Quick definition:A number that represents how much damage a character or object can take before being defeated, destroyed or put out of action; when it reaches zero, the character usually falls.
Meaning
Hit points, often shortened to HP, measure how much punishment a character can endure. Every attack that connects removes some of the total, and when the number reaches zero, the character is defeated, knocked out or killed, depending on the game's tone. Healing items, spells and resting restore lost points.
The maximum total usually grows as a character gains experience or better equipment, so a veteran can survive hits that would have ended a beginner. Enemies and bosses have totals too, and a large number tells players that a fight will be long. Designers tune these figures carefully to control difficulty.
Related terms include health, life and vitality, and the exact vocabulary varies between games. Some games break the idea into separate pools, such as armour points that absorb damage before health is touched, or use one hit to defeat a character regardless of any total.
Origin:Hit points come from tabletop role-playing games of the 1970s, where a numeric total was tracked on paper and reduced each time a character was struck. Computer role-playing games borrowed the system directly, and it later spread into action games and shooters. The abbreviation HP is now one of the most recognisable shorthand terms in gaming.
Example:The knight begins the battle with one hundred and twenty hit points. The dragon's fire breath removes forty, and a second blast takes another forty, leaving her on forty. Before the third blast can land, she drinks a potion that restores thirty and dives behind a rock, aware that two more hits would finish her.
Did you know?Not every game shows the number. Many action games use a bar, a row of hearts or a screen effect, such as reddened edges, to communicate the same idea. Others let health recover automatically, so damage matters only within a single encounter.
