Button mashing is the name given to repeated button presses over a short period of time mostly in (but not exclusively) athletic and fighting videogames.

In athletic videogames, button mashing is the usual way of making the athlete run or set strength. Over time, different ways of achieving this result have been tried: Epyx relied on moving the directional pad left and right (this practice is commonly called joystick wobbling) and occasionally on 360º turns, Accolade's Challenge games used only one button, while other companies (such as U.S. Gold and ATD) use two buttons. On Summer Olympic videogames usually only technical events (diving and gymnastics), archery, shooting and others that in reality do not rely much on physical strength are free from button mashing. On games based on Winter events, button mashing usage decreases greatly, since those events are either aerobic (such as cross country) or Alpine skiing, button mashing is reserved for starts (bobsled and luge) or in speed skating.

In fighting games mashing is more a desperation tactic over actual skill. Less experienced players often attempt to perform combos by moving the directional pad in different directions and pressing all buttons randomly. However, in some games, combos are done by combining over 10 button presses in a period of time shorter than three seconds, turning gameplay into a complex button mashing party.

Given the extensive wear caused to the massive repetition of presses, there are specific controllers that feature a "turbo" button. While this defeats games where only one button is used, it can't be used with games that rely on two buttons or directional pad movement. For these, gamepads were released for both the SNES and the Sega Genesis/MD that were programmable, allowing complex moves in fighting games or "A+B" swaps to be done at a simple key press. These days most game devices for PC carry drivers and applications that allow the same. Modern games are usually criticized for using a formula so old, in use since 1984, the year Track & Field was released for the first time in the arcades. Daley Thompson Decathlon (1996) used mouse clicks and holds, but the formula didn't work. Possibly the most recent "button mashing" sequence in a console game was in Final Fantasy VIII, where the power of the entity Tornado's attack was increased by repeated pressing of the X button during a fixed period.