gameover

Gameover, or "game over," is a term used in video games to indicate the end of a game session, typically resulting from the player's defeat or the depletion of available lives or time. The message is usually displayed on a dedicated end screen and may be accompanied by the player's score, final rank, or credits. The exact trigger for a game over varies by genre: action and platformers often end when all lives are lost, while puzzle and strategy games may end when a timer expires or a critical objective is not completed.

Originating in the arcade and early home-console eras of the 1970s and 1980s, game over screens became a recognizable trope as games adopted systems for lives and high scores. In arcade titles, continuing often required inserting more coins, linking the game over state to player expenditure. As save systems and autosaves became common, many modern games allow players to retry a level or checkpoint without terminating the run, effectively reducing the frequency of traditional game over states.

In popular culture, the phrase has entered common vernacular and appears in memes, advertising, and various media as a shorthand for defeat or finality. Despite changes in game design that emphasize continuous play or story-driven endings, the concept of a game over remains a stable element of many traditional, score-focused, or arcade-inspired titles.

See also: game over screen, continues, lives system, high score.