Post
The invisible geometry that determines whether your attack actually landed or completely whiffed.
Hitboxes and hurtboxes are the collision shapes games use to calculate whether attacks connect. A hitbox is the area where an attack deals damage (usually attached to a weapon or fist during an attack animation). A hurtbox is the vulnerable area on a character that can receive damage. They're rarely the same shape as the character's visual model -- fighting game characters often have hurtboxes much smaller than their sprites. When a hitbox overlaps a hurtbox, damage happens. When they don't overlap despite looking like they should, you get those 'that clearly hit me' rage moments.
Example
Street Fighter's hitbox visualizations are legendary in the FGC. Dhalsim's stretchy limbs have tiny hurtboxes on the arms but huge hitboxes on the fists, meaning you can punch from range without being vulnerable. Competitive players study frame-by-frame hitbox data to find optimal punish windows.
Why it matters
Understanding hitboxes explains every 'how did that miss' and 'how did that hit' clip you've ever seen. For fighting game players, hitbox knowledge is literally the difference between casual and competitive play. For devs, generous or stingy hurtboxes define whether combat feels fair.
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