Collecting Burnout

[bikingjahuty]

Gradually for about the past 6-months I have slowly started to feel less and less motivated to collect games and have been trying to figure out why exactly. After pondering on it for a long time, I realized that most of my burnout stems from already having the vast majority of games I could ever want. To be more precise, my Want List can be broken into two types of games, ones I'll actively pursue and look for whenever I am out in the wild, on ebay, and online, and those games that I would like to have someday, but am not going to drop full price for them at a game store or online. Currently I only have about 15 games tops that fit into the first category left to get, while the 200-some others fit into the other category. As a result I have found myself just dropping the money online for those games I am actively pursuing, while I have become more casual in looking for the others, keeping them in mind in the back of my head when perusing a flea market or thrift store. Because of this, I have been doing a lot less game hunting in recent months, seeing how there is little I'd freak out about that I don't already own.

So I was wondering if anyone else has experienced any chronic or short term collecting burnout with this hobby?

Probably the biggest source of burnout I hear is from classic Nintendo collectors (most often NES and SNES collectors) who are tired of the high prices and competition for these games. I have a good library of both of these consoles, however I have never really felt burnt out on them because I am never been a huge collector of either. I have just sort of picked them up when I find them for a good deal.

One final note, if that I found an interesting video from Pat the NES Punk's podcast discussing this exact issue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkaU-SlSXt4

So what are your thoughts, feelings or experiences with video game collecting burnout?

[dreama1]

Gradually for about the past 6-months I have slowly started to feel less and less motivated to collect games and have been trying to figure out why exactly. After pondering on it for a long time, I realized that most of my burnout stems from already having the vast majority of games I could ever want. To be more precise, my Want List can be broken into two types of games, ones I'll actively pursue and look for whenever I am out in the wild, on ebay, and online, and those games that I would like to have someday, but am not going to drop full price for them at a game store or online. Currently I only have about 15 games tops that fit into the first category left to get, while the 200-some others fit into the other category. As a result I have found myself just dropping the money online for those games I am actively pursuing, while I have become more casual in looking for the others, keeping them in mind in the back of my head when perusing a flea market or thrift store. Because of this, I have been doing a lot less game hunting in recent months, seeing how there is little I'd freak out about that I don't already own.

So I was wondering if anyone else has experienced any chronic or short term collecting burnout with this hobby?

Probably the biggest source of burnout I hear is from classic Nintendo collectors (most often NES and SNES collectors) who are tired of the high prices and competition for these games. I have a good library of both of these consoles, however I have never really felt burnt out on them because I am never been a huge collector of either. I have just sort of picked them up when I find them for a good deal.

One final note, if that I found an interesting video from Pat the NES Punk's podcast discussing this exact issue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkaU-SlSXt4

So what are your thoughts, feelings or experiences with video game collecting burnout?

The logical answer is if the burn out is from NES/SNES games, would be to move to the cheaper consoles from sony, and sega but I feel that's not the answer your looking for.  Do you feel you're wasting the money?

[turf]

I had a little bit of burnout around '06 or '07. I rarely went looking for games. At the time, I was looking strictly for NES stuff. I wasn't concerned in the least with anything else out there. I had drained my area dry at pawn shops and dirt malls. I also didn't like to order stuff off of eBay. It felt like cheating. I just had my 300 or so NES games and was happy with that grey tub full of games.

Then, I found a Sega Saturn in a Goodwill. Shit has not been the same since. It showed me there were a ton of great games I was missing out on.

TL;DR: I broadened my horizons. I broadened my focus. There were way more fun games out there than I realized.

[bikingjahuty]

@Dreama1

No, I definitely don't feel like I am wasting my money. And I didn't say I am in that NES/SNES burnout category, I just said that it seems like most people I know in person or online fit into that category. I like both systems and have most of the essentials on each, so if I never find games like Metal Storm, SWAT Kats, or EVO, I'm not going to lose sleep over it. And while the Genesis is cheaper overall to collect for, a lot of people who collect for the NES and SNES aren't concerned with other consoles, they want games for those consoles despite there being cheaper alternatives.

I still love video games and playing them, my burnout is focused on collecting (aka acquiring more games). As i said, I have the vast majority of games I could ever want, and with the exception of a few, I cannot see myself dropping full price on most of the games that are left on my want list. While this might change someday, many of those games I'd be happy waiting it out until I happen to run across them for cheap some place or they drop in value to a price I'd be willing pay.

[MJMaranan]

Not exactly having a collecting burnout as being frustrated at the prices of the games I've been wanting to get.

[burningdoom]

Can't say that I feel the same. There's always something I want.

[hexen]

I'm kind of at the same crossroads in a way. I just finished buying a lot of the SNES games I still wanted on eBay (It's been like 7 years without seeing them in the wild... I figured I'd better get them while they are only MODERATELY expensive...) with the exceptions of the ones that cost like more than $100. Looking at eBay, there really aren't any specific (affordable) games I really want anymore. It's kind of a bummer.

I am, however, always happy to go into the wild to look for them. It could be anything, and I'll usually be happy just to see it even if it's something that the person is asking way too much for or it's clearly busted. Finding things that are more uncommon, or even commonish things that are really cheap, is the main rush for me. Finding an Atari 7200 at a thrift store recently, priced only very slightly less than their eBay worth still felt good because of how I found it.

Admittedly I've learned from this site that I probably live in one of the best areas for finding things in the wild (which comes with the slight disadvantaged of all those terrible game collecting YouTubers living here too) so the ratio of finding anything could be disproportionate to what you experience. Although, one thing that keeps me interested is my outings are scheduled and I do it with a friend. Despite the fact we have to share our finds, it really helps keep things interesting.

[Warmsignal]

I started about 5 + years ago, went through a short burnout a couple years back. It was mostly due to my anxiety disorder flaring up really bad, and I just didn't find my way back to even thinking about games for almost a year. I still enjoy it because there's still a lot I'm discovering, still a lot I've not found, and I'm interested in current releases which are never in any shortage when the classics are nowhere to be found. I still enjoy what's left of the chase.

[bobster]

I've had a sort of burnout over this winter. It was more dealing with Craigslist and thrift stores that did it for me. Seeing nothing for a long time really starts to discourage you. I have high hopes for flea markets and yard sales now that it's getting nicer out here! Last summer I did pretty well so I'm optimistic for this year 

[soera]

Mine isnt quite burnout but more of a "Im almost finished collecting" phase. Im definitely on a downhill slide as far as the items I have left I want (as can be seen in my http://vgcollect.com/wishlist/Soera) and starting to feel really complete. If I was just starting or even half way, I could understand the burnout however. Prices on stuff dont seem to be falling and more people are getting into collecting making hot spots vanish. Thrift stores and flea markets seem to be following the current trend of "this is what it is selling for on Ebay" also and its just killing the ability to find anything out in the wild.

[argyle]

Hrm, dunno if I would call my collecting mood right now burnout - more frustration.

First, I live in an area where it's almost impossible to come across anything game related in the wild.  We have 1 retro "game store", and I use that term very loosely because it's actually just a quarter of a crappy thrift store where the guy charges high-end ebay prices for everything he has.  I almost never find anything at the flea markets / yard sales around here.  For example, Sat. at yard sales I found:

A CIB Guitar Hero for the DS
2 crappy disk-only 360 games (one of the Transformer movie games and I think another Guitar Hero)
And one place that had about 10 360/Xbox games ranging from disk-only to complete but all were very, very badly scratched.  Most all were shooters or sports games, and they were overpriced IMO ($5 for a copy of Star Wars Battlefront II for the Xbox that looked like someone had used the disk to polish their cement driveway). 

That's it.  I didn't buy any of that crap, of course.  And everywhere else when I asked if they had anything they either looked at me like I was asking for drugs or they said something like "oh, I don't even know where our old Nintendo is!"

So I'm kinda sick of going out & looking when I consistently come up empty.

The other half is I have a ton I want to play and not enough time to do so.  It doesn't help that my favorite genre is RPG.   

[scott]

I'm in a slump currently as well. I've switched focus recently to PS2 era games and those seem to be pretty easy to find. I'm sifting through my wishlists and making them more streamlined into things that I want for a reason, and not just buying to buy. I don't usually go out to game stores around here but maybe every couple months, so I am not looking at the same stock constantly. But I also watch for deals across amazon and ebay. I've had some good luck the last few times I've gone out looking/ searching.

But for me my slump, is not with being burnt out on collecting, more so that I'm just flat broke. Eventually I'll come out of it and go out looking again. But at the moment I'm in the doldrums.

[bikingjahuty]

Mine isnt quite burnout but more of a "Im almost finished collecting" phase. Im definitely on a downhill slide as far as the items I have left I want (as can be seen in my http://vgcollect.com/wishlist/Soera) and starting to feel really complete. If I was just starting or even half way, I could understand the burnout however. Prices on stuff dont seem to be falling and more people are getting into collecting making hot spots vanish. Thrift stores and flea markets seem to be following the current trend of "this is what it is selling for on Ebay" also and its just killing the ability to find anything out in the wild.

I feel like this is more so what I am experiencing then genuine burnout. I can't say it is totally a downhill slide since there are a few high dollar and rare items I still want, but for the most part I'd be happy with 90% of the stuff left on my want list just coming to me for good prices. Lol it's sad because I don't want to be almost done collecting seeing how fun in was to find and accumulate my current collection. I guess it is somewhat discouraging to know that some of the stuff on my list I have a very, very slim chance of finding in the wild for cheap, but it isn't as big of a deal as me just being close to finished with my collection.

And yes, once great hot spots and untapped resources are anything but for the most part. I have one place left that I would consider a untapped resource, although to be perfectly honest I doubt I am the only collector that knows about it. But every other place I used to score consistently at have either dried up completely or once in a great while I will find something good there. My local flea market has become a wasteland, seeing how there are more resellers there then actual collectors (resellers buying from other resellers and marking games up like crazy). It makes me happy to see the hobby getting so popular, but at the same time, finding games on the cheap in the wild is becoming harder and harder. I guess I am happy I got into collecting when I did. If I were someone who just got into it even a year or two ago I doubt I'd have even a third of the stuff I currently have, especially the pre-sixth gen stuff.

Nice collection btw Soera

[scott]

Wanted to add to mine:

I actually have burned myself out on Saturn games. I still love them but finding them in the wild is super rough. Usually they are games I already own, over priced or in poor condition. Usually my Saturn collecting lead me to buying online and usually from ebay (thanks to pictures). In the end I lost my drive to search them out.

This is one of the reasons why I refocused on PS2 games. Not only do I like my PS2 way more than the Saturn. But games are available from a wide variety of local retailers. Which makes it both more fun and easier to go out and spend a day searching.

[soera]

Wanted to add to mine:

I actually have burned myself out on Saturn games. I still love them but finding them in the wild is super rough. Usually they are games I already own, over priced or in poor condition. Usually my Saturn collecting lead me to buying online and usually from ebay (thanks to pictures). In the end I lost my drive to search them out.

This is why Saturn is my last and final stretch. Ive almost never seen amazing look Saturn games except when they were new on the shelves. And seeing as the two main games Im interested in owning are probably 2 of the most expensive titles there is, the chance of finding them in the condition I want and for the price I want is a long shot.

Mine isnt quite burnout but more of a "Im almost finished collecting" phase. Im definitely on a downhill slide as far as the items I have left I want (as can be seen in my http://vgcollect.com/wishlist/Soera) and starting to feel really complete. If I was just starting or even half way, I could understand the burnout however. Prices on stuff dont seem to be falling and more people are getting into collecting making hot spots vanish. Thrift stores and flea markets seem to be following the current trend of "this is what it is selling for on Ebay" also and its just killing the ability to find anything out in the wild.

I feel like this is more so what I am experiencing then genuine burnout. I can't say it is totally a downhill slide since there are a few high dollar and rare items I still want, but for the most part I'd be happy with 90% of the stuff left on my want list just coming to me for good prices. Lol it's sad because I don't want to be almost done collecting seeing how fun in was to find and accumulate my current collection. I guess it is somewhat discouraging to know that some of the stuff on my list I have a very, very slim chance of finding in the wild for cheap, but it isn't as big of a deal as me just being close to finished with my collection.

And yes, once great hot spots and untapped resources are anything but for the most part. I have one place left that I would consider a untapped resource, although to be perfectly honest I doubt I am the only collector that knows about it. But every other place I used to score consistently at have either dried up completely or once in a great while I will find something good there. My local flea market has become a wasteland, seeing how there are more resellers there then actual collectors (resellers buying from other resellers and marking games up like crazy). It makes me happy to see the hobby getting so popular, but at the same time, finding games on the cheap in the wild is becoming harder and harder. I guess I am happy I got into collecting when I did. If I were someone who just got into it even a year or two ago I doubt I'd have even a third of the stuff I currently have, especially the pre-sixth gen stuff.

Nice collection btw Soera

Thanks. Yeah, collecting now would be totally discouraging if you were just starting. Im also in that weird boat of "Not sure what Im going to be looking for once I pick up the items I want". Probably refocus on current gen stuff and go from there.