VGCollect Forum
General and Gaming => General => Topic started by: bikingjahuty on December 31, 2019, 11:19:14 pm
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I always get very contemplative around new years, and with this being the last night in this decade I feel that way even more so. I've thought a lot about my experience as a collector since collecting video games was by far my main hobby this last decade. I technically began collecting in 2008, but it was in 2010 that my collecting went from very sporadic ebay purchasing to bringing home 40+ games each time I went to the flea market every weekend. It got me thinking about what people's experience has been like as a collector this decade? I also thought it's be interesting to hear where you'd like to see yourself as a collector at the end of the decade we're about to start, the 2020s?
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As I said in the main thread post, 2010 is when my status as a collector went into overdrive and at one time I was accumulating about 500 games a year in my collection. As many of us know being a video game collector during the first half of this decade was a fairly cheap, easy, and rewarding hobby; you could literally go into any random thrift store or pawn shop in 2012 and find rare/valuable games for a couple bucks each. This was absolutely my experience and from 2010 until probably 2016 I lived for the hunt.
It was around 2013 that I really started noticing a huge surge in popularity in retro gaming and game collecting. At the time there was a large used media store where I used to score the majority of my deals, and it felt like it went from being a goldmine I scored at constantly to being a place where I was literally racing hundreds of other collectors, resellers, and even the employees that worked there for games. This pretty much became the case more and more from that time period. So more and more of my games started coming from ebay and game stores, which wasn't necessarily a bad thing since this allowed me to pick up rarer and more expensive titles that had eluded me in the wild for years. Sadly, by 2017 I feel like game hunting in my area had pretty much dried up. Sure, there was still the odd score here or there, but all my main channels for finding games on the cheap had pretty much dried up.
Around this time however, I found myself with nearly every retro game I'd ever wanted. Also by the time I had become a much more focused collector, picking up games only for consoles I really cared about. This essentially meant I ditched most of my NES, Sega CD, and Gameboy stuff since I didn't have the attachment to it I did for consoles like the Dreamcast, PS2, or N64. Some of that was a willful acceptance, but a lot of it was forced downsizing as I found myself in financial jams a few times as a result of large unexpected expenses at various times over the decade. The biggest one was my girlfriend, now fiancee, and I needed to get out wisdom teeth removed within 5 months of each other. Even with insurance that ended up costing a total of $4000 between the two of us. I probably sold 10% of my collection during this period, leting go many titles I'd preferred to have kept. However, it made me realize that letting go of games was a lot worse than not having them anymore; essentially once I sold the game and it was gone, I didn't care as much as I'd imagined.
Following this great purge I tried replacing many of the titles I'd sold off, as well as a bunch of new titles I still wanted, but sadly the realization that I didn't care of a lot of my games were sold or not greatly diminished the importance of being a collector. I fought this feeling for the better part of two years, until this summer while rearranging my collection I realized that I no longer knew why I had so many video games; I got into collecting to rebuy titles I had growing up or titles I wish I had, but that then turned into getting rare, obscure titles; and then into titles that looked like they might be cool, but otherwise I didn't know if I'd ever play. The result was a collection of games, a quarter of which I didn't care that much about and likely would never play. Realizing this was difficult to admit to myself, but it wad been the elephant in the room for too long.
This brings me to where I am as a collector right now. I've made a point, even before this realization that I have a massive collection to play, and if there are games I'll never play or play and realize they aren't that great, they don't belong. This trend towards downsizing has been good for me in a variety of ways, but i has also left me wondering where I see my collection in the future. At one time I imagined having a large bedroom or basement filled from wall to wall with games on shelves. I wanted to be one of those mega collectors like The Flea, and while I still think collections like that are amazing, I would no longer be satisfied in having that many games I'd never play or even think about playing. In a funny way VGcollect was responsible for fueling my collectorism during the middle of this decade, but due to many others finding themselves in my situation and also things like the 52-games challenge, this site now fuels my desire to play my games and to experience what they're actually like. It's now significantly more important for me to play and experience the games in my collection more than simply owning them and having them on display.
So finally, where do I see my collection in 2029?
While I am definitely way more of a gamer than a collector now, I think that I'll still have a very large collection by then, probably even bigger than it currently is at the moment. The reason for this is there are still a ton of games from this gen that have and have not been released that I'd love to own and play someday, as well as a whole new generation of games that is on the horizon.
In terms of retro collecting I am nearly 100% done collecting older games I don't already own. However, one thing I've been casually working on is getting boxes and manuals for my loose cartridge based games. I really want to have these games as complete as possible not only for the sake of collectability, but because I want the full experience of having these games including the box art and manuals that someone would flip through when these games first came out. It's definitely more of a nostalgia thing for me. In regards to consoles like the TG16, 3DO, Neo Geo, and other consoles I never got into collecting for, I likely will never do this since I have no nostalgia for them, they've become prohibitively expensive to collect for, and I simply have too many other games to enjoy that I'd likely find more enjoyable. So in all my retro collection will likely stay the same over the next 10-years despite the box upgrades I plan on getting for most of them. If anything, I can see my retro game collection being a lot smaller in a decade from now, and that's okay with me.
One final thing I sincerely hope I've jumped into by 2029 is being able to buy and own arcade cabs and pinball machines. I've always loved arcade and pinball machines, but given their size and cost, owning even one has been absolutely out of the question for me as someone who has been forced to rent this entire last decade. I plan on working my ass off harder then I ever have to be able to buy a home in the next 10-years and I can't think of a more appropriate way to celebrate home ownership than filling it with arcade machines and pinball machines of my childhood. I'd love to have a basement with a House of the Dead cabinet sitting right next to a White Water pinball machine. Obviously, this part of my collection will be very dependent on my future income and my ability to finally afford a house, but if I can accomplish this you can be certain I will finally own one of these glorious machines.
Before I end this very, very long post, I want to also say that this next decade I'll likely be assuming a different primary hobby instead of gaming and certainly collecting. That's not to say I'm going to abandon either (especially after writing all that lol), but I yearn to get back into other interests of mine that have been sorely neglected or pushed aside for the last 10-years of my life. For one I used to be an avid cyclist and only wanted to ride by bike as long and as far as I could over 10-years ago. I also was a huge hockey nut around 15+ years ago which I'd like to try and get back into. I'd also like to try and discover new interests as well, maybe travel or something. In many, many ways I want my life to look way different then it did the last decade, but one area I don't want to change, nor could I ever change, is how much I love video games and how important they've been to me my whole life. They will certainly be important to me in the coming decade and until I die someday, that I am certain of.
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the longest game series I kept in my collection before 2015 was my golf game collection on the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 1.
As for the future I don't know I could be dead (like anyone else) by 2029. but I'd imagine smaller collection or possibly having no video games, if I am still alive by then. why? the reason is I don't know what the future holds I don't know how my finances are going to be in the future. I could be comfortable? or flat out broke, I am hoping I will still have enough money in the future but if I don't. I the only thing I might own is whatever fits inside of a single dresser but I hope that never happens to me.
I can imagine disc rot making working physical discs vary hard to find and expensive.
I want to have a larger video game collection but CD's also get a hold of my purchase
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I pretty much had no collection ( besides a few gamecube games & wii games) at the beginning of the decade, but I started getting interested in picking stuff up in 2013, & was pretty active in collecting from 2014-2017. Since then, prices have jumped & local stock has dwindled which has made me cut back.
Im hoping that by 2029, some of my wish list stuff drops to reasonable prices to own physically. If it doesn't ( & for items I don't have physical space for) I'll be building up a NAS in the near future for all of my sorted media as well as PC games, emulators, roms & hopefully FPGA implementations/cores to make it easier to stream what I want from one place along with that closer experience to the actual system.
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I'd love to find some sort of proof of where my collection was back in 2010. I had very little. I think just whatever childhood games I had for SNES/N64/PS2/360. By that point I might've owned a PS3 and an NES, but not many games. I'd guess I didn't even own 50 games, 100 tops.
I don't remember when I really started collecting. I know I would hit thrift stores at some point after 2009 and before 2013, but I didn't really start collecting until late 2012 - early 2013 when I started working and earning money.
The earliest pictures I have found in recent times were from 2014.
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/446710142004625413/605484113524424704/10537034_685101191582127_614156853223346533_n.jpg)
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/446710142004625413/605484126555865128/10552650_685101098248803_7637325214306316278_n.jpg?width=395&height=703)
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/446710142004625413/605503261730013224/mDuWR7ZW.jpeg?width=526&height=702)
Back then that was maybe a couple hundred games, and honestly around the time I joined VGCollect.
By 2029, I don't know. I don't expect any of my retro system collections to grow too much larger, I've got so many games and I've decided to not go the way of theflea (With the money he must drop, I don't know how he does it, he's probably a DINK). I'm even pretty happy where my PS3/360 stuff is right now. I'm also fairly happy with where my PS4/X1 collection is too, but it's still got life left and the prices will only drop. So with PS4 and X1 heading out the door now, and by 2029 PS5 and XSX should be out or heading out the door those will be pretty big collections for me. Switch will probably continue to grow for me and whatever succeeds the Switch will be sizable too I'm sure. I'm just hoping I won't be at 10,000 games by 2029.
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Hi everyone, I'm new to the group.
Gaming and Playstation have long been a passion of mine. I've gone from been hardcore and super competitive to getting busy with life and trying to maintain a moderate amount of playtime without becoming completely preoccupied with work and adulting.
Over the years, I had a relatively small "curated" collection that I built up of my favorite games and moved many times. I brought my collection to Ottawa University and even started a videogame club, the first of its kind, which I ran out of my dorm.
After graduating in 2007 I made the shift into social and personal support/counselling work from a previous career in construction and self-employment. I bought a house in 2008 and got married in 2010. I did not collect anything seriously until 7 years later when I paid off my student loan in 2014. In the 5 years since, I have got back into collecting pretty heavily.
I've done a lot of research as I reached several milestones and decided to make space for some full sets. I have seen local sources dry up and prices online skyrocket. It has become a costly and time consuming endeavor to go for full sets now that so many years have passed and playstation is in the retro category and many things are hard to find complete and in good condition. Sometimes it feels like such a grind, I have to ensure I never compromise other priorities, or simply become a hoarder.
I have reached a point where networking has been necessary, essential and mutual. My love for Playstation has led me to acquire a website and enter plans to host a collecting site tied to youtube, to share information and the highs and lows of the hobby. i'd like to share my experiences with the community, as i'm far beyond ever having time to fully play or appreciate what I have, but there are always stories to share.
Anyhow, all to say, some life goals have been met, education, love, career, marriage, house, dogs, and finally, a boy. My son is being raised in a gaming environment and is spoiled for choice. Trying to find balance in it all (rationalize what seems excessive and set limits), pass on the right types of family values (when others see the time, money and energy that goes into "things"), while striving for full sets and aiming to acquire difficult pieces, sometimes places a lot of responsibility and pressure on me. Even though the essential goals are met, i'm not free of criticism or constantly having to re-evaluate the point of it all. Well if there is one thing to remind myself heading into the new year, it is not to squander what I have and do everything in moderation, never at the expense of other experiences that are valuable for relationships, and for a kid to grow up with a variety of opportunities and personal growth and development opportunities.
I'll share some of my pickups in another post. 2019 was by far the biggest for me.
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(https://scontent.fybz2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/1931410_46203753615_8106_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_ohc=wb3o1T_BeWgAQkJJoTTN8CMrw181nVkBGKT8TJ7XVvCXEBmJnC0XGhAiw&_nc_ht=scontent.fybz2-2.fna&oh=e790553c49489949c724a49f00dcec81&oe=5E65A57C)
Above, Prior to 2010, everything could fit on one shelf. Nowadays...
PS1
(https://scontent.fybz2-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/81868798_10156815621648616_6808043246044839936_o.jpg?_nc_cat=108&_nc_ohc=OkSXCJp28w0AQnUG2jXPI2mk7xyxpzUDLBIjyPRqNOPVTHAWw3Lv-YQ2Q&_nc_ht=scontent.fybz2-1.fna&oh=ed7adbc2c9f03958d6ddd412d6ade5ea&oe=5EB016AA)
PS1 Variants (Jewel Variants of Longbox titles/Fighters' Edge)
(https://scontent.fymy1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/82323249_10156815552218616_584364329646686208_o.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_ohc=D_e-W80JexAAQlHAM-tOpZ26Yov18foHrEakJR6RZLdiBIgDWrR_mtDMA&_nc_ht=scontent.fymy1-2.fna&oh=d8854066cebc04dc749b758999c8e83a&oe=5E67A3E9)
PS2
(https://scontent.fymy1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/81938074_10156815550598616_7020637053385703424_o.jpg?_nc_cat=106&_nc_ohc=CgTWPV8bEf4AQn6NsCMA4xLNUpaUe-fvrzCEsBVlY4ILL15Ucbs0WlL2g&_nc_ht=scontent.fymy1-2.fna&oh=52c1051a86325dd245d50c5a7dfb328e&oe=5E6743A2)
PS2 Collector's Editions (Games are not displayed due to area being roughed in for measurements and everything having to move back again)
(https://scontent.fybz2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/81234313_10156815591238616_6832627432688713728_o.jpg?_nc_cat=105&_nc_ohc=qjdCmpQJOPwAQkQrQo08wyNjuCr291hpErFgeRmNzBuHgsu-2jYyCI59w&_nc_ht=scontent.fybz2-2.fna&oh=544a6dfde24d9fc9ab6c218fd86e3b35&oe=5EB2AE11)
PS3
(https://scontent.fymy1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/81559830_10156815589783616_1453416778347577344_o.jpg?_nc_cat=111&_nc_ohc=_sCeAwo8hZUAQnwqRL0VcmckbCbyDGzvt4BXXSs6zva79U8YW0H49Wuig&_nc_ht=scontent.fymy1-2.fna&oh=efd864ee372231661a3f81bc5608f890&oe=5E68A4CD)
[size=78%]PS3 Collectors Editions, Gaming & Display Area[/size]
(https://scontent.fybz2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/81348800_10156815547718616_4072153519489024000_o.jpg?_nc_cat=105&_nc_ohc=EHPt64cLlfwAQk4NXI1kweUtL8xU08zu__aes0tfX7UfqOK2tNaQm4vjg&_nc_ht=scontent.fybz2-2.fna&oh=cec1024f93e8aeae4c88a57bf406e2e0&oe=5E65982C)
PS4 Area is under construction but I do have an Area for the Collectors Edition and VR titles being setup...
(https://scontent.fymy1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/p720x720/81037747_10156815619538616_1852283149812236288_o.jpg?_nc_cat=111&_nc_ohc=qvff09Nmq3cAQlwEBE6W7LOtJ8cxHcYrKT4JIXSPA4GlqU2c_2VBja9zQ&_nc_ht=scontent.fymy1-2.fna&oh=b8dbe4d77130867e5b442aaa94e097ee&oe=5E9AEB6F)
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It is hard for me to find what exactly I had in 2010. I did find I had re-acquired a Dreamcast and had 3 games for it. For some strange reason, the only game I still had from the first time around of owning a Dreamcast was Elemental Gimmick Gear. I also had a PS3 then so likely had a half dozen games. The Genesis collection was quite small in comparison today and I'd say I probably had over 100 PS2 games and most of the PC games I still have today. Back then I was getting back into Saturn and 2010 was the year I registered on the SS:UK forum. It appears I only had 10 Saturn games... which I think is wrong because I had found my other games later like Fighting Vipers and NHL 97, which I know I did not re-buy.
After doing some looking, this was back when I had just 1 shelf for video games. This picture from 2013 is just my Sega items:
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8495/8418814124_9137e85c04.jpg)
As for where I would like to go in the next 10 years. I think that I want to expand into other Sega consoles beside the Genesis, particularly the Japanese Saturn which I have already started along. This would also involve me learning to read Japanese. I think that also I will eventually put the Genesis variations into storage. Even the shelves I built to house the Genesis collection is going to run out of room soon.
I will think about getting rid of a lot of the stuff that I don't use anymore. Like the Nintendo or Playstation games, and get better organized on PC games and software, which is also a project I had already started working on.
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This was my first attempt at collection in 2008/2009.
I only collected for the Sega Saturn when I first began. With the exception of a few of these games, all were purchased off ebay off a part time retail salary, but still prices were way, way better then they are today. Sadly I sold all this in 2009 to help fund a summer semester of school that my financial aid didn't cover completely. In 2010 I moved into an apartment with my girlfriend and from there my collection blew up, minus these games obviously.
(https://i.imgur.com/ErScwtQ.jpg)
I used to have pics of my collection in late 2010/early 2011, but I can't seem to find. I do have a collection pics from late 2012 that I might post later, but at that point I had around 1000 games.
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I started to actually collect mid 2013
i did only buy a few games that I played in the past mainly on emulators or pirated ds carts you name it before I started to collect seriously. around 2011 they where however pretty cheap under 20$ mostly 5$ each. wanted to own some games That I played with friends or pirated back in the day.
only had a pretty small shelf in the beginning nowadays though no comparison like many others in here.
the cib medabots rpg games for gba for example dragonball advanced advance wars dual strike ds. Ff tactics when i tried to find some other games of the past prices where however for some reason pretty high. and there was a big difference in price market value 60$ and higher and people who just wanted to get rid of stuff. fire emblem definitely made me look at a different perspective them gba and cube games at the time wich had high value and where sought after. it was fairly easy to do aswell so I started going that route. along the way you discover new titles wich are fun aswell.
I don't think my collection will grow that much in 2029 maybe the collection will be 3K titles total maybe just a couple hundred more i don't know i've got pretty much everything that i wanted and for japanese stuff i have my everdrive carts for consoles, or do pc emulation far to pricy, extra import costs tons of effort needed most games are more fun with fan translations anyway. not going to focus on modern systems except for the titles that i really want to play and most stuff I'll see a plenty since others have it i don't feel the need to own most modern stuff.
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in 2009 i hit 100 games and sold the majority of them because choice paralysis was messing with my anxiety. so the bulk of my collection is from the past decade... i'd say of 430 physical titles, nearly 400 of them are all from the past decade. all my digital games are from the past decade. i don't retro collect much, so the bulk of those games are PS3, PS4, vita and 3DS, with PS3 having the most. i got it in 2011. i would like to break 500 games on physical media eventually... the majority of those 70 will be switch and PS4. my PS3 and vita collections are almost finished, there aren't many more games on them i care for than what i have already.
this comes from a few realisations i've had recently: i hit my original goal of a variety of games to suit any taste in games i have on a whim. and while i stopped playing games a lot last decade (can't remember anything really from 2012-2015 except dragon's dogma, sly 1 and vanquish, and don't recall much from 2016 until final fantasy XV), i have been playing a lot more since 2017... and i've changed since i was a teenager with 100 or less games. i want to replay games i beat, even tho i've become quite the grinder and completionist and often have seen everything and was way overpowered doing it on the first go-round. i beat final fantasy X for the first time a few hours ago and already have the itch to start a new file because i missed a lot of optional content... and i really wanna exploit the tonberry AP trick. i platinum trophied atelier sophie and saw everything in the game... still kinda want to restart it sometimes tho... i spent so many hours in the alchemy puzzle screen i'm surprised the screen doesn't have burn-in. and so it's kind of a guilty feeling now because if i were to restart, well, i have all these untouched games and i'm replaying a game i platinum trophied when...? july 2019...? and i'm replaying pokemon soul silver for the how many-eth time now instead of playing one of the 300+ games i've never even installed to hard drive?
i almost sold my PS4 and all its games last year just to not have to decide what console to play... i didn't, fortunately, but it was only because of considering it that i decided to dedicate more time to playing games than considering what games to buy later. it also helps i got a playstation classic, so i can emulate retro games there... i don't want to be sucked into that expensive trap, as impressive as those collections are. (not judging anyone on this site, it's expensive to my bad income vs my enjoyment and it's a trap because if i started collecting mega drive or SNES games, it's not because i enjoy the consoles but because of a perceived 'social prestige', basically, i'd buy them just to show off and impress others, and that's ridiculous. nostalgia culture and all. i grew up with super mario rpg at home and earthbound at my cousin's, but my heart is with the PS2)
another realisation is that i'm considering a career change to hauling freight, which will limit my time but not my money. i can take the console and portable monitor i already have with me and a CD case of games... i either start considering slowing down now, or i will spend money across the country on games i can't play on systems that don't output HDMI or i don't have the console for with me, that get put in a collection i see once a month or less and maybe get rotated into the CD case i take with me for the hours i'm parked. i think i would regret doing that.
so i guess that's what i hope for this decade: i've started a list of last year and this year's completed games in a notebook already, and i want to keep it up from now on, so i think this decade, i'll hit 500 between the remaining lives of PS4 and switch and the titles to round off vita and PS3, then i'll probably stop collecting games. that doesn't mean i won't get PS5 and the next nintendo console, but it may not be for the purposes of collecting a library of games rather than a specific game like hyperdimension neptunia or animal crossing. basically, i want to focus my collecting mentality away from collecting new games towards 'collecting' beat game saves... and the experiences that come with them. :)
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Boy how things have changed in the last 10 years.
In 2010, I was a strictly NES “collector”, but I played a ton of Xbox360 games. Today, I’m coming off the collecting addiction, and just buying interesting stuff.
In between the two was a maniac that amassed a huge collection of games ranging from the 70’s to current. One thing I’m extremely grateful for is the people I’ve met and the friends I’ve made through this hobby.
I’ve ridden the wave and lived to tell the tale. Life is good.
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I’ve ridden the wave and lived to tell the tale. Life is good.
I definitely agree with this. I didn't get into collecting as early as some, but for about 3-years it was insanely good. Those were my favorite years to be a collector, but around 2013 is started to go downhill. It remained fun for a time after, but it was from 2010-2013 that was the most memorable for me.
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Hi everyone, I'm new to the group.
Gaming and Playstation have long been a passion of mine. I've gone from been hardcore and super competitive to getting busy with life and trying to maintain a moderate amount of playtime without becoming completely preoccupied with work and adulting.
[...]
With the exception of a wife, kid, and dogs, I relate with your post; I love video games and PlayStation, too, and try to accommodate my time accordingly to game and stuff...although I admit lately I've been quite an accomplished procrastinator. But I'm sure everyone has been so at some point in their life. I've always been a gamer, and although there was a brief moment where gaming ceased to be a part of my life, I would still fall back to it be it through a friend, a magazine ad, TV, you name it – destiny kept pulling me in. This period was essentially during my transition to college, as most of my "gaming buddies" were from school, and coming in to a new, unexplored territory felt strange, disconnecting me from the hobby. By that I don't mean I got rid of everything, as by this time I already had a respectable collection, but I just pretty much ignored it. Thankfully this phase didn't last long, as one day while at college I was in the cafeteria, which also had a lounge area where a group of people were playing Robotech: Battlecry. I remember standing next to one of them and seeing them play the game, liking what I saw because I knew about Robotech as a kid, especially through the comics/manga. I honestly don't recall which stage it was exactly, but it was a space-based level where they kept losing, and I remember one of them looking my way and telling me, "wanna give it a shot?" At the time I had never played the game, much less known of its existence, but somehow I nailed every beat of the stage without fail. I beat the stage in my first try, and they were in shock telling me that I must have played or owned the game, and I was like, "no, man". It was a nice moment in my life, truth be told; it kind of felt like a calling, as exaggerated as it may sound. After that day I started to pay more attention to the hobby, but it wasn't until I made friends with someone else who liked video games as much as I used to who reminded me of one of my friends back in school, so we pretty much clicked and would hang out a lot together and just play or speak about video games. While at college I dipped my toes in eBay waters, and aside from doubling down on comicbooks, I also started amassing video games left and right; I used to own an SNES that I sold, so I bought one back, followed by getting some games for it. I then shifted to PS1 and PS2 games and ended up amassing such a collection that I had nowhere to properly display it, which brings me to the first image of your collection that you posted...
(https://scontent.fybz2-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/1931410_46203753615_8106_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&_nc_ohc=wb3o1T_BeWgAQkJJoTTN8CMrw181nVkBGKT8TJ7XVvCXEBmJnC0XGhAiw&_nc_ht=scontent.fybz2-2.fna&oh=e790553c49489949c724a49f00dcec81&oe=5E65A57C)
Above, Prior to 2010, everything could fit on one shelf. Nowadays...
That image more or less is a good representation of how my collection looked way back in the day during the end of my high school year and the commencement of college. My collection in 2010 was respectable; I had around 100+ PS2 games, nearing 100 for PS1, 50+ for Wii and NDS, 20+ for N64, and the Game Boy stuff, and nearing 30 SNES games (I stopped collecting for the console once prices starting raising). Although the years before were good, overall for me I would say 2013-2015 were very bountiful years in regards to the way my collection grew; I found deal after deal and managed to basically buy something new almost daily to the point I had to box everything in USPS priority boxes, stacking them on top of each other literally reaching the ceiling—video games weren't my only hobby, so my room was a mess to say the least. During this period I pretty much tripled the amount of PS1 and PS2 games I had, and essentially made a three-digit PS3 collection in less than a year; I got a GameCube and all the games I wanted for it, as well as a 3DS with some good games; I also doubled my Wii and NDS game collections. Truly great, memorable years. My room stayed in disarray, however for a couple of years more until I finally got shelves from K-Mart and organized everything, and sold whatever duplicates I had, as well as other knick-knacks. I like the way my room looks now, but I have kind of slipped again and, although not to the extent it once was, it's somewhat disheveled. Thus my previous comment of me becoming an accomplished procrastinator, as I keep saying I'm going to take some time to fix, clean, and make the room look better, but I keep putting it off, every single day. Mind you, it's not a pigsty, it's presentable enough to bring in a lady, but it can look better is what I'm trying to say.
All in all, playing games comes first, being a collector second, but I reckon that hardly means anything when you have more than 1000+ games and pretty much have taken a sabbatical from playing them. I still see myself expanding my collection in the following years, but not to the degree I did in the last decade – if anything, I will try to sit down and play what's currently on my shelves. I currently had a very negative experience with the PS4 I got during Black Friday, so I'm more or less disinterested in getting any new console. Granted, I'm still bitter, so "never say never" as they say, but we'll see what this new decode holds for me. I can't deny, though, that the Switch still tickles my fancy. But again, we'll see...
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Just to respond to some of the feelings elicited by these posts, collecting and gaming should go hand-in-hand, collecting just to have things simply takes the joy out of it, or leaves you feeling empty or wasteful. For me, every game has a story, or a feeling, or historical significance. I am attached to much of it for sentimental reasons, however, I won't let it rule my life, or take away from other things I enjoy, or that are a part of who I am.
Because of the time and energy this hobby can take, I find myself making time for gaming or collecting often at the expense of sleep, so it doesn't take time away from other things. This gets difficult as you get older, or work crazy hours, crazy jobs, on-call, etc. It can be quite hard to regulate your routines, but I realize collecting has become as habitual of a routine, as anything. I'm like a robot sometimes. Anyhow, it might not be for everyone. In my field of work people are very prone to burnout and injury. Sometimes I just want to relax, and gaming should provide that, but collecting can take away from it.
My games room reno. has been going on for 3-4 years, juggling it with many other demands. It seems like a pipedream or some sort of midlife quest to complete my mancave on a timeline, while I am still young and energetic enough to enjoy it. Is it vanity, or manifest destiny? Having these goals does push me, but sometimes I truly wonder if the time and effort is worth it. Hopefully after the time I put it, the effort is realized by sharing my passion with friends and family, on the site I'm putting together and eventually, through youtube or social media.
I haven't given up on my other hobbies but I have definitely scaled back on the "me time" and self-improvement parts of life, especially since having kids and some days it just feels like a slow decline. I'm aging but I don't want to age out of this hobby. I alluded to this in my previous post. Anyhow, stay true to yourselves and play what you love with your loved ones.
My goals for the next decade are to scale back on buying games (while steadily moving toward full sets), get back into competitive sports and competitive gaming, to eat well, and to exercise (run, workout, stretch) regularly.
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Just to respond to some of the feelings elicited by these posts, collecting and gaming should go hand-in-hand, collecting just to have things simply takes the joy out of it, or leaves you feeling empty or wasteful. For me, every game has a story, or a feeling, or historical significance. I am attached to much of it for sentimental reasons, however, I won't let it rule my life, or take away from other things I enjoy, or that are a part of who I am.
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My goals for the next decade are to scale back on buying games (while steadily moving toward full sets), get back into competitive sports and competitive gaming, to eat well, and to exercise (run, workout, stretch) regularly.
I concur with you: gaming and collecting should go hand-in-hand. Those two should remain just as they did when we were kids and would come back from a tedious day at school just to sit down and play an hour or two of our favorite video game. I remember when I was addicted to Final Fantasy VII, that's exactly what I would do: get back from school, do all my homework and play the game for as long as I could. For Pete's sake, I skipped food, sleep, even shower at least once for this game! While not as exaggerated, the same could be said for many of my other games; I would lose sleep playing them, or even "forget" to eat. This would be a constant for me for many years, especially with games that I adore like Pokémon, or with games that I was trying to 100% – you just couldn't peel me off the screen.
All of that is swell and all, but things obviously change. Fortunately for me, I'm not time constrained, but I feel I've lost that spark and lately don't seem to care as much for certain things, plus I've become quite lazy and neglectful of my hobbies, too, especially when it comes to my video games. I stopped collecting comicbooks because I simply couldn't afford to keep up with the hobby anymore, same with Magic and the Pokémon TCG; I sold most of my figure collection just for the sake of "having the cash", and while it liberated some space, I often regret having parted ways with at least a couple of the things I sold. As a whole, other than video games, my hobbies have dwindled to pretty much just that and my action figure collection. Even though I often have the time to play a game or two, I tend to get easily distracted by anything else, and end up squandering said time; I used to play sporadically, and still do on occasion, but still not as much as I would like to even if just a day a week. I keep getting games that I want to play, and know damn well I will play, even testing them when I get them to see if they work, but for the life of me I just lack the motivation to sit down and outright play the ever loving snot out of them.
So, with that said, that's essentially my goal for at least this year: I will take the time to sit down and play a game or two and enjoy myself doing so. I am a well-disciplined person when it comes to other things, so I'm definitely going to try my hardest to re-discipline myself to stop neglecting this hobby and try to channel a bit of myself when I was kid in that regard.
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Just to respond to some of the feelings elicited by these posts, collecting and gaming should go hand-in-hand, collecting just to have things simply takes the joy out of it, or leaves you feeling empty or wasteful. For me, every game has a story, or a feeling, or historical significance. I am attached to much of it for sentimental reasons, however, I won't let it rule my life, or take away from other things I enjoy, or that are a part of who I am.
one of my biggest mistakes was collecting without playing i think. i mean, i do like buying things, i like having the collection, it is super neat, but what isn't is staring down 100 games like... what to play...? i think for me that was the moment i realised that i should wrap up the collecting side for a bit, on top of being like 'what to play next?' but honestly not ready to move on from the game i just beat, as well. partially too it is that i like huge sprawling JRPGs and i enjoy the grind in them, but i also work a job, and i draw for about 20 hours a week and have since aug 2017, except last june, where i also spent the month on the platinum trophy in atelier sophie, vs 2 months for firis's platinum after that. my days off work, though, i split between drawing and gaming, it's p hard to juggle tbh.
Because of the time and energy this hobby can take, I find myself making time for gaming or collecting often at the expense of sleep, so it doesn't take time away from other things. This gets difficult as you get older, or work crazy hours, crazy jobs, on-call, etc. It can be quite hard to regulate your routines, but I realize collecting has become as habitual of a routine, as anything. I'm like a robot sometimes. Anyhow, it might not be for everyone. In my field of work people are very prone to burnout and injury. Sometimes I just want to relax, and gaming should provide that, but collecting can take away from it.
collecting is also habitual for me, sometimes this is fine, like finding cheap games at a secondhand store that maybe i don't have a lot of interest in except rarely... but it's less than a pack of cigs for gran turismo 3 or formula one 2001 and they're cib and in good condition, so like... why not? it's blowout sales where i end up like, is this hobby good for me? spending $150 for a pile of games i won't play for a long time, which all boast dozens or hundreds of hours of gameplay, like, y'know, is this relaxing, or am i just an addict of some kind? but that's a pretty recent 'bad feeling' vibe for me, which is why my post in particular comes off rather gloomy in tone.
my post was gloomy as hell in tone but i am actually very glad to be hitting this point of feeling like i have plenty and considering slowing down and maybe stopping with this generation, i'm glad to be learning how i like to interact with games as an adult because i didn't have that for years, i'm glad to be wondering about the affects of collecting on me so i can do something about it if i feel it has become a problem, and how to manage it in a way that feels more like 'fuck yea, i got phantom dust cib for $5, and it seems like a neat game' and less like 'did i really just blow $150 on b2g1 games i wouldn't have much interest in normally?'. honestly, just typing this out (and erasing and retyping a lot...) has made me realise a few things already, so thanks for this post. :) i know it was not aimed at me in particular, but thanks.
My games room reno. has been going on for 3-4 years, juggling it with many other demands. It seems like a pipedream or some sort of midlife quest to complete my mancave on a timeline, while I am still young and energetic enough to enjoy it. Is it vanity, or manifest destiny? Having these goals does push me, but sometimes I truly wonder if the time and effort is worth it. Hopefully after the time I put it, the effort is realized by sharing my passion with friends and family, on the site I'm putting together and eventually, through youtube or social media.
i don't think people ever get too old not to enjoy a comfy space dedicated to enjoying the things they like, i wouldn't worry about the age thing. lemme tell you, i talk to a lot of old truckers, cause i work at a warehouse that deals with live loading docks and flatbeds, a lot of these old truckers will be shoulder to shoulder throwing freight with you cause they're paid by distance, not time. but they only go home like once or twice a month, so they're chatty, they haven't talked to someone for an hour in days. it's easy to get them talking, and a lot of them do have dedicated space for their interests at home for their days off. you drive for a living, so most of these folks admit that their at-home days, they don't leave. but they're long-haul, so they have to have hobbies, part of the job is learning to enjoy spending time by yourself. so they set up the cinema experience in their living room, or they set up a music room to make a recording studio a touch envious. i'm sure in the next 10-15 years, a fair number of them will have mancaves and a killer set up for retro games as the 50+ truckers retire and the current 25-35 crowd has taken the reigns on the career.
i don't think gaming is a hobby that is limited by age, either, tbh. it's not like stock car racing or a highly physical pursuit where eventually your body just can't keep up. oh, for sure as we get really old, our reaction speed and shit decrease, so competitive gaming becomes harder*, but there's a ton of games and what you find fun can shift to be less reliant on those skills anyway, and your collection seems very accommodating to any shifts along the way so... i mean, i guess my point is, the only 'waste' of time and effort is if you hate the process, because if listening to truckers about their hobbies has taught me anything, it's that the process never really ends... every cinema set up over 10 years is great except for... every music room is great if it wasn't for that one... y'know, we're our worst critics when it comes to these things we care about.
*tbf too experience can make up for a lot of reaction speed and whatever, otherwise teen kids would dominate competitive gaming leagues but in reality, currently, it's closer to 30 yr olds dominating the field... slower reaction times, maybe, but experience allows for outwitting or outsmarting the young'uns. and i am pretty sure reaction speed is something you can prevent significant loss of by exercising it frequently... brain is like a muscle, you use it or lose it, so 'becoming harder' isn't 'impossible' and as the age of gamers goes up, i am sure leagues will have age categories to accommodate if it does seem to be a significant hindrance. i wouldn't worry about losing your preferred way to play, if competitive is it, tbh.
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I would lose sleep playing them, or even "forget" to eat. This would be a constant for me for many years, especially with games that I adore like Pokémon, or with games that I was trying to 100% – you just couldn't peel me off the screen.
All of that is swell and all, but things obviously change. Fortunately for me, I'm not time constrained, but I feel I've lost that spark and lately don't seem to care as much for certain things, plus I've become quite lazy and neglectful of my hobbies, too, especially when it comes to my video games. [...] Even though I often have the time to play a game or two, I tend to get easily distracted by anything else, and end up squandering said time; I used to play sporadically, and still do on occasion, but still not as much as I would like to even if just a day a week. I keep getting games that I want to play, and know damn well I will play, even testing them when I get them to see if they work, but for the life of me I just lack the motivation to sit down and outright play the ever loving snot out of them.
So, with that said, that's essentially my goal for at least this year: I will take the time to sit down and play a game or two and enjoy myself doing so. I am a well-disciplined person when it comes to other things, so I'm definitely going to try my hardest to re-discipline myself to stop neglecting this hobby and try to channel a bit of myself when I was kid in that regard.
your current mood was me for most of the past decade if i am being honest, i only got back into it recently. before 2016, i just could not get into shit. yesterday i got woke up by cat, and normally i would just roll back over, but my head was like.
no, we beat FFX tonight. let's get to the grind.
i haven't really felt that way since i played tales of the abyss in 2009 or 2010, and what got me back into games at all, oddly, was sword art online: hollow realisation back in 2016. FF15 was the same distracted shit. but o boy o man, i played SAO for 14 hrs in two days... work days no less.
though having no time restraints and losing interest in all hobbies sounds like depression, fam. you should talk to someone or start looking into that and how to manage it online if so, because it will drain your motivation and desire until you can rope it in. it's a little concerning to hear the state you're in, is all.
that said, tbh, self-discipline can be one of the best methodical cures for breaking it if that is the case, ime, so long as it doesn't manifest in putting yourself down frequently. sorry if i'm being intrusive here... take care of yourself, ok?
anyway, i found that getting trophies on playstation has been extremely good for me with game motivation, whether it is the trophy for completing the game or the platinum trophy. so now i keep an actual list of games i beat per year, and it's been very cool to see it grow. but i am a number grinder in games... so seeing 20 games beat in 2019 was pretty cool, esp since they were mostly all 40+ hr titles. idk if it would help you but yeah, i figured i'd offer the rec.
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Sorry for my grim responce above, I've been really sick for a long long time. I don't have a job but I still don't have the energy to play what I want to play. My playing endurance is vary bad now, I can only handle maybe 1 or 2 hours of difficult grind before I need to quit playing and sleep instead.
but gentle simulation games I can handle for longer periods of time.
It's can be a hard for me to find a different game to play as well, playing most games for the first time ever is harder then playing a game your're familiar with
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@ necrosexual: Yeah, when I was proofreading my post I was like, "damn, this sounds depressing as fuck", but that's how I genuinely felt while writing that post, and still currently do in regards to video games. I understand you can be blue without even realizing it, but I'm fine; I assure you that. Thanks for your candor.
But yeah, I'm actually planning to do a full play-through of Terminator 3: The Redemption for PS2 because I recently got it in a lot and the face of the disc, where the label is, has a big chunk missing. Everything seems to look fine since whatever did this doesn't appear to have affected what's under the label, but I want to make sure. I initially bought this lot for reselling purposes, and this in particular wasn't mentioned by the seller. Probably won't sell the game even if it works fully since the defect is quite noticeable, and a good percentage of eBay buyers can be scoundrels if you know what I mean.
I'm certain play-testing this game will jump-start my gaming heart. In actuality I was quite eager to play some PS4, but due to some unexpected circumstances that in all honesty I don't want to get into, it may take a while for me to do so. I was definitely looking forward to The Last Guardian and Spider-Man...and God of War, too, even though I should finish II and III first. My backlog is quite big, really, so I can manage without a PS4 for sure.
Your accomplishment of beating 20 games in 2019 is something I would like to do, and it's really something I've always thought of doing but never go through with it, so I'm definitely going to so this year, because there is no try. Probably won't be 20, or who knows, but I'll sit my ass down and beat some games this year for sure.
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Sorry for my grim responce above, I've been really sick for a long long time. I don't have a job but I still don't have the energy to play what I want to play. My playing endurance is vary bad now, I can only handle maybe 1 or 2 hours of difficult grind before I need to quit playing and sleep instead.
but gentle simulation games I can handle for longer periods of time.
It's can be a hard for me to find a different game to play as well, playing most games for the first time ever is harder then playing a game your're familiar with
My bad, I didn't notice your post when I replied above.
I would say 1 or 2 hours of playtime are sufficient – perhaps playing a puzzler to unwind your mind could be an option, although I reckon video game fatigue is real. I would recommend taking up another hobby if possible, or perhaps trying to be more active around your house instead of falling asleep. I would recommend reading or watching a movie, although I reckon you really have to be in the mood for the first one, since not everyone likes reading, but it has its benefits. You're very open about your love of music, so I think that's also a great way of relieving stress.
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Sorry about the double post; I didn't even realized it happened until coming back to check something out.
First time for me, as I've never had this happen before.
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My collection has increased substantially since the start of the decade. I went from having 60 or so games to my current number. I'd only purchase games that I wanted to play or have replayed in the past, but they were sold/lost/whatever.
I don't see buying games making a significant increase this decade. Heck, I'm probably going to be buying less. For the most part, I have everything I want to play or have everything that has some sort of sentimental value. And, I foresee myself trimming the fat in the future as my interests change.
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Sorry for my grim responce above, I've been really sick for a long long time. I don't have a job but I still don't have the energy to play what I want to play. My playing endurance is vary bad now, I can only handle maybe 1 or 2 hours of difficult grind before I need to quit playing and sleep instead.
but gentle simulation games I can handle for longer periods of time.
It's can be a hard for me to find a different game to play as well, playing most games for the first time ever is harder then playing a game your're familiar with
My bad, I didn't notice your post when I replied above.
I would say 1 or 2 hours of playtime are sufficient – perhaps playing a puzzler to unwind your mind could be an option, although I reckon video game fatigue is real. I would recommend taking up another hobby if possible, or perhaps trying to be more active around your house instead of falling asleep. I would recommend reading or watching a movie, although I reckon you really have to be in the mood for the first one, since not everyone likes reading, but it has its benefits. You're very open about your love of music, so I think that's also a great way of relieving stress.
I do listen to music more than video games also have more music to listen to than video games as well :)
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My collection has increased substantially since the start of the decade. I went from having 60 or so games to my current number. I'd only purchase games that I wanted to play or have replayed in the past, but they were sold/lost/whatever.
I don't see buying games making a significant increase this decade. Heck, I'm probably going to be buying less. For the most part, I have everything I want to play or have everything that has some sort of sentimental value. And, I foresee myself trimming the fat in the future as my interests change.
If your collection was at 60ish and went to 500+ in the last decade, then yes, that's quite the accomplishment. It's quite a nicely curated collection you have, too, so congrats.
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When 2010 started, it was starting to grow. 2009 was my first full year in the workforce after high school so I was obtaining things for my PS3 which I bought in 2009 as well as the Wii in 2008. But it was around the early 2010s when my collection started to boom when I started to frequently visit this huge flea market that was present almost every Saturday provided they didnt have an event going on that day. It took place in the parking lot of a football stadium here in Jersey. Still goes on to this day. It was there that I obtained the majority of my retro consoles and games before the retro market started to boom so as you can imagine this increased my collection by alot given what I had at the time.
Since then, I do still retain those consoles and added more modern stuff but there were ebbs and flows where I felt like I was done with collecting nor wanted nothing to do gaming but I came out of it in time. But it wasnt until this past summer when the realization started to kick in that I should severely limit how much I buy and instead actually play the games I have because at the end of the day, thats what I want. I want to play the games I have bought because either I have wanted them or there was interest. I want to keep what I want and get rid of what I dont as oppose to just sitting there. Even though I went a bit nuts over the holidays, I intend to downsize this year and beyond. Not just lay off the impulse purchases but most importantly play the games I have now to see whether x y or z are worth the keep or sell it, trade it in or whatever so like that maybe someone else could get enjoyment out of something I once had.
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Hopefully I don't still have a collection in 2029. Well, I mean at least I hope that I own more than like 200 games after I've played and realized that I don't need all of this. I just kind of honestly hope that I don't spend my entire life doing this, lol. For whatever reason, I just don't want that to happen, and I don't think it is. To be 100% with you, I think I've taken this all way, way too far, but having gone as far as I have, I don't want to throw in the towel just yet. I know I've mentioned how I "see the horizon" to end my game collecting, then it was just a bush or something, but I swear the horizon is still coming! Then I'll start rage buying again, because lord there was so many games released over the past 30 years it can make your head spin.
I kind of regret taking the approach to collecting for nearly every mainstream console, and thinking I need definitive collections for each. It's total overkill. I'm really not the video game connoisseur that my collection might suggest. I just kind of got sucked into this and started amassing a huge-ass collection that I've put ton of effort into, and now it just kind of defines me in a way that I never intended for it to. Much like Biking, I'd really like to focus my time and energy on something other than video games or collecting once again. I feel I've been at this far too long. So I keep telling myself - well you're close to having everything you'd want, why stop short? So I don't.
From 2010 to 2019, I went from about 90 games to where-ever I am now, what is it 2,200? I've stopped adding them in at this point. It's too much. I literally don't have any more room. Collecting was more fun back then, not so much now as it feels more like an obligation. Realistically I'm looking at maybe a few hundred more titles to pick up from legacy platforms. I'd love to draw the whole thing to close within another year or so, but it never seems to happen. My outlook on modern gaming has never been so bleak. I don't see myself becoming a big collector of anything current or future outside of Nintendo Switch. I think that's where I bow out, in terms of video games. Because truthfully, I don't find modern games to be very appealing or fun outside of the retro indie game scene. I'm getting old, I'm set in my ways, and so much of this stuff is just not for me anymore if I'm being honest. I don't see much in the future of video games for myself.
So in another 10 years I hope to see myself done collecting, having played or tried a massive chunk of my collection, and consolidated it down to just my all-time favorite and most impactful games. Having a modest collection that maybe fits on one or two shelves as a fond reminder of childhood and adolescence. That would be the dream. I never wanted to have a fully decked out game room anyway, nor was it my intent to have a massive collection. So by 2029 hopefully I'll at least have stopped, and if I'm smart, sold while people were still paying stupid amounts and downsized to a reasonable, manageable, sane level.
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Hopefully I don't still have a collection in 2029. Well, I mean at least I hope that I own more than like 200 games after I've played and realized that I don't need all of this. I just kind of honestly hope that I don't spend my entire life doing this, lol. For whatever reason, I just don't want that to happen, and I don't think it is. To be 100% with you, I think I've taken this all way, way too far, but having gone as far as I have, I don't want to throw in the towel just yet. I know I've mentioned how I "see the horizon" to end my game collecting, then it was just a bush or something, but I swear the horizon is still coming! Then I'll start rage buying again, because lord there was so many games released over the past 30 years it can make your head spin.
I kind of regret taking the approach to collecting for nearly every mainstream console, and thinking I need definitive collections for each. It's total overkill. I'm really not the video game connoisseur that my collection might suggest. I just kind of got sucked into this and started amassing a huge-ass collection that I've put ton of effort into, and now it just kind of defines me in a way that I never intended for it to. Much like Biking, I'd really like to focus my time and energy on something other than video games or collecting once again. I feel I've been at this far too long. So I keep telling myself - well you're close to having everything you'd want, why stop short? So I don't.
From 2010 to 2019, I went from about 90 games to where-ever I am now, what is it 2,200? I've stopped adding them in at this point. It's too much. I literally don't have any more room. Collecting was more fun back then, not so much now as it feels more like an obligation. Realistically I'm looking at maybe a few hundred more titles to pick up from legacy platforms. I'd love to draw the whole thing to close within another year or so, but it never seems to happen. My outlook on modern gaming has never been so bleak. I don't see myself becoming a big collector of anything current or future outside of Nintendo Switch. I think that's where I bow out, in terms of video games. Because truthfully, I don't find modern games to be very appealing or fun outside of the retro indie game scene. I'm getting old, I'm set in my ways, and so much of this stuff is just not for me anymore if I'm being honest. I don't see much in the future of video games for myself.
So in another 10 years I hope to see myself done collecting, having played or tried a massive chunk of my collection, and consolidated it down to just my all-time favorite and most impactful games. Having a modest collection that maybe fits on one or two shelves as a fond reminder of childhood and adolescence. That would be the dream. I never wanted to have a fully decked out game room anyway, nor was it my intent to have a massive collection. So by 2029 hopefully I'll at least have stopped, and if I'm smart, sold while people were still paying stupid amounts and downsized to a reasonable, manageable, sane level.
I personally myself find it hard sometimes to find a game to play and I have less of a collection, it's kinda funny to think the following but sometimes I feel I'm like a dog, with a whole bunch of toys to play with. And can't figure out what I'm in the mood for. But it's that on top of life long illness. life is short and it can be depressing thinking of what we might have missed outside of our 4 walls and screens.
Sometimes all of us need to get out more, maybe go to a movie theater, or amusement park, heck some of you guys and girls could go golfing on a real golf course. Or a real Put Put golf course outside of your home. their is a small amusement park close to where I live, it has real Go-kart racing and real put put golf for $5 or $10 USD for playing the full course. lets not forget about laser tag. why play Call Of Duty day in and day out? if you have a laser tag arena near you?
then there is a lot of library's with books to read and parks to visit it's fun sometimes to go trail walking out in the state or local park woods in the summer time
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My collection has increased substantially since the start of the decade. I went from having 60 or so games to my current number. I'd only purchase games that I wanted to play or have replayed in the past, but they were sold/lost/whatever.
I don't see buying games making a significant increase this decade. Heck, I'm probably going to be buying less. For the most part, I have everything I want to play or have everything that has some sort of sentimental value. And, I foresee myself trimming the fat in the future as my interests change.
If your collection was at 60ish and went to 500+ in the last decade, then yes, that's quite the accomplishment. It's quite a nicely curated collection you have, too, so congrats.
Thanks!
For a minute, I kicked around the idea of going for a full Saturn collection since I already had the more expensive titles and since I wanted to show appreciation to the console. But, then I realized that my game library wouldn't feel as personal. I'm glad I decided not to do that.
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Hopefully I don't still have a collection in 2029. [...]
I kind of regret taking the approach to collecting for nearly every mainstream console, and thinking I need definitive collections for each. It's total overkill. I'm really not the video game connoisseur that my collection might suggest. I just kind of got sucked into this and started amassing a huge-ass collection that I've put ton of effort into, and now it just kind of defines me in a way that I never intended for it to. Much like Biking, I'd really like to focus my time and energy on something other than video games or collecting once again. I feel I've been at this far too long. So I keep telling myself - well you're close to having everything you'd want, why stop short? So I don't.
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The problem is you lack self-control. Perhaps if you discipline yourself you'll come to enjoy the hobby. Hobbies are meant to be a way to relax and entertain yourself, not cause you stress; if a hobby isn't working, then it was never for you. Either that, or you're suffering from collector's fatigue, which could be a possibility given your compulsive behavior.
Thanks!
For a minute, I kicked around the idea of going for a full Saturn collection since I already had the more expensive titles and since I wanted to show appreciation to the console. But, then I realized that my game library wouldn't feel as personal. I'm glad I decided not to do that.
I couldn't agree with you more.
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The problem is you lack self-cotrol. Perhaps if you discipline yourself you'll come to enjoy the hobby. Hobbies are meant to be a way to relax and entertain yourself, not cause you stress; if a hobby isn't working, then it was never for you. Either that, or you're suffering from collector's fatigue, which could be a possibility given your compulsive behavior.
I feel like the collecting aspect of the hobby is something that I can actually "finish", so that I'll never be compelled to seriously continue adding at that point. The fact that this has become so much more expensive than it was, is the biggest source of my stress. Constantly knowing that I have to be on top of everything that I'd like to have, in order to not get ripped off down the road, or extorted by someone dangling a carrot over my head with an outrageous price tag. In that case, it's always "the sooner the better" when it comes to picking up most things.
It was for me, but when it became quite expensive to do, then it wasn't anymore. Still I continue, because I want to follow through with the kind of goals I set forth from over a decade ago.
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I feel like the collecting aspect of the hobby is something that I can actually "finish", so that I'll never be compelled to seriously continue adding at that point. The fact that this has become so much more expensive than it was, is the biggest source of my stress. Constantly knowing that I have to be on top of everything that I'd like to have, in order to not get ripped off down the road, or extorted by someone dangling a carrot over my head with an outrageous price tag. In that case, it's always "the sooner the better" when it comes to picking up most things.
It was for me, but when it became quite expensive to do, then it wasn't anymore. Still I continue, because I want to follow through with the kind of goals I set forth from over a decade ago.
The way you collect sounds exhausting.
I know you quoted me, but I feel like you didn’t read what I posted. Trust me when I say that I mean no disrespect, but based on your posts you really lack self-control; you need to look at this for what it is, a hobby. You shouldn’t feel compelled to add anything to your collection if you seriously don’t feel like it, more so if it is getting expensive to the point of causing you stress; stop being compulsive. The way you speak about your collection is as if you were in a competition—you don’t have to have every game you come across right there and then. You’re giving this hobby too much power over you and it’s basically controlling you. You’ll come across a nice deal or two if you allow yourself to be patient.
There was another topic where I suggested you taking a breather from this hobby to try and free up your mind, and I still think you should. Perhaps take up a new hobby to offset this one, or just outright sit down and play some of the video games you already own to distract yourself. Take things slow.