Hardcore Gamer was a magazine by DoubleJump Publishing, founded by alumni of GameFan magazine, that covered current and retro games. Similar to GameFan, Hardcore Gamer had a special focus on import gaming and niche subgenres that received less coverage in mainstream publications, like Japanese role-playing games.

The magazine ran for three and a half years on a semi-regular schedule until 2009, when publisher Tim Lindquist sold the rights to Hardcore Gamer on eBay to an unknown bidder. Shortly after, it was discontinued, ostensibly to focus on the Hardcore Gamer website.