 This is going to be a really difficult conversation But it's an important one because if you've been around the video game community long enough whether it's with Nintendo Xbox PlayStation PC or everything above maybe it's mobile games mobile phones and smart devices There are certain terms that we always throw around to describe different types of consumers and even different types of fans We've talked in the past about fans and fanboys But this goes beyond that and fanboy ism and all that stuff We're talking about the basic terms that make up the entirety of the consumer base for video games. Yes. We are all gamers but We categorize each other Based on different settings and different likes and dislikes and different levels of play You guys know these terms all too well casual gamer core gamer Hardcore gamer those are the three main terms that get tossed around and there really isn't a universally accepted definition in Researching this topic to talk about it to come up with our Definitions of what makes a casual core Hardcore gamer at Nintendo Prime so we could frame all of our future discussions So when anyone's like, oh, I don't think that what you're talking about is a casual gamer Well, I could point to this video and they could see what our definition is and why it fits The problem is no one can seem to agree There is a lot of disagreement and I'm gonna read off some of the definitions that we get from places like Urban Dictionary Which is obviously a collection of people who came up with that definition and I've seen these definitions debated to the death because these are terms that were invented as gaming grew and there's a lot of Negativity associated with some of these definitions that misses the core context of what the term actually is as an example We all know that when someone is called a casual gamer It's usually done with a negative connotation But it really shouldn't be because being a casual gamer is not necessarily a negative thing The same would be in a core gamer and the same would be in a hardcore gamer There are people that associate the term hardcore gamer with losers and overweight people and well I mean I am overweight, but I don't even associate myself as a hardcore gamer And I'm gonna explain why because I'm gonna introduce another term that has maybe been tossed around in the past But people don't fully grasp what it means And it's often confused with hardcore gaming definition So without, you know, wasting too much of your time Let's just get right into what the commonly accepted definitions of these terms are So we'll start right at, you know, what's considered the bottom tier of gamers the casual gamers and Urban dictionary says that the casual gamer is the lowest common denominator in the gaming industry Where basically they put simplicity over complexity So games that are really easy and they feel like the industry is starting to cater to them They give a few examples Duke Nukem 3d 1996 at complex level design big levels mini small riddles and then Duke Nukem forever tried to appeal to a more casual gamer Says the level design was a straight line there was one or two simple riddles and they totally messed up weapons handling and energy economy and This might be true I don't know enough about the difference between those two games But I don't like this definition of casual gamer because it acts like being a casual gamer is a bad thing and it's not So here's my definition of casual gaming based on my experiences that I have seen Within the industry on the internet and also just with my friends and my family and other people in my life that I would consider to be casual gamers So casual gamers are those that are not invested in gaming Right they enjoy playing games but they are not invested in the gaming scene As an example my girlfriend is a casual gamer and I don't say that With any negative connotations associated with it. She loves playing Mario. She likes playing Mario Kart She has a Tetris game on her phone She used to like playing Candy Crush and it's not that she necessarily likes simple simple games. It's that Gaming is not something that is a high priority in her life. It is just another thing. She enjoys It's like going to the movies. She loves going to the movies But she doesn't do it very often because she doesn't feel the need to it's not something that she Associates and builds her life around to create time to do so she is a casual gamer So to summarize that definition then a casual gamer in terms of when we talk about it here at Nintendo Prime It's just someone who enjoys games but doesn't Aspire to play them non-stop. They don't base their life around finding time to be entertained by them It's not a go-to Entertainment medium for them. It's just another entertainment medium for them Just like going to the movies just like maybe going out to the local fair once a year It is just something that they enjoy doing in the entertainment spectrum But is not necessarily something that they would say is a hobby of theirs. It is not something that they You know really put a lot of time into but it is something they wholly enjoy and they don't just enjoy it because it's simple Sometimes they enjoy the more complex stuff There are plenty of people that I would consider casual gamers that love a game like breath of the wild that has a lot of complex systems involved in it But they only play it for a few hours, you know every week or every other week And that's because that their life isn't based around having to play that game They just enjoy gaming and they play it when they feel like it and when they have time And it's not something that they feel like they need to create Space to play so to me that's what a casual gamer is forget all the negative connotations And yes people that play mobile phone games you can call them casual gamers But you know there there's some people that play mobile phone games for a hell of a lot more hours than I play on my PC on my switch on my 3ds per week and They would not actually fit the definition to be in a casual gamer in this case. So let's move on The next step off from this is typically considered the core gamer now Here's what urban dictionary says is a core gamer So a core gamer is someone who plays a large variety of games a large variety than a casual gamer That is but doesn't play video games with the intensity and dedication of a hardcore gamer Using an MMORPG as an example a core gamer would normally progress through their levels at a steady rate and might join a guild But never divulge too seriously into it to use their guild on occasion A hardcore gamer would want their guild to be the best in constantly do raids and work out techniques So again, I am going to disagree with this sentiment of what a core gamer is because to me a core gamer is The vast majority of video game players, right a core gamer is Their their basis of this definition is not based on how much they play or how dedicated they are to a single game It is not even how dedicated they are to a variety of games, right? Because they use it all that the casual gamers only play a select few titles core gamers will play a ton No, a core gamer could literally just play all one title or they could play a bunch of titles in my definition so for me a core gamer is simply someone who Likes video games enough to invest in them at a regular pace and so let me let me get what I was saying here You're someone who plays fire emblem heroes on the phone That's like the only game you play, right? It's the only game you have time for while you play for 10 plus hours a week and you keep investing monetary Actual real-world money into the game to improve yourself and get better characters and get better items So you can advance further and further and further into the game You are a core gamer You are a consumer that video game companies are specifically Targeting as someone who makes up the core base of the gaming community This is the base that is going to be there as long as video games are around. We're not talking about the hardcore people We're talking just about people who enjoy gaming enough that they are going to invest They are not going to invest thousands upon thousands of dollars per year Typically, but they are going to invest money every single year into video games maybe even every single month just so they can enjoy whatever game they are playing and This is a lot different than casual gamers who they just play games on occasion when they feel like it When the opportunity arises like my girlfriend loves Mario Kart 8, but she doesn't regularly you say hey Let's play Mario Kart 8 But if she catches me playing Mario Kart 8 deluxe should be like hey, can I play sure of course you can Whereas a core gamer would probably already own Mario Kart 8 deluxe if they really wanted to play it Basically if they really want to play something they're going to play it But they're not as intense as a hardcore gamer They could stop playing at any time and it doesn't bother them They are not going to build their lives around finding time for gaming But they are invested enough in gaming that they are going to go out of their way with their free time to play games It is something that they prioritize over other entertainment mediums Maybe even over things like Netflix and chill a very common thing that a lot of people do because it's cheap affordable entertainment now That's not a negative that but but that makes up the vast majority of video game owners That makes up the audiences that Nintendo Sony Microsoft and even PC Which again? I know is not like its own company, but that's those are the people that they are primarily targeting That's the mass market appeal now obviously casual gamers can come into this That that's what the Wii and DS was doing They were there came a blue ocean strategy with the Wii and DS Nintendo was where they not only went after all of those core gamers They also extended out to people who only are going to maybe buy a game or two a year at most And not dedicate a lot of time though people who played the Wii sports the people who do the just dance Etc. But you kind of get my feeling here where the difference is between casual and core I hope this makes a lot of sense I know it's a lot of explanation, but I feel like we need to expand the definitions of these terms So now we get into the hardcore gamer And here's how urban dictionary says it they say that hardcore gamer is someone who plays video games as a primary hobby Nintendo spend a large amount of time playing games often in excess of two to three hours a day Hardcore gamers tend to care less about graphics than casual gamers while some specialize in a single genre They typically have fairly diverse tasting games frequently playing a wide variety of games from different genres They'll often seek out obscure and older games based on word-of-mouth or positive critical reception Hardcore gamers put good gameplay above all else and don't mind if a good game has poor or even non-existent graphics sound character and plot So on the surface this sounds like they're basically describing all Nintendo fans, right? But that's not actually a definition that I agree with with hardcore gamer Now there are parts of it that I think make sense a hardcore gamer is someone who goes out of their way every day Or every week to play video games like I don't go out of my way every single day to play video games I run this Nintendo channel and I'm telling you right now. I do not play video games every day I do not go out of my way to play video games every day, but I do play video games on a weekly basis and When you're talking about a hardcore gamer They're just someone that does put it as one of their top priorities in their free time to enjoy It might even be the top priority instead of going to movies instead of watching Netflix instead of going for walks Or playing a pickup game of basketball the primary thing they like to do in their free time when they are not working And they are not spending time with their family is video games They spend a few hours daily or 20 hours weekly whatever the case might be playing video games They're the people that show up to the midnight releases of consoles and their favorite games and This I don't agree with anything else this definition says about hardcore gaming where it says they care less about graphics than casual gamers They care less about this they care less. No, actually if anything These gamers are the ones that are most invested in video games They invest so much money into video games per year or even into a single game that they care about these aspects more than ever They care about 1080p 60 FPS 4k they care about A lot of gameplay aspects like you don't have to care about necessarily the whole tech side of things But the way I'm framing this is that the hardcore gamer is just someone who is so passionate about video games It is a top priority in their life to find time to do it. It is not a negative. It is not a wholly positive thing It's just a personal choice. Someone enjoys video games so much It's a big part of their lives there have been moments in my past where I was a hardcore gamer There was times in my past where I just played world of Warcraft for two straight years I was a hardcore world of Warcraft player that makes me a hardcore gamer It doesn't mean I played a wide variety of games But it meant I spent a ton of time basing my life around video games around finding time to play video games And I feel like that's what a hardcore gamer is and that's not a negative thing They're video games can do a lot of positive things for a lot of different people I'm just saying that hardcore gamers are the ones that base their free time around playing video games base their expendable money around being able to buy more video games and More things to help them play video games whether it's controllers or new keyboard, etc So that's what a hardcore gamer is to me But I don't fit into any of these categories. I'm not a hardcore gamer. I am not a casual gamer I'm not a core gamer. I am a relatively new term It's really only been around for about a decade or so. I am what I call an enthusiast gamer and It kind of blends a little bit because I'm also a tech enthusiast now These terms are just a different take on what a gamer is or what someone who likes tech is Because I can't afford everything in gaming I can't get an Xbox one X a PlayStation 4 pro a switch a 3ds a 2ds XL nude I'm sorry a new 2ds XL etc like I want all these things I know a lot of things about all these different products I know everything there is to know about them from a tech level. That's part of me and my tech enthusiast side Just like I know a ton of things going on with AMD Ryzen. I know some things going on with Vega I know all about threadripper. I know about, you know I haven't subscribed to YouTube channels to talk about all the new i9 processors coming out I know about the GTX 1080 Ti and the differences between the Titan X and Titan XP But I know all this stuff about tech because I love tech even if I can't afford it Which I can tell you right now. I can't even afford to go to McDonald's today So I definitely cannot afford all this tech that I love learning about But that makes me a tech enthusiast because I get a pure love a pure passion a pure amount of joy out of just Knowing what's going on in the tech world knowing where things are going especially when it comes to gaming. I just love Knowing what's coming out in terms of technology to help make video games and Video processing and all this stuff in the futures that much better at the consumer end and what makes more sense This is why I have a lot of friends and a lot of people I know who turn to me say hey look I want to build a new computer. What do you suggest? Here's my budget and I could just ask them if you don't look What do you want to use this computer for and based on my knowledge of tech? I can come out and build them something that is Probably be ten times better than what I have right now when I built my computer last year So it's one of those things where I just am that enthusiastic about tech and that's the way I am with gaming now obviously I have an affinity towards Nintendo I love Nintendo. This is Nintendo Prime. I always will for the rest of my life until the day I die No matter what happens in the video game industry as long as Nintendo is around I'm always gonna have them as a go-to company when I want to game I'm always going to want to play Mario. I'm always gonna want to play Zelda And yes, they could end up destroying those franchises and making them crap But for some reason because I am a Nintendo fan I am going to come back and play the franchises hoping that this new game that comes out Isn't as bad as it looks or whatever like Nintendo is I grew up with them huge part of my childhood I didn't grow up with Sega or PlayStation as much as I did other things So I did happen to have an Xbox during my teen years because I was a teenager when that first came out But I don't have the same affinity towards Xbox as I do for Nintendo now Extending this out into what an enthusiast gamer is I care about the gaming industry and probably an unhealthy way I spend an Exorbitant amount of time when I'm working at Nintendo Prime just researching all the things going on in the game industry Whether it's about the tech whether it's about the direction of certain gaming companies Whether it's about the games themselves And I'm not just talking about Nintendo despite the fact that I'm Nintendo Prime The way that I like to keep myself as unbiased as I possibly can in talking about Nintendo and video games is by making sure That I have a wide knowledge base about what the heck is going on. What do people care about? Why does this matter? Why do people want 4k gaming? Why do people care about 60 FPS? Why do people care about visuals over not having as pretty visuals and why I disagree with like the hardcore gamer thing being oh I don't care about this. That's not true. There's plenty of hardcore gamers that care about visuals That's that's completely irrelevant casuals aren't even necessarily buying games because they care about the visual aspect That's just a way of people wanting to separate themselves, right? Like oh, I don't want to play with those filthy casuals or those filthy core gamers that all they want to do is play Call of Duty There's a ton of hardcore gamers play Call of Duty So that's not that's not go there that that doesn't has nothing to do with the definition of those terms So I am just someone that passionately cares about Gaming on the whole and I feel like that's what makes you an enthusiast gamer It's not someone who can afford to buy everything It's but it is someone who if I had the money I would buy everything right I would buy a PlayStation 4 pro and an Xbox one X and a switch and a 3ds and the highest impossible gaming PC And I would buy all the games that I actually care about there are so many games I don't get to play because I can't afford to do it and that's just on Nintendo's platform That's not including the fact I want to play Assassin's Creed Origins and I want to play see a thieves and I want to play heck I want to play the last Guardian, but I can't afford a PlayStation 4 to do that let alone the game I just said I can't even afford earlier to get a meal at McDonald's right now So like I am an enthusiast that would love to own all this stuff, but I can't financially do it That doesn't mean I stopped caring for a lot of people They might start out as an enthusiast gamer who just really into the gaming scene and learning all about these different games and the different Developers and these different companies, but then they get heavily invested into one company because that's all they can afford and They stick to it and then they stop kind of paying attention to the rest of the industry And we as Nintendo fans are sometimes guilty of this There are plenty of Nintendo fans that know everything going on at Nintendo They know about all the things coming this year next year and they will sit there and say But Sony has had no good games come out in the past year or no new games No new IP they're just having all these multi-platform third-party games and nothing original nothing unique Which is completely untrue and this like the same thing about Xbox and maybe even the same thing about PC Which would be absolutely ridiculous PC gets the most like exclusive games out of anyone So it's one of those things where these are people that are no longer Gaming enthusiasts those are now hardcore gamers and they might even venture into fanboy territory Which is good fans and fanboys are totally separate things from these categories Although fans and fanboys all fit into these categories So I know this is a really long video longer than I intended But I felt like these definitions really needed to be fleshed out So I'm just someone who cares on the whole about the gaming industry within a affinity towards Nintendo Which is why we run a Nintendo channel But just because I might talk at length about certain things that Nintendo is doing whether I like it Whether I don't like it talk passionately about specific games It doesn't mean that I don't know what's going on in the rest of the industry because I care I care about video gaming on the whole I care for it to be as healthy as it possibly can be which is why I think it's important for Sony Microsoft and Nintendo to all Matter when it comes to the gaming market the fact that Nintendo with the Wii U didn't matter this past generation Isn't good It's not good for gaming But it also led to the switch happening. So it might have been good for Nintendo. It might have been a wake-up call anyways, I hope this all makes sense and There's no quick way for me to summarize all these definitions But I'll try my best right now a casual gamer is just someone who enjoys video games They are definitely gamers, but they don't go out of their way to play them They don't base their free time around it They just when the opportunity arises they will go ahead and play it whether it's on their phone or whether it's you know Through a console or whatever. They're not their day one. They don't care about being day one They don't care about spending a lot of money on it. They don't set money aside for video games. They just like playing them Core gamer makes up a vast majority of the video game audience. These are the people that the industry thrives on They just they like playing usually, you know, maybe it's just one game really really a lot Or maybe it's multiple games, but they are actually invested in gaming. They pay attention They go to video game news sites. They follow people in the game industry on social media They do have certain amounts of their expendable income. They set aside for gaming But they also do a lot of other things, right? They don't base the entirety of their life around gaming But they care enough about gaming to invest in it every single year period Then you also have the hardcore gamers Those are the people that heavily invest all their money or a lot of their free money into video games They own multiple systems. They they might only own one game, but they invest a lot of money into that one game They play that game a lot like it's not just about having a wide variety of taste It's just about the amount of time and money you sink into playing video games Whether it's retro whether it's new whether it is just a single game on a phone like fire emblem heroes Whether it is heck maybe you play hundreds of hours of Super Mario run This is all valid ways to be a hardcore gamer is nothing to do with your gaming taste There's nothing to do with the controls There's nothing to do with what platform you play on and it has nothing to do with your amount of gaming experience It is about your pocketbook and your time mostly being spent on video games Enthusiast gamers are people that just care about the whole industry. They're heavily invested They might have even been hardcore gamers They probably went through all three phases of gaming before from casual to core to hardcore That's usually how it starts No one ever just comes out the game as a hardcore gamer You started casually then became a core then became hardcore and then sometimes you can reach the enthusiast level Where you want everything you care about everything you don't necessarily hold any company is being vastly superior to the other But you can't maybe you can't afford it. Maybe you're rich. I don't know but I can't afford it. I have three kids I got a life. I got family I don't want to see another life if you buy all that that's not what I meant to say But you know what I mean an enthusiast gamer just someone who passionately cares about the whole industry And this is why I'm also a tech enthusiast. I don't care if Intel or AMD win Then none of that matters to me I just glad I live in a world where AMD has come back and now matters again when they didn't matter for so long because competition is healthy I'm a tech enthusiast. I am a video game enthusiast That's where I stand with an affinity to Nintendo because I grew up on Nintendo So their games are always gonna matter to me Even if it gets to a point that I can't spend the time to be an enthusiast like I want to be Because the reality is I might not be able to do Nintendo Prime forever So I might not have the time to be an enthusiast because it is kind of a time sink to make sure that you're always up to date on everything Going on in the industry. Anyways, my name is Nathanian Roppeljantz From the 10 of prime. I hope this video was at least educational What we at Nintendo Prime view as the casual the core the hardcore and the enthusiast level gamer at the end of the Day we are all gamers. It doesn't matter which level you prescribe to it doesn't matter if you're a fanboy or a fan We all fall into the same category of we just care about video games to some certain degree. I Hope to see you guys in future videos If you like this video, you know what to do if you just like it, you know what to do as well Comment below subscribe for more. Obviously if you'd like to help support future endeavors that we do We have a patreon at patreon.com slash Nintendo Prime. Otherwise folks, I'll catch you in the next one