I've thought about this long and hard, and I'm well aware of the benefits of digital entertainment; of delivering our awesome video games via Internet, with no need for car, gas, traffic, crowds, and idiot register biscuits. And while I don't have anywhere near the game collection you see pictured here, the point I wish to make is simple.
Gamers have long since loved more than just the games themselves. Big fans of just about any entertainment venue will take pleasure in other appeals that come along with their immersion into the hobby. The bookworms treasure first editions and original author signatures, the sports fanatics also treasure original signatures, and they'll also keep old ticket stubs and any other memorabilia; the hardcore music fans have old-school LPs and continually try to build up their collections of records, etc. Gaming is no different. We love the box art of the games; we love how they look when they're all assembled just so in our entertainment space. Something physical; something tangible is necessary in order for us to be proud of a collection. Having it exist on the screen in the form of various folders essentially ruins the experience, as far as I'm concerned.
And we all have our own criteria for games that are allowed to stay in our collections. Personally, I only have one rule: if the game kicks ass, it's worthy of staying in my collection. And it won't matter if I don't ever intend to play it again; its quality will forever insure its position in my collection. But others will have different ideas. And in the end, how you organize your little digital files on a screen doesn't matter; it fails to look and even feel like a collection. And you know, when entertainment gets to the point where absolutely everything – music and movies included – gets downloaded digitally and there is no longer a need for any cases of any kind, you'll see other collectors begin to complain as well. There's just something about having a mint-condition copy of Suikoden II , or having the most obscure Colecovision titles on the planet.
And yes, I realize I'm only talking about a small minority of gamers. I know most are casual, and most just trade in games when they're done, and they couldn't give a rat's ass about a game case. Oh, and many are lazy and socially incompetent and can't deal with people, so sitting at home and downloading Grand Theft Auto VI is the perfect option for them. And I myself wouldn't mind dl-ing a few titles here and there, purely for convenience sake. But for collectors, the advent of this new digital world is the end of an era. But at least we're a ways from this new world…I think.
I do not take pride at all in my video game collection. Considering they are all over my floor 😛
many gamers cherish blacklabels, like my self.
Gaming has been a hobby for me for a very long time. Probably about 20 years (I'm 28) and I think that this isn't an issue, at least …as you said, not quite yet. It does prevent me from maybe, trading in my games (Like Burnout and Warhawk that I've bought on the PS Store) so it actually helps me actually have a collection of games. I do trade in some games (mostly because I don't get a lot of money to spend on my hobby lately) But I do keep the Little Big Planets and the Metal Gear Solid 4's, even though I hardly touch those. I just keep the big titles that I may play again years from now (Like all my PS1 and PS2 RPGs) But even those are so much more convenient in downloadable form. Take FFVII for instance, sure …I own it for ps1, but I also picked it up for a measly $10 so I can play it on my psp. There are upsides and downsides, but right now I see mostly upsides because we can still buy our full blu-rays if we want to.
I have an awesome display of games and movies that I become more ashamed of as I get older, but going digital is the future we're facing. It's gonna happen if we like it or not due to the fact that it saves a ton of money on production costs. I would still like to be able to download the digital version of the game if I already own the disk though.
as long as physical media outsells the digital versions, physical media will never disappear.
we gamers have power too, companies wants to screw us over? we answer with our cash.
i couldn't find a ps3 in that picture 🙁
me neither. I saw an Xbox 360 in it though. So it's safe to say that the PS3 was near the TV in the living room, the stuff in the pic were about to be thrown out. 😛
Probably went broke buying Sega stock. Looks like 5 genesis systems.
agree 1000%, i can not bear with the formless digital version of games, i have to see the box arts, touch the cases, see the manuals, see the discs and boxes, and flip them around in my palm and stare at them for long time, that's the part of real joy of gaming, rest needlessly to be said….
p.s. awesome picture and collection, i envy you Ben; my collection (my treasure) might have 1/3 of what you got there 😛
Last edited by BigBoss4ever on 9/13/2009 10:50:20 PM
I say very specifically in that article that it isn't my collection. 😉
Lol nobody had to tell me that is NOT Ben's collection?! I don't even think its for someone.
ooops, oversight on my part; easily to assume that was.. 😀
My philosophy is EXACTLY as Ben's
In fact, I've never sold/traded in a game since 2001.
I mean, why? what's the point of selling/trading in games? It's stupid if you ask me.
Anyway I agree *stares at his rpg collection*
-Skies of Arcadia
-Legend of Dragoon
-Thousand Arms
-Grandia II
-FFVII, VIII, IX, X/X-2, XII/XII: Revenant Wings
-Shin Megamis
etc.
ALL Gran Turismos
etc.
It's just beautiful knowning you can come back to then at any day, any month, or any YEAR you wish to come back to it.
Really special stuff
Yes didgital you can come back to but it's not the same. It's not special as actually having the game right there physically.
Last edited by Scarecrow on 9/13/2009 11:14:35 PM
I don't know, a big collection of videogames can sometimes get you mocked. Or at least my collection does.
Mocked? …I guess we'll never be rid of the stereotypes.
Ben if anyone has not only that big of a collection but thinks it's "cool" to display it as something to be proud of they deserve to be mocked. How could anyone do anything in the real world if all they're doing is playing videogames.
I think you're picking a fight with the wrong person there vertigo.
TRY ME
Last game I rented was Mortal Kombat 4 and I ended up buying it any way.Point is I like keeping all my games (good or bad)it doesn't matter if is in digital or physical form.
yeah, i dont like the idea of digital games. I prefer having a copy with me. Sure, theres less mess or whatever but having the game disc/case there is proof that i bought the game. After getting my ps3 repaired, It just proved to me why the concept of digital downloads suck. As the ps3 wont allow you to restore most game/video related item to a different ps3 i had to redownload every video and map packs that i purchased. Given that those files werent that big but it still took a while to download. Imagine downloading a game as big as metal gear solid 4 and for some reason it gets deleted or cant be restored. That initial wait to get the game would be a pain enough, but to redownload it, i dont want to go through that two or even more times. Plus internet in the US isnt as fast as it needs to be.
i hate having a collection, only because it reminds me how much money i have spent on video games and their consoles.
but than its slightly a good thing because while cleaning out my room last night i found my original copy of pandemonium.
half the reason why i dident go to bed till 6 in the morning.
Unless I have a specific reason (e.g., I bought an expanded version), I never re-sell my games. You never know when you'll be in the mood for some FFT.
Nonetheless, I prefer the retail package over a digital download. Hell, I still buy all my music on CDs.
I think gamers take pride in their collections. In a sense a physical collection is similar to PSN Tropies; you can show them off and maintain bragging rights.
Also with the physical collection you can look at the gaming generations as they continue to come and go. Line up all your PSone titles in alphabetical order then do the same with your PS2 titles and put'em together PSone first.Look at them, isn't it magnificent?
Can you feel the nostalgia? The greater your number of games, the greater the effect.
I can't even see half of my collection, since I have to stack them two-deep in the entertainment center. I also have no more space for new games.
I have a collection spanning nearly 30 yrs, and the thought of going all digital makes me sick. I have an entertainment section of my house that has probably over $100,000 dollars worth of games and consoles, along with numerous peripherals and arcade machine. I take PRIDE in my space and I just don't see how I could feel the same about a room with a bunch of hard drives. I'm just not ready to give it all up for the sake of some perceived convenience.
Totally agree with you
I too have a section in my room (a showcase) with all the games I've owned and I take pride in it.
It's our hobby for god's sake. Some love music records, some love stamps, WE LOVE OUR GAMES AND CANSOLS!
Can I have your address and the times you are going to be away from your house please?
Meh, I never want to see a all digital gaming era. I Iike to know I have a hard copy on hand. Same with music. I always buy the CDs I want then rip them for iPod use. I could go for something like that for games, but I will never want to see all digital.
Meh i find collectable items silly, think about it, they are just creating items for people to preserve….. whats the point?
I'd rather have items which sserve a perpose, if i still had a dreamcast i'd still play it not slap it in a display box.
I'm currently building a stack of PS2 games I don't know what good digital collections will do.
Having a game like Devil May Cry or Gran Tursimo 4 wouldn't be the same as a digital download.
HA! The game collection in that pic blows; there's no PS3!
I really appreciate physical games but not because I derive any pride from watching them stack up over time. Most games I buy I eventually tire of and since there are always new ones coming out that I want, selling the ones I don't play anymore is how I subsidize the new titles I want to buy.
I understand the nostalgia and pride someone with a vast collection of games would feel, but that doesn't mean that gamers who aren't collectors "are lazy and socially incompetent and can't deal with people, so sitting at home and downloading (games) is the perfect option for them". That's actually a pretty harsh thing to say and I sense some genuine anger coming from Ben about this. Which is too bad because I agree with him that the future will be all digital.
Last edited by NonProphet on 9/14/2009 3:17:31 AM
Very true, it's like:
*Friend walks into your den*
"Hmmm, so, what games do you have?…"
"Oh, I got a bunch, check them out!" *He looks around the room*, "Uhhh, where are all your games?…"
"Oh! Here, *opens up Steam and a bunch of other programs* Here's the list of games I have installed and ones currently uninstalled!"
Lol, what's more amazing, a library filled with books, or a library filled with no books but a computer that has every book scanned in it for you to read on a monitor.
hahaha its pretty funny though cause books and video games are different but if you have a huge collection of either one, you're still a geek/nerd. As for me, i have shelves filled with ps3 games, ps2 games, ps1 games, gamecube games, wii games, 360 games, dvds, blurays, and cds. i wouldnt have it any other way. I do have a shelf of books from college but i never really read any of it even when i was in school.
I used to be the same way but as time went on, I just said screw it and got rid of all the ones I could replace by downloading. I still have loads of physical copies of the really hard to find, and personal favorite stuff, but it's rare that I actually go to a store shopping for a game nowadays. Work schedule doesn't permit it anyways since they're all closed when I get off at night. There's still a few here and there that I'll go out and get but it's happening less and less. And if one more Gamestop employee tries to sell me a Xbox or preorder the newest Xbox game when I walk up to the counter, heads will roll.
Last edited by Geobaldi on 9/14/2009 5:46:25 AM
I too used to be the same way, also when it came to music. But then, for practical reasons I started to rip all my CDs and vinyl records just to have them more easily accessible. That was the beginning of the end of the vinyls and CDs.
I always intended to keep the originals. After all, we are talking several thousand vinyl records here, amongst them some rare 12" maxi-single collectibles. But (as you've already guessed) as I grew more used to handle the collection as a database with a very good audio card and SP/DIF lossless transfer to the amplifier, one day I looked at the piles of physical storage media for the music collecting dust in the basement, thinking "heck, WHY do I waste all this space on this stuff? It ain't never, ever gonna be used again!".
So, I've sold all my records, all my CDs, and nowadays I buy (yes – BUY) my music online as downloadable files, carefully tag them as appropriate and add them to my music database. There has not been one single day I've regretted this.
What I'm trying to say is that the "addiction" to physical media is very overrated. Once you've gotten over it, you'll never look back.
Last edited by Beamboom on 9/14/2009 6:23:11 AM
one big difference between downloading music and games is the size of what you are downloading. But I guess that wont matter a decade from now.
… And by the way: I *do* take pride in my collection. Stop by my house someday and I'll amaze you with my collection, it's range and above all: The accessibility.
Physical copy will still reign. Why do you think GTA:Episodes from Liberty City is coming on a disc, that means Rockstar isn't completely satisfied with Lost&Damned's online download sales. Its that simple.
Too many people with the PS3 version, and by putting the two episodes on disc without need of owning the original is a small nod to the PS3 lovers with 360's in the room as well.
I take pride in my collection. Around 170 physical games and counting. About 10 downloaded games. And around 200 songs DL'd for Singstar, Guitar Hero and Rock Band.
And which collection gives me the most pride when I show it to friends? Which collection can I photograph?
I'll give you a hint, it's not the downloaded titles and it's not the additional songs DL'd for music games.
Who would thumb you down for that comment?
Anyway, I gave you a thumb up to offset it.
I agree Ben.
For the record, that collection in the picture is tiny compared to mine.
Wow. 🙂
i have a small collection of games i do admit i have privatly sold and traded games not to proud of that but i will never sell my rpgs especially valkyria chronicals.
digital makes me a little nervous i like having the physical copy but times they are changing so i'll have to deal
Sooo, what happens when your digital collection of say about 75 titles or so takes a dump. Are you going to be proud to download all those games again??
I'm not on the bandwagon of a digital world when it's not very reliable.
Digital can be downloaded again, but if something happnes to your physical game you're screwed
@jed
You are correct in saying that digital can be redownloaded, but what happens when those servers are no longer active or all of a sudden someone else owns the rights to the material? I'll stick to my physical media, I trust my ability to keep my games in pristine condition, so they will be available to me forever.
I for one think Digital has its place as it is today. I wouldn't worry that physical media will be replaced for at least 8 years.
Anyways I love buying PSN games and PS3 Blu Ray Games. Both have their advantages. I know that the simple space requirements of PS3 games will ensure that for at least this generation their will not be a PSN MGS4.
So for Shatter's, Fat Princess', and so forth I wouldn't want it any other way than easily accessible on my 500GB HD.
But for my Little Big Planet, MGS4, Killzone 2 I wouldent want it any other way than on a Blu Ray.
Conclusion, the future holds a Physical + Digital outcome which I welcome. Simple storage limitations and bandwidth constraints will ensure this.
People use your brains before going on a witch hunt.
There's not as much 'inherent' value in a digital game collection. For example, one big drawback is you can't take it to Gamestop to get ripped off on selling it as a used game or getting store credit for a different game.
Here's my main reason for going against all digital downloads. Metal Gear Solid 4 takes up the full 50 GB on the blu-ray disc. I do not want to spend money to download one game and only have 5 GB of storage left on my PS3. I have had my 60GB model for 2 years and I still haven't run out of room yet.
If you look at the trend in video games over the past 10 or so years, you'll notice that the top-quality games available would be too large to have a dozen or so entirely contained on the console in question. This only applied to PCs then, but now every console comes with a hard drive. In order for games to keep getting better, it would be impossible to have them as self-contained downloads. The storage space just isn't enough. It works with music because mp3s do a great job of compression without too many people noticing a decline in quality, but that would be a lot harder to accomplish with games.
I have always preferred disc storage vs. digital files. I buy CDs and LPs instead of mp3s. I buy DVDs and Blu-rays instead of buying the movies off of the PSN. I will continually buy physical copies of quality games instead of just downloading them. I trust them because they have higher quality and they won't disappear if my hard drive dies.