What's the difference between a core gamer and a casual gamer?

[Ravage]

I think it was on an Escapist post on Facebook that ignited this entire argument with a lot of people, pretty much claiming anyone who plays consoles are "casual" gamers. What they fail to realize is not everyone has the money or time to invest in a good PC, which is perfectly okay, but to say hardcore games are exclusive to PC is a bit irrational to me.

In your opinion, what is the difference between the two? When it comes down to it you can tell by what a person plays you can make a sound judgment but this subject isn't really black and white. Is it the types of games they play? How much play time they invest in a week? How many games they play/own? What's your take on it?

 

[Clowndoe]

The difference is on which side you stand from a blurry, arbitrarily placed line that gets moved every time anyone gets the chance. I think the best way to settle it is to only use the terms as being completely relative and to tag each use of "casual" vs "core" with extensive disclaimers.

 

[kingthrall]

from a rts perspective, though you could apply fps here too (I dont consider rpg a serious genre for "core gamers" because you always are building upon previous experiences and is all determined by experience/clothing buffs). Though I myself am a diehard fan of rpg's.

core gamers tend to take losing quite personally, to the point of raging and trolling/stalling and dragging a game out on purpose. Core gamers tend to be much better at micro/micromanagement

Casual gamers tend to do interesting things with their armies, not as cheese/perfect build but can end up surprising core gamers with unpredicted armies (usually a mix) and even to the point of being able to level with a core gamer in micro after a few games being much more aware and active unlike core gamers who tend to zone out, overstretch their sleep hours due to timezone differences ect and make silly mistakes.


I kind of fall in the middle somewhere but that is the best generalization your going to find.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I think it's one of those things people decide for themselves, about themselves. Like what is normal and what is not normal? Is this the real life or is it just fantasy? Who would win in a fight, The Thing or The Hulk? Do Balrogs have wings, and why won't they use them? If they can't, why do they, and if they can, why don't they?
...


Arpeggio.

 

[Ender910_v1legacy]

I kind of imagine a "hardcore" gamer as something of a grizzled veteran. They've battles their way through many campaigns, many games, and have a lot more gaming experience than many of the greener gamers. Some of these grizzled veterans might be jaded and hard, others might be happy and jovial as a Norse warrior at a feast.

I think it's all too easy for a lot of gamers to label these people as elitist individuals, since that only applies to those who take their long-lived experiences to present themselves as gods among men. And I think it's a lot of that kind of misplaced disrespect that makes some gaming veterans a little apprehensive, or mean-spirited when dealing with all the "youngsters"

And PC Gaming tends to come up a lot with this because PC gaming honestly does have a much richer history than console gaming. If you look back in the early 90's, most console games comprised of more arcadey action games or JRPG's, while on the PC, game design and game theory was being expanded in just about every possible direction, and was always at the forefront of every frontier. The first multiplayer games, the first 3D model based engines, strategy games, all sorts of different settings like cyberpunk and hard science fiction. And it's something a lot of console gamers I've talked had even the faintest knowledge of.

 

[Caiphus]

My take on it is that it's a rather meaningless distinction that will differ from person to person. It's much more meaningless, and frankly silly, if you're going to use it to moralise, or if you're going to use it in a perjorative fashion.

That said, if I was going to try and make the distinction, I would probably briefly consider a lot of factors, such as the amount of time devoted to gaming, the reason the subject games in the first place, the type/variety of games the person enjoys, etc etc. Probably in the same sort of way as I'd decide if someone played a sport seriously or casually. I would describe my sister, for example, who plays The Sims once a week as a casual gamer.

But I don't really make the distinction. Partly because of the nature of the term. It has no set definition, so using it in conversation can lead to misunderstanding. For example, I can't get my head around OP's facebook example; there are many console gamers who I would consider much more "core" than myself.

But mostly because so many people use the terms core and casual gamer to swing their e-peen around, you run the risk of looking like a dick by association if you join in, even if you intended to use it harmlessly. Which is probably a shame. But there you go.

 

[StormDragonZ]

If you play a game with the intent to prove how awesome you are at it to everyone else you can possibly imagine, you are not a casual gamer.

 

[shrekfan246]

Probably a couple thousand dollars/pounds/euros/regional currency.

More seriously, something people concoct during arguments so that they might feel superior to another person. I've been known to use the terms myself in the past, but the distinction really is so arbitrary that it might as well not even exist. I wouldn't hold myself up as a "hardcore book-reader" because I might read three or four books a week, or because I have purchased ~$300 worth of books in the past few months, or because I can read and enjoy the likes of Tolkien, Stephen King, George R. R. Martin, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, and George Orwell where other people might find one or more of those authors boring or difficult to follow.

 

[Artaneius]

From my personal online gaming experience.

Casual gamers are gamers that mostly just play for the sake of playing. They don't put any kind of work or effort into becoming better at the game. These types of gamers usually are the first ones who get frustrated when they play against someone who actually does put effort into the game. Mostly calling them "tryhards" or "no lives" to demonstrate their point of view that treating video games seriously enough to put effort in is retarded and of course, boast how much they get "laid" or have a high paying job. These gamers can't stand difficulty and will be on most gaming forums complaining about how games are ruined by tryhards or Esport leagues such as MLG.

Core gamers or competitive gamers are gamers that I find to be one if not the most hypocritical type of gamers I have ever met. Whenever a patch or update comes out that changes the game or "metagame" they are the first ones to post huge paragraphs about what was changed horribly effected the "metagame" and hurt the competitive side of the game. As if anyone who isn't part of this group really gives two shits. Second and what makes them so hypocritical is that the vast majority of this community can't stand competition. As soon as they play against someone even slightly better than them, they immediately start whining, throwing fits, rage quit, or just quickly quit to find easier lobbies/servers to keep their stats intact. The majority of this community just wants to play against lesser skill players and pubstomp.

Both communities are poorly represented.

 

[TehCookie]

Wow has the PC vs consoles really progressed to the point that console owners are casuals? People who only own a PC are casual, if you're a true gamer you own every platform! Too poor to afford it, feel like the other platforms have nothing to offer? Well looks like you're doom to be casual.

Aside from the silly platform arguments, casual and hardcore is how dedicated you are to the medium. If you play games casually, you're casual. It doesn't matter what kind or how often. If you would say it's your hobby and are invested in it, you're a core gamer. Core gamers care about games, while casuals see them as a fun distraction to pass the time.

 

[Zhukov]

Okay, I got this.

If you're bitter and miserable and feel the need to claim that your gaming habits elevate you above other people in some fashion, then congratulations, you're clearly a "core gamer".

Easy!

 

[OpticalJunction]

A casual gamer wouldn't start a thread like this, lol. They'd just play. And not really "plan" to play either, or think much about a game afterwards. It would be like watching a movie because you happen to be in front of a tv and have some time to kill. A casual gamer doesn't revolve his life around gaming, it's just one activity out of many that he does, and isn't particularly memorable.

A core gamer on the other hand, has to some extent adjusted his life to be more of a gamer. That could mean going early to pick up the newest GTA game, or staying up all night to get a particular score, or buying a gaming computer, or encouraging his friends to get into gaming, or reading up on gaming news and visiting forums like this. He'd be a part of the community and keep up with trends. Gaming would be a bigger part of his identity.

 

[MysticSlayer]

Core gamers are the ones who go onto online forums deciding who is and isn't a core gamer. Casual gamers are those who don't go onto the forums to discuss and are therefore unaffected by the bickering until some asshole decides to insult people with the term during an online match. At that point, it is very easy to determine who the casual and core gamers are. The casuals are dumbfounded, unsure of what was just said. The core gamers side with the asshole and are therefore elevated to the level of super-asshole as well, and once there, only a few good rounds of Angry Birds will even start bringing you down from your ivory tower.

Joking aside, there really isn't a difference. It's just a stupid way for gamers to exclude each other for petty reasons and get a smug sense of self-satisfaction for being "better" than others at playing and discussing games.

To me, if someone plays games, they are a gamer. It doesn't matter what their preference is. If I've played it, I'll talk about it with them. If I haven't, I'll consider it and ask them if they want to consider some of my favorites. That's all there is to it.

 

[HardkorSB]

A core gamer typically has an inferiority complex.
A casual gamer typically doesn't know there is a division between casual and core gamers.

 

[Hero of Lime]

As much as I don't like making gamer labels, here is my simple distinction if I was forced to make a distinction of some sort.

If video games are one of, or your biggest hobbies/pastimes/things you like to do, you are a "gamer" or "hardcore gamer."

If you like video games, but don't really play that much or have a passing interest, then you could be called casual.

I don't mean any of this in a derogatory way, like I said, if I had to make a distinction, this would be it. I don't care if you love gaming with all your heart, or if you just like to play once in a while. If you have fun doing it, that's wonderful.

PS: Anyone who says someone is casual for playing solely on consoles really needs to make friends with an incinerator, or the bottom of a very deep lake. -_-

 

[VG_Addict]

I think "hardcore" is a bullshit term used by elitists.

 

[Roxas1359]

As much as I don't like making gamer labels, here is my simple distinction if I was forced to make a distinction of some sort.

If video games are one of, or your biggest hobbies/pastimes/things you like to do, you are a "gamer" or "hardcore gamer."

If you like video games, but don't really play that much or have a passing interest, then you could be called casual.

I don't mean any of this in a derogatory way, like I said, if I had to make a distinction, this would be it. I don't care if you love gaming with all your heart, or if you just like to play once in a while. If you have fun doing it, that's wonderful.

PS: Anyone who says someone is casual for playing solely on consoles really needs to make friends with an incinerator, or the bottom of a very deep lake. -_-

Why do you steal all my answers Hero? I mean, what am I supposed to type if you take them.
Really just as he said, I mainly think of a "casual gamer" as someone who does game, any genre they want, but don't do it really that much at all (like 4-6 hours a week total or so). Then we go into regular "gamer" who spends a large amount of time gaming, but not too much (like 10-25 hours a week total). Then we have "hardcore gamer" which is basically someone who games more than 48 hours total in a week. Then if we go a step above it'd be obsessive, in which more than 5 days of the week involve gaming.

At least that's how I've always seen it. More or less the only time my friends and I mention "causal" is when we purposely mock the notion by calling each other "filthy casuals." XD

 

[Hero of Lime]

As much as I don't like making gamer labels, here is my simple distinction if I was forced to make a distinction of some sort.

If video games are one of, or your biggest hobbies/pastimes/things you like to do, you are a "gamer" or "hardcore gamer."

If you like video games, but don't really play that much or have a passing interest, then you could be called casual.

I don't mean any of this in a derogatory way, like I said, if I had to make a distinction, this would be it. I don't care if you love gaming with all your heart, or if you just like to play once in a while. If you have fun doing it, that's wonderful.

PS: Anyone who says someone is casual for playing solely on consoles really needs to make friends with an incinerator, or the bottom of a very deep lake. -_-

Why do you steal all my answers Hero? I mean, what am I supposed to type if you take them.
Really just as he said, I mainly think of a "casual gamer" as someone who does game, any genre they want, but don't do it really that much at all (like 4-6 hours a week total or so). Then we go into regular "gamer" who spends a large amount of time gaming, but not too much (like 10-25 hours a week total). Then we have "hardcore gamer" which is basically someone who games more than 48 hours total in a week. Then if we go a step above it'd be obsessive, in which more than 5 days of the week involve gaming.

At least that's how I've always seen it. More or less the only time my friends and I mention "causal" is when we purposely mock the notion by calling each other "filthy casuals." XD

I just have a good way with words I suppose. ^.^

I certainly only use the term casual in an ironic sense like you and your friends do.

 

[MrHide-Patten]

Do you actively sit down and play a game with a sheer ditermination to complete it, reach the end of the narrative, or spend more than the laymen on games? Then you're part of the core.

If you just play angry birds to pass the time or borrow somebody's Wii for a birthday and never touch it again, your casual.

It's a matter of the type of investment somebody has.

claiming anyone who plays consoles are "casual" gamers.

How many bitches must I slap?