legends generated significant media coverage and its promotional campaign attracted substantial "likes" on social media, but the game itself was ultimately not a commercial success. By June 18, 2012, the servers for Legends were decommissioned by EA, although an altered version of the game was made available as a free download for offline play.
Fire Emblem Awakening is a tactical role-playing game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. It was released in April 2012 in Japan and 2013 internationally. It is the thirteenth installment in the Fire Emblem series and the first to be developed for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. The gameplay, like previous Fire Emblem games, focuses on the tactical movement of characters across a grid-based battlefield and fighting enemy units. Other features include the ability to build and foster relationships between characters to improve their abilities, adjustable difficulty levels, a mode that disables the permanent death of characters, and multiple camera perspectives in battle.
SimCity Social is a defunct online social game for the Facebook social network where users create their own city and interact with cities of their Facebook friends. The game was developed by Playfish and published by Electronic Arts. The game was announced at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2012, during EA's press conference on June 4, 2012, and released on June 25, 2012.
My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic is a video game based on the animated television series of the same name, which was developed by Gameloft for iOS and Android devices and is recommended at children aged 5 to 12. The game was released on November 8, 2012.
Candy Crush Saga is a free-to-play tile-matching video game released by King on April 12, 2012, originally for Facebook; other versions for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, and Windows 10 followed. It is a variation of their browser game Candy Crush.
This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players.
Tomodachi Life is a social simulation video game developed by Nintendo SPD and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. The game follows the day-to-day interactions of Mii characters as they build friendships, solve problems, and converse with the player. Tomodachi Life is the sequel to the Japan-exclusive Nintendo DS title Tomodachi Collection.
Sonic Forces is a platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. It was produced in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. Sonic the Hedgehog joins a resistance force alongside Classic Sonic, his past self, and the Rookie, a survivor of Eggman's attacks. Together they must stop Doctor Eggman, who has conquered most of the world alongside new villain Infinite. Infinite wields the power of the Phantom Ruby, and is able to create illusionary clones of past villains. It features three gameplay modes: "Classic", side-scrolling gameplay similar to the original Sega Genesis Sonic games; "Modern", 3D gameplay similar to Sonic Unleashed (2008) and Sonic Colors (2010); and a mode featuring the "Avatar", the player's custom character.
