• Top 10 Ways to Tell if a Game is “Hardcore”

  

  Written by Zeromage 215 Comments
  Last Updated:: April 28, 2009

  If we here at OW know anything, which we don’t, then it’s definitely hardcore games and gamers. These are the people who take what is merely a pass time and make it a serious way of life. Much like the professional athlete, the hardcore gamer takes the gaming experience to a whole new and smelly level. But this list isn’t about them, no we’ve done that before, we’ve done the comprehensive study of what your average hardcore gamer looks like already.  This time we try to get into there heads, through the layers of greasy unwashed hair, past the dandruff ridden scalp, under the extra layers of fat, and beneath the thick skull (its thick from supporting all the grease, fat, and dry skin). To further our efforts in understanding these behemoths we began systematic studies of the games which hardcore gamers identify as “hardcore” and our findings are shocking to say the least. We’ve organized some of our data into a list which ranks the importance of a particular attribute of a particular game in the order in which the hardcore gamer holds the importance of said attribute when purchasing a new game with their parent’s money. That is to say we made a top ten list.

  10. Has to be either a first person shooter, or third person shooter

  This is obviously the most hardcore way to play a game. If you can’t be it in real life why not pretend on your parent’s TV? The shooter allows one to pretend they are walking down the street and killing everything that you see. Which is often the dream of the hardcore gamer. And what’s better than pretending to see through your own eyes while killing, well imagine pretending being a handsome soldier, a handsome car thief, a handsome warrior, or some other type of handsome person that you aren’t in real life. You never see the main character in any of these hardcore games as a fat slob who gets winded when running, has terrible acne problems, needs a wardrobe that doesn’t include t-shirts with stupid sayings, lives in his parents basement, and has never touched a real girl. No the hardcore game is everything the hardcore gamer wishes he was, everything he rails against, and everything that makes him cry at night. The first and third person shooter embodies this idea in the fullest capacity of this theory. Here is a place where they can act out all of their fantasies in a way that not only rewards them but also releases all their pent up virgin aggression.

  9. Has to be rated M

  Hardcore games are almost always rated “M” for mature.  The Hardcore gamer only likes video games that are excessively violent so that casual gamers, like older people or little kids, either don’t play them, or aren’t allowed to play them.  It also makes them feel more “hardcore” because they are playing games with excessive gore.  Games like Killzone 2 are marketed to overweight hardcore gamers who enjoy these overly violent games because they help them take out the frustrations they have with the real world by blowing up people in the virtual video game world. This is because the hardcore gamer’s real life is constantly beset by setback after setback.  So these excessively violent games are a form of stress relief for these downtrodden social outcasts.

  8. Discourage innovation

  If a hardcore game is anything, it’s not original. Why bother? The best way to make a sale is to just update the graphics, change the story slightly, make it WW2, or if it’s already WW2 make it the future where robots have taken over the world (or are at least giving their best effort), and if it’s already the future make it the ancient past, where you have to battle giants of some sort. Then add in some new weapons, change the color of the armor, or make the main character shave his head. Of course, if his head is already shaved then grow his hair out. Now if in the first game he was a part of a team, then in the second one he should be by himself trying to find his team who were captured. Also if you have a tank in the first game then you will obviously have a super tank in the second game. Now if the game was originally in the future the sequel has to be in the past. If the game is the first in the series then you have to take all the good things from the most recently popular games, add them together, subtract the year it was released and add that many guns or swords, then, finally make sure the game isn’t too different so as to not upset the gamers your trying to sell the games to.

  7. Must have spent over $1,000,000 on marketing

  Millions of dollars goes into hyping up each new hardcore game to epic proportions.  The game developers buy up ad space on sites like IGN and Gamespot, who will then review these games and give them either “five stars” or a “ten out of ten” and will eventually call each one the “game of the year” at some point.  The goal is to make the impressionable hardcore gamer feel like he has to own and beat the game before any of his online buddies do.  This way he will already be a master of the game before they even buy it, and when they play against each other online he will be able to easily dominate them, thus making the hardcore gamer feel like he has accomplished something in his otherwise meaningless existence.

  6. Your health must auto-regenerate as soon as you take cover

  We all like being better at things than other people.  We always have.  And the one thing that the hardcore gamer thinks he is better at than other people is video games.  But are they really better at video games than normal people, or do they just spend a lot more time playing them?  Hardcore gamers like their video games to be long and involved, but not necessarily hard.  They like the games they play to take 20+ hours to beat so that casual gamers who actually have lives outside of video games will never be able to beat them.  And yet at the same time the hardcore gamer wants to be able to beat these games himself, so they can’t be too hard, just really long.  Let’s face it, dying isn’t fun.  These games have to be easy enough so that the hardcore can win and thus feel better about himself.   One way to make video games easier is to have your health meter automatically regenerate whenever you take cover.  This makes the game take longer, while at the same time making it easier.  In Contra you didn’t have a health meter.  One shot and you were dead.  That’s why the hardcore gamer usually prefers modern games over the classics.

  5. Should have some sort of multiplayer mode where 12 year olds can talk in l33t speak

  All hardcore games have an online multiplayer mode.  This is where hardcore gamers get most of their social interaction.  To deal with that fact that they are social outcasts, hardcore gamers have invented their own language. In one of the most childish reactions a group of people could have, they further force their own isolation by creating a useless and annoying language. Leet speak allows groups of “hardcore gamers” to bash on their most hated enemy, the casual gamer, without the casual gamer even knowing its happening. This is important, as the average casual gamer is far more physically fit and could easily beat the living hell out of a hardcore gamer, should they be found out. Leet speak further makes the hardcore gamer feel special. Every waking second reminds the hardcore gamer that they are in fact gigantic wastes of life, but at least there is one thing that the average person can’t figure out. I mean who could possibly crack the complex code that is leet speak? I mean replacing vowels with numbers, I don’t get it, but then again I’m not a “hardcore gamer.”

  4. Must appeal to 12 year olds. (lots of guns and boobies)

  The average age of your typical hardcore gamer is 35, we have done vast amounts of research and this is the number that our monkey comes up with time and time again. The average living quarters of your hardcore gamer is 33% parent’s basement, 33% parents attic, and 33% above parents garage. Again our fact checking kittens have run these numbers repeatedly and no variation has been seen. What’s more interesting is that our psychological research team has found out that the average maturity level of your hardcore gamer is roughly 12. Therefore a game which would appeal to the hardcore gamer must appeal to a 12 year old. What do 12 year olds think about, well mainly boobies. Therefore the easy marketing tactic is to place lots of scantily clad women into hardcore games to attract as many hardcore gamers as possible. We here at OW find it interesting that despite all the hardcore gamer’s ranting about how un-intelligent your average person is the average hardcore gamer is generally attracted to the same things. The same basic human principles motivate them, however, they are so socially retarded they are unable to act on them. Hence video games based on violence and mayhem. Your average 12 year old loves running around building forts, smashing stuff, and generally getting into mischief. The average hardcore gamer is a 12 year old trapped in a giant sweaty body with little social interaction and lots of video games. Therefore a game deemed hardcore must have lots of things that a 12 year old would love.

  3. Can not have any colors other than brown, green, gray, red, and black

  “Hardcore” games almost always evoke brooding aesthetics not only in theme but in appearance. You don’t even know where you’re going in some levels in these games, but at least you’re comforted in knowing that you have a big gun to randomly shoot in the dark at enemies that you can barely see. It helps to have a mode on your TV that brightens up your screen. It also helps to have glasses on when playing these games. If you don’t have either, expect to walk around these games like you were a blind person. Cashing in on the conditioned spookiness of the dark never came so easy for video game makers as it does in the modern hardcore game.

  2. 80% of the budget should go toward the graphics, give the rest to marketing.

  The more realistic and dark the graphics in a game are, the more likely it is that it will appeal to the hardcore gamer.  To the hardcore gamer, games with graphics that are too cartoonish (like most of the games on the Nintendo Wii, for example) will appeal to the casual gamer crowd, and so no matter how much fun these might be games to play, a true hardcore gamer would never admit to enjoying them.  So when designing a game for hardcore gamers, companies like Valve and Guerilla Games spend as much money as they can on making the graphics look as realistic as possible, with minimal effort put into the actual gameplay itself.  As we saw earlier, the rest of the budget for these games goes to the excessive marketing in order to hype them up to epic proportions so that the hardcore gamer feels like if he doesn’t buy the game and beat it before all of his friends do, he’ll lose all of the respect of the hardcore gaming community.

  1. Everyone on N4G likes it

  If you need to know the status quo in the gaming world where do you go? N4G. Here you can talk about Kill Zone 2, Kill Zone 2, or how much better Kill Zone 2 is than Kill Zone 1. This is the website where everyone goes to be different by completely agreeing with each other on all the major gaming issues. Can’t get a girlfriend, live in your parents basement, kind of smell bad, have acne problems? Then go to N4G. Sure there may be some argument as to the degree hardcore, but if a game is recognized as good by the crew over at N4G then you know it’s hardcore. How does a population of people who claim difference should be celebrated, that the popular people are all just clones of each other, that girls only like the same jerk, stand out? Well they go to N4G and agree on everything. And what happens when something different actual does come along? Well they shun it. They won’t let it sit at their lunch table and they call it mean names. In a sense they do what all the bullies at school do to them. You see the hardcore gamer is only skin deep; granted the skin is greasy, red and blotchy, and very pale. The hardcore gamer just wants to fit in, therefore they all like to agree with each other.

215 Comments

1. #1 Smitty says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 8:41 pm

   @ name…

   That is exactly what I’ve been saying the whole time! lol
2. #2 brad says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 3:46 pm

   haha. You guys FINALLY nailed it! An entire list that’s funny and I actually agree with. Nice job.
3. #3 james says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 12:08 pm

   Smitty sucks.
4. #4 fred says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 2:22 am

   The most hardcore games are RPGs. Simple as that. You need to be consistent, to spend lot of hours of your social life leveling up your character and going on through the story. Hardcore should be understood as seriously dedicated to finish a game not matter the long, not matter the challenge.
5. #5 Po says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 4:24 am

   If it’s sarcasm, it’s hilarious. But if it isn’t, it is pathetic.

   It seems to be sarcastic from my point of view..
6. #6 Bob says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 9:01 pm

   Funny article. Keep posting things like this! I don’t get point #6 though…
7. #7 Grabo says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 9:25 pm

   this article is freaking stupid. I’m tired of the bullshit stereotypes associated with being a hardcore gamer.

   Sarcasm should be funny, not pointless garbage designed to piss people off.

   Why not post a list of what makes someone a casual gamer:

   I’ll start.

   1. you must be a mom or senior citizen

   2. you don’t care about the story gameplay or graphics. as long as it’s a wii game, it must be fun

   3. you have never heard of a game review or the internet

   4. you have never beaten a game that takes longer than 5 hours

   etc etc, you get the point…..

   not very funny, is it????
8. #8 Shnazzyone says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 1:09 am

   Last i checked N4g is a place for disagrees… if you like to root for nintendo that is. Glad i admit to liking mario kart and blaster master and don’t live in my mothers basement or i perhaps would spaz and whine.
9. #9 Mike says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 8:24 am

   Pretty hilarious OW!!

   Hmmm….all this talk about no “hardcore” Wii titles yet nobody has mentioned Resident Evil 4. It’s the best Resident Evil game I’ve ever played.

   I will have to say that the term “hardcore” is so loosely thrown around the gaming community that it doesn’t even hold any real meaning anymore. It’s almost as bad as when people throw “rape” around to accentuate their skills. Seriously, if I took a real rape victim, sat her down with a game, and asked her “Now does THIS feel like rape?”, do you think she’d say yes?

   The term “hardcore” can be used to describe absolutely ANY hobbie. If Gary plays his Wii for hours and hours then he is, by definition, a hardcore Wii player. Hardcore by no means equals “mature” rated game players only. Believe it or not, there are SSBB tournaments held throughout the country. No swearing, no blood, just cartoon characters beating the ever loving snot out of each other. Yet most of the people who play in any tournament are solely dedicated to that ONE game….a hardcore player. Why don’t some of you tell those Star Craft players in Korea they aren’t hardcore lol. They are unarguably hardcore, yet their game yields no chainsaws, no strippers, no coarse language. It’s really sad that a term that describes any gamer pationate about their pastime is “raped” into a pigeonhole of mature games.
10. #10 wtf? says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 10:20 pm

    uhm.. only 12 year olds liking boobies? dont you mean males 12 and up? XD *DISCLAIMER* I have never played a game just to see the boobs.
11. #11 One Eyed Willie says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:56 am

    I have.
12. #12 Bill says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 11:53 pm

    This is bad and you should feel bad
    Troll harder
13. #13 bryan says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 7:56 am

    this is just a list of sterotypes. some of them are funny but really? not all hardcore gamers are fat and unfit. yeah most of them dont have lives but this… oh and mike? you’re an idiot who can’t think of his own jokes and copies dane cook.
14. #14 TrueGamer619 says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 10:46 am

    Mother’s Basement is the most OVERUSED and cliched insult ever. How unoriginal. Everytime I see someone use that word, I get the feeling that they are nerdy whitewashed dorks who live in suburbia. The only thing that separates them from basement dwellers is that they were born with a silver spoon and has mommy and daddy buy them whatever their cowardly sheltered heart desires.
15. #15 Randy says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 3:34 pm

    I must say everything about this list is sad. You are shooting for games that spend no time on game play and try to cover it with pritty pictures. All the qualitys you listed were ether things that made a possible good game bad or made a hard game easy. Instant regenerating health? Are you really that easy to beat? 80% to design and the rest to marketing? I can’t see how you can call yourself a gamer, your truly sad my friend.
16. #16 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 10:00 am

    Another list that defends the Wii and makes fun of modern gaming. Boy, I must be lucky. A list full of “smelling” and “mother’s basement” jokes. Let’s go.
    10. Has to be either a first person shooter, or third person shooter
    Now this is simply untrue. There are a lot of hardcore racing games (hardcore = not Mario Cart), brawlers, slashers, adventure Games, RPGs.
    9. Has to be rated M
    Apart from racing games, there are a ton of not really violent FPSs.
    “So these excessively violent games are a form of stress relief for these downtrodden social outcasts.” No and fuck you.
    8. Discourage innovation
    Anyone who sacrifices fun for innovation is not a good video game developer. By the way, Nintendo is making Super Mario Galaxy 2. For innovation!!!
    7. Must have spent over $1,000,000 on marketing
    No argument there. Marketing is clearly bad.
    6. Your health must auto-regenerate as soon as you take cover.
    There is a reason why gaming got rid of the obnoxious fucking live system in favor of checkpoints. Without the impossible difficulty curve, your precious old games are, like, 10 minutes long. By the way, Halo has instant regeneration, so does Call Of Duty, but on the higher diffuculty settings those games are really hard. Not that you would know, you’re stuck beating Contra for the hundredth time.
    5. Should have some sort of multiplayer mode where 12 year olds can talk in l33t speak
    Making retarded generalizations is not exactly what you call journalism, folks.
    4. Must appeal to 12 year olds.
    Now this is just fucking sad. What is the average gamer age, again?
    3. Can not have any colors other than brown, green, gray, red, and black
    Oh, you’re just bringing that up because Super Mario Galaxy was so fucking blue.
    2. 80% of the budget should go toward the graphics, give the rest to marketing.
    Half-Life 2 serves as a prime example of colossal budget going into gameplay and storytelling.
    1. Everyone on N4G likes it
    “Can’t get a girlfriend, live in your parents basement, kind of smell bad, have acne problems? Then go to N4G.” Never heard of this site, but will still say the following: Very fucking professional, you guys.
17. #17 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 10:29 am

    I think 27, but not positive. I know it’s in the 20’s.
18. #18 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 11:08 am

    Yeah, something like that.
19. #19 President Steve says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:54 pm

    @Journeythroughhell:

    I think you’ve come to the wrong site if you’re expecting to see opinions from “professional journalists”. The authors have always said this site was made just for fun. I think you should lighten up. If you’re looking for gaming journalism, I’d suggest trying out IGN, or Gamespot. Personally, I thought this list was hilarious.
20. #20 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 4:02 pm

    Hahahahahahahahaha this was so funny

    I hate Killzone 2, HALO 2 & 3, LEFT 4 DEAD, GTA’S other than 3 and vice city, Madden’s any version.

    But I have to admit that I sin from time to time with GOW2. I used to like GOW2, but after the Cliffy touch and the fucking “upgrades” I don’t like it anymore, GOW1 was better, less mainstream.

    Actually you little guys want to know what is hardcore game?

    Hardcore game is the game that make you spent all of your allowance in quarters trying to finish it.

    Either defending your spot on the arcade or trying to take it from someone else, THAT was hardcore game.
    Todays games are a fucking joke, they are really easy to beat and there is no challenge. I defeated Civ 2 in deity mode, huge map conquest only.
    In case you are wondering, I do not live with my parents, I have my own house and business, I’m married and still have the looks at 36 , I used to play football. But brains are more important than looks

    They should start making more AO games with innovation, GOW it was good because of the gore and it kind of show you the ugly side of war.
    They actually should make a grim GOW PENDULUM WARS where is humans vs humans, they should put mutilation and rescuing, so you can actually see how pretty war really is.

    That is why I liked FALLOUT 3 so much, not because of the FPS or 3rdPS, v.a.t.s was cool, but the main thing about this game is how many hours you have to play that fucking game in order to have everything or finish it 100%, They also talk about cannibalism, prostitution, drug abuse, mutilation, racism, lesbianism and child abuse

    That is fucking innovation, putting those issues in video games.
    Too bad there are so many kids playing video games and that people have the idea that video games should be for kids only.

    Anyway I already wrote too much, back to my couch and WOW.

    MOM! I need new bed sheets!
21. #21 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 4:18 pm

    @President Steve:

    Yeah, I don’t really trust Gamespot. But, come on, man, I’ve clearly seen them state they were gaming journalists and after the whole “you smell – go to N4G” statement, I don’t think you should defend them…

    @Alberto:

    I kinda disagree here. It’s gameplay that matters after all and I don’t support you hate of mainstream games. Some of them are over-hyped or over-praised but that doesn’t mean they’re bad or not hardcore.
22. #22 President Steve says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 4:28 pm

    @Journeythroughhell:

    Check this list out:

    http://old-wizard.com/top-10-reason-old-wizard-sucks
23. #23 President Steve says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    I just saw the comments section, and realized you already commented there. My bad.
24. #24 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 5:04 pm

    @President Steve:
    Yeah, that’s fine, I’ve seen that list already.
25. #25 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:06 pm

    @Journeythroughhell

    Not all the mainstream games are bad, there are still a few games worth your time.

    I personally like the new Batman game, I don’t think is hardcore, but is an entertaining game, plus the free flow combat system is something that a lot of games like Dynasty Warriors could use.

    Fallout 3 is actually pretty mainstream and so is GOW and I like them.

    But come on what was innovative in GTA4, HALO 3 and Left 4 Dead, other than the “smart AI” That spawns enemies in the same area all the time, you did not know how many enemies you will find around the corner, but you pretty much know that enemies or hordes will appear in certain part in the level.
    While I agree that mastering Left 4 Dead will have to take a lot of your time, the game is repetitive and boring.

    Madden games is just an updated roster every year and a tweak here and there.

    I like Mario 64 and Pokemon snap, they were fun to play, but by any means they were hardcore games.

    This article is making fun of how “hardcore” gamers
    like their “hardcore” games, and what the meaning of “hardcore” means now.

    My son plays a lot of videogames, and he is pretty good, he plays GOW1 AND 2 and owns online, He plays HALO and owns online, but when We play Contra or any of the old arcade games,he admits that old games are harder.
    I finish Superman Taito, Rastan Saga, Fantasy Fight, Street Fighter, MK1 & 2, Killer Instinct and some other games that I don’t even remember, with one coin, You have any idea of how many coins I have to spent in order to be able to achieve this?
    The games were not long, but you have to defend your spot in the arcade in order to have the right to finish the game.
    Back then you did not choose the difficulty level of the game, you did not have custom controllers and there were no strategy guides to finish the games, well at least not on the 80’s, you have to learn the hard way.

    I don’t know, I don’t buy any game that is out there, it has to be a well balanced game, with innovation. I don’t care about the graphics, or the content rate. It just have to be good game with a good challenge. Does that make the game hardcore? I don’t know, I play it and enjoy it. In the end the game entertains me and that is what it matters to me

    I think in the end a hardcore game will have to be hard to beat, No difficulty level choosing and no custom controller. Just a plain and simple hard to beat game. like YU-GI-OH forbidden memories for the PS1, Evidence the last rituals for PC, Civ2 in deity mode huge map, ghost and goblins or fucking paperboy. Those games are really fucking hard.
    Most “hardcore” gamers will not finish those games because none of them have great graphics, none of them are mainstream (maybe civ).

    Oh and one more thing, I know a lot of 19 year olds “Harcore” gamers. One of them buys all the FPS that come out, two socialize in WOW, the other plays fallout 3 just because of the MODS (he does not like fallout 3, I give him the xbox version and he does not like the game)Just plays fallout 3 bacause the MODS are funny. One can play rock band on extreme and he is pretty god, but he is the one who buys all the FPS that come out.

    So I guess this is the new generation of “hardcore” gamers, that is why the industry makes only FPS games and inovation is dying. XBOX is killing the industry, not WII at least WII admits they are targeting the casual gamers, Xbox disguises it self as a console for “hardcore” gamers when is really not. PS3 and PC is where inovation is still alive.

    The real hardcore die with the old machines, Now is only marketing.
26. #26 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:21 pm

    @alberto:

    Somehow playing Left 4 Dead with friends never got old. And, I think you’re saying that hardocre gamers are arcade gamers. I tend to disagree.
    Also, while past games were much much harder and some people think they were better that way, there is a reason why they got rid of the annoying life system and other crap.
    I don’t really care for innovation. If you want it, get a Wii, wait for Project Natal or the PS3 motion stick. FPS is my favorite genre and if its done right, I don’t really need revolutionary innovations. As an FPS fan I own a 360 so I guess it makes sense.
27. #27 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:30 pm

    I just one to clarify one more thing.

    Not because a game is PC or PS3 it means is innovative, You have better chances to find an innovative game in this platforms. Like Flower.
    But flower is not hardcore by any means
28. #28 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:33 pm

    @Journeythroughhell

    Well that jus settles it, You are the new age of “harcore” gamers, no offense intended
29. #29 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:52 pm

    @alberto:

    Yeah, you said it but that’s why I find it really offensive when people say that hardcore gamers “smell and live in basements”
30. #30 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:08 am

    Is funny.

    Well I think this list means people who actually live to play video games, that is why “smell and live in basements”. This are people who only live to play video games and have no other social intraction with the outside world. Like those guys playing madden in ESPN. They are really funny, they act like they just tackle you, when they have no idea how an actual tackle is made, When you feel the rush before the snap and you just want to kill the quarterback. I actually don’t think there is a lot of people, like this.
    It is actually pretty sad seeing people like this, no social skills and they live to play. I’m not one of those and I hope Journeythroughhell is one of them. I like videogames and I have done pretty stupid things, like play fallout 3 for more than 300 hrs or playing too much civ. But I try to compensate with my life in the outside world.
    If by this standars I’m not “hardcore” then I’m glad I’m not one of them.
    I’d rather play with girls, than pixelated girls.
31. #31 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:09 am

    correction

    “I hope Journeythroughhell is not one of them”
32. #32 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:15 am

    Or Alberto…..

    They could be ultra-competitive no matter what it is they’re doing, whether it’s playing MADDEN or playing an actual game of football. I know I’d fall into the “ultra-competitive” area.
33. #33 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:30 am

    I think ultra-competitive sounds better, anyway is their life and if that is what makes them happy, they should keep playing and be the best Madden player.

    I personally would not sacrifice it. I mean, yes I have my half million kills in GOW2, but I just do it because is fun. I don’t need to achieve anything in the virtual world. I’d rather achieve it in the real one.

    But like I said, If that makes them happy. Everything is gravy baby.

    Keep playing peps, but please ask for innovation and good games. I’m tired of playing the same games over and over again
34. #34 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:37 am

    Oh! one more thing I don’t play GOW2 anymore.
    The same way I don’t play Madden, Halo or GTA.
    I’m waiting for innovation and something that really challenges me. So far there is no video games on the horizon for me, just the “same old shit”

    But like I said that is ME, and me is only a tiny fraction of US
35. #35 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:41 am

    I found myself getting really competitive in games I don’t even like, just because I’m playing against someone else, like my brother in-law. I was so damn competitive with my friends on GOLDENEYE 007 and PERFECT DARK back when people used to come together to play on one console.
36. #36 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:51 am

    I miss those games

    I like also to compete, actually every weekend, We make a game reunion at my house and We play video games all night. The first one to sleep gets a penis draw on the forehead
37. #37 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 1:54 am

    Hopefully Operation Flashpoint 2 will redeem the FPS games, 1 shot you are dead. NO RAMBO SHIT.
    That is going to be hard
38. #38 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:28 pm

    @alberto:
    Well, among my favorite FPSs are S.W.A.T. 4, Rainbow Six 3 and Operation Flashpoint, I don’t think FPS games need redeeming. It is just that I like the RAMBO SHIT too.
39. #39 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 8:22 pm

    That is my problem with the FPS games, they are way too easy. No thinking, no estrategy, just point and shot. I hate How everyone in HALO keeps jumping and shooting, That will be funny in Iraq, seein real marines jumping all the time. Socom Navy Seal is a FPS that got really bad reviews, because it was too slow and boring.

    Well that Rambo shit only works in chessy movies in hollywood and is the same shit theay are feeding us now on video games, but anyway is what most people want. It is like they say

    “Please the mases and live with the clases”

    Is waaaaay true, Britney Spears, FPS, Niki shoes and McDonalds, just to name a few.

    But thats it. I won’t get deeper and more political into this crap. If this is what the new generation of videogames wants, Be my guest. I enjoy mine and if this one goes into the crapper it will not be because of me, but because of the marketing and the manipulation of the mases.

    Sadly is my own generation the one that is feeding you that shit and the same one that is killing inovation, they are going for profits and sacrificing quality over quantity, But is the new generation also responsible of keep buying that “same old shit” and not asking for inovation an quality. We are getting Shovelware, not videogames. Hardcore videogames that We finish in two hours, What a joke. I will not be surprised if in the near future they “invent” a new category of videogame. It will be called to “Hardcore”
    to appeal to the new hardcore gamers

    So you will have on the shelves a FPS and a HCFPS
    a RPG and a HCRPG,a Sports Game and a HCSports Game
    The difference? 1 hr of extracontent, 2 more buttons to play and $50 dollars of difference.

    Oh wait my bad, W
40. #40 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 8:31 pm

    Oh wait my bad, We already have that shit, with the special editions.

    extra $100.00 for a sticker, a shitty book, a piece of shit lytho and a plastic helmet.

    This is marketing at it’s best

    Kudos for the executives, actually that is really good, because of this marketing/subliminal message, they “create” more jobs, but the true is that they make a lot more profit out of our stupidity.

    The Video Game is dead, Long live the Bubblegum Video Game
41. #41 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 9:31 pm

    um Alberto, HALO is not made to be realistic.

    And actually it is possible for a single person to do special operations missions on their own, successfully.
42. #42 Alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 11:42 pm

    Delta

    What the hell you are talking about Halo is as realistic as WW2, Don’t you remember We fought the Nazi aliens

    I know, I’m probably asking for tooooo much.

    But I like hard games, most of the games out there now are really easy to beat.

    The first time I played Rainbow Six, I play it on the hardest mode, It was a walk in the park.
    They claim the game was “realistic” So that means that I can kill a lot of terrorist and be a Mexican Rambo, my name shall be Mambo

    Whatever I said FUCK IT everybody, just enjoy your games and play, but please ask for better games, with substance and innovation.

    Pretty please
43. #43 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 5:32 am

    Alberto, I said HALO was NOT made to be realistic. One person being capable of completing missions on his own was referring to real life and games based more in reality, not HALO or other Sci-Fi games.

    The RAINBOW SIX series is quite realistic, many many Special Ops and SWAT members had written praising emails to Red Storm Entertainment for the game. You’re probably thinking of the AI it’s self not being the biggest challenge. I and others can attest that in, at least most of the RAINBOW SIX games I’ve played(not RAINBOW SIX: LOCKDOWN, that was really Arcadey) are actually pretty realistic in terms of damage, how the guns behave, ect. Of course, nothing’s perfect.

    Even as processing power increases, physics, animation and AI doesn’t advance as quickly as the hardware. And even as things get more realistic, bugs and glitches can always occur and bring down the realism.
44. #44 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 12:27 pm

    You are right Delta AI sucks at this games.
    and the Halo part I knew what you meant I was just pulling your leg.

    I did not like Rainbow six, but that is just me.
45. #45 Alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:05 pm

    I just have to get this out of my system

    How can someone call himself a “hardcore” videogames, When they ONLY own a X-BOX 360 and ONLY play shooting games?

    I mean, I really don’t get it.

    It will be like saying that you are a “Hardcore” rock fan, but you only listen rock from this decade.

    Or calling yourself an Oasis fan, When you only have listen to the Wonderwall song

    I went really out of my way when I purchased my PS3,
    I made my own custom videogame computer and I spent $450.00 on a fucking video card
    I have a fucking WII, a X-BOX 360, a N64, a NDS, a fucking Sega Game gear and even a fucking Sega Dreamcast, But just for the record. I don’t think SEGA is great and I’m not a SEGA fanboy.
    On my fucking video game computer I have mugens, console emulator (for the systems I don’ have) and arcade emulators, THAT I PLAY.
    My PS3 is backwards compatible, so I can play my old PS1 and PS2 games and I DO PLAY THEM
    I still have my favorite games from the old X-BOX and I PLAY THEM.
    I play sometimes the game gear and the Dreamcast I don’t really touch it because lets be real, you can only play so much Crazy Taxi , plus nobody wants that shit

    But anyway I do have all those systems so I can play video games and I don’t play only shooting games. I play RTS, Turn based strategy, RPG, Racing, Puzzle, Horror, Music, Fighting, Side scrolling, Shooting and Sports games.

    I don’t close myself to only type of video game, because seriously, what’s the fun of that?

    And even so with all this crap I have and all this type of videogames I play, there is people out there waaaaaaaaay more “hardcore” than me.

    So yes, someone might like shooting games, a lot, but If they only play one type of video game, they are not “hardcore”, if they only play in one console they are not “hardcore”, if they don’t take a shower, eat or have a social life outside of the network they are just obsessed and need mental help ASAP.

    Thanks for your time and keep playing
46. #46 Alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:07 pm

    This is Bad and Wrong!

    Badong
47. #47 alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:14 pm

    Correction

    “How can someone call himself a “hardcore” videogameR”
48. #48 Delta says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 7:07 pm

    So, Alberto…..

    Even if someone only has a 360, and only plays Action/Shooters and FPS games, you don’t think they’re a hardcore gamer?

    I would say it’s quite hardcore to spend sleepless nights to improve your place on the leaderboards. I’d say it’s quite hardcore to spend hours improving just one specific thing you feel is effecting your overall ability to perform. I’d say it’s quite hardcore to spend several days working with your clan improving communications, team work, learning the maps, and practicing tactics.

    Even if they only play one genre, how is that not hardcore?
49. #49 Journeythroughhell says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 5:03 pm

    @Alberto:
    I’ll have to agree with Delta here, even if they play one genre (espescially FPS), that can be pretty hardcore.
50. #50 Alberto says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:29 am

    I think, this are different shades of a color.

    Delta probably will agree with this example

    If We have a comic reader that only reads Hulk comics, will you think he is a hardcore comic book reader? or will you think he is an avid Hulk reader.

    I personally don’t consider hiw a hardcore comic book reader because He only read Hulk comics, yes he might be a hardcore Hulk reader, but by no means He is a hardcore in general comic book reader, He will probably don’t know anything about the other heroes and this is were I will have my reservation of calling him a hardcore comic book reader.

    The same goes for gamers that only play shooter games.

    But like I said, this is my opinion and everyone is entitled to their own.