endgame

1. (chess) The final stage of a game of chess, when there are few pieces left.Examples: "Rooks become much more important in the endgame."; "The real end game consists of a position where the method can be analytically demonstrated by which the slightly superior force can win."

2. (bridge) The final stage of a game of bridge, when there are few cards left.Examples: "You can't really use squeeze plays until the endgame."; "Bridge writing tends to concentrate on the end game."

3. (by extension) The final stage of any game.Examples: "Being stuck with two V tiles can make for an awkward Scrabble endgame."broadly

4. (figuratively) The final stage of an extended process or course of events, especially with the implication of the imminent realization of a masterful strategy or plan.Examples: "What's his endgame, do you think?"; "He had been a Commando during the war, had landed on Sword Beach and skirmished his way across the ravaged remains of Europe after D-Day before slogging out the endgame, attached to the 63rd Anti-Tank Regiment."; "Like optics, it’s one of those buzzwords, beloved by pundits, that implies its users are smarter than everyone else, because they see another level that most people don’t in political machinations. In meme parlance, you may ask “Why?” but ah, an intellectual asks, “What’s the endgame?”"figuratively

5. (video games) The gameplay available in a massively multiplayer online role-playing game for players who have completed all of the preset challenges.

6. (crosswording) The thematic element of an advanced cryptic crossword puzzle, typically solved after completing the grid.Examples: "Listener endgames have included […] shading every instance of the letters N - Z in the completed grid to reveal a 'normal' blocked crossword hidden in the one just solved"; "What do you look for in an Advanced Cryptic crossword? […] Good balance of clues and endgame"