Mob (video games)

A mob, short for mobile or mobile object,[1][2][3][4] is a computer-controlled non-player character (NPC) in a video game such as an MMORPG[5] or MUD.[1][3] Depending on context, every and any such character in a game may be considered to be a "mob",[2][1] or usage of the term may be limited to hostile NPCs and/or NPCs vulnerable to attack.[5]

In most modern graphical games, "mob" may be used to specifically refer to generic monstrous NPCs that the player is expected to hunt and kill, excluding NPCs that engage in dialog, sell items, or NPCs which cannot be attacked.[5] "Named mobs" are distinguished by having a proper name rather than being referred to by a general type ("a goblin", "a citizen", etc.).[6] Most mobs are those capable of no complex behaviors beyond generic programming of attacking or moving around.

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