Kotaku: Hardcore

Average Gamers are Going To Hate BioShock Infinite's 1999 Mode

Mike Fahey — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST

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When you first spin up BioShock Infinite later this year don't expect to see the recently-announced retro-difficult 1999 mode on the main menu. That's because it's so tough Ken Levine doesn't want "the non old-school, hardcore gamer" stumbling into it. More »

The Hardcore Gaming Myth

Tim Poon — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 14:00:00 EDT

Do you ever use a word without fully understanding what it means? I have a friend like that. He uses the word "frumpy," but I'm fairly sure he's never opened the dictionary to find out just what it means. In his mind, "frumpy" means "bloated" or "bored" or whatever he needs it to mean in his present case of misappropriation. More »

Is it OK to Hate Great Games?

Sam Winstrom — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 11:20:00 EDT

If you asked Meterora3255 if he liked Uncharted 2 he'll tell you he never played it, but that's a lie. You see, Meteora3255 has a dirty secret. He didn't like Uncharted 2. He tried to hide his true feelings at first, but as we all know, the gaming community can be cruel and shamed him into silence, until now. So what games don't live up to the hype in your mind and how do you deal with this form of gamer adversity? Don't worry, you're safe here. Kind of. More »

Breach's Delay To 2011 Makes Things Difficult For Players

Mike Fahey — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 11:40:00 EDT

While Atomic Games has missed the chance to get "Destruction 3.0" shooter Breach onto Xbox Live this summer, the new January 2011 release window gives the developer time to blur the line between military simulation and video game even further. More »

Kinect Marketer: Hardcore Gamers will be the First to Buy It

Owen Good — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 22:30:00 EDT

Microsoft's Kinect messaging is definitely core-obsessed. First they said they didn't want core shooters like Halo on it. Then they said it's got casual approachability, but core depth. Now, they're saying hardcore gamers will be first in line for it. More »

She's Gonna Grow Up And Kick Your Ass

Mike Fahey — Tue, 25 May 2010 18:00:00 EDT

As seen on Flickr. More »

I, Gamer

Leigh Alexander — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:00:00 EST

New York City is difficult in the winter. Most residents still do much of their navigation on foot, and Manhattan's grid-like avenues and towering buildings can funnel the approaching winter's dry cold snaps into veritable wind tunnels. Coats never seem quite warm enough, and gloves make it clumsy to fumble for the little paper swipe card that gets me a train ride a few stops over to my nearest GameStop. If you're like me, maybe you get a good feeling when you hit up a game store, a little rush of positive sentiment that goes beyond the familiar aura of shelves stocked with potential adventures still gleaming in their plastic. Especially now, as the Holiday shopping season starts to get underway, these stores are filled with people buying and trading games, just like you. In one shopper's hand you see a favorite title of yours, and the two of you make eye contact and smile, because you just know, you just get it, right? Maybe not. More »

Molyneux Frets Over Dangers of Casual Gaming

Brian Crecente — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:00:53 EDT

"I don't like this divide we are building," Peter Molyneux tells me. "More and more we are saying these ones here are core games and these one here are casual games. Actually I think that is an incredibly divisive thing and if we're not careful the amount of attention we put into these core games will get less and less because they are so expensive to make. Less and less people will be able to afford to make them." More »

Traversing the Audience Gap

Maggie Greene — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 14:30:00 EDT

Chris Bateman of Only A Game has spent a not insignificant chunk of time talking about the 'hardcore/casual' divide — especially in terms of discussing the accuracy of such a distinction. As he points out, more complex models of how people like to play their games are simply too unwieldy to be of use for general conversation; still, a lot of the ideas about what makes a 'hardcore' player versus a 'casual' player don't necessarily stand up when looking at certain (admittedly self-reported) studies, like the DGD1 & 2 questionnaires: More »

'Under the Mask': Gaming Culture, an Essay

Maggie Greene — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 16:30:00 EDT

Well, it reads like an essay, but this piece by David Hayward is actually a transcript of a talk given at the "Under The Mask, Perspectives on the Gamer" event a few days ago (slides included!). It's a brilliant and somewhat lengthy piece on culture-with-a-small-c, as it relates to gaming (as, in Hayward's appraisal, just about everyone is a gamer these days by some definition or another). Games, despite coming off as a niche subculture at times, are worming their way into all aspects of society: More »

What Kind of Gamer Are You?

Brian Ashcraft — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 05:00:55 EST

Quick: Are you hardcore or casual? Answer! For those who cannot pick either, you might be something else. You might be a "mid-core gamer," somewhere between the hardcore and casual netherworlds. Blog 8bitrocket has not only coined the term but also come up with a neato manifesto. Writes 8bitrocket: More »

Researchers Say Hardcore Gamers Down On Xbox 360 Elite

Michael McWhertor — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 20:20:16 EDT

Research firm BrandIntel says that hardcore gamer sentiment for the new black Xbox 360 Elite is not positive and that Microsoft "might want to change the perception" of the new console offering with the critical hardcore crowd. Citing research on 25 popular message boards and blogs, reports Next-Gen, opinion of the $479 unit is below favorable levels. More »

Five Hardcore Gamer Rooms

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 11:22:22 EST

Some of you like games, and some of you like games. Here are the dwellings of your brethren: Ahandful of game rooms that show cool gaming rooms are less about owning all the consoles, but more about cramming it full of stuff. Hit the jump for the rest. Brian Ashcraft More »

Reggie Says Nintendo's No Casual Pansy

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 02:22:34 EST

Nintendo ain't just making games for Johnny-Come-Latey's. No. Nintendo is still making h4rdc0r3 gamez (along with making pedestrian stuff for my mom). With the DS appealing to the casual and non-gamers, some are worried that Nintendo's ditching the 'core. According to company president Reggie Fils-Aime: More »

Atlanta Fry's Wii-Visited

Mike Fahey — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 02:40:50 EST

I stopped by the Fry's store in Alpharetta this evening in an attempt to rekindle some of the magic from Friday's PlayStation 3 launch. The people, the camaraderie, and the general air of excitement. I got the condensed version. More »

PS3 Campers Already In Line At Best Buy

Michael McWhertor — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 18:40:40 EST

Devoted reader Jonathan "I'm not the lead singer of Korn" Davis risked life and limb to get us this shot. Three of the hardest of the hardcore (or least sane of the hardcore, you decide) already have their mushy butts in line at a Burbank, California Best Buy, prepared to be the first through the doors when the PlayStation 3 goes on sale next Friday. Nine days from now. Looks like the rest of you can skip this location. More »

Got Time? Lots and Lots of It? 40 Hours Ain't Enough

Brian Ashcraft — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 08:22:27 EDT

Wired's Clive Thompson puts forth a burning question: Who are these mythical 40-hour gamers? Thompson, like most, wants to tear through an involved game title, but doesn't have the time to play for 8 or 9 hours at a stretch in order to finish it. A job, family, etc. make only short bursts possible for most, and gaming comes an hour at a time. Thus, the problem writes Thompson: More »

PC Gamer Duck-Taped to Ceiling

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 03 Jul 2006 15:22:54 EDT

Either this guy is: More »

Are You Hardcore? SNK Hardcore?

Brian Ashcraft — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 05:22:56 EDT

If there were a hardcore gamer test, the question "Do you have Sega or Nintendo tattoos?" would be preceded by "Do you have a gaming bumper sticker?" Spotted in a Target parking lot, this SNK bumper sticker features the company's mascot, Fatal Fury's Terry Bogard. Bet dollars for donuts that car's owner has King of Fighters tats. Brian Ashcraft More »

Imperishable Night Bullet Hell Superplay Videos

Michael McWhertor — Sat, 03 Jun 2006 17:16:31 EDT

What. The. Hell. ?. I'll admit to being somewhat of a noob to the bullet hell-style shooter category, but this is just insane. Ten minutes of eye-drying, bullet-dodging expertise from the doujin game Imperishable Night, 8th in the Toho series of for-the-hardcore-only Windows shmups. More »

Major Nelson Gets Artsy

Brian Crecente — Thu, 16 Mar 2006 08:00:29 EST

Microsoft blogger extraordinaire TriXie unveiled the new, slick art for her and the other Xbox bloggers. More »