, the player has to complete a sliding puzzle to get an
extra life. ]]
(left) and
Final Fantasy VII Snowboarding on mobile phones (right).]]
A
minigame (also spelled
mini-game or
mini game and sometimes called a
subgame) is a short
video game often contained within another video game. A minigame is always smaller or more simplistic than the game in which it is contained. Minigames are sometimes also offered separately for free to promote the main game. For instance, the
Pokémon Stadium minigames involves merely pressing a few buttons at specific intervals, with little complexity.
Minigames occur variously as gameplay features, or as time fillers while levels are loading, or as Easter eggs. In the latter case, they are often called "secret games". In the former case, the successful completion of such minigames may or may not be required to finish the encompassing game.
The Shenmue franchise is interspersed with many 'mini-games', including full versions of Sega arcade games Space Harrier and Hang-On (both originally programmed by Shenmue creator and director, Yu Suzuki).
The Final Fantasy series is notable for featuring minigames in every entry of the series, ever since the first Final Fantasy (1987), in which a sliding puzzle in the form of an Easter egg can be unlocked while boarding the ship. In Final Fantasy II (1988), a matching game can be unlocked while boarding the ice sled and meeting a certain requirement. Later in the series, Final Fantasy VII (1997) was the first video game to include within it at least thirty minigames, which remains the largest number of minigames for a role-playing game.
The minigames in the game boy advance version of Tron 2.0 are the arcade games Tron and Discs of Tron
Some minigames become so popular that they are eventually published as individual titles by themselves. A notable example is Geometry Wars, which was originally a minigame in Project Gotham Racing 2.
Minigame compilations
Some games, such as the
WarioWare series, some
Cinemaware titles like
Defender of the Crown, or
David Whittaker's
Lazy Jones, are made up of many minigames strung together into one video game. Some similar games, such as the
Mario Party series, are considered
party games, specifically developed for
multiplayer. In party games, minigames usually involve performing an activity faster or collecting more of a specified item than other players to win.
See also
Casual game
Party game
Minigames of Final Fantasy
Category:Video game gameplay
