A Casual Power Struggle

In the MMO world there is a seemingly never ending clash between the power gamers and the casual gamers. Each camp has their own list of demands for new and old games alike, and in this epic pixel battle the two rarely see eye to eye. For game developers this is a treacherous gap to bridge – especially when each group is so vocal about their needs. So what is a power gamer and how do they differ from casual gamers?

Power Hungry

Power gamers are the smaller of the two groups, but make up for their lack in numbers with an abundance of game play time. They burn through new content at a rapid rate leaving them with few people to play end game with. This activates their ADHD while they wait for people to catch up, and they blame the developers for not giving them enough to do. Which is ironic considering they would just eat through that before everyone else as well, and still be left in the same situation.

They have the maxed out crafters to make the best items. They have the hardest to earn gear, and reach all their goals at an enviable speed. If they play on a pvp server then you can be sure they will spend their time strolling through the lower level areas killing every player they can find. This activity serves multiple purposes – the first is to show off their superior level and gear. The second is to compensate for some suppressed playground memories where the big kids knocked them down. The third is an attempt to slow the progress of lower level players, or so they claim. After all, they complain about no one being high enough level to pose a challenge to them, so slowing their leveling seems counterproductive to their cause.

The average power gamer is an easy target for various stereotypical slights. For example, it is commonly believed that many live in their parent's basement. They are unemployed – the only way they could possibly dedicate the amount of time needed to level so quickly. They hack, steal, or cheat in games granting them an unfair advantage. It doesn't help that Powers feel superior because they dominate in game. These claims are almost never the case for the majority. I know of one person dwelling in his parent's basement that no one would ever accuse of being a power anything. There are plenty of reasons for being unemployed and/or having excessive amounts of time to game – most of which have nothing to do with ignoring real life. And in my experience, if there is a true hack or way to cheat at a game, just as many casual people will try it out as power gamers.

Casual Criers

Casual gamers have huge numbers to back their cause, and with that comes a lot of voices to be heard. This group views gaming as entertainment and fun more than a way to dominate. They want to test out each class archetype, and feel the journey is more important than the destination. The pressure to reach the maximum level never seems to touch them. Casuals also complain to the developers that they can never accomplish anything because things take too much time, or too many people. Which is contrary to what they claim to love the most about gaming – the journey is 'fun'.

This group tends to have multiple toons at low to medium levels. This partially explains why they feel they can't get anything done because it's difficult to get anywhere if you keep going back to the start. Not to mention a portion of their animosity for their power counterparts is that those are the same high level people coming into the lower zones to kill them repeatedly. While it's understandable that it can be frustrating to be killed continually by someone you don't stand a chance against, they would have better odds if they focused on one character to max level then started their alts.

Casual players deal with being called cry babies because they ask that a game be tailored to suit their limited needs. They are often accused of destroying what was once a great game thanks to those limited needs being met and 'watering down' the content. It doesn't help that Casuals see themselves as superior in real life what with having jobs and living on the main floor.

Developer Dilemma

For the developers of any game dealing with this dichotomy is a rough row to hoe. How do you decide which group to favor and when? The obvious choices are to play up to the Powers from the moment of launch until the bulk of that group hit the max level and plateau for a while. The key time to give the Casuals what they want is when the Powers abandon ship in favor of a newly launched game. It's the interim where developers have to walk the balancing wire. Picking and choosing where to advance and where to scale back.

It can't be easy, to say the very least. After all, Power gamers build the popularity of a game and spread the word rapidly at a critical time for fragile games. However, Casual gamers hold strong numbers and play (more importantly pay) for a much longer time. They are also the ones that keep the servers going long after the game company has moved most of their attention to newer titles. If they make a bad enough decision regarding either group they can destroy a potentially successful game launch, or forgo their bread and butter crowd.

Midlife Crisis

A gaming career can last a lifetime, and with it will come a multitude of life changes that affect how you game. A person could have spent a solid decade being a Power gamer and suddenly find themselves with extended hours at work or a fast paced family schedule to maintain turning them into a Casual gamer. The tables can turn the opposite way as well – a workaholic may suffer some life altering injury or disease giving them an excessive amount of time to devote to gaming as a distraction from their situation. In short, sometimes you feel like a nut, and sometimes you don't.

There is one small contingent of Power gamers that can never quite turn it off regardless of what life throws at them. Even with the best laid plans they can't stop their drive to be the first to see the top of the mountain. These are the people that are viewed as gaming addicts, whether that's the proper term or not.

Simply Symbiotic

The interesting thing about the clash of these titans is that they need each other. Power gamers create all the guides and leave all the tips and advice on game websites making it easier for Casuals to enjoy the game with minimal frustration. Casuals keep a game alive when it's between expansions or major updates that the Powers will want to come back and wade through. Obviously these are the extremes of the gamer gamut, so there are many subtle shades and flavors of players out there. Without both groups gaming as we know it would suffer. Plus we would miss out on all the inane forums arguments, and no one would want that!