How can we save Core Gaming?

[Pixel]

Traditional game publishers want a piece of the mobile pie, they normally do this by starting up new studios or acquiring existing studios.
But what if gaming industry or some of its big players joining together with the smartphone manufacturers and create a really eloquent standard of wireless addon controllers that can attach on securely to your phone and come off easy for pants pocket storage allowing you to play core games. You get a bunch of free EA/Activision/Ubisoft/Capcom games with it and it only function when you have their controller/unified-storefront app installed. EA/Activision/Ubisoft/Capcom could join together to split advertising costs and plaster tvs and websites with a really great wireless controller allowing you to play the vast catalogue of older games, instead of mobile pay to progress heavy grind style of games.

 

[Rodéric]

Yep the article I read was based on Kickstarter data, so indeed it's smaller, but growing fast, and less risky I'd think given the money spent.

 

[sebbbi]

You're arguing a different branch of the 'core' and 'casual' debate. I agree with you, but you're missing the point being raised about a branch of gaming (whether it's called 'core' or something else, but we have no other word for it other than 'core') and how that is possibly a dying breed.

These difficult 2D/2.5D platforming games are nowadays called masocore games: http://www.giantbomb.com/masocore/3015-1165/games/

Mario Run becomes a pure masocore game after the first play through. You will retry the same level countless of times before you get all the 5 pink/purple/black coins collected. In order to succeed, you need to remember the route exactly and perform it with exact precision. There's some casual appeal in masocore games, because most masocore games have simple controls and easy to understand core mechanics. This is why we have recently seen some masocore mobile games. But easy to learn, hard to master is the key design mantra of this genre. And hard really means hard. You often need to play 100+ hours to be able to pass the hardest levels. And that's not enough to achieve flawless zero fault runs in all extreme levels in Trials games for example. And after that you of course have leaderboards and other forms of online competition. That's when your spend 1000+ hours on the game. It is exact opposite of casual at this level.

Tekken and Street Fighter and many other simple 2D/2.5D games are similar. Fun to mash with your (non HC gamer) friends in a party, but very difficult to master. I like games like these. I don't need huge amount of AAA content to enjoy a game.

I don't personally like big AAA story driven games that much, because they lack the competition aspect. I have played two Uncharted games halfway, but didn't finish either. Same for some Ubisoft story-driven games (Far Cry, Assassin's Creed). I finished The Last of Us, but it also had boring moments. For some odd reason I never feel bored with JRPG games (finished almost all Final Fantasy games and some less well known ones). But when I bought Overwatch last year, I played it all days and most nights, until I decided to drop playing it because it took too much of my time (I can't really play games casually). Same with Mario Run. Had carpal tunnel syndrome a few years ago, and my wrist started to hurt when playing that game. Was time to say goodbye to Mario Run. Tablets have horrible ergonomics for gaming. Thank god Sony and Microsoft designed good game controllers (old Nintendo controllers were almost as bad as tablets/phones).

For me these simpler competitive games are the pure form of core gamer games. Counter Strike didn't need many maps or many weapons and still people spent 1000+ hours on it. 2d fighting games don't even have different levels (only background visual difference). In contrast nobody plays Uncharted, Heavy Rain or Assassin's Creed game for 1000+ hours. Still it seems that some gamers only appreciate these big budget AAA titles. These "interactive movies" are simply one of the "core gamer" genres, not the only one.

 

[Lefungus]

For me these simpler competitive games are the pure form of core gamer games. Counter Strike didn't need many maps or many weapons and still people spent 1000+ hours on it. 2d fighting games don't even have different levels (only background visual difference). In contrast nobody plays Uncharted, Heavy Rain or Assassin's Creed game for 1000+ hours. Still it seems that some gamers only appreciate these big budget AAA titles. These "interactive movies" are simply one of the "core gamer" genres, not the only one.

We need both without being dismissive of the other party. I play games for their stories, the choices & consequences. I utterly dislike the competitive aspect & multiplayer in general yet I consider myself a core gamer, and not someone watching "interactive movies".

 

[sebbbi]

We need both without being dismissive of the other party. I play games for their stories, the choices & consequences. I utterly dislike the competitive aspect & multiplayer in general yet I consider myself a core gamer, and not someone watching "interactive movies".

Sorry about that. It was a low blow indeed. There are many types of core gamers. Nobody has claimed that the big AAA story-driven blockbusters aren't core games. But some people imply that smaller indie games based on pure game mechanics (instead of big amount of content) aren't core games. This isn't true either.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

If that's what you read, that's not what I implied. I said, twice, that 'core' and 'casual' are poor categorisations, and regardless what we call games with somewhat sophisticated controls (for which I'd include as low as three - left/right and jump), they rarely feature on mobile devices. In fact I explicitly defined 'core' as based on controls and never mentioned content at all, and indeed reviewing the thread I don't see anyone raising content as being a defining factor of what core gamers want.

A better name might be Arcade than core. I've tried a few classic space shooters like Galaga and on mobile they are nothing like a 'proper' arcade game. The ship just follows your finger and autoshoots. Whatever one wants to call these games - I'm not the slightest bit interested in the labels other than as a means to differentiate and discuss effectively! - it's the difference between them that matters regards to preserving the experience some of us want (while others can have their interactive movies and others their Cookie Clicker).