The first part of my response was mainly aimed at explaining why chess is considered a hardcore game and why a lot of wii games are not (notice I mention in particular that the evergreen titles are NOT shallow). FPS games have a basic pickup and play attitude but once again, if you decide to get hardcore about them, all you had to do is look at some of the youtube videos to see some crazy play and even more fantastic team play.

The second part is my own interpretation of why gamers and gaming media's labels of the wii as 'casual'. Its not fair I agree, but its also the truth. Sega were the first to capitalise on this type of marketing but Sony truly brough it home with the PS1. If you search on youtube, you'd probably find an documentary in which Phil Harrison explained quite clearly that the PS1 was design for 18 year olds, because everyone wants to be a 18 years old, whether they are older or younger, people apparently want to be 18 (and male) and thus every single Playstation console (including the portable) where design quite clearly around this concept.

Nintendo did not do this, which is why all those gamers who have grown up being catered to (even force fed) a particular diet of game, find the wii's alternative gaming to be strang and 'unnatural'.

I freely admit to being of that generation of gamer, and indeed support the PS360 because they have the type of games that appeal to me in abundance. The difference is that I can look at it from a different perspective and admit to the issue.

Doesn't mean I don't hate the wii though. :p.

edit: I should also clarify that the first part does not relate to the second part, I was not labelling any game I mention in the second part as shallow. They are merely different (and unappealing to me).

Chess is hardcore. Hardcore = hobbyist games. That and other games like it are hardcore. This being abstract strategy games (well, except Connect 4). You can find more hardcore boardgames here:
http://www.BoardgameGeek.com

Must resist plugging the IAGO World Tour.

My points to say that chess is not casual:

1) It's simple to learn, so anyone can play it.

Everyone can play it but just a few can master it.

Oh and you can master every video game in less than a year, but mastering chess takes more than 10 years.

2) Including grandparents.

Chess is older than all the people alive in the world, maybe in 50 years we will see grandparents playing fps

3) There is no blood or gore (calm down nerds I'm not talking about battle chess)

Battletoads hadn't blood/gore and it was really hardcore. The same can be said of many 2d games

4) There is no storyline

Counterstrike has not story line but is a hardcore game (maybe because of player's skills, but is not simple to learn and it takes a long time to master the game)

5) Game sites are calling Chess casual.

They can say what they want but, who cares?

6) It's sold a ton of copies.

But annual sales are low compared to other games. It has sold a ton of copies because there is a lot of chess fans around the world because it was invented centuries ago, and it's not consider just a game but also an art, a science and a way of training brain (and you can live of playing chess if you are a pro).

ps: I wouldn't call chess a hardcore game, I would say is not just a game.

Since my words apparently didn't convey the meaning I intended, maybe a video will work?

Can board games really be called casual or hardcore? Chess is pretty easy to approach but it can have very much depth. I suppose it's both casual and hardcore if those terms have to be used.

This.

Repeating myself here but we are in agreement.

"The first part of my response was mainly aimed at explaining why chess is considered a hardcore game and why a lot of wii games are not (notice I mention in particular that the evergreen titles are NOT shallow)"

WTF, hax! :P

So which titles are shallow? You mentioned Mario Kart Wii as being one of the non-shallow ones, so I thought you were implying that the Wii series was shallow.

Sorry for any misunderstanding.

@NJ5, I was refering to the crap load of shovelware on the system. I don't care how you spin it, but I doubt there is much depth to Imagine Babyz or Petz Rescue: Wildlife Vet. (You will notice that these type of games exist in the PS2 era too but no one complain about the PS2 being too 'casual' because alternative to satisfy the 'hardcore' crowd exist in abundence)

But that is beside the point, the only reason it was even mention is to justify that Chess can be hardcore.

The wii is labelled 'casual' because it does not appeal to a group of gamer who have long identify themselves as 'hardcore' gamers. Is it right? Probably not, but it was also fairly accurate for the past 2 generation and only now (thanks to the wii) are we finally pushing past that particular definition of 'hardcore'