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This page includes some jargon that hasn't been added to the site's glossary yet. I'll be around to fix this later, but sorry for the inconvenience in the meantime.

Glossary Entry: Instakill

Definition

An instakill attack or hazard refers to something that will instantly kill a character regardless of how many hit points or other defenses they have. The term itself is a portmanteau of instant kill.

As an example, platformers often use spikes to depict an instakill hazard: if you're playing a platformer and see large spikes on the ground, walls, or ceilings, you can expect your character to die the second they touch a spike.

Bosses are also known to have instakill attacks; whether or not this is a good thing depends on the game. In many cases, these are an example of fake difficulty, which is usually extremely annoying.


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