Softcore
How come when they’re talking about porn, they (the mysterious powers that be…folks also responsible for posting signs from “The Management”, one would suppose) talk about “hardcore” and “softcore.” But when talking about other things that have a hardcore component, the converse is “casual” instead?
Seriously. Google “softcore” (presuming that you’re not under 18 and also not reading this at your ever-more-precious place of employment). All porn, all the time. Now Google “casual” and the third hit is for gaming. Anyhow, I got on my motorcycle this morning 
(that’s not me and that’s not mine, but that’s what I ride) and it was cool this morning – 50°F according to yahoo – and living in the shadows of mountains as I do, it was probably colder than that, but the point is, we’re talking about cool, not freezing. Anyhow, I changed to my cold gloves, because they were right with the bike. But I only got a couple of blocks before I realized that my all-mesh summer jacket just wasn’t going to cut it. I rode home. Did I trade jackets? No. I drove to work. Because I’m not hardcore any more.
Eleven or twelve years ago, by way of contrast, I once rode to work (different bike, different job) over an inch or two of packed snow, warming my freezing hands on the engine at stoplights. At the morning meeting, the guy who drove his jeep with the top down year-round pointed at me and asked the whole office, “He rode his motorcycle today. Can we stop calling me crazy now?” Because I was hardcore.
I’m not hardcore anymore. But, luckily for anyone who might find a picture of me on the internet, I’m not softcore, either. I’m casual. I’m a casual motorcyclist. I’m a casual gamer. And that’s OK.
And I think I just realized that Ultrablamtacular is a casual game. Let me tell you why:
A hardcore enthusiast will endure discomfort, hardship, and pain for his chosen pursuit. See the frostbitten me of long ago pulling into work, trusting to numb feet to carry me from my bike into the warm safety of the lobby. Ultrablam is written to remove the pain of the pursuit of gaming. The pain inflicted by hardcore games? That’s antitainment, which I have written on at length. The cold I suffered riding to work? Antitainment.
A casual enthusiast has just as much fun (I can tell you, I have more fun now with motorcycling and gaming than I did when I would suffer for either of them) at the cost of a lot less discomfort, hardship, and pain than a hardcore enthusiast.
So if someone reviews Ultrablamtacular someday, and paints it as a “casual” RPG, I think I’m prepared to take it as a compliment.
I’m not sure I would call you a casual gamer…because at the cocktail party (where I wore eyeliner–HARDCORE!) tonight with the other game-boys you kept bringing up games that they didn’t know about.
What if your attitude was casual about your serious work? That’s kind of how I feel about my job.
@Jona Kottler You’re right. I guess there’s a broader variety of choices than just one of two dichotomous extremes, and maybe even more dimensions of choice than just the hardcore-casual line. I think “serious” is a good word, and maybe “dedicated” should go in there somewhere. I’m serious about games – I think about them a lot. And I’m dedicated – I’m willing to learn, teach, and play games that may suck in order to see what they have to offer, or what the designer has to say.
Either way, though, visits to this blog have gone up 9000000% since it shows up on Google searches for “hardcore porn” AND “softcore porn.”
You’d think so, right? But no. Turns out (surprise!) that this is NOT the only place on the internet to use the word “porn.” Also, for Google to notice me, someone else has to link here!