E3 2008 has come and gone and there is one lingering issue I still cannot wrap my head around. No, I
am not talking about Final Fantasy XIII finding its way to the Xbox 360. Nor am I talking about the lack of interest for E3 as of late. I am talking about the terms “hardcore” and “casual” most often being leveraged against Nintendo. A simple poker analogy, it is no secret that Nintendo is sitting on its stack. When you are the chip leader, conservative play is usually a good idea. Yet critics, both professional and lay, waste no time voicing their disappointment with the company’s showings. Though this is not a problem in principle, it’s the way these critics present their disappointment that raises my eyebrow.
“Nintendo only cares about casual games.” “Nintendo does not satisfy the hardcore.” These are summations of the general sentiments. From what I’ve seen, the words “hardcore” and “casual” are inevitably going to be used in a conversation about Nintendo. No matter where you look, these two terms are passed around more than a dutchie in Snoop Dogg’s living room. And to this day, I have no clue what they mean or why they matter.
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