Bug or Glitch?

[Phuctifyno]

In a discussion I had a few days ago, I realized that my assumption of bug and glitch having distinct definitions was just that, an assumption. Apparently they are generally used interchangeably. But, in my mind, there are at least two distinct types, which is why I had it figured in my head that each word represented each type.

TYPE A) A problem that exists directly in the code. A misplaced character in the code causing hilarious results, or the inability of the giant algebra equation (that is the code) to handle all of the unexpected variables that result from the random elements of gameplay. This would explain things like breakdancing corpses, backwards flying dragons, getting stuck in the wall, etc.

I've always considered this to be a glitch.

TYPE B) A lapse in logic on behalf of the programmer or designer. A puzzle or process that hasn't been completely thought through to all of its logical conslusions. This, for example, would include a dungeon that has more locks than keys, prohibiting you from continuing. Or the famous "Carth Glitch" from KOTOR, in which the dialogue tree uses your awareness vs. stealth to conduct discussion, and if Mission is stuck in stealth mode from the previous section, the discussion freezes because you're unable to detect her.

I've always considered this to be a bug.

Does anyone here have an opinion on that? Is there advanced programmer lingo that distinguishes these types that I'm unaware of? Are there more types that I just haven't noticed? Am I being just a little too neurotic? Give me a piece, please and thanks.

 

[direkiller]

Ive always considerd them to be degrees of the same problem.

Glich-minor,funny may or may not take me out of the game but basicly harmless or minor.
Ie: Sky walking Mammoth in skyrim

bugs are game breaking-Freezing,stuck quest in story line or whatnot. They may be fixed by restarting the game or whatnot but they break the game

 

[ScoopMeister]

I didn't think there was a difference, but if there is I'd say it's more a problem of degree than classification: bugs are worse than glitches, but the words are otherwise interchangeable.

 

[Phuctifyno]

Ive always considerd them to be degrees of the same problem.

I didn't think there was a difference, but if there is I'd say it's more a problem of degree than classification: bugs are worse than glitches, but the words are otherwise interchangeable.

This is partially what made me curious. From a player's standpoint, this is pretty much true and I've felt that way before. From a creator's standpoint, however, I think the form of error is qualitativley different. It's like the difference between spelling something wrong because of a tpyo and because of being ignorant to the way the word is actually spellt.

It's something I've assumed there would be classification for, but perhaps there isn't. I think there ought to be.

 

[Esotera]

Defect - a deviance from the expected behaviour in software (i.e., pigs flying in your game)
Bug - an error in the code that causes the unexpected behaviour.
Glitch - a defect that can't be reliably reproduced.

At least those are the definitions we use at work. I also can't see any difference between the two categories in the OP other than the specific type of programming error made. The end result is always going to be faulty logic as long as programs run on Turing machines.

 

[DoPo]

Defect - a deviance from the expected behaviour in software (i.e., pigs flying in your game)
Bug - an error in the code that causes the unexpected behaviour.
Glitch - a defect that can't be reliably reproduced.

Yeah, pretty much. A bug can otherwise be called an error if it wasn't in - it's essentially something that was done wrong for one reason or another, which, of course, results in the wrong behaviour. A glitch, however, could be caused by some abnormality in the operation - network corruption or minor electric spike flipping a 1 to a zero (or vice versa) and so on. At any rate, the glitch is still an error but is not a (easily) reproducible one. Still results in the wrong behaviours.

Sometimes the distinction between the two can be left to individual perception, so if you consider the abnormality to be under somebody's control or not, more or less.

I also can't see any difference between the two categories in the OP other than the specific type of programming error made. The end result is always going to be faulty logic as long as programs run on Turing machines.

Also this - the two examples are the same in types of bugs. Although, with 1) you could call the end result a glitch, if it's caused by some weird interaction between systems (say, gravity and a corpse falling corpse) that doesn't actually lie in either of the participating ones. In other words, if the implementation on all sides is correct but you still get some unexpected behaviour.

 

[The]

I always imagined them as variations of semantic/logic errors. The bug is something that you can pinpoint and fix (not being able to continue at certain points), while the glitch happens rarely (like a character model spazzing out when it gets stuck in rock), thus not really needing it to be fixed.

 

[Samantha Burt]

I agree that bugs are more reproduce-able than glitches. I think glitches are things like accidentally juddering through a floor and a bug is more like just a hole in the floor. However I've always referred to Missingno et al. as glitch pokémon... huh.

Captcha: Auto Driving. Yeah, that might be a bit of a bug. xP

 

[Phuctifyno]

Defect - a deviance from the expected behaviour in software (i.e., pigs flying in your game)
Bug - an error in the code that causes the unexpected behaviour.
Glitch - a defect that can't be reliably reproduced.

At least those are the definitions we use at work. I also can't see any difference between the two categories in the OP other than the specific type of programming error made. The end result is always going to be faulty logic as long as programs run on Turing machines.

Cool. What's your job?

I'll admit I may have obfuscated my point by using the word programmer in the second example when designer would have sufficed and been more accurate.

The second type I described has nothing to do with coding. It's when planned mechanics to a game have unforseen twists.

Imagine a (perfectly coded) level with 3 phases, and you need a key to go from phase 2 to phase 3. The key is found in phase 1 and the level designer assumed it was in plain sight and that all players will grab it - but they dont have to. The door between phase 1 and 2 locks behind you once you pass through. So if you make it to phase 2 without the key, you're trapped. Game broken.

A game being broken by overpowering your character could fit into this category as well. Design flaw is a better term for it, though I often hear it referred to as a bug or a glitch. Possibly erroneously.

 

[Esotera]

Cool. What's your job?

I'll admit I may have obfuscated my point by using the word programmer in the second example when designer would have sufficed and been more accurate.

The second type I described has nothing to do with coding. It's when planned mechanics to a game have unforseen twists.

Imagine a (perfectly coded) level with 3 phases, and you need a key to go from phase 2 to phase 3. The key is found in phase 1 and the level designer assumed it was in plain sight and that all players will grab it - but they dont have to. The door between phase 1 and 2 locks behind you once you pass through. So if you make it to phase 2 without the key, you're trapped. Game broken.

A game being broken by overpowering your character could fit into this category as well. Design flaw is a better term for it, though I often hear it referred to as a bug or a glitch. Possibly erroneously.

I'm currently on placement as a student software tester. The problem with the scenario listed above is that it obviously isn't perfectly coded, because it's possible for the user to completely break the intended use of the program. The person who developed the program did so with the incorrect assumption that the user would always use the software in a linear fashion.

Then again, if the vast majority of users just went through the entire game in a linear fashion (like in most typical FPS shooters), it's not really a massive problem. Therefore the development studio might just leave the bug there, as fixing it might introduce more severe issues.

 

[Phuctifyno]

I'm currently on placement as a student software tester. The problem with the scenario listed above is that it obviously isn't perfectly coded, because it's possible for the user to completely break the intended use of the program. The person who developed the program did so with the incorrect assumption that the user would always use the software in a linear fashion.

Then again, if the vast majority of users just went through the entire game in a linear fashion (like in most typical FPS shooters), it's not really a massive problem. Therefore the development studio might just leave the bug there, as fixing it might introduce more severe issues.

The problem could be solved by simply moving the key into phase 2. I understand that the key's physical position comes down to coding, as does everything in a video game, causing the two types I described to become somewhat intertwined, but the problem is conceptual and not technical.

The most concise way I can put it, and thanks for helping me find it, is that TYPE A could only occur in a computer, while TYPE B could occur in any type of game (board, card, sport, etc.) if the rules weren't thought out enough.

For example, imagine if Settlers Of Cattan had one resource that wasn't allowed to be traded and only had one tile on the map (allowing a maximum of only 3 players to obtain it). The 4th player, through no fault of their own, would be at a severe, game-breaking disadvantage, since right from the beginning there would be no chance of that player winning. The closest that TYPE A could come to relating to this scenario would be in describing the competence with which the board, pieces, cards, and dice were made - and that still wouldn't be quite adequate.

 

[Orange12345]

My definition has always been

Bug- an unintended "thing" in a game that was never fixed

Glitch- an unintended "thing" in a game that was never fixed BUT has some application for fun or whatever

 

[barbzilla]

I've always held a different form of definition in my head, but that might be from testing. We refer to bugs as any general issue with the game that was un-intended and produces results contrary to what the programmer/artist/developer wanted. A glitch is the same thing, but it is exploitable for some form of benefit. Those are just my definitions though.