Overkill

Overkill is the use of excessive force or action that goes further than is necessary to achieve its goal. For example, killing an ant with a rocket launcher ^{Shoulder-launched missile weapon} would be considered overkill.

is an example of overkill.

  Overkill is especially used to refer to a destructive nuclear capacity ^{nuclear weapon} exceeding the amount needed to destroy an enemy.
The term is attested from 1945
US policy was to be able to drop a nuclear bomb on every Soviet town and city forty times over; the term was called "pounding the rubble" or, as military officers sometimes joked, "pounding the ruble".In criminal profiling ^{Offender profiling} , the term "overkill" refers to the wounds or mutilations inflicted by offenders (especially serial killers), which go beyond what is necessary to kill the victim. Such wounds are often inflicted post mortem. This often occurs when the attacker is completely out of control i.e. a blind rage or the metaphorical red mist. Alternatively, the deed may be done calmly in order to satisfy the control/possession fantasies of the assailant. A classic example would be a frenzied stabbing where the victim has suffered a very high count of abdominal wounds.
Film

In a critical sense, overkill might be considered a close relative of overacting and overdramatizing. For example, in most modern horror films, such as Friday the 13th ^{Friday the 13th (1980 film)} , most of the killing is quickly clichéd, and is always overkill.


Video games


Overkill is a common feature in many video games. In some games, such as Final Fantasy X, "overkill" is made part of the battle system; finishing off an enemy with a very high-damage attack may give bonus rewards after battle. In first-person shooters, overkilling a character will often result in gibbing ^{Gib_(video_gaming)} that character. In the game Halo 3, a medal named Overkill is awarded for killing four enemies in a short period of time.