Lunchtime Discussion: Labels

Before this generation the only real terms I’d heard to describe gamers was just that, gamers. However this generation the phrases hardcore, casual and even, to an extent, social have become associated with gamers. Sure hardcore was sort of there in the past, but I hadn’t heard it used to such an extent till this generation.

The issue I take with these labels, and with labels in general, is that for the most part we aren’t applying these labels to ourselves, but having them applied to us. I don’t think anyone appreciates having a label applied to them, but when mainstream press apply any label to gamers it seems to be used as a dirty word, as a derogatory term to try and paint us as freaks and weirdos.

So why the growth of these labels? Why the growth of the differentiation between the types of gamers this time around? Casual gaming has existed for years, Flash games have been around for as long as I can remember, and almost everything in the ‘casual’ category is basically just an extension of these. If you want to go way back the first casual game was probably Tetris, so why is it only now becoming a ‘craze’? As for social gaming, gamers have been playing socially since Pong.

The real reason for the growth of the labels is the growth of the platforms. Facebook already have the word ‘social’ attached to it – social media – hence any gaming on Facebook must also be social. The Wii is designed to appeal to “the whole family”, which has some how translated into casual, along with the self-application of the label by studios such as PopCap.

Do you appreciate being labelled by the media? Do we really need these labels, or are they just applied for convenience?