The parents left baffled by teenage ‘game speak’… but do YOU know your NPCs from your AFKs?
Teen gaming terms like NPC, AFK, Nerf, and Buff force parents to search online to find out what their kids mean.
Researchers found that there are more than a million searches every year for NPC, which means a non-playable character.
Another 926,232 searches are for AFK, which means away from the keyboard, while 745,932 are for Griefing (to sabotage another player) and 689,928 for Grinding (to play steadily).
Buff, which means improving a character’s skills, is sought by 494,292 parents and Nerf, when one player weakens another, with 388,416.
Another 635,376 should look up Overpowered – when a gamer or character has too much power and 574,836 should look up Meta – the most effective tactic available.
Another 364,920 parents per year have to look up Tank – which describes a character who can absorb punishment and another 348,768 DLC – which means downloadable content.
Experts say the terms may seem strange, but they create a sense of community for gamers (Stock Image)
Parents continue to wonder about the terms their children use (Stock Image)
Researchers found that there are more than a million searches every year for NPC, which means a non-playable character (Stock Image)
Gaming experts CSDB.gg analyzed ‘what does this word mean’ searches in 2022 and 2024 to reveal the findings.
Spokesman Cory Sims said: ‘Gaming is a social activity and as such has its own language.
‘Parents who feel like their children are speaking a different language when talking about gaming can use these terms as a way to connect and better understand their interests.
“While some terms may seem strange outside the gaming community, they create a shared understanding among players.”