PopCap itself, famous for pick-up-and-play games like Peggle and Bejeweled, uses "casual" in its press materials.
"It's out of date. We've evolved past it," Canessa told Edge-Online on Wednesday. "I'm an executive of PopCap ... but in the past I've specifically crapped on the word 'casual.' ... I don't like the term 'casual,' and I'm not going to defend it."
Canessa has been around the "casual" block. Prior to joining PopCap in 2007, he was the driving force behind Xbox Live Arcade as group manager, and became an advocate of bringing accessible games to more people.
He adds, "It's a term of convenience for the industry. ... They needed a name for these downloadable games for PC aimed primarily at women. So they called these games 'casual.'
"I don't disparage people, including PopCap, for using that term. But I don't like the term because it's not a precise term."
Canessa says "casual" means too many different things. It can be used to describe a genre, a gameplay style or how engaged a customer is with a certain game.
He said someone may play only puzzle games, but for a hundred hours a week. "Does that make that person a casual gamer? Probably not."
"...But it's a known term, like it or leave it, and PopCap continues to use it."
Despite his distaste for the term "casual," Canessa still feels like pick-up-and-play games deserve their own label or category.
"I like 'games for everyone,' and I think that 'broad-appeal entertainment' is very descriptive. Something like that."
For more "casual" hate, click here for a related keynote from Foundation 9's Chris Charla.