About
“Git Gud”, an intentional misspelling of the phrase “get good,” is an expression used to heckle inexperienced players or newbies in online video games or on game-related forum sites, similar to the use of the phrase lurk more.
Origin
According to GameFAQs forums[1], the term was likely coined on PlayStation 3’s Metal Gear Online community as a corrupted way of telling a fellow player “get better.”
Spread
On July 10th, 2008, Urban Dictionary user PaperCupp submitted a definition[2] of the word, explaining it as another way of saying “get better.” In February 2012, the phrase started to gain significant momentum on 4chan’s /v/ (Video Games) and other video game-related boards[3], particularly within the Dark Souls and Call of Duty communities. For instance, on September 1st, 2013, a parody image of a film Get Rich or Die Tryin’ named Git Gud or Die Tryin’ (pictured below) was posted on 4chan’s /vg/ (Video Games – General) Dark Souls General[7]. The image was later posted on Reddit.[8]
“Git Gud” is also used within a variety of other gaming communites, like Team Fortress 2[4], Dust 514[5], League of Legends[6], and more.
Notable Examples
Search Interest
External References
[1]GameFAQs – who invented git gud?
[4]Steam forums – Ways to “git gud” at MVM…?
[6]League of Legends forum – Reporting every Fizz…
[7]Foolz! – Git Gud or Die Tryin’
[8]reddit – Git Gud or Die Tryin’