Video game genres

Various video games

Video game stores can be very intimidating to the uninitiated. Walls are lined with empty plastic clamshells that represent individual games - for parents or grandparents who aren't familiar with modern gaming, it can be overwhelming. Discussing in detail every available video game is not feasible, if only because new games arrive on the shelves every week, but if non-gaming adults can understand the basic genres, they may be able to bypass the gift card rack and select something their gaming loved one might enjoy.

Video games typically fall into one of seven categories: action, adventure, fighting, simulation, puzzle, sports and music/dance. Each genre has plenty of subcategories, and individual tastes may lean towards one specific sub-type of game over all others. But by checking out a gamer's current stash of games, family and friends may be able to figure out what to ask for at the game store.

Action: Arguably the most basic genre, action games can cover a wide range of options. Pong, the original video game, may be considered the earliest action game, although some gamers might argue that is more sports-like with its similarities to tennis. Action games include a number of sub-genres, such as platform (like Donkey Kong or Ratchet and Clank), first-person shooters (FPS, like Doom and Halo 3) and survival horror (like Resident Evil and Silent Hill). Some action games now allow for multi-player cooperative play, particularly FPS and the recent survival horror title, Left 4 Dead. The element that distinguishes action from other genres is the focus on reflex challenges and accuracy in combat situations.

Adventure: While some games in the adventure genre include combat - making them action-adventure hybrids - the primary difference in these games is the presence of numerous puzzles to solve. Less focused on violent confrontation, this style of game appeals to many non-gamers - the genre boomed in the early 1990s with the introduction of Myst, a PC game that had little in the way of time constraints, no combat and an abundance of puzzles to solve. One significant sub-genre in adventure games is the roleplaying game, or RPG. Three things set this type of game apart from most other adventure or action-adventure games: a predetermined storyline that sends players on a quest, the enhancement of characters through the use of experience points that may be spent to improve various skills and attributes and the management of specific gear to improve characters, like weapons, armor or accessories. Perhaps the most well-known RPG series in video gaming is Final Fantasy, which has best-selling titles on a number of gaming platforms.

RPGs also have their own sub-categories, the most important being the massively-multiplayer-online-roleplaying-game (MMORPG). These online games general require a monthly fee to maintain an account which gives a player the opportunity to play with people across the country or even the world. The majority of popular MMORPGs are set in fantasy worlds of elves, gobilns and faeries with bows, swords and clubs as the principal weaponry and a heavy focus on magic; the leading MMORPG, World of Warcraft (WoW) offers this type of setting, as do games like EverQuest II and The Lord of the Rings Online. Other systems take place in science fiction settings (Star Wars Galaxies) or even a more standard modern-day setting (City of Heroes).

Fighting: Frequently considered a sub-genre of action, fighting games feature a more traditional player-vs.-player (PVP) formula. Most fighting games focus on the use of martial arts to beat the opponent, like Street Fighter, Tekken and Mortal Kombat, but some games expand beyond basic hand-to-hand combat and include weapons, like Soul Calibur.

Simulation: As the name suggests, simulation (sims) games simulate real-life activities to varying degrees. Driving games, like Need for Speed or Mario Kart, put the player in the driver's seat, although typically through an outside view of the vehicle on the race course. Flight simulators, like Microsoft's Flight Simulator X, offer the player the chance to pilot the plan from an external view or as if in an actual cockpit with gauges and dials. Construction sims allow players to build a variety of settings, from cities (SimCity 4000) to themeparks (RollerCoaster Tycoon). The most recent craze in simulation games has come in the form of life simulators; the introduction of Will Wright's The Sims has led to numerous expansions and sequels where players can create characters, even entire families, and direct them to get jobs, raise children, go to school, date and decorate their homes. Combining the multiplayer aspect of MMORPGs with life simulation, Second Life has gained in popularity and even been the inspiration for similar games in movies and television series.

Puzzle: Not to be confused with adventure games, the puzzle genre is entirely focused on puzzling in a more traditional sense. Perhaps the most famous puzzle game of all time, Tetris, has spawned a number of clones. Also in this category, word games and other crossword magazine favorites like sudoku are particularly popular on handheld game platforms. Another game type that has become more popular on the handheld Nintendo DS is the memory/search game, like Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir.

Sports: Probably the easiest genre for non-gamers to identify, sports games combine the simulation and action genres, allowing players to simulate actual sports franchises in a particular sport. Among the most popular sports' series are Madden, FIFA and NBA Live. Another option in sports gaming has arrived with Nintendo's Wii console, where players can actually participate in various sports by using the same physical motions as the actual sport to control their characters.

Music/Dance: Gaining in popularity in recent years, music and dance games have changed the way people interact with their gaming consoles. New peripherals, like dance pads, drums and guitars, allow players to be more active in their video gaming. Games like Dance Dance Revolution paved the way for the fitness-through-video-gaming idea that Nintendo's Wii has capitalized on. Players can now sing along at home with Karaoke Revolution Presents American Idol Encore and be judged by Simon, Randy and Paula right in their own living rooms. Guitar Hero and RockBand have people jamming in their family rooms, recreating the sounds of Metallica and the Beatles.

To make gift shopping easier, non-gamers need to take stock of their gamer's current library of games, and compile a list of a half-dozen titles to take with them to the game store. This list can help the sales associates to hone in on the best options for any particular gamer. But more importantly, it can help adults avoid the modern version of buying a kid socks for Christmas; grandparents won't buy a sports game for their music game aficionado simply because their grandchild plays soccer.