Why You are Dumber Than A Casual Gamer

This week's video is about casual gamers and how they're smarter than you, even though we typically think of them as dumb, drooling pack animals who swallow any old crap if they're told to. I think I make a convincing argument, although feel free to provide me some counters!

[big_silky]

The difference between something like Farmville and lets say Halo is that you're pretty much forced to buy the map packs if you want to keep playing. Sure you don't literally have to buy them but if it's a game you love and you see your play list options getting smaller and smaller, you'll end up buying the content.

[SilentNegotiator]

Eh, I don't purchase map packs, but I'd still consider myself a hardcore gamer. Most of the time, you're not really "forced" to buy map packs. Although in Halo 3, they pulled a total dick move and made some of the match types DLC maps only, and in Call of Duty, they purposely make it so that it will start a DLC map and kick you out when the match starts if you don't have the map pack, then it reminds you that you could buy their map packs.

[rockleex]

Owns ANY game you can think of!

http://games.adultswim.com/...

What playing this game will do to you:

http://www.terj.ch/robotuni...

http://files.sharenator.com...

http://img1.imagebanana.com...

[Fanb0y]

rockleex:

What the f*ck did I just play?!

[rockleex]

>:D

[RedSky]

You know what is also free and highly enjoyable? Wanking.

Most utterly idiotic argument I have ever heard.

A convincing argument for why FarmVille is wasting away the only life you will ever get? How about:

- It has no compelling storyline, no clever plot twists, no social commentary.

- It is artistically vapid and doesn't look much better than your average flash game.

- There is no skill involved. It is an exercise in monotonous button clicking and grinding in pursuit of nothing more than more monotony.

- It is not inovative in the slightest.

And by the way there are tons of games out there, and yes you may have to pay for some, that do some or all of these things.

While the author may be the kind of guy who's distracted by the next shinny thing that catches their eye, I prefer to spend my free time doing something worthwhile.

(Like debasing idiotic arguments on the internet, yes I know irony, irony, irony!)

[dredgewalker]

What kind of a moron would rather play Farmville than Halo or any other great hardcore game? Even with the packs it is still worth the money and people who game and complain about the cost of gaming should just stop gaming cause gaming is a hobby and a luxury.

[GuruStarr78]

? Why you are dumber "THEN" a casual gamer?

Learn proper English before you post stories about being dumb.

[Girlgamer116]

It the internet.
We not in school so relax!

[electricshadow]

"We not in school so relax"

I really hope you said that to be funny. You're correct, we're not in school. However, when you're trying to submit a news story that has poor grammar, it makes your credibility look worthless.

[karl]

so which is it? English isn't my first language and now im confuse..

[poindat]

The correct one is "than." I believe that he was referring to the title of the article, which has now been fixed so the reference seems a bit odd now. :p

[karl]

understand I, many thanks

[SilentNegotiator]

"We not in school so relax!"

We NOT?! Than were is we?!

[Focker-420]

Actually its THAN.

'Then' is used when doing something in a sequence. 'Than' is used when comparing things. Sorry, but hes right.

[Cevapi88]

he was pointing that out in the title, i dont think he was saying that it was the correct grammar...the title reads THEN so the OP is incorrect, and THAN is right which you pointed out

[Megaton]

Not a fan of apostrophes, eh?

it's*, he's*

I has a grammar.

[DigitalRaptor]

Sorry Jim, but if Farmville was a premium game from the outlook, no-one would've played it. It's free because it's simple and no-one would pay for that, unless it's small things like extra content.

Casual gamers aren't stupid, but they just don't have as "smart" a judgement as hardcore players, or gamers who are in touch with the industry do. I would best describe casual players as ignorant. Less willing to spend money on the hobby that is gaming. In other words, they are less attached to games than hardcore players seem to be.

Farmville IS less valid than other more hardcore games like FF or Dragon Quest is because it doesn't has anywhere near the depth or variety that those sorts of games do have.

[AWBrawler]

Says who? We have a console game thats like Farmville its called Harvest Moon and let me assure you that my Gamecube Harvest moon games could be just as engaging and deep gameplay wise as My kingdom Hearts, Call of Duties, and Fire Emblems.
Just like you supposed "Hardcore" gamers write of pokemon as having less depth than say Madden. That too is a lie. There is a lot to get into involving Evs, Ivs, breeding for certain natures, developing flawless pokemon with perfect move sets.

So yea. Casual gamers are smarter than most "Hardcore" gamers, cos they or more careful of what they will pay for.

[stragomccloud]

Totally true on the Pokemon bit. People who think there is no depth to it, obviously haven't played enough of it. Pokemon is the only rpg where at the 80 hour mark, you're just getting started. I can't remember my playtime on the original, but on Pokemon Leaf Green for GBA, I logged about 160 hours!

[Soldierone]

A game with depth in it is not a casual game. Pokemon is a simpler game, but its not as casual as what people are talking about here. Its a game you spend hours on end playing and hardcore casual gamers will NOT do that. And sure your game "looks" like Farmville, but its not Farmville. It has depth and a story to it, meanwhile Farmville does not. And I highly doubt it was made within a month in Flash....

[DigitalRaptor]

But Pokemon isn't a casual game. It has deep story, characters, unique gameplay and strong roots as a franchise.

And being smart with money isn't the same as being smart. I suppose it's not as simple as what you said. Casual gamers are probably smarter in real life areas, but not in a gaming sense i.e. knowing the industry and what makes a good game in technical terms.

[CaulkSlap]

Simple minds are entertained by simple things.

[pixelsword]

(sees destructoid)

*leaves*

P.S.

Quit the fake British accent Jim; you're fooling no one.

[lex-1020]

Nuff said. Farmville doesn't have a story. Dragon Age does.

[AWBrawler]

Animal Crossing doesn't have a story, but thats not stopping people from playing it 365 days

[poindat]

Talk about cherry picking. What about all those casual gamers who shell out the big bucks over and over for each new Sims expansion, many of which simply recycle content from previous games?

And it's more than possible to maintain a decent collection of "hardcore" games without ever shelling out $60. Buy later. Buy used. Steam sales. PSN and Xbox LIVE games. Shit, I can play a game such as Dwarf Fortress (which I think we can easily consider as "hardcore") for free. Just like his Farmville example, except that I'm not being suckered into buying premium content. Who's the dumber one now?

No, Jim has most definitely NOT provided a convincing argument in any way.

[tiamat5]

People mix up casual gamers with non gamers. Non gamers will buy any gaming crap because they are ignorant to the gaming world and don't know how somethings work. Casual gamers still know about games but prefer a different type of game then the hardcore. It's only these days casual seems to translate to stupid judging by some of the games these companies make

[BuIIetproofish_]

If you weren't such a fat fuck you'd know you can get games you've never played for almost nothing. He's dumber than a casual gamer. There are plenty of free games you can get that are better than Farmville and they aren't trying to convince you to buy BS things for your farm. Its cute tubby tried, but he failed. I'll gladly pay $60 for a quality experience I can keep going back to if I want to.

[DelbertGrady]

The only thing that's hardcore about Jim Sterling is his obesity problem.

[a_squirrel]

lol

[ZombieAutopsy]

There's big jim again trying to start a bunch of BS to make himself seem like a big shot in the gaming journalism world. It should read "Why Jim Sterling is dumber than...everyone".

[Nugundam0079]

Why are casual gamers dumb? because some of them dont follow the biggest gaming trends? or that some of them do? dont lump all of them together just because they dont swallow the same crap as yourself!

[AWBrawler]

I don't follow trends. I play what I like. Reviews eat sonic alive and they hate poor Shadow, but aside from clunky controls 3D sonic is known for, Shadow the Hedgehog kicks @$$.
So like I always say: Play what you like and leave words like casual and Hardcore at the fanboy table

besides, I'm more hardcore than most of you. Guess what I do when not on N4G??? Thats right play games oldschool 8-bit all the way up to modern day. I play a game from each gen at least once a week. Next week is Shenmue

[Count]

Lol, yeah, harp so much about being hardcore, I bet none of these dudes would even beat any Ghouls 'n' Goblins or Contra.

[Rocket Sauce]

You know what I think is stupid? Using a word like "hardcore" to describe something as mundane as playing a video game. When you look at the clock and realize it's 3 AM and you've been playing Street Fighter for 7 hours, and your face and fingertips are covered with Cheeto-dust...that's not hardcore.

...not that that's ever happened to me or anything.

...

[Count]

Yup, excuse casual gamers for deciding to have more of a social life. Hey, casuals can flaunt about that!

Funny thing is, if they actually did, these 'hardcore gamers' would flip like it's the apocalypse.

[Alos88]

Because that would be a dick move. Casual gamers are hopefully above that bullshit.

[Count]

Yes, that's the point.

Why can't 'hardcore gamers' be above this also?

[Alos88]

Well I don't go around telling people they are dumb for being casual gamers, but I always help me friends with their purchasing decisions. Heck, more than one person I have discouraged from buying some truly dire games by getting them to rent em' first.

[NarooN]

Except with the whole bit of me being a hardcore gamer but still having an active social life? And I'm not even counting e-friends that I only talk to like once every two weeks. Staying up into the early hours of the morning playing games, watching movies with friends is fun. I don't care about casuals and their "lives" when I have my own to worry about.

[Alos88]

Jim Sterling, and why he needs to get laid- now that's an article I think really needs writing.

[Dogswithguns]

I have been stopping buying DLC for a long time now. and no more spending $60 on a new game.

[comp_ali]

Why Jim Sterling is dumper than Bush II. read his articles and you will know.

[Soldierone]

How do you reference "smarter"? In terms of smarts about video games and the industry, casual gamers dont stand a chance. In terms of story telling, depth, having a hobby, playing all nighters, etc.. Casual gamers dont have a chance. In terms of buying cheap crap and having fun, Casual gamers have a slight chance.

The only differnce between the two is the fact games could completely disapear and casual gamers wouldnt care at all, theyd find something else to entertain themselves for two seconds. While hardcore gamers would basically kill themselves of boredom.

throw Dragon Age infront of the two groups and quiz them after about 8 hours. The hardcore gamer could tell you the entire story, be half way through the game, and be completely interested in playing longer. The Casual gamer would probably already have Guitar Hero in....after he played 10 other games that didnti nstantly please him.

[Cerv-Clash]

He does have a good point,personally I play Farmville a bit,Mafia Wars and Sims but I also play RDR and COD etc. so what's my label? :P

Anyways to his own,I guess from the get go I don't these labels and I'm not a fan of the generalization that casual guys are "stupid".The generalization that hardcore guys are lifeless losers is stupid.Damn Society!

[palaeomerus]

I think we need an article on why the shit the blog gamer press writes is even dumber than the usual professional gamer press shit.

[bjornbear]

that I'm dumber than the casuals because...they play farmville and we play real games?

GTFO and go eat some cheese burgers.

oh and by the way:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/m...

this retard doesn't even do research

moral of the story:

Farmville is "really successful" and making "a shit ton of money" because casuals are AS dumb or DUMBER than we are.
At least gamers get ripped off for real quality games not bullsh!t browser crap.

[rumplstilts]

The terms hardcore and casual are grossly overused and extremely unclear in meaning. I think both terms need to die.

[Nickster800]

don't always focus on trophies achievements or kill streak rewards when playing video games instead of enjoying them.