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What Does It Mean To Be 'Cracked?'
Picture this: You're playing Super Smash Brothers Ultimate. It's game five against a Luigi. You have him up to 115% last stock and you're on a fresh last stock. Suddenly, he hits you with a grab and begins the true 0-death combo and you lose. "I'M SO CRACKED" your opponent yells. While you resist the urge to punch them, you wonder, "Wait, what did he mean by that?" Luckily, we're here to tell you about this slang term — "cracked" means to be extremely good at a video game.
Where Did "Cracked" Come From?
While there is some debate on where "cracked" originated, it seems the term picked up steam in Fortnite culture in 2019. A July 26th article about competitive Fortnite slang has a definition for "cracked" as "the description used when a player is very good at the game or makes a great play." The video game-centric definition of cracked was first added to Urban Dictionary on July 31st, 2019, which attributes the slang to Fortnite's player base.
Of note, a competing definition on Urban Dictionary suggests the term came from the Apex Legends fanbase but was misinterpreted by Fortnite players. A user there suggests Apex players would shout "he's cracked" to indicate to teammates an opponent had had their shield broken. They then suggest that when they applied this term to Fortnite, players there misinterpreted it to mean "he's very good at the game." However, commenters in /r/etymology have disputed this definition.
It's also possible "cracked" may be an evolution of the way "cracked" is used in British slang, where "cracked" can mean crazy, a la "mad" or "bonkers."
Cracked Usage In Memes
The most prominent meme so far to feature this usage of "cracked" is My friend Justin is cracked at Fortnite my guy, which centers around a young-sounding boy hyping up his friend by saying he's "Cracked at Fortnite." The audio became a popular sound on TikTok in memes mocking the original post.
One will also find "cracked" used in social media posts from gamers posting some of their impressive clips.
Where Can I Use "Cracked?"
As "cracked" has many other slangy definitions, the best way to use "cracked" would be with a clear reference to a video game. In general, those outside of gaming culture would likely not understand what "I'm cracked" means by itself but could likely intuit what "I'm cracked at Rocket League" means. Thus, you'll often see "cracked" used in gaming subreddits, Discord forums or by gaming-focused Twitter users.
How To Use "Cracked" In A Sentence
- "Dude, I'm so cracked at Super Smash Brothers."
- "You're not 'cracked,' you just spammed Samus' charge shot from the side of the stage all game."
- "I'm cracked because I actually pulled off some incredible combos."
For the full history of "cracked," be sure to check out our entry on the slang term here for even more information.