In role-playing games, a level up is an increase of one or many player attributes, such as ability scores, hit points, or mana. It is not known where and when the term level up was first used. The phrase was, however, popularized by Dungeons & Dragons players.

Controversy

Some claim that the term originates from Super Mario Bros., the famous video game of the early 1980s, and indeed, sections of the games are called levels. John Sanders, the famous video game champion of the early eighties and nineties (whose tragic death is chronicled in the hardcover bestseller One More Quarter for Sanders) was seen playing the game at an arcade in downtown Brooklyn. Upon winning a green 1-up mushroom, he is reported to have exclaimed: "I've just levelled up".

The term level up today

There is a deep spiritual divide between supporters of the Mario theory of level up, and the D&D theory. The term is most commonly used in RPG communities. The Electronica Gamers Dictionary has long been regarded as the ultimate source of authority on matters such as these. In the entry for "level up", Electronica writes:

perhaps we can agree to disagree on this matter. Surely, in a sense levelling up could mean increasing one's lives in a game such as Mario. And just as surely, levelling up could refer to the general increase in the fighting strength of a character in an RPG.

The debate does not end there; video game theorists disagree on the importance of leveling up.

For another possible explanation of the origin of "level up," see 1-up.