permadeath
One life only
Permadeath is a video game mechanic where a character's death is permanent—no respawns, no reloading saves, no second chances.
The player must start over from the beginning or lose that character forever.
The feature raises stakes dramatically: I lost my 40-hour save to permadeath.
Common in roguelikes and survival games, permadeath appeals to players who want meaningful consequences.
Permadeath procedural game genre
- ironmanLong-distance triathlon competitor
- hardcoreUncompromisingly devoted
- replayabilityEnduring appeal for repetition
- proceduralFollowing set steps
restart · leaderboard · speedrun · Diablo · Hades
Cannot be undone
- finalLast and decisive
- terminationAct of ending something
- extinctionComplete vanishing of a species
- obliterationTotal destruction or erasure
annihilation · deletion · erasure · wipe · endgame · conclusion · cessation · expiration
Stretched or strained state
- consequenceResult of an action
- attachmentConnection or fondness
- investmentDeploying capital for returns
- cautionCareful attention to risk
strategy · planning · adrenaline · dread · anxiety · thrill · suspense · risk-reward
State of being hard
- challengeTest of ability
- punishmentPenalty for an offense
- unforgivingShowing no leniency
- ruthlessLacking any compassion
mastery · skill-based · trial-and-error · balance · fairness · frustration · satisfaction · accomplishment
roguelike
Permadeath procedural game genre
- ironmanLong-distance triathlon competitor
- hardcoreUncompromisingly devoted
- replayabilityEnduring appeal for repetition
procedural · restart · leaderboard · speedrun · Diablo · Hades
irreversible
Cannot be undone
- finalLast and decisive
- terminationAct of ending something
- extinctionComplete vanishing of a species
obliteration · annihilation · deletion · erasure · wipe · endgame · conclusion · cessation · expiration · demise
tension
Stretched or strained state
- consequenceResult of an action
- attachmentConnection or fondness
- investmentDeploying capital for returns
caution · strategy · planning · adrenaline · dread · anxiety · thrill · suspense · risk-reward · commitment
difficulty
State of being hard
- challengeTest of ability
- punishmentPenalty for an offense
- unforgivingShowing no leniency
ruthless · mastery · skill-based · trial-and-error · balance · fairness · frustration · satisfaction · accomplishment · progression
- game mechanicslevels, rules, cooldown, points, health points
- challenging gameschess, Dark Souls, sudoku, Go, Elden Ring
- game modeseasy mode, ranked match, deathmatch, hard mode, practice match
- gaming termsbuff, debuff, boss, loot, final boss
- gaming lingoNPC, HP, GG, AFK, PvP
- dungeon crawlersdungeon, loot, treasure chest, monster, trap
permadeathrespawn
Reappear after dying digitally
infinite lives · revival · resurrection · extra lives · quicksave
permadeathquicksave
Immediate game state preservation
autosave · save states · reload · cloud saves · undo
permadeathcasual mode
Relaxed difficulty setting
immortality · easy mode · god mode · invincibility · safety net
death, permanent, permanently, impermanent, permanence, impermanence, permaban