How do you define your video game collection?

[BonkersTheAutomaton]

I did a little bit of looking round and saw that their wasn't a post of this so I thought I would break the ice if you will.

 

How do you define your collection?  Or I guess you could say, how do you collect video games?

 

Do you just buy your games regardless of weather you have a version of it or not, or do you only ever buy one version of a game and that is it, even if the other version are better?

 

Here's mine but I would love to hear your's.

 

1:  It needs to be a physical copy of the game.  As in it needs a disk or cartridge.  Now I'm not saying I don't buy games that are download only I just classify them as part of my collection.

 

2:  It needs to be cased and have a manual.  This is my main reason I don't buy NES, SNES and N64.  I know I could use universal game cases to case these games.  But I live in the UK and I find The Cover Project to not work so I chose not to.

 

3:  No Platinum, Classic or Essential versions of the game.  It needs to be the original version of the game.  This is mostly because I find the cases for these versions to look ugly as f***.

 

4:  SEGA and Sony, then Nintendo.  So what do I mean by this.  Well let's say Deamcast and Multiplatform Era of Sonic.  I'll grap Sonic Adventure and Adventure 2 on the Dreamcast and I'll grap Sonic Heroes and Shadow The Hedgehog on PS2.  If Sonic had more games on the Gamecube that weren't remakes then I would have chosen gamecube instead.  Basically I am a SEGA and Sony Fanboy and chose them over Nintendo.  What about Microsoft you may ask?  I don't like Microsofts consoles so no.

 

5:  Don't buy remakes.  So I'm thinking about changing this one soon so I might get rid of it for the time being.  This means I will not get Sonic Adventure DX or Adventure 2 Battle because they are remakes.  Now I will most likely be changing this one soon because of the Kingdom Hearts HD games so I might edit this one out.

 

6:  If a franchise has more games on one system then the other, buy it on that system.  For example, Devil May Cry.  More games were released on Playstation so naturally I would buy the rest of them on Playstation.

 

So that's how I define my game collection.  What defines yours?

[JezMM]

Now that I only have my own limited disposable income to gain games with I am not snobby at all.  If it works I'll take it.  I do like having AT LEAST the box though from second-hand games, though I don't mind the manual being missing.  I generally only buy games new if I'm super passionate about them enough to buy at launch.

 

I have been trying to make a habit of keeping all my games orderly and in their boxes lately rather than carry cases just lying about (in the case of portable game cards for DS/3DS) since not doing so makes it a pain to find a particular one when you want to play it again.  20 years worth of games is tricky to store in a way that allows you to keep them all to hand if you're not avid enough to invest in a proper dedicated cabinet etc.

[Ratcicle King]

Well I usually try to stick to one version of the game, mainly on the PS3, it must be complete or else I won't buy it, I love reading the manuals, and about downloads, I never liked downloading games, I prefer having them on a shelf and being able to look at them a lot better than having them on the console, that said tho', I'm not above downloading the games when needed, Ducktales Remastered is around 50 bucks where I live, I didn't want to pay full price for a game that's 15 Dollars on the PSN, so I went with digital, same thing with Rayman Origins, PSN had a big discount for it so I couldn't let it pass by, so yeah, I usually just buy downloadable games if it's the only option of if it's the cheapest option.

[Tori Himemiya]

I'm not too picky about my video game collection. As long as I have the game I'm fine.

I do have a pretty large collection of games. I have mostly physical copies, and some of the games I have are rare and probably never heard about. I'm that kind of collector I suppose. I will download if there's something I want.

I will admit though I actually bought both Odin Sphere and GrimGrimoire twice, one is a physical copy and the other on PSN in case my physical copies stop working, which was the case with Odin Sphere sadly.

[Silencer226]

My gaming collection is just organized in binderS, in alphabetical order, and by console. I put my boxes inside a spare drawer. I feel like its much better this way but that's just me, and... it also has to do with the fact that I have 50+ anime sets taking up shelf space, oops.

[iDEATH]

As I hardly ever buy games new, I'm not too fussy about stuff like manuals, especially seeing as these days a game manual is little more than a slip with the copyright info on it. Given the choice, I'd probably rather have it as complete as possible but if there's a big difference in price and the cheaper one still has a working game, I'll go for that.

 

I'm a fan of the recent HD collection trend to be honest, my ps3 is in my living room, my ps2 is in my bedroom so I'd rather get a HD collection that I can play in my living room. plus, it's cheap and convenient to buy three games on one disc instead of scouring ebay for a bunch of out of print games that are often listed at well above their actual value.

[Jet Prower]

When it comes to collecting for me, it has to be physical games. Have I done digital games before? Yes, I have, but it isn't that often that I do so. To me, it is usually digital or most likely, unless it is just something amazing, I'll never play it. I keep all my systems on their own shelves and my games are all in their boxes and alphabetized by system on their bookcase like shelves. It must have the box as well if I can help it. Yes, I do have some older games that dont have the box, but those were either gifts or before I came super serious about it. I dont do that anymore. Box, or no game. Yes, I'm a bit picky, but I'm very careful about what I buy that is older. I keep a list here with me of ebay prices to make sure I dont get  ripped off by the prices that the games are being offered at on there.

 

I do plan to keep on collecting though and always will be as long as physical games are around. I do usually tend to game in the previous generation than the current due to lower prices of a generation that is ending or ended. You can get some pretty good deals on the previous gen games. That's often why I tend to dwell in previous generations, where I can get  cheaper games and not have to spend fifty dollars on every single thing that I buy. That's me in a nutshell pretty much.

[buba]

I just buy anything I like. I don't give a shit if it is a port or an HD remake.

I vastly prefer to own physical copies, but if the game is only available digitally then so be it. The same reasoning applies to Platinum versions and whatever.

Usually I don't buy the same shit twice, only if it is like an updated version or port of something I really liked.

When it comes to platform of choice for multiplatform games I don't really have a, well, choice. Not like it is a problem. I only buy one console per gen based on its exclusives, the Playstation family.

I usually put my games on a shelve in my room, but in the case of my PS3 games, they are in the living room since the console is also there. They aren't in any specific order, though. When I buy a new game I just put it next to the last one I bought and so on.

Handheld wise, I usually keep them in a little pouch to carry them around. The box/covers stay at home on the shelves naturally.

[kimplix]

I find it as a collection to never stop upon. I play most of the games at my own theory, but not all of them due to spacing

[Solkia]

It needs to be in working condition is a must.

 

Having the manual is a nice bonus, but ultimately not necessary for me.

 

For me, defining a video game collection is obtaining a legit copy of every game in a certain series.

[sjmaster92]

Currently 90 percent of my collection is digital, which is kinda crazy since I originally disliked the idea of digital only games a few years back haha.

[Kimaray]

My collection is all discs. Unless I get a promo - code for a free digital game. I keep my games in a binder in alphabetical, because I find it more convenient than keeping them all in their original cases, and I have it memorized now so that I can just flip to the game I want by instinct. Ninety-nine percent of my games are brand new, I will once in a blue moon buy a used game, but it MUST have the manual and box in good condition. I make sure that my discs are in seemingly perfect condition, they get polished and inspected every week. I tend to collect an entire series of a game if it is possible. Since I have both an Xbox 360 and a PS3 I will not get a title for both platforms. I keep my game cases on my shelf to look at, and they're listed in alphabetical order, with their receipts still in the case with them.

[Agie]

Usually, I'll only buy one version, though in some cases I might buy the other versions if there's enough differences to justify a second purchase.

 

Heck, with updated re-releases, I don't usually buy those unless I don't have the previous version, but in special cases where the new content is pretty significant, I might grab it even if I do own a previous release.

[Mr Loopone]

All over the place really since I have been playing games since the Mega Drive era so it is the case of a player collector. A game player who happens to have a game collection.

 

While I do prefer a physical copy of a game (so I can still play it in the future and sometimes I like the boxart of a game), there are some that have downloaded digitally since they were either downloadable only (plenty), was only released digitally in Europe (Muramasa Rebirth), a free downloadable version (some PS3 games got the Vita version free, got Ratchet & Clank: Quest for Booty free as well) or the rare chance that the digital version was much cheaper than a physical version such as Zone of the Enders HD Collection. Most of the time, I try to get the European version of a game since some consoles are region locked and even if they aren't, unless the EU version cut something out it is more accessable. Besides from previous experiences going to Spain taught me that pirated Game Boy, GBA and DS games use the American version (with the E rating instead of PEGI/ELSPA 3/7) so for DS games, it is a lower rise of a pirated copy. The only American versions that I have are Pokemon Pinball since it came out months before Europe, Mario vs. Donkey Kong (same reason) and for some reason the disc and instructions for 3D Dot Game Heroes.

 

As for Platinum, Essentials, Player's Choice, Classics or whatever the budget range is, they don't matter since for some games getting them versions are easier to get than the original and in some cases the Platinum version is better since they have extra features or bug fixes (V-Rally and TOCA I can name where the Platinum version was better due to Dual Shock controller support and for V-Rally an extra car).

 

As for condition, I would prefer if it has a box, instructions (newer games don't really apply but for some games it is needed, it is the reason why I haven't played Jade Empire) and little to no scratches on the disc. However for some systems it is really hard to get it complete like Nintendo games (N64, Game Boy, GBA) due to cardboard boxes that look tatty and fall apart unless you REALLY look after them so for them even just the cartridge will do and for getting older systems now, it is the case of finding the game since some of them aren't easy to find like last year I went on an original Xbox buying spree and provided that I had the game is what mattered since at that point, it is going to disappear soon enough. Like a couple of weeks back, I spotted Midnight Club 3 Remix in a car boot sale and I knew that game wasn't common (any game from 2006 or even some games from 2002 on the Xbox are hard to find) so I got it even though the case was fully cracked. Cost me 50p and the game worked fine (had a few spare Xbox green cases and thrown the broken case away). The main thing is if the game works, using the previous example I had bought various original Xbox games with their box and instructions yet the game doesn't work [some include GTA 3, Ninja Gaiden], some that I managed to find a working copy afterwards [Far Cry Evolution, The Godfather] and some that the disc is failing such as Project Snowblind and Pro Pinball.

 

Oh and sometimes I have a console version and a handheld version of the same game since the latter is played for holidays and sometimes have differences. As for same game on two consoles and HD collections, it depends on the game.