It's the same argument that's used with MMO's that lean even slightly toward hardcore gameplay... The developers must capitulate to the casuals, or the game will die. Hardcore players are in the minority and if you cater to them, you'll never make enough revenue to stay afloat/have enough players to fill servers. On the contrary, however, developers giving into such fear mongering and watering things down is what leads to a dead game, not the opposite. At least that's what I've witnessed with MMO's.
