What does it take to be a Hardcore Gamer?

[Thaius]

You're a gamer if you appreciate gaming beyond just a simple pastime. If you play a multiplayer game not just for fun, but for the competition, for teamwork, to prove yourself: you're a gamer. If you play through a campaign to experience a work of art, to go through a story, not just to shoot stuff, you're a gamer. If you get excited when you find out something cool about a game you're looking forward to, you're a gamer.

 

[mrx19869]

boom headshot

 

[lenneth]

You described what a gamer is but you asked what a hardcore gamer is.

I'd say being hardcore is either playing games for longer than you spend talking to people face to face or you came about 3rd in a gaming comp.

Hmm its normally a 60/40 split in Talkings favour but the last week has been like 80/20 in gamings favour

havent done any tourneys recently but at SSBM im easily in the top 5 for the state

Someone who invests a lot of time, effort and love into gaming.

Thats me alright.

They are the ones that enjoy the games no one else does to an insane degree

Me again.

and make fun of you if you don't share their level of extreme devotion.

This, not so much.

i guess hardcore just gets taken as N00bish if it's self-proclaimed,

You need to be a bit of an arse, with a contempt and hatred for everyone around you.

You need to feel that the gaming industry as a whole should pander to your desires and your desires alone.

You (usually) need to associate with one franchise and one franchise alone, calling everything else utter garbage that only those filthy casuals could possibly like.

The type of person referred to in this post is not a "hardcore gamer" this person is a "prick"

 

[Vrex360]

When a person plays a game and deeply enjoys it, thinks about game stories, becomes interested in the development side and in general has his life greatly effect by games. It shouldn't matter what those games are, only if they effect his life enough for them to be a regular part of his life.

 

[Vrex360]

Its self-procalaimed and worthless. You can't be a hardcore gamer in my mind because their is nothing hardcore about it. Its a past-time and if anyone does it professionaly and competitively I still don't consider them hardcore. You could say they were 'skilled' as impractical as it is. But not hardcore.

Actually yeah that's a better answer, it's amazing how seriously people can take a pastime that is meant to just be fun.

 

[MGlBlaze]

My opinion is to be a hardcore gamer you have to know your stuff and if you don't know anything about a particular game or console or anything really, don't try and act like you do know.

Those that are hardcore know when to shut up and learn. Being good at games also helps this.

Pretty much this. Also, the hardcore will relish a challenge... okay, so beating CoD4 on Veterain is bordering on masochistic, but still.

I would just like to re-enforce this one group of points as well; Do NOT act like you know something when you clearly don't (this is what makes a noob), do not be arrogant (ditto), do not condescend to those not as good as you are if it's clear they're trying the best they can and want to get better (again...). Oh, and don't cheat or hack. That automatically makes you a KING noob no matter how many other good qualities you may have (which should be pretty obvious, really.)

Being hardcore doesn't really necessitate you be especially good, but it helps. You just need to know your stuff. Even if you lose time and time again, coming back for more because you want to beat it is a pretty tell-tale hallmark of the hardcore.

And I sound like a pretentious git now.

In short;
Be humble, don't cheat, don't be a know-it-all when you clearly don't, and be prepared to take on a challenge.

Edit;
Also, leave your biases about different gaming platforms at the door. Being a multi-platform gamer certainly helps, but even if you aren't, avoid thinking 'my platform is better than X'. No one platform is actually 'better', and they all have their own merits, so trying to objectively compare them to find out which one is 'best' is a waste of time.

Its self-procalaimed and worthless. You can't be a hardcore gamer in my mind because their is nothing hardcore about it. Its a past-time and if anyone does it professionaly and competitively I still don't consider them hardcore. You could say they were 'skilled' as impractical as it is. But not hardcore.

Actually yeah that's a better answer, it's amazing how seriously people can take a pastime that is meant to just be fun.

May be a bad example, but; football or any other major sport. At one point it probably started off as some child's game no-one took seriously, and look how such a stupidly big deal they have become.

I will give you that games are a past-time that is meant to be fun, but other games (most notable first person shooters and real-time strategy) require fast thinking, fast reflexes, strategy, planning, skill and determination. Kinda like most sports, actually. Funny, that. There are tournaments for games, after all.

There's nothing stopping people from saying they're a fun past-time, because that's true; saying that it's wrong to take them seriously at the same time, though, is a mark of ignorance. The bottom line is, if you want them to just be fun, then that's okay. Just don't expect everyone else to share your views all the time.

Edit;

You need to be a bit of an arse, with a contempt and hatred for everyone around you.

You need to feel that the gaming industry as a whole should pander to your desires and your desires alone.

You (usually) need to associate with one franchise and one franchise alone, calling everything else utter garbage that only those filthy casuals could possibly like.

People like that are not hardcore. They are what is technically referred to as "colossal douche-bags". However, at the same time, you also neatly mirror what a lot of other people on the Internet seem to be, and this is fairly saddening. Doesn't stop that being a case of them being wrong, though.

Edit;

The words 'Hardcore gamer' irritate me. Owning 250+ games (dating back to the NES) and being told I'm not hardcore since I don't own a 360 is... AUGH! Does it really matter? My definition of 'Hardcore' is anyone who has spent large amounts of time and money on this form of entertainment, showing dedication and support of it.

Ignore people like that, they seem to have misplaced their brain and replaced it with a steroid-shrunk testicle. Although may I ask what platforms you do have? If they were saying you weren't hardcore simply because of a lack of a 360 then, yeah, just ignore them... or bust them in the face in an attempt to knock a little intelligence into them. That's what I'd probably be driven to do.

...Christ, this post is getting long.

Final edit - basically read this in a case of 'TL;DR';
Hardcore gamers, at the end of the day, are the people who really care about the gaming media. They may be 'uber-pro' or suck at the games, they can play any different genre, they can have many different attitudes; but that is their one unifying factor.

They're the people who have cherished memories of some games, they want to see the industry grow, they want to see Games explore new concepts and directions, and they care about the companies that might go under trying to do that. Anyone remember the stupid, stupid amount of controversy surrounding Six Days In Fallujah and has gotten Atomic Games in a tight spot?

 

[j1nx]

Hardcore.

You can read very different meanings of the word "hardcore" gamer.
Places discussing videogames related to the letter "V" would like you to believe that a hardcore gamer is one who doesn't follow the crowd. One who is special, unique, someone who stands out and is totally fucking awesome. Thats nice and all, because who woudn't like to be unique? Thus the term is used to describe people who play older, less popular, harder to colplete games. The average gamer woudn't get why they play the same game all over again because they are considerd "casual", they follow the pack, they buy whatever game gets enough publication, is praised by game reviewers, ...
Both groups play different games but for mostly the same reason; to have fun.

But seeing the group of gamers who play games a few hours a week is much bigger then the group who plays several hours a day, a certain gap between groups has started to exist.

Those who have been playing for a long time (in years/decades), (probably the group who plays a few hours a day) see alot of games using recycled ideas, stuff dropped out of games, stuff they enjoyed, stuff the developers now expect us to play for ontop of the price you've paid for the game.
This group obviously doesn't like the fact games get more expensive, shorter, and more-so they dont like the fact that that other group doesn't seem to care.

Thus they use the term Hardcore gamers to describe themselves as a group who don't follow the pack, who are "the true gamers", something every gamer should try to become as it is the only way to enjoy games.

They add a positive meaning to the word hardcore, a mindset that says the true hardcore gamer is better then the casual, because he is "different".


But to me however;

Beeing a hardcore gamer is having a certain mindset.
You enjoy playing videogames, obviously, but you do so because of more reasons then just having fun.
You have fun - because you win.
And because of that you will do what it takes to win. You will play longer, more dedicated, pay more attention to certain aspects (learn the shortest routes, learn what weapons are better to use on what ocasions, learn to think how the enemy would think, ...).
You play to win. This can be in any sort of game, think min-maxing in RPG's, think buildorders in RTS, think watching replays of FPS matches.
Those players will often be discussing in fora, learning new tactics, comparing strategy's, theorycrafting.

But they do this - because it allows them to get the advantage - to win.
They dont get mad when they lose a game, instead they think, what went wrong?, how can i prevent this?
They basicly go the extra mile to ensure they get what they desire - the win.
Thus they will also be found in the more competitive scene of gaming.
But just winning isn't enough.

The winning is a result of an underlying idea, the idea of beeing better then your opponent, beeing able to outmanouver him, to outsmart him.
you can play a game on easy and you will win.
But the hardcore will for instance play on the hardest settings and still (try to) defeat the game.
Hence the competitive scene is the ideal place to fight against people with the same mindset, people who also want to win at all costs, who also went the extra mile, who counter your mindgames with mindgames of their own.


All in all hardcore gamers, just as any other kind of gamers, plays games, but with a different mindset.


This is my view on the 'hardcore' gamer.
I could be wrong.

*edit*
Wops, went a dit overboard on this one it seems
inb4 wall of text

 

[TPiddy]

Hardcore gamers are not sweaty parent's basement no job losers.... if you feel the need to make fun of those people that just shows your own insecurity as a gamer.

Hardcore gamers are people who identify with gaming culture.... People who know who Kratos, Wrex and Cloud are instead of just Mario. People who get references like "The Cake is a Lie" and "Jill Sandwich". People who play games that require more than two buttons.

Most of us here are hardcore gamers, and as much as we'd like to distance ourselves from the freaks in the basement, we're not all that different from them. Gaming, at it's core, is about escapism, and some people have more to escape from than others.

 

[Danpascooch]

You need a soft chocolate shell with a hard nougat interior.

 

[TPiddy]

You need to be a bit of an arse, with a contempt and hatred for everyone around you.

You need to feel that the gaming industry as a whole should pander to your desires and your desires alone.

You (usually) need to associate with one franchise and one franchise alone, calling everything else utter garbage that only those filthy casuals could possibly like.

I think this more appropriately describes a 'fanboy'.

 

[Bediz]

You have to pretend you're better than every other person that enjoys video games. You also have to sling the insult "casual gamer" like it's the N-word and make sure you use against EVERYONE that even considers questioning how Hardcore you are.

 

[Cmwissy]

Pick a console - pick a game; and everyone who disagrees with you is a 'fag'

Also; get really annoyed when someone better than you beats you and say they're hacking.

 

[youknowwho]

Skill, patience, money, skill and patience to get the money, 100+ games, no life, no girlfriend, a game room in your house, etc.
and a damn good alibi when your parents catch you playing M rated games...

 

[MGlBlaze]

May be a bad example, but; football or any other major sport. At one point it probably started off as some child's game no-one took seriously, and look how such a stupidly big deal they have become.

I will give you that games are a past-time that is meant to be fun, but other games (most notable first person shooters and real-time strategy) require fast thinking, fast reflexes, strategy, planning, skill and determination. Kinda like most sports, actually. Funny, that. There are tournaments for games, after all.

There's nothing stopping people from saying they're a fun past-time, because that's true; saying that it's wrong to take them seriously at the same time, though, is a mark of ignorance. The bottom line is, if you want them to just be fun, then that's okay. Just don't expect everyone else to share your views all the time.

You seem to have gone and ignored your own point. Soccer and other sports did start off as nothings and slowly over time they grew to be accepted parts of society, and accepted socially to be played competitively. This doesent mean that the people who first played it weren't being silly when they proclaimed themself hardcore soccer players (if they did, its an analogy). If gaming grows to be this kind of thing then great, there can be 'hardcore' people as much as a dislike the phrase. However in the present, which is all that matters there aren't and its not.

I have made a mistake... but it isn't what you listed. My mistake was placing some small faith in human beings to realise that my analogy was to draw attention to things that seemed rediculous or wrong in the past that have become commonplace now; including how games apparently all "corrupt people" despite Television, movies, jazz and God-knows what else having apparently done the exact same thing not all that long ago. No, I asked to much from those miserable creatures. I need to state myself more explicitly.

The point was to try and look to the past for a more enlightened and intelligent view of the present; looking at similar events in the past to what things are like now to try and reach a more open-minded state for things to come, but again I was apparently asking too much.

Now I suddenly remember EXACTLY why I hold the general human race with nothing but contempt.

Edit;
Also, if some of what I said loops around on itself a bit, that's because I'm really tired right now.

 

[veloper]

To be considered hardcore you have to LOVE a videogame, play it very often and talk about it.

Secondary requirement: you also need to have some skill and talent for it, though knowlegde of the game still comes before that.

The singular is on purpose: you can be hardcore for a genre, as series or even just one game.

 

[Neotericity]

Mile High Club Achievement=Hardcore

 

[Apathetic_cynicism]

Satan will be waiting in hell with a mile-long document that you must sign in blood, and as collateral, he takes something random away from you.