You all know NPCs in games as “Non-Player Character”, but the term is increasingly used on Twitch and social networks to describe real people. Now NPC is even a candidate for Youth Word of the Year. We at MeinMMO explain what this means.
Note: This article is from August 2023 and was updated in January 2024.
What does NPC mean? In games, NPCs are characters that are not controlled by the player. They are characterized by repetitive actions and dialogues. This allows for a colloquial meaning of the term to be derived.
The term NPC is used outside of gaming to describe someone who does not think independently, a “follower”, or simply someone unimportant. Alternatively, it can also be used to describe people who seem to behave senselessly, or appear to be “off track”.
For example, in an “NPC Compilation” that Twitch streamer Trymacs watched with his viewers (via YouTube).
Meanwhile, NPC is a meme and part of youth language, which has propelled it into the top 10 candidates for the “Youth Word 2023” of the Langenscheidt publishing house. The term is used by Twitch streamers and Twitter users and has given rise to a trend on TikTok.
Origin of NPC outside of Gaming
Where does the term NPC come from? In its colloquial meaning, the term originated on 4chan.
The site Know Your Meme traces NPC back to a thread from July 7, 2016. In it, an anonymous user wrote that NPCs are people who “autonomously follow group thinking and social trends” and who “repeat the same buzzwords and arguments”.
In September 2018, the NPC term received a visual representation in the form of the meme character “Wojak”, better known as “Feels Guy”. A gray-toned version of the character with an emotionless expression became representative of NPCs.
Anyone wanting to portray a real person in a photo or video as an NPC can give them a “Plumbob”. This is the green crystal that is displayed above the heads of characters from the Sims games. This can be seen here in a YouTube video by “Satter Hugo”.
From Political Term to Youth Word
This is how the term spread: The term spilled over onto Twitter, where it was used to mock people with a politically leftist stance in the weeks leading up to the midterm elections in the USA.
This led to mass bans of individuals using the gray NPC avatar as their profile picture on Twitter and spreading generic messages about diversity and other supposedly progressive ideas (via BBC News)
How did the term develop? In 2022, the meaning of NPC was expanded to include always supporting the current “big thing” that is trending in the news. In this context, the meme was also picked up by Tesla CEO Elon Musk (via Slate).
This political component has largely been lost on NPC. While the term is still mostly derogatory, it is often used humorously.
NPC Trend on TikTok
What is an NPC stream? On the video platform TikTok, a unique variation of the term has developed. In July 2023, user Pinkydoll went viral with her so-called NPC streams.
In these streams, she reacts to real money gifts from her viewers with repetitive catchphrases and movements.
“NPC Streaming” became a trend, and many Twitch streamers tried their hand at it.
Meanwhile, the term is also used by Twitch streamers like MontanaBlack, which has likely contributed to its spread as a youth word. Terms from streams often find their way into youth language – for example, “goofy”, the winner of the Youth Word 2023, can be traced back to streamer Papaplatte.
This one is known for its many Anglicisms, but this is supposed to stop for now: Twitch streamer wants to pay attention to his language after 7 vs. Wild: “Real talk, sometimes unnecessary, no joke“
