Take a game like GTA, I consider that to be a very casual game, and by that I mean a lot, if not most people who play GTA do not finish it, they will merely screw around, drive over some pedestrians and maybe go on a few missions. It has a lot of depth to it and can be hardcore, but when I was in college when GTA III came out all the people who bought it were the same ones who played games like Madden and used their PS2 more as a DVD player than to actually play games.

The stigma of “casual” really is wearing thin and I think people need to rethink why they like games and think back to what their first game experience was like, because I bet it was a so-called casual title even if that branding didn’t exist yet.

I personally think the problem is that “Casual” and “Hardcore” are bad words to use in order to describe these different catagories. Instead it should be “Simple” and “Complex”. After all isn’t the definition of a casual game: easy to understand game with very strait forward gameplay and simple graphics.

The problem with the word “casual” is that it suggests that you play the game “casualy” or from time to time without too much devotion. However, we as gamers are can usualy spend as much or as little time and effort on a game as we want. For instance METEO’s for the DS would be considered a casual game. Yet I remember playing that game nonstop into the late hours of the night trying to get higher scores and unlock every planet in the game. I played that game all the time with LOTS of devotion. I also remember the first time I fought someone in METEO’s VS mode and completely destroyed him. I don’t think I called him a noob (because I’m not mean like that) but I’m sure he felt like one.

This is a prime example of a “casual” game being played being treated very “hardcore”. And since Meteos can be played very “uncasualy” calling it a “casual game seems inapropriate.

However, nomatter how hard you choose to play it, meteos will always be “simple” nomatter how it’s played. This is true for all puzzle games and supposed “casual” games. Therefore referring to them as “simple” or “strait forward” games is far more appropriet and doesn’t make them seem as objectionable for the hard-core audience.

However ultimatly the important thing is that you are having fun. If you like more simplistic, easy to understand games then play those games. If you like long, deep, intricate games that take time and effort to play then play those games. Just play the games you like and don’t bother with what other people think is good or bad, as long as you’re enjoying yourself thats all that really counts.

nil – Thats an interesting angle that you have there about people playing games on different levels relating to the type of player they are. More complexities are raised when people like us here; more hardened players, when we play games on different levels. It doesn’t polarize us into one group or another because we choose to play a few games in such a way but it shows how fragmented (dare I say..broken) these terms are.

neko to kuruma – Yes, these outlets are definetly serving their readers which is fine. That’s business..I guess. When you look across the board these magazines and websites are the only real, widely substantiated critical opinion on games out there. So when anyone, goes to look up a game review (even say by Google search), they will find something that serves only one market and as such provided a skewed critical opinion.

This burrows down into a few core issues with the current video game reviewing framework, something that I could rant on for some time. In short though; people are reviewing games as software (ala check box and a list of requirements) instead of critique (such as in film). This creates problems across the board. >_

Guitar Hero, Rock Band, Katamari Damacy.

These are recent games that have been universally loved by the gaming community and are what kind of game under classification?

casual

I’ve been a gamer all of my life, and can honestly say this is just ridiculous. What appears to be happening is there is a breath of fresh air in the gaming world and it has some people scared that they might have to stop calling people newbs and lose some of their conceitedness.

Seriously look at the biggest games of all time, how many are casual games? If you really want to think about it, even Madden is a casual game.

I agree with nil. The article mentions a few puzzle games, and the same “rules” can be applied. Anyone can pick up Tetris, Bejeweled, or Zuma and play casually. Hardcore gamers will pick up these games and go for the fastest finish times, the high-scoring combos and the like.

Think about it. Don’t all arcade games need to follow these rules?

* the gameplay is straight forward and easy to understand
* the game goes to an effort to make sure that it is understood
* the game is ‘approachable’ and accessible
* only a few buttons are required to play
* generally speaking the graphics are simple
* no long term commitment (very dispensable)

And arcade games are the basis of the video games industry.

“Hardcore” games like Street Fighter can be played on either a basic level or an advanced level and still provide an enjoyable experience. That’s why I tend to classify people rather than games. I know a guy who was obsessed with finishing Metal Slug without continuing. That’s hardcore.

I am both a casual gamer and hardcore gamer – I love games. Simple as that.