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- SillyRabbits, on 10/11/2007, -3/+33I think a lot of people fail to realize that a very significant portion of what's called "casual gamers" today are simply ex-hardcore gamers that got a job or started a family. Many probably have a much better idea of what's a good/quality game than 95% of the 13 years olds screaming into their headset playing Halo 2. Just because they don't currently spend 30+ hours a week gaming doesn't mean they haven't already wasted a decade of their earlier life doing it. And, after a lot of wasted time, they are probably a little better and getting the most entertainment for the limited gaming time.
- Al3x, on 10/11/2007, -5/+28I used to play Halo 2 professionally. (www.mlgpro.com). Now I'm a casual gamer...it's much more relaxing to play for fun and not get upset and stressed over a loss. It's the way games should be played.
I find most hardcore gamers get angry, etc. over a loss or a kill or a frag...they should just laugh and say "Oh wow I got dumped on." instead of "***** ***** LAG DAMN IT!! **breaks keyboard**" - SaPpHiReNiNjA, on 10/11/2007, -2/+23It's so true. Everyone had to start somewheres, hardcore, or casual. My mother is now really into RTS's , but she started off with games like Solitaire and minsweeper lol. Even if they're not competitive, they are nonetheless entertaining, and people will always want to try more.
Good read. - BobbyMC, on 07/21/2008, -4/+18Maybe casual gamers are taking over because there's no way left to be hardcore without it involving a first person perspective and World War 2.
Considering how into mindless FPS games I was at one point, developers have really fallen all over themselves. I would still be playing UT2k4 to this day if there wasn't always some developer coming out with a new war FPS, quickly eating away at the community of genuinely good games.
But ya know what? I got tired of playing with bots in UT2k4 and the hopelessness of Counterstrike, a game in which cheating is both the norm and a guarantee to be banned for life. (Oh, and it happens to be the most simplistic FPS in existence).. What constitutes a hardcore game anymore? The only thing the sites pump us up for is the next FPS, and if there is anything else otu there they sure aren't letting me in on the secret.
Recently I have been gaming a LOT, but none of it within even the last generation. I pulled out my Genesis, SNES and N64 simply to get a taste of good games again. Everything now is so layered with the need to make money it hardly has any shine at all even when it is technically great.
Give me Mario. I will take a plumber wearing a bee suit in the outer reaches of the Mushroom Kingdom over another FPS that is guaranteed to be deserted within months ANY DAY. This obsession with fap fap graphics and endless war is ridiculous. As bad as Nintendo making a fitness system might seem at first, the fact still remains the few games they have released so far decimate the majority of the market. - Osmodius, on 10/11/2007, -9/+22Quoting the article: "Remember - It won't be long until that 8 year old is kicking your butt in WOW or CS:Source.. "
Uhh, since when was world of warcraft considered a game? 8 year olds DO kick butt in WoW, because it's that easy. Buried. - xaaronreevesx, on 10/11/2007, -4/+17According to your logic...
that means that there are 8.18 million Zelda/Mario/Metroid fans...
I highly doubt Nintendo will "die" with that kind of fan base.
***** Idiot. - deadbaby, on 10/11/2007, -3/+15I'm all for the concept of hardcore gaming but it's rare to find games that are worth sinking that much time into anymore. Once you get over the flashy graphics a lot of games boil down to simple level grinding which gets old after a couple hours.
- caddyalan, on 10/11/2007, -3/+14When I first started liking video games - about 19 years ago - the difference between casual and dedicated games was just about defined by the platform. Serious game fans were enjoying adventure games, strategy games and RPGs on computers, and casual game fans were enjoying most other genres on consoles. I knew that complex computer games existed... I just liked Mario for a few months, then Zelda a few months later.
At some point, this changed. The line blurred. For me, it was the era of 16-bit console RPGs and the occasional strategy game. - x911oz, on 10/11/2007, -4/+13Do hard-core gamers play the games suspended by their ankles or while being whipped? What's the -core rating system, like number of years wasted staring at a CRT screen?
- gmprunner, on 10/11/2007, -3/+11I got my start with Math Blaster and Mavis Beacon, and the Doom game that I found on the computer we bought from a friend of a friend.
- bIuebonics, on 10/11/2007, -0/+8what you describe as happening now is the same as it was then... it's just that we were the 14 year olds with the computer...
- estvir, on 10/11/2007, -0/+8I think you're confusing hardcore with serious, or some other word. MP isn't the only area in which the type of gamer divides and most people here are making silly, short-sighted comments about hardcore gamers and multiplayer.
You could be a hardcore gamer and not once touch multiplayer. - bIuebonics, on 10/11/2007, -1/+9wow, you sound like a 16 year old moron. i'm currently playing guild wars and counter strike, both of which i play casually. after reading your delightful comment, how can i say this? because i've spent, literally, every waking hour, at points, playing video games. now, i'm a casual player. i'd love to get a hand held system to play casually in my spare time. you see, it's called growing up and having more important ***** to do.
- estvir, on 10/11/2007, -0/+7While that is somewhat amusingly true, I wouldn't say it's absolutely correct, the main reason being there was no real PC gaming generation before US because of 2 main reasons, A) the state of games and B) time.
A) All the hardcore genres were in their infancy, in fact, everything was in it's infancy, videogame related.
B) I would've started gaming (PC first) like ~14 years ago and the first games I can remember are ones like Nibbles and Gorillaz which we played on MS-DOS. Who was there before me? It's not the same as the /new/ 14 year olds (Just a random age I've chosen for the common moron in CS/BF2/WOW and I would've been like ~6 or so when I started) who have a huge foundation upon which to hurl their insults and lack of taste.*
* I'm picking on the average moron by my comments apply to the average gamer who is not annoying. - Tippis, on 10/11/2007, -0/+7There are really two concepts at play here: "hardcore" games and "difficult" games.
The latter category is, I would say, still firmly controlled by the old classic genres -- platformers and shoot'em-up-scrollers -- where the difficulty is one of milisecond timing and absolute control over very simplistic... well... controls.
The former category is more a function of how much time you need to spend to get good at the game, and this comes in the form of eye-mouse-tracking for FPSes or power-levelling or creating optimal build queues or whathaveyou.
There is a decent overlap between the two, which has caused some confusion, and IMO, much of the annoyance among so-called "hard core gamers" come from the fact that the gaming companies have tried to move away from the second category -- difficult games -- to appease a larger market. Hardcore gamers have the patience (and spare time) to learn to play those games; casual gamers do not. At the same time, this does not mean that casual-friendly games cannot be hardcore -- it's just that it is often up to the gamers themselves to decide on how to make things difficult because the game doesn't necessarily do it for them. - wolferz, on 10/11/2007, -5/+12Next time check the "best if used by" date on your stereo types. That one expired a decade ago.
- cpnichol, on 10/11/2007, -2/+9I still play some casual and simple games, sometimes I just need a change of pace from CS:S or whatever. I'm currently addicted to tower defense plus a few retro classics I play using a Spectrum emulator. I just go for game play and re playability.
- grumbel, on 10/11/2007, -0/+7### Well, the fact that you think RTS and FPS games are easier ways to make games than flightsims shows that you really don't know games.
You don't seem to have ever touched a decent flight sim.
### Casual games are only a threat to other types of games if not enough people are playing those games.
Most publishers don't care about the smaller markets, they concentrate on those spots where there is the most money, if that spot happens to be casual gaming, then they will go that way, no matter of many people are still playing hardcore. Just look at the Wii, that whole platform is already way into casual gaming with little to no hope to ever gain a wider selection of games. - KaiUno, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6That's exactly how it is with me. But that doesn't stop me from buying the non-casual games. I just wish for them to be shorter, because I never get to finish them anymore.
- Doghound, on 10/11/2007, -3/+9I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that one of the other things is not you.....
- bIuebonics, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6and wow's the only game right? here's a hint: if you like challenge, range of tactics and creativity, then don't play games lacking those aspects. they do exist out there.
- ByronT, on 10/11/2007, -4/+10Two words: Anger management.
- satx, on 10/11/2007, -13/+19"Normal Gamers - Importance to the 'Pathetic Geeks with no Lives' Gamers"
Title fixed. - Estaris, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5Being a hardcore raider is not a medal and being a casual gamer is not a put down. Get a reality check and some therapy.
- inactive, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6Heh..."I used to play Halo 2 professionally"...
Did that line of employment work well for you on mortgage applications? - estvir, on 10/11/2007, -2/+7You can still play games 'professionally' and not get stressed/upset.. Actually, the problem you detail isn't unique to videogames, it's just with people who have issues and will act the same way in regards to mostly everything.
- Cyber_Akuma, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5There was logic in that wall of text?
- mattfugitive, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6Help your community, train a noob today!
- Speciou5, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5Was I supposed to be impressed by the capitalized "DOUBLE or QUADRUPLE" statistic that was based on statistics and numbers they pulled out of their ass?
- guttertalk, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5Scheissen: There are no casual gaming consoles, only casual gamers.
Casual gaming doesn't even have anything to do with specific games necessarily, but I've noticed gaming blogs and companies use 'casual' to mean different things. 'Casual gamers' are players who aren't going to obsess and invest a huge amount of time into games. (Yes, that means you can have a hardcore gamer that plays hearts.)
'Casual games' lend themselves to pick and play all through in a short time, which I imagine the sweet spot is around 10-15 minutes. (Some first-person shooters lend themselves to this kind of play, and actually that's how I play many FPS now.)
Notice that systems specs have nothing to do whatsoever with casual games or casual gamers. - neko6, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5Most of what I learned in life, I learned from video games. There's no other way to explain why I'm smarter then most people after doing nothing but playing for the first two decades of my life :P
Now I play several hours a month on average, but I still consider myself a gamer (although I don't like the current gaming trend - When I do play, its either emulated RPGs I never got to play in my youth, last one is the amazing Chrono Trigger, or silly flash games.) - estvir, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5It's the non-gamer, simple minded consumerist whore who cries 'haxor.'
I think EA has another generic videogame to sell you. :/ - estvir, on 10/11/2007, -2/+6The /old/ hardcore gamer type you describe do not really seem to exist any more because, well, we can't, for several reasons. Gaming is simply too mainstream, for example:
- Every 14 year old with a family computer is playing online MP where as a few years ago in the golden days of Quake and the like it wasn't as mainstream.
- Adventure games are more or less dead, sadly enough. :(
- RPGs (Elder Scrolls, etc), RTS (C&C, etc) and the old hardcore genres are played by too many normal/standard gamers and have killed the hardcore 'vibe' (For lack of better words).
And so on.. It's time to try and generalise the hardcore gamer again. :o I miss the old days of gaming when we had actual boxes/ manuals, quality games and decent communities, now it's been overrun by stupid pre-pubescent kids and DVD-box styled rehashes by people like EA. :( - HBNDonut, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4It's ok to be competitive in video games. Just remember to still have fun and don't take it _too_ seriously.
- Falkon, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4See, this is why you don't get in relationships. Sure, you don't get to have sex, but look at all the video game time!
- bIuebonics, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4not necessarily true. i only play counter strike casually now and it's nub clan members of various servers i go to that cry haxor when i pwn them... :P casual != inexperienced
- PHXXGhost, on 10/11/2007, -3/+7Wow, well Protoss I would say a casual gamer is one that doesnt really care about how well they do, they just play for fun. A hardcore gamer is the ones that dedicate numerous hours to improve and compete against other players.
- bIuebonics, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4if i recall correctly, i had to do some serious level grinding all the way back at final fantasy 1 for nes...
- Renton, on 10/11/2007, -0/+416? Try half of that.
- SolipsismX, on 10/11/2007, -2/+6Maybe because it's not a "casual gaming system."
- dragongumby, on 10/11/2007, -3/+7computer chess rocks. is that hard core or what?
- grumbel, on 10/11/2007, -4/+8The problem I have with all that casual gamer stuff is that it for most part means dumber games. I am sorry, but I can't get exited about playing the same puzzle game over and over again just with a few graphics shuffled around each year, which is however what many casual gamers are playing and many casual game developers are producing. The business is geared to produce a quick buck, not to produce a good game. There are a few games that cross the line, like The Sims, which both attract casual gamers as well as provide a huge amount of depths and variety, but there just aren't very many of these.
In the end I just can't see much good with all that casual gaming, widening the audience sounds great at first, but its done by producing games that just aren't much good. And my fear is that once publishers realize that there is a ton of money to be made with simple and cheap games, they will stop doing the real ones. This isn't really anything new, it has happened before, the flight sim genre pretty much died out after the FPS and RTS got popular. The audience got bigger, yet nobody is producing flightsim games like in the old days anymore, since there simply are easier ways to make money. The truth is that a bigger audience doesn't mean more games, it means less games, geared to appeal to the lowest common denominator. - YouRookies, on 10/11/2007, -1/+5Casual gamers are needed to make a gaming community survive. If it's only hardcore fans that exists then the community stunts it's growth. (Not enough fans, No Sponsorships) For example look at the Street Fighter / Fighting Game community. Until there is in-game tutorials for advanced gameplay tactics, fighting games will only appeal to the hardcore fans. Make the game easier to learn for the casual gamers and it'll be popular like FPS.
- sagosen, on 10/11/2007, -2/+5Cut the *****, everybody has some kind of 'lame' interest that may or may not be considered a 'having a life' by somebody else.
Just because you can't relate to something you call it pathetic? Wake up and smell the diversity you obviously don't understand! - nufoto, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Relax Dude it's just a Game!
- Estaris, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Wow that's deep. You sound like such a winner!
- panzergeist, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3I don't think there is a formal definition, but it is generally assumed to mean someone who plays games as their primary hobby, of which consumes a large portion of their spare time.
In contrast, a casual gamer is assumed to be someone who plays games, but other activities during their spare time take precedence. - OpCzar, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4I'm still contemplating about getting a 360 because of the player matching capability. The older I get, the more casual and varied my gaming experience is. Online though, I don't seem to get any better when all I do is either get "pwned" by 14 year olds or kill off people who seem to be half-asleep on their keyboard...
The only thing I'm waiting for is for a hardware fix, really. - ohmyblazes, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Actually, Nintendo is getting casual and even non-gamers on their side. I know people that want a Wii that don't even play games. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of casual gamers because I worry the Wii will do so well all we'll be left with is Cooking Mama and Mario Party 13. You sir, however, need to calm down. I hope I never run into you while playing Halo.
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