IMO, a real hardcore game is one that is not played because it is entertainment. An example: WW II Online, before patching: players in many cases had to hop on a military truck and be transported to the combat zone, which could take for example twenty minutes. Only then would you get to the combat action, and if you're killed, there are no respawn points to get you back on the action. You play to aid your team, your side, and you're sacrificing a lot of time to get an "authentic" war experience.
Another hardcore game: Harpoon. No fancy graphics, just naval military symbols and plain maps. To most people, it is incredibly boring, but some are hardcore enough to get in the game and learn naval strategy.
IMO, coming from a youth spent in PC gaming, consoles themselves are casual gaming machines. And there's nothing wrong with that, like there is nothing wrong with casual games. Heck, I like to enjoy my games.
