What is your idea of a hardcore gamer?
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Well if you can persevere enough to play the horrible mess that is Soul Calibur Lost Swords and keep coming back for more then you are hardcore..... and insane in my books. I have never had a game drain my soul so fast, ha! a pun....dont worry ill show myself out.
For me I suppose I'd say hardcore = competitive. The kind of gamer who has played a game so much that they're able to filter out all the cosmetic "fluff" and engage directly with the "crunch" of the game mechanics. Examples would include high-level competitive FPS players, Streetfighter players, the kind of person who can get a triple-A rating on the hardest mode of Dance Dance Revolution, people who do speed-runs of games, and so on.
Basically, the type of gamer who doesn't just play frequently or passionately or even compulsively, like achievement hunters. I'd call a hardcore gamer somebody who approaches a game with the mindset that they're not playing it, but working on it. Sharpening their muscle memory, finding optimal strategies, seeking out and abusing bugs and glitches to the point where they've dissected the game and have an intuitive mastery of it.
I occasionally see this kind of gamer while playing Left 4 Dead 2 and it's insane how good they are. They have an encyclopedic knowledge of each level, know when crescendo events are coming and where the optimal stand-off points are, abuse the check-point and regeneration mechanics, and are intimately knowledgeable about how to combat each type of zombie. They don't panic or get caught up in the "fluff" of the game, I can only assume they view the game dispassionately in terms of Matrix-code and treat the whole thing as a dynamic equation that can be solved. It's simultaneously impressive and a bit worrying. They don't just know the levels and have the ability to shoot straight, it's the mindset that separates them from other players.
So, yeah, I don't think any of the following alone can make you "hardcore":
- Having played games since you were X years old
- Having played games for Y years
- Being so into the canon or culture that you get gaming tattoos, name your kids Zelda and Master Chief, etc
- Having a huge game collection
- Having a huge Gamerscore / trophy collection
- Playing for Z hours every day
These would make you a fanatic, or a collector, or a buff, or possibly a bit of an obsessive. A true hardcore player takes things to a different level.
Basically, the type of gamer who doesn't just play frequently or passionately or even compulsively, like achievement hunters. I'd call a hardcore gamer somebody who approaches a game with the mindset that they're not playing it, but working on it. Sharpening their muscle memory, finding optimal strategies, seeking out and abusing bugs and glitches to the point where they've dissected the game and have an intuitive mastery of it.
I occasionally see this kind of gamer while playing Left 4 Dead 2 and it's insane how good they are. They have an encyclopedic knowledge of each level, know when crescendo events are coming and where the optimal stand-off points are, abuse the check-point and regeneration mechanics, and are intimately knowledgeable about how to combat each type of zombie. They don't panic or get caught up in the "fluff" of the game, I can only assume they view the game dispassionately in terms of Matrix-code and treat the whole thing as a dynamic equation that can be solved. It's simultaneously impressive and a bit worrying. They don't just know the levels and have the ability to shoot straight, it's the mindset that separates them from other players.
So, yeah, I don't think any of the following alone can make you "hardcore":
- Having played games since you were X years old
- Having played games for Y years
- Being so into the canon or culture that you get gaming tattoos, name your kids Zelda and Master Chief, etc
- Having a huge game collection
- Having a huge Gamerscore / trophy collection
- Playing for Z hours every day
These would make you a fanatic, or a collector, or a buff, or possibly a bit of an obsessive. A true hardcore player takes things to a different level.
At the very least you must be wrestling a bear while playing, and you must win at both.
But really I'll give the mark to anyone who genuinely pushes their limits in games, if you just keep chewing that minimum effort bench then you are a mere scrub. And I very well know people boasting high Gamerscore do just that, buy snooze grade games that give them quick numbers without effort.
But really I'll give the mark to anyone who genuinely pushes their limits in games, if you just keep chewing that minimum effort bench then you are a mere scrub. And I very well know people boasting high Gamerscore do just that, buy snooze grade games that give them quick numbers without effort.
I don't think the idea of a hardcore gamer is a black/white, casual/hardcore kind of thing. I like to think of it as flexible and fluid and appropriate at different times. Like, I would think that a professional Starcraft player, somebody who has sunk 1300 hours into Dark Souls, somebody who knows every secret to all the Final Fantasy games, someone who writes essays of game design or art are all hardcore gamers. But I don't think any of those things are "requirements" of being classified as a hardcore gamer.
I'd consider myself a hardcore gamer (though I wouldn't rush to say it out loud). Even though I'm not particularly good at any game, but I spend a lot of time playing and thinking about them.
It's a bit silly though, isn't it? Does this argument serve any other purpose than generating elitism and creating a cheap way of dismissing the opinion of other people?
I'd consider myself a hardcore gamer (though I wouldn't rush to say it out loud). Even though I'm not particularly good at any game, but I spend a lot of time playing and thinking about them.
It's a bit silly though, isn't it? Does this argument serve any other purpose than generating elitism and creating a cheap way of dismissing the opinion of other people?
Mindset and priority given to other things in life. Running a few laps of Mariokart vs. dedicating weeks to getting the fastest possible time on each track.
High School me would have beaten Demon's Souls when it came out. Mid-30s me couldn't guarantee that my one year old wouldn't get up crying and I'd have to deal with the fact that there's no pause option, so never got past like the second boss.
Work you do outside the game for the game might also qualify. My MMO tastes still tend to be hardcore/geek as I tend to create spreadsheets of crafting/loot info - though nothing on the binder of EQ stuff I had in the day. Likewise for people who spend time analyzing FPS maps. Or going for platinum trophies or 100% completion.
Honestly, family and work keep me more or less casual, with just bursts of hardcore if my wife takes the kids somewhere for a weekend.
High School me would have beaten Demon's Souls when it came out. Mid-30s me couldn't guarantee that my one year old wouldn't get up crying and I'd have to deal with the fact that there's no pause option, so never got past like the second boss.
Work you do outside the game for the game might also qualify. My MMO tastes still tend to be hardcore/geek as I tend to create spreadsheets of crafting/loot info - though nothing on the binder of EQ stuff I had in the day. Likewise for people who spend time analyzing FPS maps. Or going for platinum trophies or 100% completion.
Honestly, family and work keep me more or less casual, with just bursts of hardcore if my wife takes the kids somewhere for a weekend.
if you use guides then your a filthy casual. Lol just kidding. But seriously, hardcore gamers don't use guides. The closest thing to a guide i've ever used was maps. It's one of the reasons i hate most games these days that have built in guide (i'm looking at you skyrim, and like every mmo ever). I don't mind something leading you in the right direction, but i hate how most games lead you right to the exact pin point location.Keoul said:
A hardcore gamer is someone who doesn't need guides or any of that bullshit, can solo most things that recommend having a party to fight, embraces all forms of games (Video games, Board Games, Pen and Paper RPGs, Card Games, etc), and lastly they don't rely on cheats/hacks/mods/etc to win. Hardcore gamers are also able to find and often predict where the secrets are. Alas i find the true hardcore gamer to be a dying breed.
I wouldn't define it as being extremely good at it. My definition of a hardcore gamer is being extremely invested in gaming.
Knowing where to find all the easter eggs, knowing everything about the lore, having played a game so much you know the dialogue by heart, spending a lot of time gaming obsessively and constanly thinking and talking about games when you are not playing makes you hardcore.
Knowing where to find all the easter eggs, knowing everything about the lore, having played a game so much you know the dialogue by heart, spending a lot of time gaming obsessively and constanly thinking and talking about games when you are not playing makes you hardcore.
Only one bear?!Smooth Operator said:
Scrub, should be a full family of bears and a Walrus in heat.
OT: Find the term to be kind of silly but anyone who puts utterly ridiculous amounts of effort into mastery of their game of choice.
Someone who simply really loves games. It doesn't necessarily have to be your favorite hobby, or your life, but someone who overall really loves all different types of games is hardcore in my book. Competitive hardcore is different, though. If you only play fighting games, and your top in the world, than of course you're hardcore.
hardcore is staying up till 3am on a school night. hardcore is wearing the badge of gamer with pride rather than hiding your passion in public. hardcore is not being a prick to other people that aren't as hardcore into it as you. hardcore can be someone that picks their poison (fps, action etc.) and smashing the crap out of each and every one they can, it can also be someone that sinks serious time into a single title.
To me that would be a gamer who is obsess with gaming 24/7 and is also very skillful like getting all of the achivements or pulling of hard or impossible stunts that no one can do the first time round.
I agree with this sentiment. Although I also believe that achievements and trophies are for "social gamers" (excuse my patronising expression).Liquidprid3 said:
For me, it's passion and breadth of knowledge and experience. I don't think a 'hardcore' gamer would or should be afraid of game overs or be obsessed over achievements or online rankings. They're interested in the games. They love the games. They love the different aspects of the games and though they might not love every genre or theme but it certainly helps to enjoy more rather than less. They are not afraid of valid criticism or potential change for the better whatever that may be. They may also choose to challenge negative issues in their hobby.
(I'm also going to throw out that point that not everyone has the same amount of energy, time or money depending on where they are in their life.)
A hardcore gamer (and anyone really) should also refrain from being an abusive harpy, though we all have our bad days...
I have the same view regarding other hobbies.
I always thought that the more "serious", relatively speaking, you are, in terms of playing video games, the more "hardcore" you become over time... However, there has to be a sense of pure enjoyment and a sense of better understanding, if need to, that separates those that that see it as just a "passing fad" and those that see it as more of a "hobby" or something to get "enthusiastic" for on a daily, weekly, monthly, and even yearly basis...