(let ((no-thrill (lambda (o c _) (or c (org-element-property :value o)))))
(org-export-create-backend
:parent 'ascii ;or `hugo', depending on what you mean
:transcoders (mapcar (lambda (type) (cons type no-thrill))
'(bold code italic strike-through underline verbatim))))
Five locs. Not bad either.
You're basically describing `ox-ascii' with stripped emphasis markers.
At this point, I'm not convinced we need this in Org proper.
Kaushal Modi