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What defines 'casual game?'
DannyCrowley
Member Posts: 1
The subject is my main question, but first a little background.
I play lots of different games during the day, from browser to console to handheld.
Recently I started playing World Alpha (http://www.worldalpha.com/) a social-strategy-mmo since it is relatively new and I like to try out new games.
In the IRC channels for the game we got into a discussion on if this game is for the casual player or not. Unlike some of the other games of its genre, you cannot just log into the site click a Work button, a Train button, and hit Fight 5 times and log off for 24 hours. In World Alpha you set a queue for doing daily activities, which in RL time is at most like 9-hrs ish. So to keep your queue from emptying out and not doing anything, kinda like EvE and letting your training queue lapse or after manu projects just letting it sit, it just takes a few more minutes to get back on and set up some more.
So, in-game time it is not that much required. Most of the action takes place in the IRC channels where the countries talk about planning, building, etc.. Because it is a browser game, no one is using voice chats for coordination (yet 
)
It is not like WoW or EvE where running missions or instances or roams can last hours at a time.
But it is not like some other social strategy mmos where you can be done in literally 3 minutes.
While I am on and off all day long playing, I do not consider it casual because it does take some time out of my day, but it is no where near hardcore or anything like it. It is somewhere between?
So, with that said about the game...
... that is where my question comes in. For a game like World Alpha, what would define a casual game?
Comments
Not a week goes by that this question isn't asked here on this site....
It's a pretty subjective definition.
I played SWG casually once I had everything set up. I would jump on for an hour to check resource locations and move harvesters if necessary, restock vendors, or craft. Then log off.
In DDO, I can fire up the game, do a dungeon in an hour or so, the log off.
In EQ, I can log on for an hour at a camp, pull and kill mobs, log off.
All of these games I suspect would be classified differently on the 'casual game' spectrum. However, I am able to play them casually. The important thing to remember is that casual does not equal easy. Casual games can be difficult. For me, casual means ease of access. Can I get into the game and do something in the hour or so that I have to spend on gaming? If I can, that is casual.
Casual isn't really used to describe a type of a game. It's generally used as a derogatory term with intent to insult.
DotA 2 = An average game lasts anywhere from 20-40 minutes. Is it a "casual" game?
Counter Strike = 15-30 minutes per map. Is it casual?
Dark Souls = 50 hours to beat main story (2-4 hours for a speed run), Is it casual?
Ninja Gaiden (xbox) = 8 hours to beat, Is it casual?
But how often do you see threads (you can probably find multiple threads right now talking about how awesome corpse runs or camping for 16 hours was) where difficulty is extremely low, but time requirement is very high? This is the great fallacy of MMO players. "Hardcore" typically means tedious, repetitive, time consuming while essentially ignoring skill requirement.
Are you a top WoW arena pvper? Doesn't matter, you play WoW, so you're automatically casual.
Do you log in to EVE and mine an asteroid for 6 hours? Super awesome hardcore gamer, because EVE.
Did you grind out a legendary in GW2? Doesn't matter, auto-casual.
Did you die in onslaught mode in PoE despite fighting mobs 10 levels under your and using alt+f4 to avoid dying? You are a god amongst hardcore gamers, because perma-death.
I remember in Aion when anyone complained how long it took to grind out a level (by killing the same mobs over and over) they were called carebears kiddies and told to go back to WoW. Because killing the same types of mobs for 42 hours to gain a level is apparently, super saiyan hardcore over 9000 mode.
"Casual" and "hard core" games can be distinguished quite clearly based on two factors.
1. How easily can you kill other players.
2. How good are you at killing those other players.
If you can easily get to and kill other players and you're good at it in that game then that's a hardcore game and you're a hardcore gamer.
If you don't have access (or even easy access) to other players to kill then it's casual.
If you have easy access to other players to kill but are bad at it then the game has broken mechanics and is full of casuals that don't know what a real hardcore game is like.
Oderint, dum metuant.
I disagree.
Casual has nothing to do with insult anyone. Carebear does though.
Casual is more of a state of mind of humans.
IMO Casual would be categorized as "I play when i have some free time over from my earthly life
."
and Hardcore in my opinion would be categorized "I make time to play the game"
then we also have the addicted one "I quit my job" "Getting Divorced" just so noone can bother me when i "Live the game"
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Well i didn't talk about the usage of the word. i talked about the definition.....
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