Blackout Basement is a level in a video game where the lighting is inconsistent. It could be that the lights are flipping from on to off for no reason, that the player needs to perform a certain action to ensure a well-lit path through the darkness, or that a specific item is required to see the way forward. Certain variations of the former variety can result in Nintendo Hardness, seeing that changes in visibility are often arbitrary, with a special knack for happening at the worst possible times. In another variation, the lighting is fairly consistent, but dirty, old, dim, close to going out, and flickering a little every few minutes, but not really problematic.