GameDNA Glossary

Battle Royale

Multiplayer action games that blend last-man-standing gameplay with the survival, exploration, and scavenging elements of survival games.

Shoot 'Em Up

Action games that involve non-stop shooting at enemies while dodging their fire.

Multiplayer Online Battle Arena

Real-time strategy video games in which two teams of characters compete head-to-head on a pre-defined battlefield (incl. towers, turrets, etc).

Rhythm & Music

Games that challenge a player's sense of rhythm, typically focusing on dance or the simulated performance of musical instruments.

Runner

Action games where the main actions involve jumping/sliding to earn a bonus or avoid enemies and stay alive.

Fighting

Action games that involve combat (with or without weapons), usually 1v1 (boxing, UFC, etc).

Open World

Games that involve the player moving around a virtual world and achieving objectives with freedom.

Platformer

Games that involve moving a character between points in an environment by jumping, climbing, or performing acrobatics (to kill enemies, use weapons, etc).

Other Action

Action games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Board Games

Games that are played by placing or moving pieces on a board.

Chess & Checkers

Board games played by placing or moving chess/checkers pieces.

Mahjong

Abstract strategy games to match open pairs of identical tiles and remove all tiles to complete an array.

Multiplayer Card Games

Multiplayer card games simultaneously played by more than one player via a shared interface.

Singleplayer Card Games

Card games played by a single player.

Other Board & Card Games

Board & card games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Bingo

Games to play Bingo - where players win by matching randomly selected numbers.

Casino Blackjack

Casino games to play Blackjack - where players win with cards of higher value than the dealer (up to, but not exceeding 21).

Casino Dice

Casino games that involve rolling dice such as craps.

Casino Lottery

Games to play the lottery.

Casino Poker

Games to play Poker - in which players wager over the best hand according to the specific game's rules.

Casino Slots

Games to play Slots - games of chance where the user spins three or more reels in the hope of lining up the same symbols.

Other Casino

Casino games that do not fit into a specific Casino GameDNA.

Vehicle Simulation

Games that realistically simulate driving or piloting any type of vehicle, no racing aspect included.

Arcade Racing

Racing games that emphasize fun and fast-paced aspects of racing.

Racing Simulator

Games that realistically simulate racing on circuits, in a city, through police chases, etc.

Other Driving & Racing

Driving & Racing games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Coloring Games

Coloring games for adults.

Kids' Drawing/Painting

Coloring games for kids.

Kids' Education

Educational games for kids.

Other Family

Family games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Idle

Games based on minimum or zero player interaction (also known as clicker/incremental/offline games).

Other Idle

Idle games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Lifestyle Interactive Story

Games where the player lives as or controls one or more virtual characters, making decisions to lead the game story in one direction or another.

Lifestyle Customization

Games where the player lives as or controls one or more virtual characters, customizing their lives through makeup, dressing up, houses, animals, etc.

Other Lifestyle

Lifestyle games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Blast

Games where the player has to tap and blast a combination of similar items.

Bubble Shoot

Games where the player has to shoot bubbles of similar colors to make them burst.

Connect & Link

Games that involve connecting or linking similar items to make them disappear.

Match & Build

Games where the player can build and progress in a story by winning match games.

Match 3

Games that involve moving items (that are next to each other), creating combinations of at least 3 items to make them explode.

Match 3D

Games where the player has to find and match 3D objects.

Merge

Games that involve merging similar items to transform them or make them disappear. Items don’t necessarily have to be next to each other.

Other Match

Match games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Party Quiz & Trivia

Games involving trivia or quizzes.

Words

Word games.

Other Party & Words

Party & word games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Block Puzzle

Games where players fit differently shaped block pieces to fit a certain shape or make them vanish (like Tetris).

Hidden Object

Games where the player has to find hidden objects from a list or identify differences between two pictures.

Physics-Based

Puzzles based on physics law dynamics.

Jigsaw Puzzle

Games where players have to piece together a picture puzzle.

Logic Puzzle

Games that involve logical puzzles and riddles.

Numbers Puzzle

Puzzle games involving numbers.

Puzzle to Unlock

Games where players have to rearrange items to unlock them.

Sorting Puzzle

Games where the goal is to sort colored balls or items.

Other Puzzle

Puzzle games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Puzzle RPG

Multi-level games where players follow a storyline while completing puzzles and tasks.

Summon/Battle Strategy

Strategy games where players summon demons, monsters, or heroes (which can be enhanced) to fight.

Action RPG

RPGs focused on one character. Players control their movement and upgrade gear and skills.

Survival

Stay alive by looting resources, finding food, and defending against threats (usually with hunger/thirst/health meters).

Other RPG

RPG games that don’t fit into other GameDNA types.

GPS Games

Games where the user’s real-world location (via GPS) impacts gameplay.

First/Third-Person Shooting

Shooter games from a first- or third-person perspective (solo or multiplayer).

Hunting

Track and hunt wild animals or monsters.

Sniper

Precision shooting at long range (sniper-style gameplay).

Shooting Range

Target practice with guns or bows.

Other Shooting

Shooting games that don’t fit a specific GameDNA.

Breeding Simulation

Games where players have to build and develop facilities (buildings, farms, etc) to breed animals or monsters for combat.

Building Simulation

Games where players have to gather resources to build and expand their own city (tycoon-like).

Crafting & Sandbox Simulation

Games where players have to collect resources to craft their way through the game.

Life Simulation

Games where the main character has to make decisions and complete tasks to evolve.

Virtual Pet Simulation

Games where players have to take care of a virtual pet or creature.

Time Management Simulation

Games where players need to finish predefined tasks in a given time.

Other Simulation

Simulation games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.

Anti-Stress Games

Games where players can perform relaxing actions often accompanied by relaxing sounds.

Sports Manager

Manage and control the operations of a sports team or athlete.

Sports Simulation

Simulate the experience of playing a real-world sport.

Other Sports

Sports games that don’t fit into a specific GameDNA.

Breed Battle Strategy

Build a base, breed creatures, and battle opponents.

Build Battle Strategy

Collect resources to build and expand a city or empire.

Card Battle Strategy

Collect and use cards in strategic combat.

Tower Defense Strategy

Defend a space against waves of enemies using defenses.

Other Strategy

Strategy games not categorized into a specific DNA.

Gameplay Name

Definition

Hyper-Casual Music

Easy-to-play, simple games based on music or rhythm.

Hyper-Casual Runner

Simple games focused on running.

Hyper-Casual .IO

Lightweight multiplayer-style games with simple mechanics.

Hyper-Casual Puzzle

Quick and easy-to-play puzzle games.

Hyper-Casual Sports

Casual sports-based games with simple controls.

Hyper-Casual Action

Fast-paced casual games with action elements.

Hyper-Casual Shooting

Tap-and-play shooter-style casual games.

Hyper-Casual Simulation

Games that casually simulate real-life activities.

Hyper-Casual Racing

Easy-to-play, simple games based on vehicle racing.

Other Hyper-Casual

Hyper-casual games that do not fit into a specific GameDNA.