As posed at N-Philes.com
GoNintendo recently had a series entitled, "Casual vs. Hardcore: Opinions of the Gaming Industry," where a number of players in the industry were asked to comment on whether Nintendo’s influence on the emphasis on the casual gaming market is good for the industry. While it’s certainly a worthwhile feature that explores and exposes what the industry is thinking, it cements this dichotomic vision of gaming. Worse than that, it pits one group against the other, forcing everyone to take sides on the grand gaming battleground. Are you a casual gamer, or are you a hardcore gamer?
Once you answer that question, you quickly discover that the other gamer is a threat. Causal games are taking over; I have less ‘real’ games to play because of cartridge wasters like
Nintendogs and
Brain Age. Games are so complex and violent when all I want to do is have some quick, clean fun. Casual gamers, hardcore gamers, non-gamers... they’re all terms that have become standard, used by everyone in journalism and in conversation. Once they get used, it’s always one in contrast to another, one versus the other.
Gaming may have its share of battlefields, but there shouldn’t be a war between those who play games. Gamers shouldn’t be treating each other as being superior or inferior, just that they are different from one another. Before the launch of Wii, Iwata urged those seasoned gamers to use the Wii to bridge the gap between them and those who don’t play. It’s been working. Everyday there are new stories on the internet about how Wii and DS have converted people into gamers. But how can us gamers lure our loved ones into our passion, then turn around and complain about how they’re the ones ruining the very thing we love?
I think the problem lies within the narrow parameters in which we define the gamer segments. I’m not really a hardcore gamer, nor am I a casual one. Chances are, neither are you.
After an emo stint trying to find out exactly were I fit, I thought out a gamer scale, a Gamer Number of sorts. This system isn’t meant to make one type of gamer superior or inferior to another; while not perfect, hopefully it helps to better define the kinds of gamers that are out there.
10 – Hardcore Gamer: The hardcore gamer plays anything he or she can get his or her hands on. Owning all the major platforms, he or she is knows the advantages and disadvantages of each one, and doesn’t care. Fancy graphics might widen the eyes, but it’s the game itself that will drop the jaw. Hardcore gamers are in it to play it, and if the game isn’t worth playing, they move on to something that is.
9 – Core Gamer: With a couple of platforms under his or her belt, the core gamer knows what he or she likes. Core gamers have their favourite genres, styles, developers, and even publishers, but won’t be afraid to play something else.
8 – Softcore Gamer: Softcore gamers look out for the games that are of interest to them, and will try to play them regardless of the platform upon which they appear. They stick to their favourite genres, styles, publishers, and developers, but will play games outside their natural scope if pressured by others. A softcore gamer will have any number of platforms, but will prefer one to another.
7 – Loyal Gamer: The loyal gamer, sometimes knows as fanboy, has a keen love for gaming. He or she is often dedicated to one platform, on which he or she plays every major release. By ignoring or minimizing the strengths and popular titles of other platforms, the loyal gamer has a robust, but limited scope of gaming as a whole.
6 – Hardcasual Gamer: Often mistaken by the casual types as a hardcore gamer and by the hardcore types as a casual gamer, hardcasual gamers fall in between the two extremes. Hardcasuals seek out popular, thrilling titles that tend to focus on realism and strong visuals. They will buy a well-hyped game, even if it is poorly reviewed. Hardcasual gamers are perhaps the biggest group of gamer, and have become publishers’ focus over recent years.
5 – Vertical Gamer: The vertical gamer doesn’t love gaming so much as the few games he or she plays. They purchase few games a year for their console, but they’re almost always part of the same franchise. A vertical gamer might play other games with other people, but he or she will always curl up and find comfort in his or her game of choice.
4 – Casual Gamer: Casual gamers are vested enough in gaming to have at least one console to call their own, whether because they bought it themselves, or inherited one from someone else. They may not talk about FPSs and RPGs, but they do look around for those one or two titles they invest in each year. They won’t quickly shy away from a challenge, but a game has to feel fun and rewarding to them need to keep their interest.
3 – Light-Causal Gamer: Light-casual gamers may or may not have a gaming system to call their own, but they might surprise you with their own library of games, or at least, their own save files. They enjoy the simpler games that don’t necessarily have specific goals or purposes other than to entertain in short spurts. They’re more likely to play puzzle games over first-person shooters and virtual sims over sim racers.
2 – Induced Gamer: Induced gamers wouldn’t likely play a game on their own, but when they’re with a gamer friend, they will pick up the second controller without hesitation. They know they won’t win, but if they do, it’s a cause to celebrate. They probably play flash games and Solitaire on their computer, but don’t consider it gaming.
1 – Observant Gamer: Observant gamers game vicariously though another gamer, whether a child, roommate, friend, or family member. Their knowledge of games is limited to what they see. They’re likely to decline an offer to play a game; it might take a drink or two to get them to actually try one.
0 – Non-Gamer: Non-gamers has never before played a videogame. They have no inclination to do so because of their preconceived notions of gaming. Whether that it’s too hard, too complex, too violent, too much of a time waster, or something else entirely, they’re convinced that gaming isn’t for them.
Maybe I'll revise this scale over time. It represents only one sphere of a gamer. It doesn't take into consideration whether the gamer prefers home consoles or portable ones, whether they stay up to date on upcoming games, gaming news, or industry events, whether they interact with other gamers through forums, or whether they have a more active role in the industry.
Labels: games, n-philes
