The rise of the hardcore?

[Josh Laubscher]

Being an avid gamer I can safely say that a majority of games released I have played. During my time I have found many shocking revaluations in the word of gaming.

The first being gameplay mechanics,in a face value comparison its easy to see that the gaming industry has been taken down a predictable "Gamer Friendly" route in comparison to old school titles, despite the hostility produced by the seasoned gaming community, its obvious why, because it makes it much easier for casual players or people new to gaming in attempt to hook them onto other games.

My question is, even though games have been easier now than they have ever been where to next? I mean the difficulty curve is still declining in many genres so I have no idea when it would stop *BUT* do you fore see some kind of resurgent in hardcore gaming? Would this mechanic bounce back?

If I may show an example, Demons Souls was the first game I have played in a long time with that surviving hardcore spirit, now Dark Souls is in the making and spreading its capacity to other consoles do you think if this proves popular, that this would be the catalyst that creates its return?

My second question is, Game mechanics that embrace hate among players?

At face value this sounds like a ridiculous idea I`m sure but if done correctly could it perhaps be the *very* thing that brings a player back to the game? For example player 1 stole an item from player 2, if you were player 2 would you give up? Or rather proceed and do your best to get it back? This feature could hypothetically break the monotony of online play or even regular play, but obviously if not capped correctly these mechanics would cause players to give up. But just think how it would be if properly measured?

 

[thenamelessloser]

I think multiple difficulty settings are the solution to a game being too hard and easy. (shifting stuff not just how much damage but things such as how complex the menus and stuff are)The main problem is I think is that many people who don't want a harder gaming experience end up playing it on normal because their pride gets in the way. So, I think they have to be changed what they are called and classified as. For instance, a setting that is easy should be called normal so people would play it instead of being too challenged by a harder difficulty

 

[Move127]

You seem to be referring to hardcore as the really difficult games of the past, so I believe that the reason for any decrease in this market is because of the expansion of the video game industry. Originally the people playing video games were willing to deal with a certain level of difficulty, but now the market is so much larger that the money comes from accessibility. I don't believe that any trend like this will continue, since there will come a point when a game is so easy that the fun will be gone. As long as there is money to be made by making a certain type of game then the industry will produce that type of game. Will there be a resurgence: possibly. Do I expect one: not really.