Random encounter

Frequent random encounters are common in Japanese role-playing games like Dragon Quest,[1] Pokémon, and the Final Fantasy series.

Random encounters—sometimes called wandering monsters—were a feature of Dungeons & Dragons from its beginnings in the 1970s, and persist in that game and its offshoots to this day.

Wandering monsters are often used to wear down player characters and force them to use up consumable resources, such as hit points, magic spells and healing potions, as a way of punishing them for spending too much time in a dangerous area.

Random encounters often occur more frequently in dungeons, caves, forests, deserts, and swamps than in open plains.

A game with this type of system can sometimes be taken advantage of by initiating some action that will reset the counter (pausing, opening a menu, saving), especially when using an emulator.

Random encounters have become less popular in video games with the passage of time, as gamers often complain that they are annoying, repetitive or discouraging to exploration.