Definition: The terrifying limbo between safety and horror-game sequences where your console buffers while you white-knuckle the controller. That pixelated progress bar taunts you, knowing exactly when the zombie dogs crash through the window or the ceiling hands drop.
It’s psychological torture disguised as data transfer. Your dread amplifies with every percent crawled, transforming harmless icons into harbingers of imminent digital trauma, especially potent after 10pm in a dark room. Pure, anticipatory fear distilled into a spinning icon.
Example:
Staring at the frozen 87% bar, I braced for the inevitable zombie horde, knuckles white, heart pounding in the silent, pitch-black room.
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Every gamer knows that specific terror when the save icon spins, transforming a simple corridor into a potential ambush point during a late session.