Conceding to Game Terminology

[T-Pac | 7,579]

I’ve always avoided the word “shmup” because I thought it sounded goofy, but I’m ready to concede to the term. It’s the most direct, understandable designation for my favorite game-genre, and substitutes like “space-shooter” don’t always communicate as well. 

Does anyone else have a contentious gaming expression that they’ve come to accept for some reason? “Metroidvania”? “PSX”? “Retro”?

(Note that I’m just curious about your own use of these terms - If you want to debate any of them, feel free to make a separate thread for it.)

-CasualCart
 

[Gloves | 11,812]

[spacepup | 2,407]

I've seen plenty of arguments / debates on all of these items over the years.

For some reason, shmup never bothered me.  Metroidvania is another one I use often because it's well understood what that vibe is going for, so it makes sense to me.

PSX is one that I didn't really care for and personally refer to it as PS1, but I've had to concede that obviously it's well known what people mean when they say PSX.  They're not referring to the PSX [PS2] unit (usually, and depending on the context), they're referring to original PlayStation.  

As long as it's clear what people are talking about, there's no reason to get too upset about things.

[TDIRunner | 2,757]

Personally, I've always hated PSX being used to describe PS1.  I also hate when SNES is said as a word instead of an abbreviation.  I can't think of any that I've conceded to as far as using them myself, but I accept the fact that I know what others are referring to when they use that kind of language.  I'm also not a fan of XBone (being pronounced as "ex bone," but that one doesn't really bother me enough to care.  

Shmup and Metroidvania are two terms that have never bothered me.  I usually don't use either myself, but it doesn't bother me when I hear others using them.  

[Gloves | 11,812]

4 minutes ago, TDIRunner said:

Personally, I've always hated PSX being used to describe PS1.  I also hate when SNES is said as a word instead of an abbreviation.  I can't think of any that I've conceded to as far as using them myself, but I accept the fact that I know what others are referring to when they use that kind of language.  I'm also not a fan of XBone (being pronounced as "ex bone," but that one doesn't really bother me enough to care.  

Shmup and Metroidvania are two terms that have never bothered me.  I usually don't use either myself, but it doesn't bother me when I hear others using them.  

In my industry there are a ton of acronyms I need to be familiar with, and whether you pronounce it as written or spell it out when speaking aloud is a crapshoot.

One in particular I've been dealing with lately is called SRED, and everyone pronounces it "shred" and I'm like "but that's not how it's spelled! 

[JamesRobot | 5,817]

29 minutes ago, CasualCart said:

I’ve always avoided the word “shmup” because I thought it sounded goofy

 

I just like to say Shmup.

Edited January 20, 2023 by JamesRobot

[TDIRunner | 2,757]

12 minutes ago, Gloves said:

In my industry there are a ton of acronyms I need to be familiar with, and whether you pronounce it as written or spell it out when speaking aloud is a crapshoot.

One in particular I've been dealing with lately is called SRED, and everyone pronounces it "shred" and I'm like "but that's not how it's spelled! 

Oh believe me, I completely understand that.  My industry is also full of acronyms and it's a mix of pronounced and spelled out.  You get used to it after a while, but it's difficult to explain to a new hire.  

My absolute favorite is when they rename a bunch of labs, so now you have to get used to the new lab names and acronyms.  Plus on top of that, for at least a year or two, people will refer to both the new and old names, so you have to keep track of both sets of acronyms.  

[Tulpa | 3,528]

BREAKING - A member of a video game forum has been taken into custody after murdering several other members of that same forum. The forum member, who goes by the screen name Tulpa, reportedly told police that "They just wouldn't stop saying shmup! It's shoot-em-up, dammit!" Police are still trying to ascertain how many NES controllers the perpetrator used to strangle his victims...

[guitarzombie | 927]

I like shmup.  Its a funny name.  Shmup.

[spacepup | 2,407]

One that I don't really mind, but always catches me off-guard, is 'paddles.'  I understand where it comes from, but they've always been 'controllers' to me.  Every now and then I'll hear someone talk about SNES paddles, and it takes my brain a moment to figure out what they are talking about.

Also, I've never understand why saying SNES (snesss) really bothers people so much.  It's just a shorthand that some people use, and it's obvious what they're talking about, technicalities aside.  I've heard (ness) and (sness) many times and it just doesn't bother me at all.

[fcgamer | 4,739]

NES / SNES / SNEZZ (pronounced as a word) used to bother me, but when I went to the Netherlands and met up with a buddy there, he pronounced them just as words and then also explained that it was a lot easier to do that than to recite out individual letters. Needless to say, the idea grew on me and now I'm doing it too!

The one that bothers me, yet I feel somewhat forced to concede to at times is the whole pirate / bootleg / knock-off set of words. I hate all of them, tbh, as in gaming, they all carry the negative baggage of low quality and shittyness, yet at the same time are generally only applied for gaming products originating in the Taiwan / China / Hong Kong regions. I mean, no one ever calls the Game Genie or Game Shark bootlegs or pirates, nor do they refer to the Color Dreams games as such; yet take that same Color Dreams game, give someone the Sachen version, and its an OMG bootleg pirate bullshit bbq sort of situation. I hate it, every bit of it, so when I write about games, I tend to use the term "unauthorized" if they are original, or "bootleg" only if it is just a copy of Super Mario Bros. or something like that. When talking to others though, I'm often forced to concede, as it just becomes a headache going into such depth about such terms during a casual conversation.

[RH | 4,941]

Not game related but I remember being in college in my Information Systems courses and everyone would say "It's ESS-QUE-ELL, not SEQUEL!"  Then I graduated and started working in the industry and basically everyone says "sequel", at least in the Microsoft development realm.  I'm just not going to be that one pedant who has to say "SQL", nor does it matter.

But regarding PS1 vs. PSX, I just don't get it. I know a few of you have worked as journalists and may think different, but back in the 90s everyone and everything abbreviated it the "PSX".  I'd never heard it called anything else for a short-hand name.  I gamed up the the mid-PS2 era but when I started collecting in 2016, I was surprised to hear that so many people take issue with calling it the PSX? 

I mean... really guys?  I know the PS X, PS2 unit existed in Japan, but we US gamers know little and care little about that thing.  The PlayStation started out as the PSX and that's what it is to me.  It's a habit and I see no reason to change it.  Also, the "PS1" is what the mini PlayStation is referred to as because it was branded as the "PlayStation One".  Before 2016 and hanging around retro gamers, if someone told me they had a "PS1" I would have assumed the mini device.

Edited January 20, 2023 by RH

[PII | 1,894]

I've never disliked SHMUP.  I like SHMUP a lot actually.  It's a silly sounding word, SHMUP!  I know that it bothers some people to hear such a ridiculous sounding word as SHMUP get attached to their favorite genre, that they take very seriously; so I try to be sensitive when those folks are around.  Instead of saying SHMUP I'll just say "shooter" when they're around, instead of SHMUP.  On the other hand I like to use.. it because SHMUP is a concise and accurate term since "shoot 'em up" = SHMUP and also it's just plain fun to say a goofy-ass word like SHMUP! a lot.

[JamesRobot | 5,817]

I came to accept the NES and SNES acronyms and I really don't care if they're prononced as "ness" or "sness." But it bugged me when the Nintendo Entertainment System stopped being THE Nintendo and became the NES.  I feel like it started around the transition to the Nintendo 64 because in school you would still differentiate between the Nintendo and the Super.  

Then: "Hey, you want to come over and play Nintendo?"
              "Yup.  You got Turtles II?"
          "Sure do!"

Now:  "Hey, you want to play some Nintendo?"
              "What, like the Switch?"
          "Naw man, old school Nintendo."
              "Oh, like the 64?"
           

 

C'est la vie.  

Edited January 20, 2023 by JamesRobot

[Reed Rothchild | 9,566]

The only word I hate is "minty."

It's like saying food is "yummy."  Nails on the chalkboard.  Like a word that shouldn't be said by anyone older than 6.

[Gloves | 11,812]

1 minute ago, Reed Rothchild said:

The only word I hate is "minty."

Uh oh!

[Reed Rothchild | 9,566]

Just now, Gloves said:

Uh oh!

Don't do it.

[PII | 1,894]

The first time I heard someone say NES as a word rather than an acronym was many years ago.  I thought it was odd because I'd never heard anyone say it any other way than as the acronym En. EE. Es.  It didn't really bother me though and I find my self saying it all the time now.

35 minutes ago, fcgamer said:

SNEZZ (pronounced as a word)

Anybody else here gettin' SNEZZ on the reg.?  Last night with Zelda Link to the Past was filthy, man...

I never cared for PSX.  Can't recall ever seeing that in print prior to its launch.  It just seems like a way to try and make it stand out from PS2/PS3/PS4/PS5 which is why I don't like it.

10 minutes ago, Reed Rothchild said:

"minty."

A vague and irritating term that amounts to "something less than mint."  There is "mint" and there is "near mint."  There is no "minty."

 

Edited January 20, 2023 by PII

[fcgamer | 4,739]

35 minutes ago, RH said:

I mean... really guys?  I know the PS X, PS2 unit existed in Japan, but we US gamers know little and care little about that thing.  The PlayStation started out as the PSX and that's what it is to me.  It's a habit and I see no reason to change it.  Also, the "PS1" is what the mini PlayStation is referred to as because it was branded as the "PlayStation One".  Before 2016 and hanging around retro gamers, if someone told me they had a "PS1" I would have assumed the mini device.

This. 

I remember a few years back when I found this bootleg unauthorized Playstation game and had referred to it as PSX and some people got really confused by it, which ultimately got me confused as I am in the camp where PSX was the original Playstation.

Apparently the Taiwanese are in that camp too, despite being just a few hours away from Japan

That says all I need to know about it.

[RH | 4,941]

23 minutes ago, Reed Rothchild said:

"minty."

I hate that word so much, I forgot about it for this discussion until you brought it up!

I assume it's a term willfully used by a younger generation.  I also have no clue why it bothers me so much.  "These games are minty fresh!" shouldn't be so obnoxious but... it is.  It just is.

Edited January 20, 2023 by RH

[fcgamer | 4,739]

8 minutes ago, PII said:

A vague and irritating term that amounts to "something less than mint."  There is "mint" and there is "near mint."  There is no "minty."

Well the one thing worse than that is when someone spells it with an extra "y" , losing the "i" in the process. It reminds me of a nephew I've got whose name is Jaxon, with an x. Barf in my mouth.

[fcgamer | 4,739]

2 minutes ago, RH said:

I hate that word so much, I forgot about it for this discussion until you brought it up!

I assume it's a term willfully used by a younger generation.  I also have no clue why it bothers me so much.  "These games are minty fresh!" should be so obnoxious but... it is.  It just is.

It's like a toothpaste commercial or something.

[Sumez | 2,985]

Shmup is so primordial I can't ever have had an issue with it. But I probably more commonly use "shooter" or "STG" because it sounds more natural in a sentence.

[Sumez | 2,985]

1 hour ago, spacepup said:

One that I don't really mind, but always catches me off-guard, is 'paddles.'  I understand where it comes from, but they've always been 'controllers' to me.  Every now and then I'll hear someone talk about SNES paddles, and it takes my brain a moment to figure out what they are talking about.

Given "paddle" is typically used to refer to the potmeter based spinner controllers made for home consoles for games such as Arkanoid, using the term for a controller without such a device is pretty misleading  

Edited January 20, 2023 by Sumez

[PII | 1,894]

I use "MetroidVania" like everyone else.  It's just such a cumbersome contraption of a word.  I bet if I make a new one and use it every chance I get... No one else will pick it up.  So just for fun:

Stanley, the search for Dr. Livingston

and

Faxanadu

Become:

STANADU !!

 

UGLY GUY: Hey man, you wanna hit the bar?

ATTRACTIVE TARGET AUDIENCE GUY: Nah man, I'ma stay in tonight an' rock my favorite "STANADU!"

[(A.T.A.G. cracks a diet pepsi, takes a looong slow motion swig, turns to camera; winks and gives a thumbs-up) and FREEZE-FRAME]