[casual_games] Definition of Casual Games

[Joe Pantuso]

That's right, I mean that all 3 have to apply.

 

Subject matter is important.  The settings of games can often be unpleasant,
gritty places.  That's not what people are looking for in a 'casual' game
usually.  There will of course be people who view it as a casual game, but
that's a different use of the word casual.

 

I think we may have a problem with the word casual similar to the problem
the 'free' software people do, there they define it as 'free speech' vs.
'free beer' and the problem is people assume the second when the first is
what is usually the intention.

 

In our case the industry is talking about 'casual' games being for 'casual'
players.  Not games that are played in a 'casual' manner.  Enough quotes.
The difference between these is in the players, not necessarily in the
games.  A casual player would never, for example, go out and buy a $500
video card in order to be able to play a new game.

 

I have a theory that casual game players would never self-identify
themselves as being game players.  They would admit to playing of course,
but they would not consider themselves a 'gamer'.

 

This is not to say that gamers don't play casual games.  Of course they do.

 

For the purposes of the games we publish we also have a rule of thumb about
the development, that it should take 1-3 months for a team of 1-3 people.
When you get toward the outer edge of that math (9 work months) you are
likely to be pushing the bounds of casual.  Not a rigorous definition, but
perhaps a useful way to think about it.

 

-J

 

Joe Pantuso 

TrayGames Corp

www.traygames.com <http://www.traygames.com/> 

Online multiplayer casual games community

 

  _____  

From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of Wade Tinney
Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2005 3:23 PM
To: 'IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List'
Subject: RE: [casual_games] Definition of Casual Games

 

 

Yes, I think Joe's intention in listing the 3 criteria was that *all three*
need to apply in order for a game to be called 'casual'. 

 

I think there is also the issue of content appeal; does the theme and color
of the game appeal to a broad audience that includes both genders and a wide
age range? I would argue that games that are explicitly violent (such as GTA
and CS) do not appeal to a broad audience, and as far as I can tell, are
actually repulsive to a broad audience. I can't think of any game in the
"casual game" market (and I'm referring to the catalogs at the large portals
- Yahoo, MSN, Shockwave, etc) that elicits that sort of response. 

 

 

 

Wade Tinney
partner, game designer
Large Animal Games
http://www.largeanimal.com <http://www.largeanimal.com/> 
wade at largeanimal.com

-----Original Message-----
From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of machaira at comcast.net
Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2005 2:58 PM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: RE: [casual_games] Definition of Casual Games

But does the learning curve for casual games fit for these games? I can't
see it taking a mere 5 minutes to learn any of these other than the barest
minimum.

 

-------------- Original message -------------- 

If a casual game doesn't require time commitments, then I see games like
Counter-Strike, Grand Theft Auto and SimCity/The Sims as casual games.

 

And I think it makes sense to lump Bejeweled and Zuma with the above games,
because users can play these games for five minutes or for five hours.

 

Personally, I love using the CS, GTA and Sims model for developing "casual
games" that are published online.

 

Thanks,

 

Malcolm

 

 

 

 


  _____  


From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of joey kolber
Sent: Wednesday, July 13, 2005 12:05 PM
To: casual_games at igda.org
Subject: RE: [casual_games] Definition of Casual Games

 

I would call a casual game something that doesn't require commitment. Many
games these days are so intense that they require hours and hours, or are so
entrancing that people will spend hours and hours on them. Casual games
don't require this. While some may entrance people for long periods of time,
they don't require people to devote part of their life to it. They can play
some, leave, and then come back and play again. Games light in plot, like
puzzle games and many online quick games could be put in this category,
while many MMO's, like MMORPG's and many roleplaying games in general would
probably require more of a commitment.

 

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