stealth game not to be confused with stealth video game part of a series onaction games subgenres actionadventure game action roleplaying game open world stealth game survival game survival horror battle royale beat em up fighting game platform game platformadventure game metroidvania shooter game firstperson shooter thirdperson shooter hero shooter light gun shooter roleplaying shooter shoot em up tactical shooter rhythm game topics capture the flag cover system firstperson shooter engine free look quick time event wasd keys lists list of beat em ups list of fighting game companies list of fighting games list of firstperson shooters list of freeware firstperson shooters list of thirdperson shooters list of shoot em up game companies list of survival games list of gun games list of maze video games list of platform games vte a stealth game also known as sneak em up games is a type of video game in which the player primarily uses stealth to avoid or overcome antagonists games in the genre typically allow the player to remain undetected by hiding sneaking or using disguises some games allow the player to choose between a stealthy approach or directly attacking antagonists but rewarding the player for greater use of stealth the genre has employed espionage counterterrorism and rogue themes with protagonists who are special forces operatives spies thieves ninjas or assassins some games have also combined stealth elements with other genres such as firstperson shooters and platformers elements of stealth gameplay by way of avoiding confrontation with enemies can be attributed to a diverse range of games including pac man 1980 early maze games have been credited with spawning the genre include manbiki shounen 1979 lupin iii 1980 castle wolfenstein 1981 and 005 1981 the genre became a mainstream success in 1998 with tenchu stealth assassins metal gear solid and thief the dark project all being released in that year these games were followed by other successful stealth series such as hitman and splinter cell definition unlike most action games stealth games challenge the player to avoid alerting enemies altogether game design when hiding in the dark is a gameplay element in order for a game to include stealth gameplay the knowledge of the artificial intelligence ai must be restricted to make it ignorant to parts of the game world players are often given limited methods of engaging opponents directly in stealth games either by restricting the player to ineffective or nonlethal weapons equipping adversaries with far superior equipment and numbers or providing the player with a limited amount of health that makes most combat scenarios extremely dangerous stealth games sometimes overlap with the survival horror genre in which players are forced to hide from and evade supernatural or occasionally mundane enemies as they attempt to track down the player examples of hybrid stealthhorror games include amnesia the dark descent outlast and the penumbra video game series history early developments 19791997 according to retro gamers john szczepaniak the first stealth game was manbiki shounen shoplifting boy published in november 1979 castle wolfenstein originally available in 1981 employed stealth elements as a focus of the gameplay players were charged with traversing the levels of castle wolfenstein stealing secret plans and escaping players could acquire uniforms to disguise themselves and walk by guards undetected in 1981 sega released an arcade game called 005 in which the players mission is to take a briefcase of secret documents to a waiting helicopter while avoiding enemy flashlights and use boxes as hiding spots in 1985 durell software released saboteur a game in which the player controls a ninja who has to infiltrate a facility and find a disk while avoiding or defeating security cameras guards and dogs retro gamer has called this the original stealth game hideo kojimas metal gear released in 1987 for the msx2 the sequel metal gear 2 solid snake was released in 1990 for the msx2 it further evolved the stealth gameplay of its predecessor and introduced most of the gameplay elements present in metal gear solid including the threedimensional element of height allowing players to crouch and crawl into hiding spots and air ducts and underneath desks the player could also distract guards by knocking on surfaces and use a radar to plan ahead the enemies had improved ai including a 45degree field of vision turning their heads left and right to see diagonally the detection of various different noises being able to move from screen to screen they were limited to a single screen in earlier games and a threephase security alarm where reinforcements are called in to chase the intruder then remain on the lookout for some time after losing sight of the intruder and then leave the area the game also had a complex storyline and improved graphics establishing a genre 19982002 although stealth gameplay had appeared in previous games 1998 is seen as a turning point in gaming history because of the release of tenchu stealth assassins metal gear solid and thief the dark project or sneakemup and the first to use darkness and shadows as the mode of concealment another of thiefs most noteworthy contributions to the genre was the use of sound as a central mechanic the robust simulation of sound meant players had to be mindful of the sounds they made including what kind of surface they were traversing lest they draw attention to them conversely it meant guards could be heard from a distance and the surfaces they moved on could be identified based on the sounds they made with further releases many games in the genre drifted towards action by allowing the option of direct confrontations metal gear solid 2 sons of liberty released 2001 for the playstation 2 further evolved the stealth gameplay series it featured an array of new abilities including leaping over and hanging off of railings opening and hiding in storage lockers and sneaking up behind enemies to hold them at gunpoint for items and ammunition later developments 2002present after the mainstream success of the genre stealth elements became increasingly incorporated into a wide range of video games with numerous action games using stealth elements in some way or another as the genre developed and progressed stealth gameplay was combined with other genres sly cooper a celshaded game released in 2002 was a stealth platformer in 2004 metal gear solid 3 snake eater introduced camouflage to the genre in 2007 assassins creed employed a social element to the stealth game where the player is able to hide among crowds of civilians by taking care to blend in the 2012 game dishonored tried to incorporate stealth elements that were influenced by thief such as the importance of lighting and shadows the developers later abandoned that system citing realism as a factor after the completion of the game the player has access to a harder difficulty called new game plus which further decreases visibility by adding fog behind the player and removes noise visualizations and enemy line of sight indicators in 2014 creative assembly released alien isolation a stealth game which emphasized survivalhorror in this game the protagonist is trapped on a space station with an alien xenomorph which they must avoid for the majority of the game being unable to kill it the game also uses feedback from the players microphone to enhance gameplay as the alien is able to hear noises made by the player and can use them to detect their location vtevideo game genres listaction beat em up hack and slash fighting maze pacman clone platform shooter firstperson thirdperson light gun shoot em up tactical survival battle royale actionadventure grand theft auto clone immersive sim metroidvania stealth survival horror psychological horror adventure escape the room interactive fiction interactive movie visual novel mmo mmofps mmorpg mmorts mud roleplaying action roleplaying dungeon crawl roguelike tactical roleplaying simulation construction and management business city government life simulation dating sim digital pet god social simulation sports strategy 4x multiplayer online battle arena realtime strategy tower defense time management realtime tactics turnbased strategy turnbased tactics wargame vehicle simulation flight simulator amateur combat space racing kart racing sim racing submarine simulator train simulator vehicular combat other genres artillery breakout clone digital collectible card game eroge exergame incremental music rhythm nongame party programming puzzle sokoban tilematching related concepts aaa game advertising arcade game art game audio game casual game christian game crossover game educational game fmv gamification indie game multiplayer video game nonlinear gameplay open world nonviolent video game online game browser game multiplayer online game online gambling socialnetwork game pervasive game serious game toystolife twitch gameplay video game clone 