"Hardcore Games" and "Hardcore Gamers" are terms without any real definition, and their meaning changes in order to support the worldview of the person who is using the term ... Many people have choosen to stop using the terms "Hardcore Games" and "Hardcore Gamers"
Many people use the terms "Core Games" and "Core Gamers" to mean the group of games/gamers that have traditionally been the centeral focus of the videogame market. These games are typically the kind of more indepth experience that many gamers have enjoyed for the past several generations, there is no ordering associated with being a "Core Game" or "Core Gamer" (in other words you can't be more "Core" than someone else), and there is no association with subject material because gamers have traditionally enjoyed "Everyone" rated games as well as "Mature" rated games (and everything inbetween).
