Iconic Video Games
This Sega mascot is a blue hedgehog known for running fast and collecting rings.
Sonic the Hedgehog
In roguelikes, this design feature means that when your character dies, that's it — no coming back for that run.
Permadeath
This 2023 animated sequel follows Miles Morales across the multiverse.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
This green-clad hero wields the Master Sword to save Hyrule and Princess Zelda.
Link
This Italian dish is a flat baked dough typically topped with tomato sauce and cheese.
Pizza
Released in 2011, this sandbox game lets players mine resources and build almost anything out of blocks.
Minecraft
This mental state of total immersion and focus during an activity was named by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.
Flow
This actor has played Tony Stark throughout the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Robert Downey Jr.
This pink, round Nintendo character can inhale enemies to copy their abilities.
Kirby
This Mexican dish wraps meat, cheese, and other fillings in a corn or flour tortilla.
A taco
This plumber first appeared as "Jumpman" in the 1981 arcade game Donkey Kong.
Mario
This term describes a game slowly ballooning beyond its original plan as more and more features get added.
Scope Creep
This Pixar film opens with a wordless montage showing an entire marriage from childhood to death.
Up
This Nintendo villain, a giant turtle-like king, repeatedly kidnaps Princess Peach.
Bowser
This flaky, buttery, crescent-shaped French pastry is a breakfast classic.
A croissant
In this Rockstar western, outlaw Arthur Morgan rides with the Van der Linde gang across the American frontier.
Red Dead Redemption 2
This one-word term describes the satisfying feedback — screen shake, sound, particles — that makes an action feel good.
Juice
This 1999 sci-fi film introduced "bullet time" and asked what its title object really is.
The Matrix
This Overwatch hero teleports through time and says "Cheers, love, the cavalry's here!"
Tracer
This Japanese dish pairs vinegared rice with raw or cooked seafood.
Sushi
This 2015 FromSoftware game drops players into a gothic, blood-soaked city called Yharnam.
Bloodborne
UI elements that exist inside the game world itself — like a health bar tattooed on a character's arm — are called this, as opposed to a floating HUD.
Diegetic UI
This 2022 sequel reunited audiences with Neytiri and Jake Sully on Pandora and became one of the highest-grossing films ever.
Avatar: The Way of Water
This mysterious, briefcase-carrying figure in Half-Life seems to work for forces beyond Gordon Freeman's understanding.
The G-Man
This spicy, fermented cabbage dish is a Korean table staple.
Kimchi