Microblog Memes

To dig into the term further, 'meta' in a gaming context is short for "metagame" and shares an etymology with other terms like "metadata" in that 'meta' means self, or about the self.

In image metadata, for example, the 'metadata' isn't the image pixels themselves; rather it is data /about/ the image; the author, the camera model, or the GPS coordinates where it was taken.

If "metadata" is "data about data" then the "metagame" is "the game about the game"

What this means is looking at the game holistically as a collection of systems or mechanics, and even looking entirely outside the game to optimise how it can be played.

You might choose your character based on the strongest stats on the wiki, or make choices based on completely external factors - for example, choosing the time of day you play online to optimise for more favourable match-ups, or deciding what items you either sell now or hoarde now on the basis of predicting what changes the game developer might make in the future.

To use something like chess as a concrete example, the 'game' is moving your pieces on the board according to the rules, and reacting logically to where your opponent moves thieirs. Whereas the 'metagame' might be to get into your opponent's head and to use prior knowledge of their personal playstyle against them, amongst other off-board factors.

All games have their unique metas, depending on the specifics of the game, and the meta always changes over time because it's fundamentally a human factor that has as much to do with other players and the game's community as it does the game itself.