Before you make the next "OMG this Wii game failed" thread, read this one.

[Avalach21]

Veder Juda said:
This all comes down to the lack of hardcore titles on the Wii; and no, games like Madworld are NOT hardcore. Hardcore refers to the audience, and new IPs cannot be hardcore because they can't get an audience until after they come out; without an audience you can't have hardcore gamers, and without hardcore gamers you can't have a hardcore game.

Games like Super Mario Galaxy are hardcore because the Mario fanbase has been cultivated by Nintendo over the past two decades, so any major Mario game that comes out has a dedicated following even before the game hits shelves; a spin-off like Mario and Sonic isn't hardcore, because it's not a real Mario game, and doesn't automatically grab the fanbase's attention right away. Mario Kart is an exception as it has become a franchise in and of itself, and has it's own hardcore fans. Mario and Sonic at the Winter Olympics could also be a hardcore game, because it has the fanbase of the first Mario and Sonic to reach out to.

Hardcore games are heavily front loaded because the fanbase is waiting for the game and has been following every detail since the announcement; they'll buy the game at the first available moment, which is why almost all the sales happen in the first few weeks. Games that don't have a hardcore fanbase, build up their audience over time, and creep up in game sales; if the game has broad appeal, it will slowly build up a huge following.

Rather than trying to redefine the word "hardcore," why not just use the term "established franchise?"