Editing Gamer (section)

==={{Anchor|Dedication spectrum}} Dedication spectrum===
It is common for games media, games industry analysts, and academics to divide gamers into broad behavioral categories. These categories are sometimes separated by level of dedication to gaming, sometimes by primary type of game played, and sometimes by a combination of those and other factors. There is no general consensus on the definitions or names of these categories, though many attempts have been made to formalize them. An overview of these attempts and their common elements follows.

* ''[[Newbie]]'': (commonly shortened to "noob", "n00b", or "newb") A slang term for a [[wikt:novice|novice]] or [[wikt:newcomer|newcomer]] to a certain game, or to gaming in general.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://web.mit.edu/dryfoo/Masonry/Misc/welaish.html |title=Masonry on the Internet |publisher=Web.mit.edu |access-date=2012-05-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708225739/http://web.mit.edu/dryfoo/Masonry/Misc/welaish.html |archive-date=2012-07-08 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/2009/04/23/words-online-gaming-opinions-books-newbs.html|title=Gamer Speak for Newbs|work=Forbes|author=Anna Vander Broek|date=2009-04-23|access-date=2010-02-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120409134803/http://www.forbes.com/2009/04/23/words-online-gaming-opinions-books-newbs.html|archive-date=2012-04-09|url-status=live}}</ref>
* ''Casual gamer'': The term often used for gamers who primarily play [[casual games]], but can also refer to gamers who play less frequently than other gamers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://venturebeat.com/2011/04/30/core-and-casual-whats-the-difference/|title=Core and Casual: What's the difference?|date=2011-04-30|access-date=2017-08-31|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170726181350/https://venturebeat.com/2011/04/30/core-and-casual-whats-the-difference/|archive-date=2017-07-26|url-status=live}}</ref> Casual gamers may play games designed for ease of gameplay, or play more involved games in short sessions, or at a slower pace than hardcore gamers.<ref name="Heather Barefoot"/> The types of game that casual gamers play vary, and they are less likely to own a dedicated video game console.<ref>Magrino, Tom, [http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6178563.html?tag=result;title;1 GameStop: Casual gamers spurring hardcore holiday sales] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711072417/http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6178563.html?tag=result%3Btitle%3B1 |date=July 11, 2011 }}, GameSpot, September 11, 2007, Accessed May 3, 2008</ref><ref>Boyes, Emma, [http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6186207.html?tag=result;title;0 GDC '08: Are casual games the future?] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711072428/http://uk.gamespot.com/news/6186207.html?tag=result;title;0 |date=July 11, 2011 }}, ''GameSpot'', February 18, 2008, Accessed May 3, 2008</ref> Notable examples of casual games include ''[[The Sims]]'' and ''[[Nintendogs]]''.<ref name="inaCasualization"/> Casual gamer demographics vary greatly from those of other video gamers, as the typical casual gamer is older and more predominantly female.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_6695921|title=Women driving 'casual game' boom|first=Troy|last=Wolverton|work=San Jose Mercury News|date=2007-08-23|access-date=2007-10-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006163201/http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_6695921|archive-date=2012-10-06|url-status=live}}</ref> Fitness gamers, who play motion-based exercise games, are also seen as casual gamers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://playstationlifestyle.net/2010/04/19/plethora-of-fitness-titles-lined-up-for-playstation-move/|title=Plethora of Fitness Titles Lined Up For PlayStation Move#|work=PlayStation LifeStyle|date=2010-04-19|access-date=2010-04-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100422210705/http://playstationlifestyle.net/2010/04/19/plethora-of-fitness-titles-lined-up-for-playstation-move/|archive-date=2010-04-22|url-status=live}}</ref>
* ''Core gamer'': (also mid-core) A player with a wider range of interests than a casual gamer and is more likely to enthusiastically play different types of games,<ref name="IwataAsksWiiU3definition">{{cite web|url=http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/index.html?disableNav=true/#/e32011/newhw/0/6|title=Iwata Asks: E3 2011 Special Edition|page=7|publisher=Nintendo|access-date=2011-06-09|quote='''Iwata''': the definition of a core gamer is much wider, namely, someone who has a much wider range of interests, someone who enthusiastically plays many types of games that challenges different creative directions.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608122917/http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/index.html?disableNav=true%2F#/e32011/newhw/0/6|archive-date=2011-06-08|url-status=live}}</ref> but without the amount of time spent and sense of competition of a hardcore gamer. The mid-core gamer enjoys games but may not finish every game they buy and is a [[target consumer]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.joystiq.com/2008/02/06/are-you-a-mid-core-gamer/|title=Are you a mid-core gamer?|publisher=[[joystiq.com]]|author=Scott Jon Siegel|access-date=2011-07-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130628160444/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/02/06/are-you-a-mid-core-gamer/|archive-date=2013-06-28|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NextGeneration">{{cite web | title=GameStop | url=http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1277&Itemid=32 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071203110531/http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1277&Itemid=32 | archive-date=2007-12-03 | first=Colin | last=Campbell | date=2005-10-10 | work=Edge | publisher=Future| access-date=2008-02-07}}</ref> Former Nintendo president [[Satoru Iwata]] stated that they designed the [[Wii U]] to cater to core gamers who are in between the casual and hardcore categories.<ref name="IwataAsksWiiU3cater">{{cite web|url=http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/index.html?disableNav=true/#/e32011/newhw/0/6|title=Iwata Asks: E3 2011 Special Edition|page=7|publisher=Nintendo|access-date=2011-06-09|quote='''Iwata''': On the other hand, I certainly do not think that Wii was able to cater to every gamer's needs, so that's also something I wanted to resolve. [...] The keyword for our presentation at this year's E3 is "Deeper and Wider". With Wii U, I would like to offer this proposal with that concept.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608122917/http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/index.html?disableNav=true%2F#/e32011/newhw/0/6|archive-date=2011-06-08|url-status=live}}</ref> A number of theories have been presented regarding the rise in popularity of mid-core games. James Hursthouse, the founder of Roadhouse Interactive, credits the evolution of devices towards tablets and touch-screen interfaces, whereas [[Jon Radoff]] of [[Disruptor Beam]] compares the emergence of mid-core games to similar increases in media sophistication that have occurred in media such as television.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.polygon.com/2013/8/9/4604088/the-rise-of-midcore-gaming|title=Core gamers, mobile games and the origins of the midcore audience|website=Polygon|access-date=2013-08-13|date=2013-08-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130812005427/http://www.polygon.com/2013/8/9/4604088/the-rise-of-midcore-gaming|archive-date=2013-08-12|url-status=live}}</ref>
* ''Hardcore gamer'': [[Ernest W. Adams|Ernest Adams]] and [[Scott Kim]] have proposed classification metrics to distinguish "hardcore gamers" from casual gamers,<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/from-casual-to-core-a-statistical-mechanism-for-studying-gamer-dedication | title=From Casual to Core: A Statistical Mechanism for Studying Gamer Dedication | work=Gamasutra | access-date=June 17, 2014 | author=Adams, Ernest | date=June 5, 2002 | archive-date=July 14, 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714225558/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/131397/from_casual_to_core_a_statistical_.php | url-status=live }}</ref> emphasizing action, competition, complexity, gaming communities, and staying abreast of developments in hardware and software. Others have attempted to draw the distinction based primarily on which platforms a gamer prefers,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pcauthority.com.au/Feature/260885,the-problems-of-defining-a-hardcore-gamer.aspx|title=The problems of defining a hardcore gamer|access-date=2015-02-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205021102/http://www.pcauthority.com.au/Feature/260885,the-problems-of-defining-a-hardcore-gamer.aspx|archive-date=2015-02-05|url-status=live}}</ref> or to decry the entire concept of delineating casual from hardcore as divisive and vague.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2013/10/22/call-of-duty-demonstrates-the-completely-fictitious-line-between-hardcore-and-casual-gaming/|title='Call of Duty' Demonstrates The Completely Fictitious Line Between Hardcore And Casual Gaming|first=Paul|last=Tassi|website=[[Forbes]]|access-date=2017-08-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729125844/https://www.forbes.com/sites/insertcoin/2013/10/22/call-of-duty-demonstrates-the-completely-fictitious-line-between-hardcore-and-casual-gaming/|archive-date=2017-07-29|url-status=live}}</ref>