[casual_games] The Definition of Casual Games

[Charles Parcell]

I understand your points but I think there is something you need to 
consider when you lay it out like this. while you can play Doom3 for 5 
minutes at a time, you still end up having to log a bunch of hours to 
get your reward from the game. I don't mean that the reward is the joy 
of blowing up baddies, but rather some in game mark that rewards you for 
completing something.

In the case of Doom3 you are rewarded when you get to the end of the 
game. There are no end of level bonuses or score multipliers that get 
calculated to reward you. But in the case of 'casual' games (in my mind) 
the player is rewarded frequently (ex. levels in zuma). The points in 
the game where the player is rewarded are also points where the player 
can 'walk away' from the game. This is a casual game.

so, while Doom3, Bejeweled, and Scrabble could all be played over 40 
each, they have there differences in reward. Doom3 is a huge single 
experience; Bejeweled is leveled experience that could go on forever 
(?); Scrabble is a group of multiple short game experiences.

I hope that was articulated well...

Charles P.


Jeff Murray wrote:

>Ello!
> 
>I'm really not sure you can nail down a genre or type of game as 'casual'. I play a lot of big titles as though they were casual games, in fact thats the way I play all games. I switch on, race around a bit, then turn off and forget it. I don't want to have to learn anything, I just want the burst of energy/excitement/whatever which makes me a casual gamer. I played Half Life 2 all the way through, but didn't think about it... it was just a week or so of casual game bursts then the game ended! The only difference between the way I played that and the way I play a webgame is the play length ... although thats not concrete either. I've played word games online for hours at a time ... my wife once even left the computer switched on overnight so she could continue the next day! I really don't think time is an issue at all when defining a casual game. 
> 
>Yes, you're trying to apply to a broad audience but thats about the business model and nothing to do with the game. You're not telling me that Bejeweled isn't designed to be played and replayed for as long as possible??
> 
>So, if we're talking about advergames ... maybe they're all casual purely in the depth of gameplay and replayability they provide? As for anything else, I really don't think anyone will nail a requirement/definition other than the budget OR the depth of play. If you base it on depth of play, the casual gamer like me will see Half Life 2, Quake3, Doom3 or even Battlefield 1942 as a casual game.
> 
>Does anyone think I'm way off with this? I feel like I'm missing something here!
> 
>Jeff.
> 
>http://www.fuelindustries.com
>  
>