game mode

noun

A distinct configuration that varies gameplay and affects how other game mechanics behave.

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Meanings

noungame mode (plural game modes)

plural game modes · alternative gamemode

  1. video gamesA distinct configuration that varies gameplay and affects how other game mechanics behave.

    Five game modes drive the fun in Minecraft: survival, creative, adventure, spectator, and hardcore.

    2017, Michael Ross, Christopher Ross, Building Faith Block by Block, Eugene, Ore.: Harvest Kids, →ISBN, page 103
    2 more examples

    In computer gaming, socialization is the new paradigm, and in some games, even single-player game modes require an Internet connection.

    2015, V. Anton Spraul, How Software Works: The Magic Behind Encryption, CGI, Search Engines, and Other Everyday Technologies, San Francisco, Calif.: No Starch Press, →ISBN, page 174

    Looking into specific formal elements can help analyze the difficulty in somewhat more objective terms, such as whether there are difficulty settings or different game modes.

    2015, Clara Fernández-Vara, Introduction to Game Analysis, New York, N.Y.; Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, →ISBN, page 145
Cite this entry
APA

game mode. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/game%20mode

MLA

“game mode.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/game%20mode. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “game mode,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/game%20mode.

Source: game mode on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.