[teezzy]

I came to a conclusion recently that casual gamers will likely get hooked on a particular game or two, while enthusiasts allow themselves to become invested in the gaming platform(s) themselves. After taking a break from this ecosystem momentarily - it really is interesting how invested #gamers are in the 'inside baseball' of the industry, rooting for their favorite corporations like team sports

Is this correct? Please indulge me

Tttyty

 

[TaySan]

Casuals don't give a shit about anything outside of the game itself. And those games are like 1 or 2 games.

 

[DonDonDonPata]

You're overthinking it bro

Enthusiasts put in more money, therefore they have a deeper knowledge of the industry and more nuanced tastes.

 

[Sean Mirrsen]

Enthusiast vs casual is pretty simple. Enthusiasts care more about the specifics of a thing than the overall return on investment (whatever form it may take), whereas casuals are more interested in that return than the specifics.

It's the difference between a wine connoisseur and your average joe dropping into a pub after work. The connoisseur wants to experience the fine taste of liquor, the joe just wants to get drunk. This in no way determines or is determined by the amount of money either of them will spend to get there.

 

[regawdless]

The level of autism

 

[teezzy]

The level of autism

 

[WhatIsThis?]

I'll answer for the VR side of things.

The enthusiast recognizes they're inside a video game, warts and all, and they deal with the jank because it's a game and VR is inherently goofy due to simply being VR.

The casual VR player does not understand user error and does not understand that scripted animations generally don't exist because of the dynamic nature of VR gameplay. The casual gamer then gets mad because the game doesn't feel right and and isn't immersive. They focus on the lack of liquid in bottles, "Alyx has it!", or not being able to pick up useless objects and toss them. Immersion is very important for these people, while they stand in place with a plastic headset strapped to their face. Reviews are very important for these people and they get incredibly mad if you preorder a game. "Why would you play that...GAMERTAG VR said the game is a lazy cash grab!"

 

[Rock And Roll]

Enthusiasts talk about games online. Casuals do not. It's always amused me reading online forums, people actually believe that 100 million people bought a playstation because they are "hardcore" gamers. When was the last time you heard a bunch of dudes talking about games at the bar? If it was such a passionate subject, you'd hear people talking about it all the time. It doesn't happen in the real world. Last time I actually heard random dudes talking about games was when breath of the wild came out. Before that, probably a random COD titles. You'll hear GTA chatter soon. That's about it though.

 

[Spiders]

it really is interesting how invested #gamers are in the 'inside baseball' of the industry, rooting for their favorite corporations like team sports

I think about this too. I think it comes down to the desire for success of these companies to see the future we want. It's a little more than rooting for a sports team I think… it's more like — really deep weeds hockey analogy — it's like rooting for the mid 2010s Devils because of their innovative forecheck that making games exciting to watch; if it succeeds, teams around the league follow suit (or counter)
the sport becomes more fun.
Conversely, the 90's Devils stifling "trap" system that made teams play for the first goal and the try and lock the game down to low scoring boring games of dump and chase. It was awful to watch.

tl:dr if you're not interested or invested in the industry meta, your just a fanboy.

Enthusiasts talk about games online. Casuals do not.

God I wish that was true.

 

[teezzy]

Enthusiasts talk about games online. Casuals do not. It's always amused me reading online forums, people actually believe that 100 million people bought a playstation because they are "hardcore" gamers. When was the last time you heard a bunch of dudes talking about games at the bar? If it was such a passionate subject, you'd hear people talking about it all the time. It doesn't happen in the real world. Last time I actually heard random dudes talking about games was when breath of the wild came out. Before that, probably a random COD titles. You'll hear GTA chatter soon. That's about it though.

Yeah i think about it often, modern gaming feels foreign

Think modern/younger players mostly play shit online. At least where i work. All the single player stuff is far more niche and isolatory. Even dudes in their late 20s only seem to compare about the competitive aspects of gaming

 

[bork]

Yeah i think about it often, modern gaming feels foreign

Think modern/younger players mostly play shit online. At least where i work. All the single player stuff is far more niche and isolatory. Even dudes in their late 20s only seem to compare about the competitive aspects of gaming

They all play online only. Anytime I hear anyone talk about gaming in public its always do you play league or something like that. Only multiplayer no matter what. Also young people dont do much so that's their social hang. Its what they do instead of hitting the mall or a skatepark or anything else we did when we were younger.

 

[teezzy]

They all play online only. Anytime I hear anyone talk about gaming in public its always do you play league or something like that. Only multiplayer no matter what. Also young people dont do much so that's their social hang. Its what they do instead of hitting the mall or a skatepark or anything else we did when we were younger.

Yeah sounds about right

Dudes where i work love Valorant, Marvel Rivals, Overwatch, etc

They also golf a lot IRL tbf.

The days of inviting the homies over for Smash or Kart are long gone eh?

 

[CAPTAIN RAINCOAT]

Fanboys vs non fanboys is how i see it

Their are communities which are infested with fanboys and are toxic as shit...Rainbow six siege springs to mind

 

[teezzy]

Yknow @bork back in our day games were just platformers and rpgs and the occasional fighting game or racer or puzzle title... it's kinda crazy what the industry has evolved into with this gaas and online stuff

To their credit. At least a lot of those people take their games of choice super seriously also

Hmmm, makes ya think. We're a dying breed

Shouldve just called this thread old gamers vs new gamers

 

[Franky Family]

The days of inviting the homies over for Smash or Kart are long gone eh?

 

[Miyazaki Loves Kojima]

I came to a conclusion recently that casual gamers will likely get hooked on a particular game or two, while enthusiasts allow themselves to become invested in the gaming platform(s) themselves. After taking a break from this ecosystem momentarily - it really is interesting how invested #gamers are in the 'inside baseball' of the industry, rooting for their favorite corporations like team sports

Is this correct? Please indulge me

Tttyty

 

[hans gruber]

Casuals just follow the broader news and play the most popular games. Enthusiasts consume a lot more gaming content and probably play a wider variety of games.

 

[bork]

Yknow @bork back in our day games were just platformers and rpgs and the occasional fighting game or racer or puzzle title... it's kinda crazy what the industry has evolved into with this gaas and online stuff

To their credit. At least a lot of those people take their games of choice super seriously also

Hmmm, makes ya think. We're a dying breed

Shouldve just called this thread old gamers vs new gamers

Yea seriously. Take my nephew for example hes only played three games for last 7 years or so. Minecraft, Fortnite and Rocket League. Thats what all his friends did too.

He played alot of retro games with me and stuff when he was little. But kids do what their friends do and it was just those games.

So crazy to just play the same thing for years and never get excited for new games.

 

[Spiders]

Casuals just follow the broader news and play the most popular games. Enthusiasts consume a lot more gaming content and probably play a wider variety of games.

Hostile Face/Off II FINAL: Halo 3 vs Resident Evil 4 vs Resident Evil 2 Remake

Welcome to the Finals of the 2nd Hostile Face/Off competition, where DPAD votes for the best video game of the 21st Century. Starting with 158 games, we are now down to the final 3. The peak of Xbox gaming vs the first Resident Evil game to use third person vs a well made remake of the...

d-pad.life

 

[Rock And Roll]

Yea seriously. Take my nephew for example hes only played three games for last 7 years or so. Minecraft, Fortnite and Rocket League. Thats what all his friends did too.

He played alot of retro games with me and stuff when he was little. But kids do what their friends do and it was just those games.

So crazy to just play the same thing for years and never get excited for new games.

I don't understand this either even though I know it's most people's gaming habits now. Playing the same multiplayer game for years on end. To me, that's like watching the same movie on repeat or reading the same book over and over. I want new experiences.

I get it's largely a way to hang out and shoot the shit with your friends, but still. I'd rather just hang out IRL.

 

[WhatIsThis?]

Yeah i think about it often, modern gaming feels foreign

Think modern/younger players mostly play shit online. At least where i work. All the single player stuff is far more niche and isolatory. Even dudes in their late 20s only seem to compare about the competitive aspects of gaming

Foreign is a great way to describe it.

I downloaded the newest COD a few months back when they had a free period, to play zombies with a friend.

I had no clue what all the stuff in the menus meant. The whole GAAS stuff, season pass, etc. Might as well have been hieroglyphics.

I'm curious if the attach rate for these games is expanding or if it's largely the same players. It's a big audience for sure but whenever a game like Marathon is announced, I have negative interest. I legitimately do not understand how those games work and have no interest in learning. I'm curious if there's reliable data showing that the attach rate is expanding, or if the GAAS push solely revolves around the hope of releasing a game that manages to attract the large audience who are already playing these titles.

It's hard to wrap my head around, whatever motivation these publishers have, because the games fail more often than not. It such a weird time in gaming. For the first time in my life, I follow gaming news to laugh at whatever slop failed, not because I'm legitimately interested in playing such and such game.

 

[Sean Mirrsen]

I don't understand this either even though I know it's most people's gaming habits now. Playing the same multiplayer game for years on end. To me, that's like watching the same movie on repeat or reading the same book over and over. I want new experiences.

I think it mostly has to do with the premise and the gameplay loop. Like, people play the same sports with basically no changes for how long now? The same card games, the same board games, etc. New games get made all the time but depending on where you live there's always go-tos like blackjack, ludo, go, checkers, dominoes, dice poker, backgammon, etc. Some modern people play 'games' on their phones, be they word search puzzles, crosswords, color-match, sudoku, or any of the variants of classic mobile game crap. Even I have the shitty Hill Climb Racing game on my phone, for the same damn reason.

It's there, you know how to play it, it gets the job done.

That's the casual mindset. The driving desire is just to get entertainment out of a game, pass some time focusing on something that isn't the real world, and maybe hang out with other people if it's multiplayer. With competitive titles it's somewhat flipped, the people who play those are very particular on the workings of the game, but the effect is functionally the same - they play it because they know how to, and it lets them get their entertainment easily exactly because the game doesn't change. They like to play by a particular set of rules, and thrive on being, or getting, better at it than others.

 

[hans gruber]

I don't understand this either even though I know it's most people's gaming habits now. Playing the same multiplayer game for years on end. To me, that's like watching the same movie on repeat or reading the same book over and over. I want new experiences.

I get it's largely a way to hang out and shoot the shit with your friends, but still. I'd rather just hang out IRL.

The social interaction is probably the biggest reason, especially these days. They're also designed to get people addicted as well as sunk cost with all these cosmetics and battle passes.

 

[teezzy]

I don't understand this either even though I know it's most people's gaming habits now. Playing the same multiplayer game for years on end. To me, that's like watching the same movie on repeat or reading the same book over and over. I want new experiences.

I get it's largely a way to hang out and shoot the shit with your friends, but still. I'd rather just hang out IRL.

Eh the games are designed to be evergreen and provide unique experiences each go

There's seasons and battle passes, and new things being added. I can see the hooks once you get settled into an ecosystem with friends especially

 

[Alcedor]

There's no such thing as a "casual" or an "enthusiast". Those are just elitist, gatekeeping terms. Everyone enjoys hobbies in different ways.

 

[regawdless]

There's no such thing as a "casual" or an "enthusiast". Those are just elitist, gatekeeping terms. Everyone enjoys hobbies in different ways.

Yeah and some enjoy it casually without being engaged much, and others are very engaged, therefore the distinction. Those are very different target groups. If and how someone wants to apply a "value" or legitimacy to those groups, that's a different discussion. It's like sports fans that only watch the Super Bowl or World Cup (depending on the sport) vs those who watch events weekly, for example.

 

[BlackDow]

Don't worry about it. Just enjoy what you enjoy. I'm glad that there are many ways to enjoy gaming. In all forms.

 

[Hostile_18]

A casual gamer will spend time playing games. An enthusiast will spend time arguing about games online.

 

[BlackDow]

A casual gamer will spend time playing games. An enthusiast will spend time arguing about games online.

We have a winner.
This is the correct answer

 

[Soodanim]

The level of autism

The first answer that came to mind was that casual and enthusiast is more of a spectrum so this is strangely appropriate

 

[regawdless]

A casual gamer will spend time playing games. An enthusiast will spend time arguing about games online.

We have a winner.
This is the correct answer

That's funny and true for a few people but in general not the case. Enthusiasts are very invested in games and the communities, and there are a lot of them. Casuals seek more surface level engagement and easily enjoyable games.

 

[BlackDow]

That's funny and true for a few people but in general not the case. Enthusiasts are very invested in games and the communities, and there are a lot of them. Casuals seek more surface level engagement and easily enjoyable games.

I like the community but I also like arcade or more straight forward games with a nice loop and experience for example classic doom/quake fighting games , shmups racing games and platformers. Exploration games but if the game demands too much I don't like it. It has to be engaging but not obtuse or feeling like to are wading through sludge you know.

 

[Spiders]

There's no such thing as a "casual" or an "enthusiast". Those are just elitist, gatekeeping terms. Everyone enjoys hobbies in different ways.

Found the filthy casual


Joke aside, "gatekeeping" is my trigger word; you have summoned me and my video tirades.

"The case for gatekeeping", time stamped 30:13

EDIT: you can skip to 41:32 and get the gist



tl:dw: casual players don't know or don't care about what is being protected by the "gate"; they'll destroy it just to move on to the next thing. Gatekeepers don't gatekeep you; they (try to) protect the hobby from casual concepts (low friction, skill mitigation, timesinking, hand holding, auto-solving, etc.)

Worse: "gatekeeping" is actually a function of the media; literally what its job is. Calling enthusiast gamers gatekeepers is gatekeeping at its highest, most sophisticated level.