Event Title
Defining and Questioning the Terms "Casual" and "Hardcore" in Video Games
Location
CB1-122
Start Date
3-11-2017 3:30 PM
End Date
3-11-2017 4:30 PM
Description
In A Casual Revolution, Jesper Juul argued that "simple casual games are more popular than hardcore games" (Juul 8) and claimed that they do not require a great deal of knowledge to play (Juul 5), suggesting that a shift toward inclusivity and accessibility was occurring in gaming culture and design. The terms he uses, "casual" and "hardcore," are employed frequently in such discussions of games and their players; however, recent developments have called the definitions and usage of such terms into question. "Free to play" games and mobile games in particular have skyrocketed in popularity: for example, Blizzard Entertainment's Hearthstone was estimated to have over 50 million players in April 2016 (Frank). The popularity of such games suggests that, at least in some ways, gaming has become more inclusive as Juul suggested: players are not always the typical "hardcore gamers" that were often associated with video games in the past, and games are designed to appeal to larger audiences. On the other hand, various controversies in the gaming community also suggest that there are still many unresolved issues within gaming culture, and in such discussions, terms like "casual" and "hardcore" are often used pejoratively rather than descriptively.
This roundtable addresses the HASTAC conference themes because it explores the potential for both effective and problematic uses of the terms "casual" and "hardcore" in discourse about gaming. Addressing these concerns requires an inclusive and interdisciplinary approach because of the variety of ways the terms "casual" and "hardcore" are used, and resolving these questions will therefore necessitate answering them from a variety of viewpoints. After a brief overview of how these terms have been used by scholars, designers, and gamers in the past, I hope to raise some of the following questions for a roundtable discussion with both the panelists and the audience:
- How should the terms causal and hardcore be defined, both with regards to games and gamers?
- Are popular free-to-play mobile games, such as Blizzard Entertainment's Hearthstone, casual, hardcore, or both? Is there an objective way to measure such factors?
- Could a taxonomy for casual and hardcore games be developed?
- Do the monetization methods of video games affect whether they are casual or hardcore?
- The terms "Casual" and "Hardcore" often have negative connotations when used to describe players – can some of these problems be addressed? If not, should the terms be abandoned?
- What happens when labels such as "causal" and "hardcore" evolve and take on various characteristics?
- Are the terms "casual" and "hardcore" still useful with regards to video games? If not, what can be done about their prevalence in discussions of gaming culture?
Defining and Questioning the Terms "Casual" and "Hardcore" in Video Games
CB1-122
In A Casual Revolution, Jesper Juul argued that "simple casual games are more popular than hardcore games" (Juul 8) and claimed that they do not require a great deal of knowledge to play (Juul 5), suggesting that a shift toward inclusivity and accessibility was occurring in gaming culture and design. The terms he uses, "casual" and "hardcore," are employed frequently in such discussions of games and their players; however, recent developments have called the definitions and usage of such terms into question.
