Like most other groups of experts, researchers (and especially games researchers) have a set of terminology that can be intimidating for those just getting started. Many of these words overlap with product design and user research, while some are specific just to games user research and gaming in general.
We've gathered the most common games user research terms and defined them simply to help democratize research (or at least, help you sound more credible in your next meeting)!
When possible, we've linked to additional resources to help better explain things. Have we left something out? Do you disagree with one of our simplified definitions? Please let us know and we'll happily update our list.
A.
A/B Testing – Comparing two versions of a game element or audience to determine which performs better.
Affordance – Game elements, mechanics or areas and the possibilities that they suggest. Here is a much deeper dive and better explanation.
Audience Targeting – Choosing the players who will complete your playtest, survey, or research study based on specific traits.
Attrition Points – Areas where players frequently drop off or quit the game.
B.
Bartle’s Player Types – A classification of players into categories based on how they interact with games: Achievers, Explorers, Socializers, and Killers
Browser Playtest – A playtest for a game that will be played on a user’s browser, such as Safari or Chrome. Also useful for supplemental game content hosted on the web (storefronts, Wikis, etc).
Behavioral Clustering – Grouping players based on in-game behaviors, such as completionists vs. casual players.
C.
Casual Player/Gamer - A player who plays irregularly. Can also describe a player who plays puzzle games or sandbox games, or a player who plays for relaxation rather than competition.
Churn Rate – The percentage of players who stop playing the game after a given time.
Cognitive Dissonance – When game elements conflict with player expectations and create discomfort.
Cognitive Load – The amount of mental energy required to process game information.
Cognitive Walkthrough – A method for assessing how intuitive a game’s UI is for new players.
Community Playtest - A playtest that leverages an existing audience (e.g. a Discord community or mailing list) rather than random recruitment. At PlaytestCloud, we've dubbed this BYOP (Bring Your Own Players) playtests.
Competitor Testing - Playtesting your competitors' games to observe how players experience known titles, to identify strengths and weaknesses of similar titles, and to benchmark your own game.
Concept Playtest - A playtest, survey or player interview where feedback is gathered on an incomplete concept (e.g. Figma wireframe, mockup, slide dec, document or other files)
Core Gameplay Loop – The fundamental cycle of actions that players repeat during gameplay.
Custom Targeting - Also called Advanced Targeting - using non-standard audience refinements to recruit players with highly specific attributes (e.g. players who have reached a certain level in a game, or who share a common non-gaming interest)
D1, D7, D30 retention – Shorthand for Day 1, Day 7 or Day 30 retention, a data point that shows the frequency of players returning to play again.
Dark Patterns – UX strategies designed to manipulate players into spending more money, preventing cancelation or quitting, or engaging longer. Generally frowned upon and in some places, illegal.
Decision Fatigue – The experience of a player who has been overwhelmed by too many choices
Diegetic UI – UI integrated naturally into the game world (e.g., the PipBoy in Fallout).
Diegesis – Whether game elements exist inside or outside the game world (e.g., diegetic UI is within the world; non-diegetic is separate).
Diary Study - Called a Longitudinal Study by PlaytestCloud; a playtest or research study that involves multiple days or multiple sessions of gameplay. Used to measure and predict churn and long-term engagement.
Difficulty Curve – The progression of a game becoming more challenging over time.
Ecological Validity – The art of making sure your research accurately reflects real-world gameplay experiences, not just lab conditions.
Emotional Contagion – When players mirror in-game characters' emotions.
Engagement – How involved and interested a player is in the game, additionally, how long or how frequently they play.
Engagement KPI (Key Performance Indicators) – The measurement of engagement (see above), in metrics like session length, session frequency, and DAU (Daily Active Users).
Eyetracking – Using technology to measure where players look on-screen to identify focus areas and usability issues.
F2P (Free-to-Play) Economy – Business models that rely on microtransactions (small in game purchases), like clothing, armor, equipment upgrades, multipliers or battle passes.
Feedback Loop – The ongoing cycle of a player's actions in a game, from action to game response to player reaction and game payoff, for example.
Fiero – A term describing the moment of personal achivement in games (e.g., beating a difficult boss level).
Flow State – A positive state of deep focus and enjoyment experienced by players.
Friends and Family Playtest - Similar to BYOP playtest and Community playtest, where the game is tested with relatives and friends versus target players. Use caution when making decisions based on this data!
Frustration Curve – The point where how challenging a game is outweighs how fun it is, and can lead to player churn or disengagement.
Funnel Analysis – Observations and data on a player's progression through key steps in the game.
Funnel Drop-off –The point at which players disengage, churn or abandon during key steps or progression of a game.
Gacha Mechanics – In-game rewards (treasure, boosts, time extensions, loot boxes, card packs) that pressure players to make more purchases
Game Genre - A classification of different games based on player experience, narrative expectations, and gameplay styles. Examples are Adventure, First-Person Shooters, Sandbox, Party, Educational (and more)
Game Mechanics – The rules and systems that define player interactions (e.g., jumping, shooting, crafting).
Hardcore Player/Gamer - a player who plays daily or near-daily, with great passion and dedication to gaming, often investing significant time and money in games.
Heatmap – A visual representation of where multiple players have clicked, moved or interacted, layered to show trends on a game screen.
Heuristic Evaluation – A method of evaluating a game’s usability based on established UX principles (heuristics).
HUD (Heads-Up Display) – The on-screen interface showing player stats, health, ammo, etc.
In App Purchases - aka In-Game purchases or microtransactions - payments made within the game. Separate from the intial game purchase.
Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Motivation – Internal enjoyment (intrinsic) vs. rewards like XP and achievements (extrinsic).
Live Ops & Seasonal Events – Time-limited events designed to drive short-term engagement and unplanned spending.
Live Service – Games that receive updates and continue new events post-launch.
Longitudinal Study – Research that tracks player behavior over time to assess retention, engagement, or learning. See also: Diary Study.
Loss Aversion – Players fearing loss more than valuing gain, a feeling often exploited in monetization strategies.
Ludic Agency – The level of perceived control or influence players have within a game’s narrative.
Mental Model – How players expect a game system to work based on familiar, established patterns or prior experiences.
Midcore Player/Gamer - In between the casual and hardcore gamer. These players play more frequently than casual gamers and invest more time and money in game play, but do not necessarily strive for completion or daily engagement.
Minimal Viable Interaction – Designing for the simplest, most intuitive player interaction possible.
Mobile Playtest - A playtest for a game designed to be played on a mobile phone.
Moderated Playtest - A playtest where a researcher or members from the game development team observe a player play the game in real-time, with the ability to ask questions, prompt behavior, navigate through known issues and understand the player's experience
Motivation Theories – Understanding what drives players to play, or to engage
Multiplayer Playtest - A playtest to observe PVP (player versus player) or Co-op (players on the same team) interactions and functionality
Multi Session Playtest - Similar to Longitudinal Playtest, where a player will play a game multiple times over the same day, or many days.
Narrative & Emotional Impact in Games
Net Promoter Score (NPS) – A metric measuring player loyalty and likelihood to recommend the game.
No-Audio Playtest - An easy way to run more playtests at scale. Videos and survey responses are collected without talk-aloud audio narration from the players.
Onboarding – The process by which new players are introduced to the game’s mechanics and systems.
Observational Study – A research method where players are watched during gameplay to identify pain points. This can be done asynchronously and remotely (e.g. reviewing playtest recordings on PlaytestCloud), in real-time remotely (e.g. a Moderated Playtest) or in a lab setting.
Operant Conditioning – Reinforcing a player's behavior with rewards (e.g., XP, achievements, progression systems, bonuses).
P2W (Pay-to-Win) – When in-game purchases give players a competitive advantage. Can also mean a game that cannot be won without purchases.
Parasocial Interaction – When players feel a personal connection to a game's characters.
PC Playtest - Playtesting a game that will be played on a Player's PC. Often, games designed for console players are playtested on PC as well.
Player Panel - a pool of prequalified playtesters from which indivduals can be recruited in small groups based on criteria needed for specific playtests.
Player Persona – A representation of the ideal target audience for a game
Physiological Metrics – Measuring heart rate, pupil dilation, or galvanic skin response (GSR) to assess player emotions. Often paired with eyetracking.
Qualitative vs. Quantitative Data – Different types of data that can demonstrate and measure different things. Quantitative Data means the results can be measured using numbers; Qualitative Data is typically reported by summaries. Qualitative (observations, interviews) provides deep insights; quantitative (metrics, analytics) gives large-scale trends. A combination of both are needed for great research.
Reels - An edited video highlighting key moments of gameplay and a player's experience. A great way to share an abbreviated playtest overview with stakeholders.
Retention – The measure of how many players continue to return and play a game over time. See also D1/D3 retention.
Scaffolding – A scaled level of gradual assistance that helps players learn game mechanics over time (e.g., tutorial hints that become less frequent).
Screener - An additional round of qualifying questions to refine a targeted audience and make sure they meet the criteria for your research study or playtest
Sentiment Analysis – Using AI or surveys to determine how players feel about the game.
Session Length & Frequency – Measuring how long (length) and how often (frequency) players engage with the game.
Signifiers or Signposting – Visual or audio elements that indicate what players can interact with.
Single Session Playtest - a "basic" playtest; a playtest with a defined session length (often 15-60 minutes).
Skeuomorphism – UI design that mimics real-world objects to create a familiar feeling.
Soft Currency vs. Hard Currency – In-game currency earned (soft) vs. bought with real money (hard).
Steam Playtest - Playtesting a game made for Steam. Not to be confused with Steam Playtests! (We've broken it down here)
Subscription Models – Game Monetization via ongoing, recurring payments, including memberships like Game Pass or Battle Passes.
Task Success Rate – The percentage of players who are able to complete a given task successfully in a usability test.
Telemetrics / Telemetry Data – Data collected from player interactions, like button presses, movements, completions
Think-Aloud Protocol – A technique where players speak their thoughts and narrate their experience while playing.
Toxicity & Griefing – Negative player behaviors like trolling, intentional sabotage, or harassment.
Usability Debt – Accumulating design issues that make a game harder to use over time.
