Bittersweet Collection Milestones

[hexen]

Recently I have been thinking a lot about the state of my collection and where it could go from it's current point. When I started collecting seriously it was the mid 2000's. I was still in high school and I didn't own much more than the games I bought as they came out, or whatever was cheap enough from GameStop. I came into some money, and the NES had always fascinated me, and it was also just the right time before there was the unforeseen bubble. I started going out every week and looking for games, and that leads to now.

When I started I didn't know a whole lot about the libraries of each system, which was a big part of making things fresh and exciting. There where dozens of games I knew I wanted, and as I experienced more from the hunt it grew to hundreds. My dilemma now is that I know just about every game in the library of all the most prominent systems, and through my decade long effort... I own pretty much every one I want specifically. Now, it's always exciting to find games in garage sale/thrift store environments where you can get colossal deals, and I don't think I'll ever tire of that because the surprise becomes less what the games are but which games there are, and I'm always looking for the obscenely rare chance of a new NES game to complete the library, but it's not quite the same now knowing what I am going to find are more collectables and less playable games I want to own a physical version of.

With the exception of the NES and my completionist efforts, I feel like my other major libraries are curated to an extreme level, with the exception of random games I got on the cheap. When I am looking at SNES games now I know that there is almost zero chance it'll be a game I am excited to play because I own (nearly) all the classics and gems. The same can be said for the Genesis, PS1, PS2, N64, and other systems with many high quality titles. I don't really want to buy most of the games left for these systems as they are mostly shovel-ware, and I probably never would unless I found them for pennies on the dollar or became obscenely rich and just completed collections CIB for the aesthetics of it (Is this what TheFlea does...? Hehehe). There are no more Marios, Castlevanias, Final Fantasies, or Sonics to find. The general surprise of what lurks in massive libraries is no longer a secret to me, and it's left me a bit jaded.

Earlier and more exotic systems aren't really jam-packed with classics, and I collect more for the history and uniqueness, but that hardly matters with how rarely I come across them. The systems I really would like to shore up on that actually have quality titles, the TurboGrafx family chief among them, are just not widely available. In a decade the closest I have ever come to a TG16 related item in the wild where at dedicated game stores. It's gotten to the point where in the past couple years I have turned to Amiibos & Skylanders, and more recently strategy guides, instead just because of how little curated items I have left to find.

Have any of you reached the point where you feel like you have most everything you want? Is your mentality about the hobby significantly different than mine? I'd like to hear about it.

[bikingjahuty]

This actually happened to me recently as well. What happened with me is I completed my original want list, and then unsatisfied with no longer collecting I decided to review every console library again and pick out titles that I may have missed or overlooked. At the time I began looking for these more obscure and less essential games, the thrill of the hunt had definitely diminished because I had come across so many good deals and so many gems that unless it was something really, really obscure or rare, or was an insane deal ($100+ game for like $5) I rarely ever got excited to find games in the wild.

I was in the middle of completing my Want List 2.0 when I had a large, unexpected medical expense pop up back in early February which without saying, was very expensive (I live in the US and our healthcare system is fucking criminal, but that is for another forum). Not having the kind of money I needed to pay for this expense on hand I was forced to look towards my rather large game collection and part with some of my games. I've had to do this before, but never to the extent that I did this time. I ended up letting go of several games that at the time pained me greatly, however the more time that goes by, the less I care that I no longer have it. This whole experience has really changed the way I look at collecting and also the direction I am going to take as a collector.

For one, I feel like for the first time since i began heavily collecting around 2010 that I am more of a gamer again rather than a collector; if I am not particularly interested in playing a specific game right now I feel less inclined to want to buy it. Also, instead of ever expanding my collection I feel more motivated to decrease its size, getting rid of games I bought as rarity/value trophies rather than games I was really interested in, or games that I play and I cannot justify holding onto them depending on their value. I hope to actually start playing most of my games heavily and any game I feel doesn't justify its value I plan on selling, decreasing the size of my collection overall.

Another thing is there are various things that I wish to do in life that my passion, bordering addiction to game collecting was inhibiting, mostly due to lack of many to do those other things. For the first time in a while I feel like I may actually start making headway on these other parts of my life, specifically because I am buying fewer games and also selling ones I can't see myself playing again.

People change and their interests change as well. I feel like being in a hobby for long enough everyone will begin to feel a little jaded and bored with it. I will always love video games and will play them for the rest of my life most likely, but my desire to be a hardcore collector is a shadow of what it once was. It's hard to imagine me never collecting completely, but I certainly can see myself only purchasing a game here as my collection gradually decreases in size.

[hexen]

Thanks for the insight onto your story. I actually remember when you posted about your hiatus from collecting awhile back because of the situation you mentioned. One way I differ is that collecting kind of overtook how much I actual played games. I had to look backwards because I had so little forwards I was interested in. I can name every game I am looking forwards to (that I know of) on one hand just to show how few there are: Cuphead, Yooka-Laylee, and Bloodstained. I kind of obliterated my backlog of what is a near complete history of video games. I know a guy who could find enough games to amuse himself all day every day, and when I was younger I could do that as well, but it's something I just can't do anymore, with it being rare to find even more than a few a year. I suppose its a different topic, but it's still pretty annoying.

What video games are has always fascinated me, which is why I probably ended up more focused on collecting. Despite how I like the aesthetics, I also collected them because they had a unique purpose outside of shelf fillers, as I would have collected something regardless (I've always had the itch, my father collected 1000s of unique Coke bottles as I grew up and it left an impression). That unique property having it's magic diminished is what my deal is.

I probably will never get rid of any, unless it is necessary like your situation, because they work into a unique interest I have in cluttered interior design. It's just the slow down of what was my primary hobby has left me with less meaningful activity and it's left me a bit frustrated as of late.

[Warmsignal]

Pretty much in the same boat. Long ago I drew up basically a filler want-list for most of the main consoles, got about 80% of the way there on most of them and then when the bubble became too out of hand, I just said the heck with it, I don't need those I just need something. Now I've gone back to focusing on current gen, because collecting is an addiction, its kind of like a disease of the mind. The high comes from the chase, and partly the discovery, but definitely not from owning the item. I have more games than I'll ever play yet I want to go out and hunt for some right now.

I've had a recent lapse in judgement and decided to try collecting a complete set of Wii U games, something I never thought I'd try to do. I'm just hooked on the collecting aspect, and partly want to feel like I accomplished something unique within it. Now I'm thinking I might get into Amiibos too. I don't know if I will ever get tired of doing this. I've wanted to retire from it, I've wanted to move on, maybe focus more on just playing games but I can't quit, playing can't fill in for what I get out of hunting for games. It's two different modes of desire entirely, that actually seem to have little to do with one another. This has been a preoccupation of mine for many years, if I stopped I wouldn't know with all of that left over energy that wants to keep doing and learning. There are probably more useful subjects to focus that on besides video games, but right now I don't know what that is.

I think in a way, it can be an indicator of you psychological health. Folks who already have plenty of "meaning" in their lives play games as an escape from it. Those who don't or at least feel as though they don't, are less likely to do that, and more likely to misdirect their energy and efforts into something potentially fruitless, like collecting stuff chronically and habitually. I think I fall into the later category. My two cents, anyway.

[hexen]

I think you have a good point there. When I started collecting I was in kind of an emotional slump, and it was something to pass the time. Your drug analogy is also pretty spot on, that excitement cycle that loops back in on itself is like a mini-version of addictive substances. Although it applies to most reward-seeking behavior, I think it might be slightly stronger in collecting due to the lower probability of something warranting a bigger reaction and the tangible physical reward. What is for sure is that the 'high' lasts shorter the more you experience it. My life ideology definitely puts me in the later category as well. Thanks for sharing your perspective.

[emporerdragon]

I know I'm at the point with my Xbox 360 collection. Sure, I've got 560 games to go, but what's left is just eh. The vast majority of what's left are either sports titles (my least favorite genre) or are games I already own on another platform. I do want to finish the collection, but the desire is not what it was.

Still, as I love collecting, my focus has simply shifted instead. So, I'm instead working on by board/card game library as well as my vintage Star Trek/Wars action figure collections as my primary targets, and for video games, I'm finding myself buying more Wii and DS games, namely shovelware titles, because horrible games like those can be enjoyed with friends, and the amusement I get for owning games like Bratz: The Movie or Barbie Puppy Rescue is worth the money spent on it.

[sworddude]

With the exception of the NES and my completionist efforts, I feel like my other major libraries are curated to an extreme level, with the exception of random games I got on the cheap. When I am looking at SNES games now I know that there is almost zero chance it'll be a game I am excited to play because I own (nearly) all the classics and gems. The same can be said for the Genesis, PS1, PS2, N64, and other systems with many high quality titles. I don't really want to buy most of the games left for these systems as they are mostly shovel-ware, and I probably never would unless I found them for pennies on the dollar or became obscenely rich and just completed collections CIB for the aesthetics

I'm pretty curious

Do you have all gems for the systems you mentioned or are the good games that you still need just to expensive?

Your collection is great but there are many must haves wich you are still missing, wich are definitely not your typical shovel ware titles. (to be fair allot of sought after titles wich are well known, also not to mention the many uncommon games wich are also great) Unless ofcourse you are not listing your full collection that is. I understand if certain titles are not your type of games but there are far to many great titles wich you are still missing if I look at most of the mentioned collections.

I mean if you say that one has pretty much all gems etc that basicly mean that pretty much all great titles are already in the collection. for most of the mentioned consoles this is by far not the case , perhaps all the games you played in the past.Your correct with your nes collection but I think you could easily increase most collections by 50% if not  double your collection for most of the consoles while still being able to collect only quality titles wich are great fun.

[hexen]

With the exception of the NES and my completionist efforts, I feel like my other major libraries are curated to an extreme level, with the exception of random games I got on the cheap. When I am looking at SNES games now I know that there is almost zero chance it'll be a game I am excited to play because I own (nearly) all the classics and gems. The same can be said for the Genesis, PS1, PS2, N64, and other systems with many high quality titles. I don't really want to buy most of the games left for these systems as they are mostly shovel-ware, and I probably never would unless I found them for pennies on the dollar or became obscenely rich and just completed collections CIB for the aesthetics

I'm pretty curious

Do you have all gems for the systems you mentioned or are the good games that you still need just to expensive?

Your collection is great but there are many must haves wich you are still missing, wich are definitely not your typical shovel ware titles. (to be fair allot of sought after titles wich are well known, also not to mention the many uncommon games wich are also great) Unless ofcourse you are not listing your full collection that is. I understand if certain titles are not your type of games but there are far to many great titles wich you are still missing if I look at most of the mentioned collections.

I mean if you say that one has pretty much all gems etc that basicly mean that pretty much all great titles are already in the collection. for most of the mentioned consoles this is by far not the case , perhaps all the games you played in the past.Your correct with your nes collection but I think you could easily increase most collections by 50% if not  double your collection for most of the consoles while still being able to collect only quality titles wich are great fun.

If you have some titles I'm missing you think are must haves, I wouldn't mind hearing about them. For the most part, with the systems I listed, I have everything I want, with the exception of some expensive games I am unlikely to find outside of eBay. I'd like to have Hagane or Wild Guns on the SNES, or Crusader of Centy on Genesis for example, but it's unlikely. The 16-bit consoles I've more-or-less played every game to test it out on a emulator, and there are some games I'd still buy if I found, but nothing else really too exciting. The same can be said for the N64. PS1 and PS2 have a ton of games and are some of the best consoles around which I know less about, but I've mostly dug through the genres I like. There are some things like Tomba!, which isn't too pricey (well, the first one isn't) I'd still like, but it was more that thing I'd like are very few now.

[hexen]

I know I'm at the point with my Xbox 360 collection. Sure, I've got 560 games to go, but what's left is just eh. The vast majority of what's left are either sports titles (my least favorite genre) or are games I already own on another platform. I do want to finish the collection, but the desire is not what it was.

Still, as I love collecting, my focus has simply shifted instead. So, I'm instead working on by board/card game library as well as my vintage Star Trek/Wars action figure collections as my primary targets, and for video games, I'm finding myself buying more Wii and DS games, namely shovelware titles, because horrible games like those can be enjoyed with friends, and the amusement I get for owning games like Bratz: The Movie or Barbie Puppy Rescue is worth the money spent on it.

I know the Wii Shovelware fun myself. I played Pizza Delivery Boy with my brother and a friend, and the concept of screwing up the pizza making process so much it was just a dough disc to be delivered while ramming people with your scooter GTA-style was so much more hilarious than it should have been. And the fat chef's awkward movements...

[sworddude]

With the exception of the NES and my completionist efforts, I feel like my other major libraries are curated to an extreme level, with the exception of random games I got on the cheap. When I am looking at SNES games now I know that there is almost zero chance it'll be a game I am excited to play because I own (nearly) all the classics and gems. The same can be said for the Genesis, PS1, PS2, N64, and other systems with many high quality titles. I don't really want to buy most of the games left for these systems as they are mostly shovel-ware, and I probably never would unless I found them for pennies on the dollar or became obscenely rich and just completed collections CIB for the aesthetics

I'm pretty curious

Do you have all gems for the systems you mentioned or are the good games that you still need just to expensive?

Your collection is great but there are many must haves wich you are still missing, wich are definitely not your typical shovel ware titles. (to be fair allot of sought after titles wich are well known, also not to mention the many uncommon games wich are also great) Unless ofcourse you are not listing your full collection that is. I understand if certain titles are not your type of games but there are far to many great titles wich you are still missing if I look at most of the mentioned collections.

I mean if you say that one has pretty much all gems etc that basicly mean that pretty much all great titles are already in the collection. for most of the mentioned consoles this is by far not the case , perhaps all the games you played in the past.Your correct with your nes collection but I think you could easily increase most collections by 50% if not  double your collection for most of the consoles while still being able to collect only quality titles wich are great fun.

If you have some titles I'm missing you think are must haves, I wouldn't mind hearing about them. For the most part, with the systems I listed, I have everything I want, with the exception of some expensive games I am unlikely to find outside of eBay. I'd like to have Hagane or Wild Guns on the SNES, or Crusader of Centy on Genesis for example, but it's unlikely. The 16-bit consoles I've more-or-less played every game to test it out on a emulator, and there are some games I'd still buy if I found, but nothing else really too exciting. The same can be said for the N64. PS1 and PS2 have a ton of games and are some of the best consoles around which I know less about, but I've mostly dug through the genres I like. There are some things like Tomba!, which isn't too pricey (well, the first one isn't) I'd still like, but it was more that thing I'd like are very few now.

I just pick one console and a few examples since there are far far to many to list

Well known ones

Adventures of batman & robin
Turtles Hyperstone heist
The thunderforce series II III and IV
Shinobi II and III
etc etc

A few examples of less known titles

Alisia dragoon
burning force
Arrow flash
warsong
alien soldier
dynamite headdy
Many more

Especially beat em ups and shoot em ups but also some other genre's

I could easily list 50 more titles wich pretty much every collector would like to have wich are missing in only your genesis collection

Same can be said for all your consoles except for nes I'll give you that and probably n64 since there are not to many great titles for that system.

I understand if you don't really need these games or that they are not good enough but many are exellent games. Your missing some really sought after games wich are afordable and are among the best of the system, there are some pricy titles but most of them are pretty affordable .

You can say that the titles aren't that great but I would not say these are your shovel ware titles.

[hexen]

Genesis is definitely my weakest front when it comes to popular systems, I think. This is largely because I am so reluctant to buy loose games since it is so much easier to get them in the box, and it feels worse to be missing them when it's not disposable like cardboard. I for sure need the original ToeJam & Earl, as well as Ristar. Genesis has a lot of games that I would just get for being in a series, but it's primary genres are not my favorites. It has a ton of brawlers I would buy if I found (Streets of Rage, Golden Axe, and Hyperstone Heist as you mentioned) even though the genre wears thin on me. It also has a lot of shoot 'em ups, and I think the genre can be pretty fun, but it seems over-saturated without enough to differentiate them.

Of the games you listed that I re-looked at Alien Soldier stuck out more watching deeper into a long play. It gets quite a bit more boss-rushy in the later levels than the early ones, which is interesting to me as how zoomed in it is for what I thought was a side scrolling brawler put me off originally, so that is a new one I may want. I would certainly have bought Alisia Dragoon or Warsong had I seen it, and I passed on Dynamite Headdy quite a few times because I never saw it in the box. the Shinobi series is also fine, and I actually once passed on a boxed Master System one because I thought I already owned it. Overall, a lot are ones I feel I've seen at full price before, but fall into the category of games I would only buy at a cheaper price.

Using the word 'shovelware' was clearly the wrong word for what I didn't particularly want. In general I like the primary genre of 16-bit days (platformer) a lot more than that of now (FPS), so even middle of the road games still have some value in owning, but it's just not as quite the same knowing there are so few specific titles I am specifically looking for.

Also, as a random off-topic side note - looking at your collecting, all your stuff is CIB, that must look beautiful on display. If you've ever posted any pictures here, do direct me towards them!

[turf]

I know the feeling exactly.  Last October, I picked up what (barring that I win the lottery or find a crazy deal) will be my last NES game.  I have them all.  Now what?  What do I do?  I have most of the good stuff for the SNES except the really expensive stuff.  I have most of the SMS games that I want.  I don't care that much about Genesis, but I still have most of what I want.  TG-16 is cool, but I can't find stuff in the wild.

"The Wild", so to speak, is gone.  Everyone knows that folks collect.  Every seller checks eBay.  A lot of times they do it right in front of you.  The days of $2 games is gone, even trash.  It's too expensive to be fun for me.  Everything is so picked over, I don't even hunt anymore.  If I do, it's to game stores that might at least have something to look at.

I still like to look and talk to folks in game stores, but most of the time I leave without buying anything or just a little something to support the store.  I've been looking forward to that bubble popping for years.  I've wanted prices to come back down, but I doubt they ever find their way back to junk stores and flea markets.  They'll be the next round of baseball cards that some morbidly obese fella will want a fortune for while he chews on a $0.50 cigar and the game isn't worth its weight in plastic. 

TL;DR
Nothing is left in the wild.  Prices are too high.  I'm discouraged.  I guess I'll just play pinball on my PS4.

[ignition365]

Thinking about it, I'm in that same situation.  I've pretty much stopped hunting altogether because flea markets are a bust, yard sales are starting to be folks posting full price complete for loose disc 360 games, thrift stores are bare, and pawn shops are either modern or up and over game stores.  And don't get me started on game stores.

I used to acquire a hundred-ish games a month, now I'm pretty much only buying online, and the options keep dwindling.  Now I'm pretty much just buying what's left on my wishlist.  Planning on selling off dupes to fund bigger purchases like Rule of Rose, Blood Will Tell, and the Clock Tower games.  Once I finish my wishlist... I'll probably stop buying games other than modern stuff.  I may even start cutting my collection down.

[blurks]

Just a little heads-up guys: whenever you reach a certain milestone you feel a little empty inside as the intensity of collecting is more or less gone. That is very normal. I collected so much different stuff in my life and everytime I felt I had everything I needed I enjoyed it for a few more weeks/months and decided to monetarize it without regrets. I don't consider my collection as a life-long companion but rather as an enjoyment for a certain period in my life. I am almost certain I won't have my videogames in 20 years anymore but that is absolutely ok with me. They provide enjoyment for the moment and I don't surrender to bad feelings when I consider a collection more or less complete. This moment will be enjoyed and when I'm not appealed by it anymore after a few months, they will go. I don't like to hang on things at all costs. Video games are one of the most satisfying hobbies in the world but you shouldn't let them rule your life.

Cheer up, life is beautiful! 

Btw: I just sold over 100 boxed SNES games. Many super rare ones among them. No regrets at all.
Also: when one door closes, another opens.

[xsuicidesn0wmanx]

I feel like I'm in the same boat as a lot of you. There are a lot of wants out there but there seems to be more people buying games to resell them at an inflated cost than there are collectors. Like a few others I'd say a majority of my purchases come from online these days. I still go out to goodwill looking for games I don't own, but usually they're pretty close to ebay prices without the shipping cost.

Right now I'm just focused on getting these last 41 original Xbox games I need to complete the set. After that I plan on slowly buying boxes and manuals for all of my loose items with an occasional game purchase here and there. For the most part I already have many of the games I wanted that are within reason cost wise.