Games Played: Vice: Project Doom (0:01), Sunset Riders (0:10), Mega Man 8 (0:28), Wave Race 64 (0:40), Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (1:20). Also, I know a lot of you were probably wanting to hear about the buzz that's been going on this week with Heritage Auctions and Wata games. But, there's been a lot of talk about it already and this is a video I've been wanting to do for a while now. If you're curious, I actually did do a video about 18 months ago covering how things with the rising sealed game market seemed fishy. It's a pretty old video by this point, but you can watch it here: ruclips.net/video/8Ii8U8067xM/видео.html
But what you build a collection not just for you to play but also for future generations who might try it. Why pay $250 to play luigi's mansion when granddad has two copies already sitting in house just waiting for you anyway.
Gotta always keep in mind the other factor. When money isn't the issue then it's time. I'm always tempted to snag a good deal until I take a moment to think about wether I'd ever even get to playing it and unfortunately the answer is usually no. There just aren't enough hours in the day. 😔
I’ll admit, seeing some peoples game rooms on YT, while inspiring, does make my collection feel somewhat inadequate. Then I remind myself that I still have 30+ games on my backlog and isn’t the whole point to play and enjoy them? If I can barely keep up with my modest collection I would feel completely overwhelmed if I had 300+ games on that backlog
i feel the same way too. cept i realized to late and now I have a crazy backlog that might never be finished. still no regrets. besides I find it pretty fun hunting games as well as playing them.
There are different types of collectors. Completionists have to have all of them, in every variation in some cases. Those like myself only want the games we like to play, or had/always wanted as a kid, but still want to play it in it's original form. Luckily I got into it in the early 00's so I almost completed my collection through Ebay, before RUclips and prices started skyrocketing. I still pick up a few here and there if prices are reasonable, but I've no interest in paying hundreds for a rare one I don't have.
@@AbstractM0use i dislike paying hundreds for games too but at the end of the day people will still buy it cause of pride as a collector and the title that comes with owning a rare game.
You don't have to look at it as a competition. Look at it as, these are these other people, and this is where they are on their gaming journey. Decide for yourself what the future of your gaming journey will be, and you can share it just like they do, if you want.
@@Mahaveez great point, I think I’ve been infected by all those YT thumbnails that say stuff like “destroyed the competition at the local swap meet!” 😂
The problem with game collecting culture is collecting. Too much focus on acquiring stuff to put on a shelf or check off a list and not enough on actually enjoying games.
@Christopher Huber Collectors limit the supply of games, which is a bad thing. I can't play Earthbound the way it was meant to be played because some jackass collectors need to hoard all the copies of the game.
@@somebonehead Well, really depends on how you look at it. Collectors rarely own multiple of a game (unless they plan to sell it in the near future) but it gets to the question of what is a collector. Sure the sealed collectors are certainly collectors but beyond that most are arguably gamers that happen to collect. And that gets into the second question, why is it silently expected that you sell a game when you finished it if you aren't collecting?
I like that this touches on an obvious but difficult lesson I too learned, no one else is really going to get as excited about your collection as you are.
Unfortunately. At best you'll get maybe an hour of another collector admiring your stuff and the rest of the time everyone else you know will say "why don't you toss or sell all that old junk?"
I don’t know anyone in my present friend circles who loves video games as much as I do. Not like the old days of PlayStation 2/Xbox I feel like everyone was down to game back then :(
I think gamer culture has always had some issues dating back to the console wars, now they are magnified thanks to social media. My big problem is that the era of affordable used games seems to be over
That really depends on where you look as well. I’ve been to a few stores multiple times that have Atari games that nobody seems to want. Atari games from what I been told boomed in prices at some time ago, but the bubble has popped years now. I believe it’s only a matter of time until other generations follow suit. Only then the sought after games will stand out more.
I see that as well. The Atari demographic has aged out and newer generations don't care as much. Atari games are like the silent film era of gaming, and I say this as an Atari fan who had a 2600. I'm 43 and have zero desire to collect 2600, oldest I'll go is NES
@@layouts77 Same! The Atari games look too primitive in my opinion but at least the Atari collectors can get the games for cheaper because there's less demand.
Also, a lot of people never got over the console wars. I still see a lot of Sega vs. Nintendo nonsense in RUclips comments and people regurgitating marketing ads from back then. It's long past time to move on, grow up, and play the games you want to play, regardless of what system they're on.
It's pretty easy to get swept up in the collecting scene. When I joined reddit 7 years ago, I would make it a point to try and purchase the games featured in the top post. Maybe it was rare and I could get it for a good price or maybe it was a heavy hitter like earthbound. Eventually I was collecting and not playing. Who cared if I liked the game or not? I needed it in my collection. Now that I'm actually playing the games my priorities have shifted and I now seek out games that I enjoy playing and also obtain hardware that enhances the game playing experience. Since I did that my passion for playing games has actually come back and it feels like it did when I was a kid just chilling out and playing games escaping from responsibility even if it's just for an hour or so.
Your comment exemplifies the type of honesty I appreciate so much from all my viewers. I'm glad that you've gotten to a more enjoyable place with the hobby, and I'm glad to have you on the channel!
Exactly the same for me. I came to the same conclusion like a year ago, getting rid of expensive "must have" SNES complete in box games and spent the money on Analogue systems, Everdrives, a new PVM and cheaper but still awesome titles for like the Xbox/PS2 etc. No regrets whatsoever.
@@carlosrueda9204 That's basically the same reason I got Little Britain - The Videogame. I don't like the show and even the cover told me that the game isn't good (it's probably the worst PS2 game ever and for some time was considered to be the worst game of all time, until Big Riggs got released), but it only cost me 3 Euros. Worth it. I mean, I probably won't play it ever, but just to be able to say that I own one of the worst videogames of all times is kind of cool.
Fear of missing out and getting caught up in that hot game of the current moment have been a struggle for me. My original vision for my collection was first to have all of my childhood favorites, then a top 25 that represents the best or most popular games from each console. I wanted a game collection that any kind of gamer could walk in and enjoy. Your comments on " most people that see your collection will not care, or atleast not care as much as you" in videos have rang true and have been sobering. I have come to realize I have spent a lot of money on games based on rarity or popularity in the community instead of what I truly want to play. Don't get me wrong, I have discovered some great games that I now love this way, but it definitely has led to a unhealthy balance of spending way more time buying games than I play them. I probably won't consolidate to an extreme amount, but I do have a finish line in sight as far as acquiring the games on my want list to "complete" my collection. At that point I'm definitely going to re-evaluate and play those games I bought on "hype factor" and consolidate from there. And it is funny, you hit the nail on the head when you say people are embarrassed about smaller collections, I never wanted to go for complete libraries, but the more I have gotten caught up in collecting, the more I have caught myself not wanting to talk about or show my collection with fellow gamers because I'm afraid it's too small or unimpressive. Sorry for the long winded comment, your videos always provoke a lot of thought, which is so cool to me and unique. Cheers!
Yeah I feel some desire to buy community/culture relevant games. Like I want to have Katamari Damacy black label PS2 because it was such a sensation back in the day, even though I thought it was so stupid back then. Even now I think it's kind of dumb still, but have matured more to the point where I see the ridiculous design attitudes and am mildly entertained to play it and have it in my collection. I think this is a good enough reason but there are certainly situations where you own a game only because other people said you should, and in that case those games really should probably be downsized out of your collection.
I don't mind the comment being long. I loved reading it. It sounds like you're very honest and self-reflective about your collection. I think that will serve you well!
I see something like that in the retro game emulation scene where is tinkering with your arcade or the appearance of your retropie with its 30.000 games consumes more time than playing. But when tinkering is the fun or collecting it's ok. IAM not judging... But for me a Projekt must have an end and than I want to use it.
@@Nordlicht05 this seems to happen in a lot of hobbies. before i enjoyed collecting gamesi have had project car that i have spent close to $15,000 dollars extra parts for and spend every weekend wreching on and tinkering with only to drive the car 100 miles a year LOL
I didn't even realize there were actually people who felt "bad" about their collections. No one should have to feel like its a competition or something. I've always just grabbed what I liked and my collection has grown accordingly. If you like something, buy it. If you don't, then might as well leave it for someone else who "absolutely has to have it." Your collection is *yours.*
I think this video actually restored my love for retro gaming a little bit, I was feeling kind of overwhelmed by it, and honestly kind of depressed. I think I'll pick a game I've been looking forward to playing and just go for it today, thanks Retro Bird!
For my collection, I only go after games I want for nostalgia or to play. I'm not opposed to digital copies either if they're a great deal, like getting fire emblem for gba for $3 on the wii u eshop thanks to best buy rewards. Ultimately, if I'm happy with what I have, that's all that matters
Hey Geoffrey I understand what you mean. My fiancee eventually wants Flicky on the Genesis. It's somewhat affordable as-is but it's only $0.99 on Steam so we got it for her to play now while putting that game in the back burner for the Genesis. Sure we still want the cartridge but at least we can play it now.
your video is very refreshing and comforting. I started collecting since I was young but I completely forgot when did I become so into collecting. eventually, I realized somewhere in the back of my head it kept screaming it was not enough. I question myself from time to time am I a true collector, or if not collection big enough. I have a collection that is 200+ and it still feels not enough. by no means am I quitting or slowing down anytime soon but your vid definitely helped me feel better when someone made a joke bout me by saying I'm not a true collector since the display didn't look big enough compared to the ones seen by RUclipsrs.
I'm in the process of getting to those "I'll get to it later" games, but it's taking a while, and I keep doing research and finding more games I want. And yes I do want to replay my favorites too
That library reference you made seems to come from me. 5:19 I mentioned in the comments a few months ago that I see games as a library where you'll never read every book, but it's good to have choices. I remember you responded by saying my viewpoint was interesting. That's cool that you repeated it. LOL
I used to go for all the games in a game series while collecting. I eventually decided to just collect the games I or my friends would have fun with when we're together. I feel it makes my collection a viable pastime for the future
I used to be like this in this video. Thousands of games, every console. I was out of control! I think the future of retro gaming and preserving gaming history will be with emulation/hardware replication, not having 25 plus year old consoles
Absolutely. With emulation you can have darn near every game for every console all in one place! No changing cartridges, no changing out AV cables, no finding the storage space for all those consoles, games, accessories. Granted there are those that wanna play on original consoles with original cartridges on a CRT! Ive heard that some emulations are really crappy but I cannot verify that.
I was actually thinking about this the other day. The culturing is definitely very interesting right now. Lots of new people, people debating whether or not the GameCube is retro, and resellers have made this hobby very difficult at times lol
As the Library example, maybe we need a Blockbuster/Library: a place to go for a game we wanted to play, modern or retro, and once finished returned it to let others to play, that or we need to encourage that the emulation of retro gaming is not bad, at the end the important thing is playing games
I won't lie when I started collecting I made a list watching youtube videos talking about the libraries for each console and I had like 383 games I wanted spread across 8 consoles and if I ever found something that wasnt on that list that didnt interest me but the community loves I was always tempted just because: "everyone loves that game" and sometimes buying it and trying something I didnt think id like payed off because I loved it and sometimes I regreted it completely eventually I just decided that I was gonna stick to my "I want this for sure list" and I made a: "If I find it for a good price ill pick it up list." As of typeing this I have 588 titles spread across 12 systems and a 5th of my collection is ps4 lol. I learned to just stick with what you love/ what has your interest. Ill also admit when I see youtubers/ other collectors with stuff I want but cant find it hits my jealous feeling sometimes but ive tried to just learn that "hey I probably have stuff other people want and I should be happy with what ive been fortunate to find." Ive grown to be pretty happy with my collection over the years a couple months ago my little cousin was playing with my phone and deleted the list I made for my games I had like 15-20 left on there to get and I only could remember 4 so I decided: "maybe I dont need all that stuff I put down I dont NEED to finish that list." I stopped trying to think of whats in my collection as adding to my status as a collector and just be happy cause thats what the hobby is supposed to be about imo.
Dude your presentation and overall demeanor reminds me of like blues clues, zaboomafoo, out of the box, type stuff but in a really funny, more mature delivery. And I love it. Idk if I get that kind of feel from any other youtuber. I really appreciate all of this.
Renting Games also filled that need. Not all families could afford to buy new games so the 2-5 dollar weekend rentals really helped. Also, a big bonus was that you could try before you buy.
I've always been the type of collector where I buy the games I want to play either from my childhood or games I see replay value in. I also only buy games I know I will eventually play. I don't see the point in buying filler games just to have a large collection. I never understood those who went for a complete library but y'know, different strokes for different folks I guess.
I always say collect what you love and for me thats meant getting game I plan to play in a timely manner and keeping the ones I really enjoy. Goal is to be able to pick any game at random and know its good.
I like that approach. I try to stick to only having games that I want to play but what about the stinkers that someone bought for you as a gift? I've got a few and they're still on my shelves for sentimental value. I wouldn't ditch them because it feels like ditching away the good intentions of people that wanted to make me happy... but the games are still stinkers haha
Great video, loved your sense of humor! I used to be really big into the collecting hobby, but I honestly haven't bought a single old-school game in over 5 years now. I got to a point where every game I wanted to buy was in the $150-300 range and it just wasn't fun anymore. Now it's gotten even worse and common games are jumping way up in price. I couldn't rebuild my collection today if I had to, and I find that sad for people wanting to get into the hobby. I really miss the days of garage sale finds and NES games under $10. Collecting used to be really fun!!!
With my collection I’m never after anything specific, saves me money and I’m excited to find anything. Just the other day a family friend was going to throw out a Sega Genesis and 5 games, 4 being in case with manuals in really good condition. Totally scored, I got myself 18 different consoles so when I find games I can play them
Started on emulation, moved to collecting, now back to emulation for all the reasons you stated. Another aspect was games potentially breaking over time from some natural disaster or just years of wear- always stressed me out if I had something pricey. But back to emulation there are ways to get an "authentic" experience out of it. Get an HDMI converter, play your Pi or any modern device on a CRT. Get USB adapters to use original controllers. All the main platforms have ways of USB connectivity so you have tons of options. Genesis game with Saturn controller? Yes. SNES with a PS1 controller? Yes.
I've found your channel a couple of days ago and went on a binge. Good stuff. I love that you share your point but you also understand another, and also try to show people that at the end of the day we should all have fun with it
No regrets here ...collections that I sold 94- GameCube games, 55 NES,48 DC,27 PSP and 53 N64. The $ was invested later on bills, food and other hobbies and I still have a ton of games and systems.
I thank you for making this. I a very young collector of 18 has always had a passion for collecting ever since I've been 14 years old. I've always had a small feeling of anxiety when it comes to how many games I actually owned. This does make me feel a lot better in the sense of thinking. Instead of getting the "must have games" I should focus more on games I actually want to play and enjoy. I should also not worry about how many Snes or N64 games a person has become my golly you guys who have been collecting for years seem to have a ton of Snes and Nes games.
I still feel like I'm playing catch up with games I either missed or couldn't afford when I was younger. I am finding most of the games "collectors" gloat about, being pretty bad for my taste. They take the cost of the game to justify its good like I should give them a pat on the back.
The thing to remember is 'rare' doesn't mean 'good'. There aren't so many games that are both rare and really good because really good games generally sold enough copies that they aren't in the 'rare' category now. There are plenty of exceptions to this but the rare game hype train is fueled by presenting the idea that there are gems out there that people missed. All that gets people interested and the views, readers, likes, subscribers etc. It also pushes up the demand and price for the rare game. That's probably not the intention but it's the result of people hyping a game that doesn't really deserve the hype. Average, rare games end up with a much better reputation and become a more rare and expensive item because of it. My advice is to enjoy the online content where you see or read about these things but then try the game. Most games can be emulated or played on an Everdrive. Think of it like playing a demo and then decide if it deserves to be in your collection at the price it sells for. Also, there's nothing wrong with playing a rare, expensive game on an Everdrive, Emulator or even buying a repro cart if they're available. The developers and publishers don't get any money you're spending on used games. It would be nice to buy an official brand new copy but you can't buy what they're not selling. That's their problem for not making the content available in the format that people want it and why you can't give them your money for that. My opinion is that they should be looking at the movie industry and take a better approach in selling back catalogue content as physical and digital products to hit the whole market. But anyway, I've digressed. My point is that we should all be careful in how we ride the hype train. There's no good reason to turn a fun pastime into a disappointing and expensive part of our lives but it can happen if we let it
I loved what u said “most of us only had one console at a time and only a handful of games for the console” …. So so true , for nes , sega, snes, psx, I only probably had no more than a few games for each growing up , with most games being rented and my favorite being purchased from mowing lawns money or asking for Christmas
I really needed this video, and 1000% agree with everything you said. I've been collecting for 6-7? years now, and I've been finding myself feeling oddly guilty for deciding to just play Final Fantasy 14 (which I'm LOVING btw) despite my collection of 450+ games looking over my shoulder (Mischief Makers is getting ansy...). I wanted to add something to the discussion: I wonder if not having a lot of games as kids could also contribute to the FOMO that we feel. I find myself always thinking back to how, as a kid, I treasured the games I did have and never wanted to trade them away. That very protective mindset could have also influenced how it's hard for me to consider giving up parts of my collection now (on top of the time and money I've put in to searching out games I always wanted to try/play as a kid and adding them to my collection). I'm going to consider the solution of giving away games to friends who would take care of them more heavily (I've given away accessories like chargers and batteries for PSPs to friends as I've come upon a lot of them, what with it being my favourite console), as I think this is a really constructive solution to many issues the retro gaming community is facing. Thanks for this video, Retro Bird. Sharing this with all my collector and retro gamer friends. Subbed!
I'm really enjoying your perspective on these topics. I'm one of those collectors who has accepted that "I will probably not get to all of these." But I still love hunting and buying.
It is exactly the same in the Synthesizer community. I was feeling ashamed for only owning 40 of them or so, when everyone who visits my studio thinks I have a problem 🤣😂
Totally. At least we have a word for it in the audio community (GAS), and people have regular discussions about it. Now that I think about it, Game Acquisition Syndrome fits that acronym just as well haha. It would be funny (and probably healthy) if it entered the discourse in the gaming community too
Yes I only hav 2 synths a old 1970s Moog & a m audio that I need computers 2 use its because synths go from 1,500 to 10,000 & I can't afford that I got the still working Moog from a grudge sale for 180 & the m audio on a x mas sale at gatar center for 200
I'm somewhat unique as a retro gamer/collector in the sense that I was pretty lucky growing up. My family wasn't rich, but because I was an only child until I was well into my teen years, and I had grandparents, aunts (who at the time had no kids of their own), etc., I was pretty lucky and I was able to often get new games and even at times consoles for Christmas, Birthdays, etc. And for the most part I never traded anything in (the very few things I ever did trade in back in the day I regretted shortly after). And as I got older I was able to buy a lot of the stuff for myself going forward. So we're talking the Atari 2600, every Nintendo console, every Sega console from the Genesis forward (including Sega CD and 32X), all of the Playstations and Xboxs (I don't have PS5 or Series X yet, but eventually will when it's not a royal pain in the ass to get them), etc., with some portables mixed in. During my younger years it was rare for me to have more than 20 or 30 games for any one system, if even that many. So most of my "retro" collection I've had since long before those games became retro. I even have some that have gained a lot of value over the years (probably the most valuable one I have is Mega Man V on Gameboy CIB). Over the years I did pick up some games for older systems here and there. One thing that in hindsight I was VERY naive about years ago was that I never really expected many older games to skyrocket in value like they have. Not that I didn't expect prices to fluctuate, but outside of extremely rare games, I never expected anything that was cart-only (for example) to go for over $100, let alone several hundred. I just always took it as people getting what they actually want to play, and never with the purpose of just collecting in mind. Sure, with the games I have, there are some that I've never finished or barely ever touched, but for the most part I've never bought anything with the specific intention of exclusively wanting it for collecting purposes and to never actually play it. There were some games that I always intended to get around to picking up, but just never did for one reason or another (most likely just being that I was buying other current games). One example is DuckTales 2 for NES. I should have gotten it back when it was cheaper. But never did. Then the price went up more and more over the years, and it was just more than I was willing to pay. Then it came out as part of the Disney Afternoon collection on PS4 and Xbone... and it is easy enough to play via emulation or using a flash cart that honestly, while it would be nice to own the original NES cart, it really isn't THAT necessary to me. It's not that I'm poor. I *could* afford to buy that game and a few other pricey ones that I would otherwise like to have. But to me the price just isn't worth it given the other methods available to play. I do have all 3 Mega Man X games for the SNES, but never did get Mega Man 7 for it (likewise the only NES Mega Man carts that I own are 2 and 3). It would be nice to own all the actual carts, but with the Legacy collections that have been released, and again, the flash cart and emulation options, I just really don't feel like I ''NEED'' them. As far as I am concerned, to each their own. If someone buys to play, to collect, or anywhere in between, more power to them. I personally don't understand the mentality of someone wanting a complete collection of every game released for a console when it usually means buying hundreds or thousands of games that not only will they never play, but many of which are just awful. While I have some bad games in my collection, in general I've never gone out of my way to buy a game that I know/consider to be terrible (let alone hundreds of them) just for the sake of completing a collection. But again, if that is what someone does, that is their prerogative. But I do hate a lot of the culture that has been built up around this. The attitudes of some people feeling superior for having large collections, or looking down on those who don't have large collections, opt for emulation options, etc. It is a very childish and immature mentality. Also, having watched the almost hour-long video exposing the issues surrounding Heritage Auctions and Wata Games, while I know it was not the intent of that video, it has really given me more of an appreciation for the idea of repro carts. I preface this by saying that I know repro carts are controversial, and I do NOT support the idea of anyone trying to pass them off as the original to sell them at the same price. And for the most part in general they are something that I have largely avoided (I have a couple of exceptions, though nothing that can be passed off as the legit thing, like a USA style SNES cart of a translated Super Back to the Future 2, which only officially released in Japan). But the section early in the video about the difference between the Intrinsic and Extrinsic properties of an object and how the Extrinsic properties are what gives it the perceived value really made me think more about this. They use the example of how a Van Gogh painting can sell for millions of dollars, but if a robot were programmed to make an exact identical reproduction, it would not be worth more than the materials it is made from. And it is us "wacky humans" caring about the Extrinsic details that raises the perceived value. Now again, I would not want the reproduction being passed off as the original. But at the same time, if they end result is identical or damn near close, then there arises the question about if what someone really wants is just the Intrinsic object/item itself, then should they really necessarily be concerned with the Extrinsic properties (or for that matter be concerned with other people's concerns over the Extrinsic properties) of the item that are otherwise not important to them? To be clear, I know that technically a reproduction of any game (old or current) is illegal. And when it comes to games currently on the market still being sold at the standard market price by the standard distributions chains, I am in favor of supporting the actual product so that they make their money and continue being able to stay in business and make/supply more games for us to play. BUT when it comes to retro games, whether buying an official old retro cart (whether it goes for a low price or an insanely high one), or buying a really close, well made reproduction, either way the original makers/suppliers of the game are not making anything from it. Obviously for a retro game that goes for a low price, it makes little sense to opt for a repro over the original, but for something going for hundreds or thousands of dollars? I can see why someone who wants to get as close as they can to the original experience of having each game on their own individual cart and putting it in the console to play it may want to go that route. Plus when it comes to games like this, we are talking about something that was mass produced to some extent with many copies in existence to begin with... not something with a clear, single original like a painting. I know some will disagree with me on the point about repro carts, and that is fine. For the record, I don't see myself suddenly adding tons of repros to my collection. But after seeing that video, and given how the market can be manipulated (while many ebay sales are legit, we know there have been cases of sellers hogging up a supply to manipulate the price, even if not as badly as as the Heritage Auctions situation), to me it makes me care even less about the Extrinsic value of official retro games when some are just going to use it to makes themselves rich and screw over everyone else... and makes me a little more likely to opt for a repro if I decide that I really want to have a game on an individual cart without paying an absurd amount for it.
I have a NES and TG16 collection with the games I love to play and that's all I need. I actually stopped watching game room tours because most are filled with 1,000's of games and it was giving me anxiety. I don't want a huge collection to keep up with and only keep what I enjoy. To each his own. Power to the Players!
Collecting hasnt been fun since like 2007-2012…it was fun resellers didnt know the value very well. If you went to a pawn shop or thrift store or even a yard sale you were bound to find something. I collected because it was exciting finding a game for 2.99 at goodwill and having fun….now it’s impossible to source games even for current consoles…the community has gotten a little bit toxic. I remember hooking other collectors with games that I already have…also new collectors that picked up the hobby that pay up for full price games…Some game collectors are very cheap even when it comes to buying lol…idk its weird time. Its not the same how it used to be
@Leafar70 don’t collect to fill shelf space or just to have bragging rights. If you like a certain genre of games buy it. It has been incredibly dificult to source and buy games…being patient is key
True, after 2013 it became to annoying and expensive, I think is because scalpers are inflating prices online and many second hand stores use those prices as a guide and everyone thinks they have the Holy Grail but in the end it's just outdated tech, the thrill for me was finding those games you wanted but couldn't afford growing up so you can play them now for cheap.
I don't really have a fear of missing out when it comes to games. After all, emulation has made it so that just about everything is accessible. For me, collecting is just about having copies of my favorite games. Its just that there are some games that I'd really like on my shelves, but are getting way too expensive like Suikoden II, Valkyrie Profile, Shantae, etc.
I discovered your channel not too long ago and enjoy each one of your videos. Great topics and I love your perspective on gaming as a whole. Started to organize my collection and quickly discovered that I have 12 go to games out of 312 that I own. These are all digital and on Xbox. I'm now going to seek these 12 out for physical copies since I know they are my go to games.
My grandmother is not into video games. My mother is not into video games. But I am into video games and there are a lot of people in from my generation that are into video games and because of this your seeing a huge interested in these old games.
I buy first then play later but can never find time to play. Same like what you said....we are having the same problem. We want to collect the games to make sure we are having those games when it is no longer available in the market anymore. You are proud to have a "complete" set of games. I don't have place to store the games as the cupboard run out of space.
Great video with a lot of excellent points addressed. I appreciate that it wasn't about steering people in one direction, but informing about the various ways one can choose to (or choose not to) collect. At the end of the day it's about the games themselves, and in a lot of cases you don't necessarily need the physical item to play them. If one prefers going after the real deal, then more power to them.
I think putting together an actual, as-exhaustive-as-possible list of what you have and what you want is really helpful in keeping yourself in check. I know a few times I've been tempted to buy a game before realizing that either I already owned it or wasn't on the list. Sometimes that thrill of finding an awesome game in the wild can be overwhelming so it's good to have some tools to keep yourself grounded. As for quantity, I think it's all very personal and varies for everyone based on system. I had a genesis and saturn back in the day so alot of my collecting lately has been focused on the sega lineup. For others, nintendo or jaguar or xbox may be their thing which can vary their collection size and "value". At the end of the day, it's all about personal enjoyment and appreciation which I think is the metric a collection should be graded by.
I just decided to get high end flashcarts for systems I own, and emulate the rest. The only system I've really been "collecting" for is the switch because there are way too many great indie games and jrpgs that I love playing that have really cute physical releases.
I can always have my Steam collection as a collection, they're still retro games after all depending on the game, or buying it on GOG literally is made up of old PC games, you just need a cd/dvd case and print the manual (if avaible) and you are good to go, just paste the installer into the disc (cd or dvd) and done.
Lots of good points here. You kind of hit on one expression I hear a lot that always bugs me, "I'm really happy to have this in my collection." I might be reading too much into it, but that always strikes me as "I'll probably never play this, but it's highly desirable." To me, that's when things cross over more into the hoarding stage. I fell into that mindset a while back and only snapped out of it when I moved and realized how many items I had picked up with no real intention to play. It still happens from time to time, but every few months I take a few hours to go through my movie/game collections and weed out any titles I genuinely think I'll never touch. I feel like that's a good way to ensure you're not accumulating things, just to accumulate them... though everybody will have their own standards for what is acceptable(One display case, one room, one storage locker, etc).
I love retro games and collecting, and I really like your position on it. I have a bunch of consoles, but some of them I only have one or two games for. I don't need a complete library for a system, because I'm not going to play and enjoy every game, so I just get the ones I like, and whatever I randomly wind up with on a lark. Re-buying is also terrible. I lost some stuff to a flood, and I lost my Saturn collection in a house fire. Prices get out of hand fast, these days, so I still don't have everything I used to.
As always, great take on the topic. I love how you present the different sides and allow the viewer to make their own connection. For myself, collecting is for myself and family's enjoyment. There are no rules other than obviously a budget. Sure I have guidelines on how I wish to undertake the task of acquiring items but even that varies from system to system. NES? I want as many things as I can get my hands on to. It's my favorite system. I started by getting good games, then moved onto games that were well rated. That progressed into one for each letter in the alphabet. Now it's mainly about picking what I can when I can. That's the anomaly though. Every other system, I pretty much stick to the same gameplan. Variety. Whatever kick or mood I'm on and which system that may be, I like having options. So good games, games I enjoy and variety. I cannot give a specific number because each library is obviously different, but it's not outrageous. Price point of games can also play a huge factor in the size of my library. My GameCube library is my smallest and price is a big reason why. In the end though, all that matters is you are enjoying the hobby you chose to partake in. So there will never be a baseline for all collectors. However, one thing that should not be condoned is criticizing anyone for how they chose to participate. No one should ever feel the need to apologize for the number of games they own whether it's a few or a lot.
"Look at me now dad!" 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Totally feel that! As soon as I grew up, I did get the games I always wanted or could afford. I agree on a collecting aspect if you have like a hundred games you are a collector but if you have like only 10 games you're not collector. That's nonsense, I believe that you should collect what you like and your collection should just suit you for who you are.
Hi there Retro Bird, just recently came across your channel and I've been going through a bunch of your videos. Great stuff! I like your attitude about collecting and agree that as video game fans and collectors we ought to be more supportive of each other. Really great to come across people with a more positive outlook these days. I'll be watching for newer videos, thanks for the work you're putting into these!
I've been trying to downsize my collection and only get games I really want to play, got a lil carried away when I got a bit more disposable income some years ago...
So many good points made in this video. I got back in to collecting childhood favourites or “always wanted but could never afford” stuff thanks to adult disposable monies then got a bit hung up on box and condition that just pushed everything out of price reach. But you don’t need a box to play the game (manual does help sometimes mind) and at the end of the day you’re right, it’s playing and enjoying games that’s surely the end goal. This was the first video of yours I’ve watched, fantastic job on the reaction cut always.
Thanks for all the work you do one these! This is a great topic, and one I think about fairly often. Hearing it from a respected member of the community is really important. If more people said this or even recognized the potentially negative aspects of collecting culture in themselves, games would likely be a lot more affordable and accessible. I do sometimes feel I have a duty to protect the items I have acquired, especially because many of them were rescued from basements garages and attics…but if they don’t see use it may be time for them to find a new home. Keep it up, I appreciate all the effort you put these videos for us!
Over the years I've been slowly working to build back my collection of games that I ALREADY ONCE OWNED... but it's getting harder and harder now that they are at such absurd prices. I've been into emulation for many years, so I can play the ones I don't have that way, but it's just not the same as having the physical cartridge and/or disc, with the box and manual etc. For me it's basically a nostalgia trip and feeling of completion mixed with correcting a mistake, instead of buying them just to hike up the price and resell in an attempt to make a profit off of others. I doubt I'll ever get around to playing most of them again, especially the RPGs, but it would be nice just to have them once again because I WAS A FREAKIN' IDIOT TO SELL THEM AS A KID! Ahem... Anyway this video was very healthy to watch, I thank you.
I only collect games when I want too cause it is too expensive these days. I can play them on the Raspberry Pie and even on emulators. Probably when the retro gaming market prices cool down for a while, then I can start to buy some Genesis and PC-Engine games.
Great video and many good points made. I'm a collector, I have a relatively large collection - and that includes a couple of consoles where I only have a handful of games. But I'm never going to chase games I am not going to play and enjoy, I don't see the point in owning them for the sake of it. And I certainly wouldn't put any stock/investment in "graded" or "sealed" games.
7:48 I almost forgot, but thats actually why I got into retro gaming in the first place. See my line of logic goes like this, games back in the day where technically more expensive, and new, so they where designed with that in mind. Basically the developers must have at least kind of had in mind "this is probably going to be one of the only games they have for their console" and so they made these old games extremely replayable. So I figure, get plenty of old games now, and I can play and replay them forever.
This is why my main focus is basically decided by what I would want to play now, or what I would like to play with friends/family. Thankfully there are a lot of fun party, rhythm, and racing games that a lot of collectors ignore or were produced in high quantities. So it's fairly reasonable to collect a lot of them for party night variety.
Definitely felt this one. Went through a phase where I was watching lots of collector channels and buying games I didn’t know about before just because someone recommended them. Had to put the brakes on and stop going to retro stores for a while to try to break the habit.
I only play retro games on my phone now with the use of emulation and i love it. I mainly download games i hadn't played before, although a nostalgic replay of a few classics is welcome too.
I have so many games that I keep on the "backlog". I want to play them, I just don't have the time currently. With a job, wife and kid. I tend to play quick pick up and play games currently. I keep telling myself that I'll get to the other longer games eventually.
"look at me now dad" is what i said the last time he visit my home and he saw all my collection of consoles and videogames jajaj. Saludos desde Argentina, me encanta el contenido de tu canal y tus opiniones.
you hit the nail on the head with this. while I love thinking about adding one or two more games from a series or franchise (even if i know i may never play them) to fulfill my completionist quest, or even obsessing over getting the best picture quality (thank MLIG YT!) and managing the mess of wires in my setup for endless hours. When at the end of the day, I need to realize that I have very little time in a given week to be able to enjoy this hobby, so being stressed out about little things here and there is completely antithetical to the point of retro gaming, which is to fuck around and be a kid again.
I'm 95% emulation at this point, but I always feel overwhelmed by choice. I only had a handful of games at a time as a kid, and now I find myself paralyzed on what to play in my rare free time because I have entire console libraries at my fingertips.
Im a big fan of having original hardware, but I'm a bigger fan of having a flash cart or a modded system. I'm also not opposed to emulation, there are so many great old games out there that do hold up, that they should definitely be experienced. More fans means likely more re-releases, more appreciation for the hobby, and better preservation.
My collection consists of memories I have had with the games, it is not really physical as nowadays I buy most games digitally. If I had the opportunity to make a big beautiful gaming room, I would probably start to collect games physically, but only those that I am really interested in.
The first min. of this vid hits me right in the feels. As an adult you can spend your disposable income on all the games you want. Just because you can doesnt mean you should.
I found collecting for GBA,Gameboy and Gameboy Color is best. I can use 3 ring binders and baseball card sheets to keep my collection in. I have doubles on some but I meant to for two player games. Ok, Ok some were ones I forgot I bought already. I even got the Consolized gba and a Hyperboy for my DMG-01 with a GBA SP inside.
As a collector this speaks to me, I’m 16 and I don’t have a job I resell the games I don’t want or already have ( rule of thumb if the game is worth x and I wouldn’t pay x or I don’t think it is worth x then I’ll sell it)
I love these times because it's never been easier or less expensive - just find the game on the internet, download it and drop it in. The best part is a complete library takes up the space of one's pinky fingernail!
Oh my gosh you are hilarious!!! I only subscribe to healthy food and fitness channels. But my husband was watching this video early this morning and I was up because I'm 7 months pregnant. I have not laughed that hard in so long! So much so that I am now a subscriber and can't wait for your next video! You killed me when you said something to apologize for is eating the bag of frozen french fries that you were going to share with your wife!!!! I laughed so hard and so long over that because it caught me so off guard that my husband had to pause the video! I love all your little funny skits in between what you really have to say! Thanks for brightening our morning! PS. Keep up the great work you deserve to have way more subs than you have currently!!!
As an old collector I had 5 bookshelves full of games. It must of been like 2k dollars. I have much happier having a flash drive of my roms and playing them from there. The collecting scene has most games going hundreds of dollars and the rabbit hole of getting systems in working conditions and trying to make them work on either an hd tv or getting a crt it is more of a cost or space consumption. I much prefer a small emulation box that doesnt cost an arm and a leg to enjoy the games I want like the snes and nes mini
Well said, agreed. If you sell off a game you wish you had again and it's too expensive now... there is always emulation...Or Rom carts (Everdrive, ODEs etc)
I never call a game a Must have. Those games I just call Masterpieces. Then it is up to the individual to who I am talking with to decide whether to seek the game out and give it a try or not. No sweat off my back, just spreading the good word on great games, but nothing is a must have.
Thank you for speaking the truth. Some collectors seem more interested in owning than playing and it’s extremely shallow, borderline being a scalper. Games are meant to be played and shared with friends.
I have a huge collection of arcade boards, arcade sticks, buttons, but not a huge collection of games. I know I only have 2 hands but some of these items you can’t pass up!
I have been trying to get a jump on a switch collection as I missed the boat on older systems and due to circumstances beyond my full control I had to offload my entire psx collection of 250+ titles. I am burnt out right now bc I have so many things I bought that I just don’t play due to time constraints of parenthood.
Games Played: Vice: Project Doom (0:01), Sunset Riders (0:10), Mega Man 8 (0:28), Wave Race 64 (0:40), Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (1:20). Also, I know a lot of you were probably wanting to hear about the buzz that's been going on this week with Heritage Auctions and Wata games. But, there's been a lot of talk about it already and this is a video I've been wanting to do for a while now. If you're curious, I actually did do a video about 18 months ago covering how things with the rising sealed game market seemed fishy. It's a pretty old video by this point, but you can watch it here: ruclips.net/video/8Ii8U8067xM/видео.html
That cowboy one looks fun
You are legitimately the funniest and sillyiest nerd in the world. Keep those pants on!
But what you build a collection not just for you to play but also for future generations who might try it.
Why pay $250 to play luigi's mansion when granddad has two copies already sitting in house just waiting for you anyway.
Retro bird meats modern coyote
Never heard of PROJECT DOOM.
I struggle real hard with the "buy this before the price gets too high" and end up spending way more time scouting ebay than actually playing games
Gotta always keep in mind the other factor. When money isn't the issue then it's time. I'm always tempted to snag a good deal until I take a moment to think about wether I'd ever even get to playing it and unfortunately the answer is usually no. There just aren't enough hours in the day. 😔
just buy all the FIFA games , they are going to be worths something in the future as they almost always end up in the bin
@@valley_robot The only FIFA games worth collecting are the legacy editions released in Mexico for consoles long out of support.
same for me....I got all the games I wanted and they are collecting dust but i want more games that I have never heard of.
Only get massive in price if the kids think it's cool when a YTer gets massive views in a lets play
I’ll admit, seeing some peoples game rooms on YT, while inspiring, does make my collection feel somewhat inadequate. Then I remind myself that I still have 30+ games on my backlog and isn’t the whole point to play and enjoy them? If I can barely keep up with my modest collection I would feel completely overwhelmed if I had 300+ games on that backlog
i feel the same way too. cept i realized to late and now I have a crazy backlog that might never be finished. still no regrets. besides I find it pretty fun hunting games as well as playing them.
There are different types of collectors. Completionists have to have all of them, in every variation in some cases. Those like myself only want the games we like to play, or had/always wanted as a kid, but still want to play it in it's original form. Luckily I got into it in the early 00's so I almost completed my collection through Ebay, before RUclips and prices started skyrocketing. I still pick up a few here and there if prices are reasonable, but I've no interest in paying hundreds for a rare one I don't have.
@@AbstractM0use i dislike paying hundreds for games too but at the end of the day people will still buy it cause of pride as a collector and the title that comes with owning a rare game.
You don't have to look at it as a competition. Look at it as, these are these other people, and this is where they are on their gaming journey. Decide for yourself what the future of your gaming journey will be, and you can share it just like they do, if you want.
@@Mahaveez great point, I think I’ve been infected by all those YT thumbnails that say stuff like “destroyed the competition at the local swap meet!” 😂
The problem with game collecting culture is collecting. Too much focus on acquiring stuff to put on a shelf or check off a list and not enough on actually enjoying games.
Gotta catch 'em all.
If collecting something makes someone happy who cares what anyone else thinks
@Christopher Huber Collectors limit the supply of games, which is a bad thing. I can't play Earthbound the way it was meant to be played because some jackass collectors need to hoard all the copies of the game.
I don’t know that any gun collector or baseball collector or car collector has ever said that. Maybe the hobby is just fine.
@@somebonehead Well, really depends on how you look at it. Collectors rarely own multiple of a game (unless they plan to sell it in the near future) but it gets to the question of what is a collector. Sure the sealed collectors are certainly collectors but beyond that most are arguably gamers that happen to collect. And that gets into the second question, why is it silently expected that you sell a game when you finished it if you aren't collecting?
I like that this touches on an obvious but difficult lesson I too learned, no one else is really going to get as excited about your collection as you are.
Unfortunately. At best you'll get maybe an hour of another collector admiring your stuff and the rest of the time everyone else you know will say "why don't you toss or sell all that old junk?"
try me
I don’t know anyone in my present friend circles who loves video games as much as I do. Not like the old days of PlayStation 2/Xbox I feel like everyone was down to game back then :(
Wave racer and vigilante 8 is all i need on n64
My brothers make fun of mine but then still come over to play whatever random Japanese game I bought that month.
I think gamer culture has always had some issues dating back to the console wars, now they are magnified thanks to social media. My big problem is that the era of affordable used games seems to be over
Yeah, it's a shame. There's a certain charm to finding treasures for super cheap that most people won't get to experience.
That really depends on where you look as well. I’ve been to a few stores multiple times that have Atari games that nobody seems to want. Atari games from what I been told boomed in prices at some time ago, but the bubble has popped years now. I believe it’s only a matter of time until other generations follow suit. Only then the sought after games will stand out more.
I see that as well. The Atari demographic has aged out and newer generations don't care as much. Atari games are like the silent film era of gaming, and I say this as an Atari fan who had a 2600. I'm 43 and have zero desire to collect 2600, oldest I'll go is NES
@@layouts77 Same! The Atari games look too primitive in my opinion but at least the Atari collectors can get the games for cheaper because there's less demand.
Also, a lot of people never got over the console wars. I still see a lot of Sega vs. Nintendo nonsense in RUclips comments and people regurgitating marketing ads from back then. It's long past time to move on, grow up, and play the games you want to play, regardless of what system they're on.
It's pretty easy to get swept up in the collecting scene. When I joined reddit 7 years ago, I would make it a point to try and purchase the games featured in the top post. Maybe it was rare and I could get it for a good price or maybe it was a heavy hitter like earthbound. Eventually I was collecting and not playing. Who cared if I liked the game or not? I needed it in my collection. Now that I'm actually playing the games my priorities have shifted and I now seek out games that I enjoy playing and also obtain hardware that enhances the game playing experience. Since I did that my passion for playing games has actually come back and it feels like it did when I was a kid just chilling out and playing games escaping from responsibility even if it's just for an hour or so.
Your comment exemplifies the type of honesty I appreciate so much from all my viewers. I'm glad that you've gotten to a more enjoyable place with the hobby, and I'm glad to have you on the channel!
I bought sonic 06 simply because of the notoriety around it. But it was cheap.
Exactly the same for me. I came to the same conclusion like a year ago, getting rid of expensive "must have" SNES complete in box games and spent the money on Analogue systems, Everdrives, a new PVM and cheaper but still awesome titles for like the Xbox/PS2 etc. No regrets whatsoever.
@@carlosrueda9204 That's basically the same reason I got Little Britain - The Videogame. I don't like the show and even the cover told me that the game isn't good (it's probably the worst PS2 game ever and for some time was considered to be the worst game of all time, until Big Riggs got released), but it only cost me 3 Euros. Worth it. I mean, I probably won't play it ever, but just to be able to say that I own one of the worst videogames of all times is kind of cool.
I buy games i like to play and never play them :) if you only buy good games you cant go wrong.
Fear of missing out and getting caught up in that hot game of the current moment have been a struggle for me. My original vision for my collection was first to have all of my childhood favorites, then a top 25 that represents the best or most popular games from each console. I wanted a game collection that any kind of gamer could walk in and enjoy. Your comments on " most people that see your collection will not care, or atleast not care as much as you" in videos have rang true and have been sobering. I have come to realize I have spent a lot of money on games based on rarity or popularity in the community instead of what I truly want to play. Don't get me wrong, I have discovered some great games that I now love this way, but it definitely has led to a unhealthy balance of spending way more time buying games than I play them. I probably won't consolidate to an extreme amount, but I do have a finish line in sight as far as acquiring the games on my want list to "complete" my collection. At that point I'm definitely going to re-evaluate and play those games I bought on "hype factor" and consolidate from there. And it is funny, you hit the nail on the head when you say people are embarrassed about smaller collections, I never wanted to go for complete libraries, but the more I have gotten caught up in collecting, the more I have caught myself not wanting to talk about or show my collection with fellow gamers because I'm afraid it's too small or unimpressive. Sorry for the long winded comment, your videos always provoke a lot of thought, which is so cool to me and unique. Cheers!
Yeah I feel some desire to buy community/culture relevant games. Like I want to have Katamari Damacy black label PS2 because it was such a sensation back in the day, even though I thought it was so stupid back then. Even now I think it's kind of dumb still, but have matured more to the point where I see the ridiculous design attitudes and am mildly entertained to play it and have it in my collection. I think this is a good enough reason but there are certainly situations where you own a game only because other people said you should, and in that case those games really should probably be downsized out of your collection.
I don't mind the comment being long. I loved reading it. It sounds like you're very honest and self-reflective about your collection. I think that will serve you well!
I see something like that in the retro game emulation scene where is tinkering with your arcade or the appearance of your retropie with its 30.000 games consumes more time than playing.
But when tinkering is the fun or collecting it's ok. IAM not judging... But for me a Projekt must have an end and than I want to use it.
@@Nordlicht05 this seems to happen in a lot of hobbies. before i enjoyed collecting gamesi have had project car that i have spent close to $15,000 dollars extra parts for and spend every weekend wreching on and tinkering with only to drive the car 100 miles a year LOL
I didn't even realize there were actually people who felt "bad" about their collections. No one should have to feel like its a competition or something. I've always just grabbed what I liked and my collection has grown accordingly. If you like something, buy it. If you don't, then might as well leave it for someone else who "absolutely has to have it." Your collection is *yours.*
I think this video actually restored my love for retro gaming a little bit, I was feeling kind of overwhelmed by it, and honestly kind of depressed. I think I'll pick a game I've been looking forward to playing and just go for it today, thanks Retro Bird!
All right! Yeah, it can be helpful to take a step back sometimes.
For my collection, I only go after games I want for nostalgia or to play. I'm not opposed to digital copies either if they're a great deal, like getting fire emblem for gba for $3 on the wii u eshop thanks to best buy rewards. Ultimately, if I'm happy with what I have, that's all that matters
Being comfortable with those eshop purchases gives you a huge advantage!
Hey Geoffrey I understand what you mean. My fiancee eventually wants Flicky on the Genesis. It's somewhat affordable as-is but it's only $0.99 on Steam so we got it for her to play now while putting that game in the back burner for the Genesis. Sure we still want the cartridge but at least we can play it now.
I'm the same way. I hate I missed Fire Emblem remake on the Switch, but I'm only interested in games I will actually try to finish.
Always a great perspective. Not a common view here on RUclips but it is much appreciated
Glad that it's appreciated!
your video is very refreshing and comforting. I started collecting since I was young but I completely forgot when did I become so into collecting. eventually, I realized somewhere in the back of my head it kept screaming it was not enough. I question myself from time to time am I a true collector, or if not collection big enough. I have a collection that is 200+ and it still feels not enough. by no means am I quitting or slowing down anytime soon but your vid definitely helped me feel better when someone made a joke bout me by saying I'm not a true collector since the display didn't look big enough compared to the ones seen by RUclipsrs.
Glad you found it comforting!
I'm in the process of getting to those "I'll get to it later" games, but it's taking a while, and I keep doing research and finding more games I want. And yes I do want to replay my favorites too
That library reference you made seems to come from me. 5:19 I mentioned in the comments a few months ago that I see games as a library where you'll never read every book, but it's good to have choices. I remember you responded by saying my viewpoint was interesting. That's cool that you repeated it. LOL
Yes! I am always listening to all of you and incorporating it into how I think!
I used to go for all the games in a game series while collecting. I eventually decided to just collect the games I or my friends would have fun with when we're together. I feel it makes my collection a viable pastime for the future
I used to be like this in this video. Thousands of games, every console. I was out of control! I think the future of retro gaming and preserving gaming history will be with emulation/hardware replication, not having 25 plus year old consoles
Absolutely. With emulation you can have darn near every game for every console all in one place! No changing cartridges, no changing out AV cables, no finding the storage space for all those consoles, games, accessories. Granted there are those that wanna play on original consoles with original cartridges on a CRT! Ive heard that some emulations are really crappy but I cannot verify that.
I was actually thinking about this the other day. The culturing is definitely very interesting right now. Lots of new people, people debating whether or not the GameCube is retro, and resellers have made this hobby very difficult at times lol
For me 6th gen is and isn't retro...it's retro because it's better on an old TV but it's also a lot like current games.
been replaying some old faves and woke up wanting to start collecting. First time here on this channel, love the humor haha.
Glad to have you on the channel!
“You think anyone thinks he’s a failure cause he goes home to Sparkster every night? Forget about it.”
As the Library example, maybe we need a Blockbuster/Library: a place to go for a game we wanted to play, modern or retro, and once finished returned it to let others to play, that or we need to encourage that the emulation of retro gaming is not bad, at the end the important thing is playing games
I won't lie when I started collecting I made a list watching youtube videos talking about the libraries for each console and I had like 383 games I wanted spread across 8 consoles and if I ever found something that wasnt on that list that didnt interest me but the community loves I was always tempted just because: "everyone loves that game" and sometimes buying it and trying something I didnt think id like payed off because I loved it and sometimes I regreted it completely eventually I just decided that I was gonna stick to my "I want this for sure list" and I made a: "If I find it for a good price ill pick it up list." As of typeing this I have 588 titles spread across 12 systems and a 5th of my collection is ps4 lol. I learned to just stick with what you love/ what has your interest. Ill also admit when I see youtubers/ other collectors with stuff I want but cant find it hits my jealous feeling sometimes but ive tried to just learn that "hey I probably have stuff other people want and I should be happy with what ive been fortunate to find." Ive grown to be pretty happy with my collection over the years a couple months ago my little cousin was playing with my phone and deleted the list I made for my games I had like 15-20 left on there to get and I only could remember 4 so I decided: "maybe I dont need all that stuff I put down I dont NEED to finish that list." I stopped trying to think of whats in my collection as adding to my status as a collector and just be happy cause thats what the hobby is supposed to be about imo.
Dude your presentation and overall demeanor reminds me of like blues clues, zaboomafoo, out of the box, type stuff but in a really funny, more mature delivery. And I love it. Idk if I get that kind of feel from any other youtuber. I really appreciate all of this.
Renting Games also filled that need. Not all families could afford to buy new games so the 2-5 dollar weekend rentals really helped. Also, a big bonus was that you could try before you buy.
I've always been the type of collector where I buy the games I want to play either from my childhood or games I see replay value in. I also only buy games I know I will eventually play. I don't see the point in buying filler games just to have a large collection. I never understood those who went for a complete library but y'know, different strokes for different folks I guess.
I always say collect what you love and for me thats meant getting game I plan to play in a timely manner and keeping the ones I really enjoy. Goal is to be able to pick any game at random and know its good.
I like that approach. I try to stick to only having games that I want to play but what about the stinkers that someone bought for you as a gift? I've got a few and they're still on my shelves for sentimental value. I wouldn't ditch them because it feels like ditching away the good intentions of people that wanted to make me happy... but the games are still stinkers haha
Great video, loved your sense of humor! I used to be really big into the collecting hobby, but I honestly haven't bought a single old-school game in over 5 years now. I got to a point where every game I wanted to buy was in the $150-300 range and it just wasn't fun anymore. Now it's gotten even worse and common games are jumping way up in price. I couldn't rebuild my collection today if I had to, and I find that sad for people wanting to get into the hobby. I really miss the days of garage sale finds and NES games under $10. Collecting used to be really fun!!!
With my collection I’m never after anything specific, saves me money and I’m excited to find anything. Just the other day a family friend was going to throw out a Sega Genesis and 5 games, 4 being in case with manuals in really good condition. Totally scored, I got myself 18 different consoles so when I find games I can play them
Started on emulation, moved to collecting, now back to emulation for all the reasons you stated. Another aspect was games potentially breaking over time from some natural disaster or just years of wear- always stressed me out if I had something pricey.
But back to emulation there are ways to get an "authentic" experience out of it. Get an HDMI converter, play your Pi or any modern device on a CRT. Get USB adapters to use original controllers. All the main platforms have ways of USB connectivity so you have tons of options. Genesis game with Saturn controller? Yes. SNES with a PS1 controller? Yes.
I’ve been trying to persuade my friends, family, and co-workers to take more interest in your personal game collection Retro Bird 🐦
I've found your channel a couple of days ago and went on a binge. Good stuff.
I love that you share your point but you also understand another, and also try to show people that at the end of the day we should all have fun with it
Welcome to the channel and glad you're liking it!
No regrets here ...collections that I sold
94- GameCube games, 55 NES,48 DC,27 PSP and 53 N64. The $ was invested later on bills, food and other hobbies and I still have a ton of games and systems.
I thank you for making this. I a very young collector of 18 has always had a passion for collecting ever since I've been 14 years old. I've always had a small feeling of anxiety when it comes to how many games I actually owned. This does make me feel a lot better in the sense of thinking. Instead of getting the "must have games" I should focus more on games I actually want to play and enjoy. I should also not worry about how many Snes or N64 games a person has become my golly you guys who have been collecting for years seem to have a ton of Snes and Nes games.
Glad to hear! Just put most of your energy into playing and enjoying the games you have at any given time.. and you'll have a blast!
I still feel like I'm playing catch up with games I either missed or couldn't afford when I was younger. I am finding most of the games "collectors" gloat about, being pretty bad for my taste. They take the cost of the game to justify its good like I should give them a pat on the back.
The thing to remember is 'rare' doesn't mean 'good'. There aren't so many games that are both rare and really good because really good games generally sold enough copies that they aren't in the 'rare' category now. There are plenty of exceptions to this but the rare game hype train is fueled by presenting the idea that there are gems out there that people missed. All that gets people interested and the views, readers, likes, subscribers etc. It also pushes up the demand and price for the rare game. That's probably not the intention but it's the result of people hyping a game that doesn't really deserve the hype. Average, rare games end up with a much better reputation and become a more rare and expensive item because of it.
My advice is to enjoy the online content where you see or read about these things but then try the game. Most games can be emulated or played on an Everdrive. Think of it like playing a demo and then decide if it deserves to be in your collection at the price it sells for.
Also, there's nothing wrong with playing a rare, expensive game on an Everdrive, Emulator or even buying a repro cart if they're available. The developers and publishers don't get any money you're spending on used games. It would be nice to buy an official brand new copy but you can't buy what they're not selling. That's their problem for not making the content available in the format that people want it and why you can't give them your money for that. My opinion is that they should be looking at the movie industry and take a better approach in selling back catalogue content as physical and digital products to hit the whole market.
But anyway, I've digressed. My point is that we should all be careful in how we ride the hype train. There's no good reason to turn a fun pastime into a disappointing and expensive part of our lives but it can happen if we let it
I loved what u said “most of us only had one console at a time and only a handful of games for the console” …. So so true , for nes , sega, snes, psx, I only probably had no more than a few games for each growing up , with most games being rented and my favorite being purchased from mowing lawns money or asking for Christmas
I really needed this video, and 1000% agree with everything you said. I've been collecting for 6-7? years now, and I've been finding myself feeling oddly guilty for deciding to just play Final Fantasy 14 (which I'm LOVING btw) despite my collection of 450+ games looking over my shoulder (Mischief Makers is getting ansy...).
I wanted to add something to the discussion: I wonder if not having a lot of games as kids could also contribute to the FOMO that we feel. I find myself always thinking back to how, as a kid, I treasured the games I did have and never wanted to trade them away. That very protective mindset could have also influenced how it's hard for me to consider giving up parts of my collection now (on top of the time and money I've put in to searching out games I always wanted to try/play as a kid and adding them to my collection).
I'm going to consider the solution of giving away games to friends who would take care of them more heavily (I've given away accessories like chargers and batteries for PSPs to friends as I've come upon a lot of them, what with it being my favourite console), as I think this is a really constructive solution to many issues the retro gaming community is facing.
Thanks for this video, Retro Bird. Sharing this with all my collector and retro gamer friends. Subbed!
Hey! Glad that you appreciated the video and welcome to the channel my friend!
That FOMO feeling as a kid carries over sometimes as an adult ....interesting
I'm really enjoying your perspective on these topics. I'm one of those collectors who has accepted that "I will probably not get to all of these." But I still love hunting and buying.
It is exactly the same in the Synthesizer community. I was feeling ashamed for only owning 40 of them or so, when everyone who visits my studio thinks I have a problem 🤣😂
Totally. At least we have a word for it in the audio community (GAS), and people have regular discussions about it. Now that I think about it, Game Acquisition Syndrome fits that acronym just as well haha. It would be funny (and probably healthy) if it entered the discourse in the gaming community too
well the pricing is insane
Yes I only hav 2 synths a old 1970s Moog & a m audio that I need computers 2 use its because synths go from 1,500 to 10,000 & I can't afford that I got the still working Moog from a grudge sale for 180 & the m audio on a x mas sale at gatar center for 200
I'm somewhat unique as a retro gamer/collector in the sense that I was pretty lucky growing up. My family wasn't rich, but because I was an only child until I was well into my teen years, and I had grandparents, aunts (who at the time had no kids of their own), etc., I was pretty lucky and I was able to often get new games and even at times consoles for Christmas, Birthdays, etc. And for the most part I never traded anything in (the very few things I ever did trade in back in the day I regretted shortly after). And as I got older I was able to buy a lot of the stuff for myself going forward. So we're talking the Atari 2600, every Nintendo console, every Sega console from the Genesis forward (including Sega CD and 32X), all of the Playstations and Xboxs (I don't have PS5 or Series X yet, but eventually will when it's not a royal pain in the ass to get them), etc., with some portables mixed in. During my younger years it was rare for me to have more than 20 or 30 games for any one system, if even that many.
So most of my "retro" collection I've had since long before those games became retro. I even have some that have gained a lot of value over the years (probably the most valuable one I have is Mega Man V on Gameboy CIB).
Over the years I did pick up some games for older systems here and there. One thing that in hindsight I was VERY naive about years ago was that I never really expected many older games to skyrocket in value like they have. Not that I didn't expect prices to fluctuate, but outside of extremely rare games, I never expected anything that was cart-only (for example) to go for over $100, let alone several hundred. I just always took it as people getting what they actually want to play, and never with the purpose of just collecting in mind. Sure, with the games I have, there are some that I've never finished or barely ever touched, but for the most part I've never bought anything with the specific intention of exclusively wanting it for collecting purposes and to never actually play it.
There were some games that I always intended to get around to picking up, but just never did for one reason or another (most likely just being that I was buying other current games). One example is DuckTales 2 for NES. I should have gotten it back when it was cheaper. But never did. Then the price went up more and more over the years, and it was just more than I was willing to pay. Then it came out as part of the Disney Afternoon collection on PS4 and Xbone... and it is easy enough to play via emulation or using a flash cart that honestly, while it would be nice to own the original NES cart, it really isn't THAT necessary to me.
It's not that I'm poor. I *could* afford to buy that game and a few other pricey ones that I would otherwise like to have. But to me the price just isn't worth it given the other methods available to play. I do have all 3 Mega Man X games for the SNES, but never did get Mega Man 7 for it (likewise the only NES Mega Man carts that I own are 2 and 3). It would be nice to own all the actual carts, but with the Legacy collections that have been released, and again, the flash cart and emulation options, I just really don't feel like I ''NEED'' them.
As far as I am concerned, to each their own. If someone buys to play, to collect, or anywhere in between, more power to them. I personally don't understand the mentality of someone wanting a complete collection of every game released for a console when it usually means buying hundreds or thousands of games that not only will they never play, but many of which are just awful. While I have some bad games in my collection, in general I've never gone out of my way to buy a game that I know/consider to be terrible (let alone hundreds of them) just for the sake of completing a collection. But again, if that is what someone does, that is their prerogative.
But I do hate a lot of the culture that has been built up around this. The attitudes of some people feeling superior for having large collections, or looking down on those who don't have large collections, opt for emulation options, etc. It is a very childish and immature mentality.
Also, having watched the almost hour-long video exposing the issues surrounding Heritage Auctions and Wata Games, while I know it was not the intent of that video, it has really given me more of an appreciation for the idea of repro carts. I preface this by saying that I know repro carts are controversial, and I do NOT support the idea of anyone trying to pass them off as the original to sell them at the same price. And for the most part in general they are something that I have largely avoided (I have a couple of exceptions, though nothing that can be passed off as the legit thing, like a USA style SNES cart of a translated Super Back to the Future 2, which only officially released in Japan). But the section early in the video about the difference between the Intrinsic and Extrinsic properties of an object and how the Extrinsic properties are what gives it the perceived value really made me think more about this. They use the example of how a Van Gogh painting can sell for millions of dollars, but if a robot were programmed to make an exact identical reproduction, it would not be worth more than the materials it is made from. And it is us "wacky humans" caring about the Extrinsic details that raises the perceived value.
Now again, I would not want the reproduction being passed off as the original. But at the same time, if they end result is identical or damn near close, then there arises the question about if what someone really wants is just the Intrinsic object/item itself, then should they really necessarily be concerned with the Extrinsic properties (or for that matter be concerned with other people's concerns over the Extrinsic properties) of the item that are otherwise not important to them?
To be clear, I know that technically a reproduction of any game (old or current) is illegal. And when it comes to games currently on the market still being sold at the standard market price by the standard distributions chains, I am in favor of supporting the actual product so that they make their money and continue being able to stay in business and make/supply more games for us to play. BUT when it comes to retro games, whether buying an official old retro cart (whether it goes for a low price or an insanely high one), or buying a really close, well made reproduction, either way the original makers/suppliers of the game are not making anything from it. Obviously for a retro game that goes for a low price, it makes little sense to opt for a repro over the original, but for something going for hundreds or thousands of dollars? I can see why someone who wants to get as close as they can to the original experience of having each game on their own individual cart and putting it in the console to play it may want to go that route. Plus when it comes to games like this, we are talking about something that was mass produced to some extent with many copies in existence to begin with... not something with a clear, single original like a painting.
I know some will disagree with me on the point about repro carts, and that is fine. For the record, I don't see myself suddenly adding tons of repros to my collection. But after seeing that video, and given how the market can be manipulated (while many ebay sales are legit, we know there have been cases of sellers hogging up a supply to manipulate the price, even if not as badly as as the Heritage Auctions situation), to me it makes me care even less about the Extrinsic value of official retro games when some are just going to use it to makes themselves rich and screw over everyone else... and makes me a little more likely to opt for a repro if I decide that I really want to have a game on an individual cart without paying an absurd amount for it.
I have a NES and TG16 collection with the games I love to play and that's all I need. I actually stopped watching game room tours because most are filled with 1,000's of games and it was giving me anxiety. I don't want a huge collection to keep up with and only keep what I enjoy. To each his own. Power to the Players!
Same here, and the guys with massive collections are just rich collectors ruining the hobby for the rest of us
Collecting hasnt been fun since like 2007-2012…it was fun resellers didnt know the value very well. If you went to a pawn shop or thrift store or even a yard sale you were bound to find something. I collected because it was exciting finding a game for 2.99 at goodwill and having fun….now it’s impossible to source games even for current consoles…the community has gotten a little bit toxic. I remember hooking other collectors with games that I already have…also new collectors that picked up the hobby that pay up for full price games…Some game collectors are very cheap even when it comes to buying lol…idk its weird time. Its not the same how it used to be
@Leafar70 don’t collect to fill shelf space or just to have bragging rights. If you like a certain genre of games buy it. It has been incredibly dificult to source and buy games…being patient is key
True, after 2013 it became to annoying and expensive, I think is because scalpers are inflating prices online and many second hand stores use those prices as a guide and everyone thinks they have the Holy Grail but in the end it's just outdated tech, the thrill for me was finding those games you wanted but couldn't afford growing up so you can play them now for cheap.
I don't really have a fear of missing out when it comes to games. After all, emulation has made it so that just about everything is accessible. For me, collecting is just about having copies of my favorite games. Its just that there are some games that I'd really like on my shelves, but are getting way too expensive like Suikoden II, Valkyrie Profile, Shantae, etc.
"Most people I've ever shown my collection to barely care about it at all, let alone anything near how much I do."
Important video for the community. Thanks for this!
I discovered your channel not too long ago and enjoy each one of your videos. Great topics and I love your perspective on gaming as a whole. Started to organize my collection and quickly discovered that I have 12 go to games out of 312 that I own. These are all digital and on Xbox. I'm now going to seek these 12 out for physical copies since I know they are my go to games.
As a kid, there were so few games that you ended up playing them over and over. Now it feels like there's too many games and it's overwhelming.
very much this
I have no idea about retro gaming but this video made me crack up several times. Your sense of humor and relatability are things even non gamers dig.
Hey, I appreciate that! Thanks for stopping by :)
My grandmother is not into video games. My mother is not into video games. But I am into video games and there are a lot of people in from my generation that are into video games and because of this your seeing a huge interested in these old games.
I buy first then play later but can never find time to play. Same like what you said....we are having the same problem. We want to collect the games to make sure we are having those games when it is no longer available in the market anymore. You are proud to have a "complete" set of games. I don't have place to store the games as the cupboard run out of space.
Great video with a lot of excellent points addressed. I appreciate that it wasn't about steering people in one direction, but informing about the various ways one can choose to (or choose not to) collect. At the end of the day it's about the games themselves, and in a lot of cases you don't necessarily need the physical item to play them. If one prefers going after the real deal, then more power to them.
Hey, its my dude retro bird!
Hey, it's my dude NES ADDICT!
I think putting together an actual, as-exhaustive-as-possible list of what you have and what you want is really helpful in keeping yourself in check. I know a few times I've been tempted to buy a game before realizing that either I already owned it or wasn't on the list. Sometimes that thrill of finding an awesome game in the wild can be overwhelming so it's good to have some tools to keep yourself grounded. As for quantity, I think it's all very personal and varies for everyone based on system. I had a genesis and saturn back in the day so alot of my collecting lately has been focused on the sega lineup. For others, nintendo or jaguar or xbox may be their thing which can vary their collection size and "value". At the end of the day, it's all about personal enjoyment and appreciation which I think is the metric a collection should be graded by.
Lists are definitely helpful!
I just decided to get high end flashcarts for systems I own, and emulate the rest. The only system I've really been "collecting" for is the switch because there are way too many great indie games and jrpgs that I love playing that have really cute physical releases.
I can always have my Steam collection as a collection, they're still retro games after all depending on the game, or buying it on GOG literally is made up of old PC games, you just need a cd/dvd case and print the manual (if avaible) and you are good to go, just paste the installer into the disc (cd or dvd) and done.
My collection , is so big, I forget what games 🎮 I already have, then I move things around and find that thing I have been looking for
Lots of good points here. You kind of hit on one expression I hear a lot that always bugs me, "I'm really happy to have this in my collection." I might be reading too much into it, but that always strikes me as "I'll probably never play this, but it's highly desirable." To me, that's when things cross over more into the hoarding stage.
I fell into that mindset a while back and only snapped out of it when I moved and realized how many items I had picked up with no real intention to play. It still happens from time to time, but every few months I take a few hours to go through my movie/game collections and weed out any titles I genuinely think I'll never touch. I feel like that's a good way to ensure you're not accumulating things, just to accumulate them... though everybody will have their own standards for what is acceptable(One display case, one room, one storage locker, etc).
I love retro games and collecting, and I really like your position on it. I have a bunch of consoles, but some of them I only have one or two games for. I don't need a complete library for a system, because I'm not going to play and enjoy every game, so I just get the ones I like, and whatever I randomly wind up with on a lark. Re-buying is also terrible. I lost some stuff to a flood, and I lost my Saturn collection in a house fire. Prices get out of hand fast, these days, so I still don't have everything I used to.
Only 10k subs? can't be! pump the subs!
As always, great take on the topic. I love how you present the different sides and allow the viewer to make their own connection.
For myself, collecting is for myself and family's enjoyment. There are no rules other than obviously a budget. Sure I have guidelines on how I wish to undertake the task of acquiring items but even that varies from system to system. NES? I want as many things as I can get my hands on to. It's my favorite system. I started by getting good games, then moved onto games that were well rated. That progressed into one for each letter in the alphabet. Now it's mainly about picking what I can when I can. That's the anomaly though.
Every other system, I pretty much stick to the same gameplan. Variety. Whatever kick or mood I'm on and which system that may be, I like having options. So good games, games I enjoy and variety. I cannot give a specific number because each library is obviously different, but it's not outrageous.
Price point of games can also play a huge factor in the size of my library. My GameCube library is my smallest and price is a big reason why.
In the end though, all that matters is you are enjoying the hobby you chose to partake in. So there will never be a baseline for all collectors. However, one thing that should not be condoned is criticizing anyone for how they chose to participate. No one should ever feel the need to apologize for the number of games they own whether it's a few or a lot.
Glad that you like having both sides. I do my best to try to present things that way.
"Look at me now dad!" 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Totally feel that! As soon as I grew up, I did get the games I always wanted or could afford. I agree on a collecting aspect if you have like a hundred games you are a collector but if you have like only 10 games you're not collector. That's nonsense, I believe that you should collect what you like and your collection should just suit you for who you are.
Haha. We're grown ups now!
Hi there Retro Bird, just recently came across your channel and I've been going through a bunch of your videos. Great stuff! I like your attitude about collecting and agree that as video game fans and collectors we ought to be more supportive of each other. Really great to come across people with a more positive outlook these days. I'll be watching for newer videos, thanks for the work you're putting into these!
Hi Greg! Thank you for that and I'm glad to have you on the channel :)
I really enjoy the positive outlook you have in your videos!
Glad you're into it!
Glad I'm not the only one with one PSP game
Glad to be in that club with you, my friend :)
The Napoleon Dynamite reference was gold😅
Seeing Wave Race 64 being played brought tears (of joy) to my eyes.
All right! I feel it does well played in the summer :)
I have a modest collection, but I build it up for friends to enjoy when the come over! Makes for fun discussions too.
I've been trying to downsize my collection and only get games I really want to play, got a lil carried away when I got a bit more disposable income some years ago...
So many good points made in this video. I got back in to collecting childhood favourites or “always wanted but could never afford” stuff thanks to adult disposable monies then got a bit hung up on box and condition that just pushed everything out of price reach. But you don’t need a box to play the game (manual does help sometimes mind) and at the end of the day you’re right, it’s playing and enjoying games that’s surely the end goal.
This was the first video of yours I’ve watched, fantastic job on the reaction cut always.
Thank you and welcome to the channel! Glad you liked it :)
Thanks for all the work you do one these! This is a great topic, and one I think about fairly often. Hearing it from a respected member of the community is really important. If more people said this or even recognized the potentially negative aspects of collecting culture in themselves, games would likely be a lot more affordable and accessible. I do sometimes feel I have a duty to protect the items I have acquired, especially because many of them were rescued from basements garages and attics…but if they don’t see use it may be time for them to find a new home. Keep it up, I appreciate all the effort you put these videos for us!
Thank you Joshua!
Your videos are so good…entertaining, great story telling and thought provoking. Also, I feel attacked
Hahah no attack!
Best retro gaming commentary on RUclips!
Over the years I've been slowly working to build back my collection of games that I ALREADY ONCE OWNED... but it's getting harder and harder now that they are at such absurd prices. I've been into emulation for many years, so I can play the ones I don't have that way, but it's just not the same as having the physical cartridge and/or disc, with the box and manual etc. For me it's basically a nostalgia trip and feeling of completion mixed with correcting a mistake, instead of buying them just to hike up the price and resell in an attempt to make a profit off of others. I doubt I'll ever get around to playing most of them again, especially the RPGs, but it would be nice just to have them once again because I WAS A FREAKIN' IDIOT TO SELL THEM AS A KID! Ahem... Anyway this video was very healthy to watch, I thank you.
Haha I think a lot of us regret selling games as a kid. Glad you liked the video. Thank you!
Bro that beginning is to true. I think I mainly buy games to compensate for the fact I couldn't get a lot of games as a kid.
I only collect games when I want too cause it is too expensive these days. I can play them on the Raspberry Pie and even on emulators. Probably when the retro gaming market prices cool down for a while, then I can start to buy some Genesis and PC-Engine games.
Great video and many good points made. I'm a collector, I have a relatively large collection - and that includes a couple of consoles where I only have a handful of games. But I'm never going to chase games I am not going to play and enjoy, I don't see the point in owning them for the sake of it. And I certainly wouldn't put any stock/investment in "graded" or "sealed" games.
Awesome channel and great perspectives, subscribed!
Welcome aboard!
7:48 I almost forgot, but thats actually why I got into retro gaming in the first place. See my line of logic goes like this, games back in the day where technically more expensive, and new, so they where designed with that in mind. Basically the developers must have at least kind of had in mind "this is probably going to be one of the only games they have for their console" and so they made these old games extremely replayable. So I figure, get plenty of old games now, and I can play and replay them forever.
I plan to replay my games forever as well!
This is why my main focus is basically decided by what I would want to play now, or what I would like to play with friends/family.
Thankfully there are a lot of fun party, rhythm, and racing games that a lot of collectors ignore or were produced in high quantities. So it's fairly reasonable to collect a lot of them for party night variety.
Definitely felt this one. Went through a phase where I was watching lots of collector channels and buying games I didn’t know about before just because someone recommended them. Had to put the brakes on and stop going to retro stores for a while to try to break the habit.
I only play retro games on my phone now with the use of emulation and i love it.
I mainly download games i hadn't played before, although a nostalgic replay of a few classics is welcome too.
I have so many games that I keep on the "backlog". I want to play them, I just don't have the time currently. With a job, wife and kid. I tend to play quick pick up and play games currently. I keep telling myself that I'll get to the other longer games eventually.
Ps nice vice project doom gameplay!
It's a nice little game with one of the best titles ever :)
"look at me now dad" is what i said the last time he visit my home and he saw all my collection of consoles and videogames jajaj. Saludos desde Argentina, me encanta el contenido de tu canal y tus opiniones.
Good to hear and thank you for watching all the way from Argentina!
you hit the nail on the head with this. while I love thinking about adding one or two more games from a series or franchise (even if i know i may never play them) to fulfill my completionist quest, or even obsessing over getting the best picture quality (thank MLIG YT!) and managing the mess of wires in my setup for endless hours. When at the end of the day, I need to realize that I have very little time in a given week to be able to enjoy this hobby, so being stressed out about little things here and there is completely antithetical to the point of retro gaming, which is to fuck around and be a kid again.
I'm 95% emulation at this point, but I always feel overwhelmed by choice. I only had a handful of games at a time as a kid, and now I find myself paralyzed on what to play in my rare free time because I have entire console libraries at my fingertips.
I'll say "for me" I'll slowly moving towards Multi Carts for all of my cartridge based consoles, and back ups for my disc based systems.
Im a big fan of having original hardware, but I'm a bigger fan of having a flash cart or a modded system. I'm also not opposed to emulation, there are so many great old games out there that do hold up, that they should definitely be experienced. More fans means likely more re-releases, more appreciation for the hobby, and better preservation.
My collection consists of memories I have had with the games, it is not really physical as nowadays I buy most games digitally. If I had the opportunity to make a big beautiful gaming room, I would probably start to collect games physically, but only those that I am really interested in.
The first min. of this vid hits me right in the feels. As an adult you can spend your disposable income on all the games you want. Just because you can doesnt mean you should.
I found collecting for GBA,Gameboy and Gameboy Color is best. I can use 3 ring binders and baseball card sheets to keep my collection in. I have doubles on some but I meant to for two player games. Ok, Ok some were ones I forgot I bought already. I even got the Consolized gba and a Hyperboy for my DMG-01 with a GBA SP inside.
As a collector this speaks to me, I’m 16 and I don’t have a job I resell the games I don’t want or already have ( rule of thumb if the game is worth x and I wouldn’t pay x or I don’t think it is worth x then I’ll sell it)
I love these times because it's never been easier or less expensive - just find the game on the internet, download it and drop it in. The best part is a complete library takes up the space of one's pinky fingernail!
Oh my gosh you are hilarious!!! I only subscribe to healthy food and fitness channels. But my husband was watching this video early this morning and I was up because I'm 7 months pregnant. I have not laughed that hard in so long! So much so that I am now a subscriber and can't wait for your next video! You killed me when you said something to apologize for is eating the bag of frozen french fries that you were going to share with your wife!!!! I laughed so hard and so long over that because it caught me so off guard that my husband had to pause the video! I love all your little funny skits in between what you really have to say! Thanks for brightening our morning! PS. Keep up the great work you deserve to have way more subs than you have currently!!!
Ahhh, thank you! I'm glad that I could brighten the morning in your home and I hope your pregnancy is a smooth one!
@@RetroBirdGaming 🤩🤩🤩Thanks Matt!
As an old collector I had 5 bookshelves full of games. It must of been like 2k dollars. I have much happier having a flash drive of my roms and playing them from there. The collecting scene has most games going hundreds of dollars and the rabbit hole of getting systems in working conditions and trying to make them work on either an hd tv or getting a crt it is more of a cost or space consumption. I much prefer a small emulation box that doesnt cost an arm and a leg to enjoy the games I want like the snes and nes mini
There is the much unspoken part of retro collecting too.
Getting very old consoles video working upscaled and in HD on modern TV's.
Well said, agreed. If you sell off a game you wish you had again and it's too expensive now... there is always emulation...Or Rom carts (Everdrive, ODEs etc)
I never call a game a Must have. Those games I just call Masterpieces. Then it is up to the individual to who I am talking with to decide whether to seek the game out and give it a try or not. No sweat off my back, just spreading the good word on great games, but nothing is a must have.
Great way to think about it!
Thank you for speaking the truth. Some collectors seem more interested in owning than playing and it’s extremely shallow, borderline being a scalper. Games are meant to be played and shared with friends.
I have a huge collection of arcade boards, arcade sticks, buttons, but not a huge collection of games. I know I only have 2 hands but some of these items you can’t pass up!
I have been trying to get a jump on a switch collection as I missed the boat on older systems and due to circumstances beyond my full control I had to offload my entire psx collection of 250+ titles. I am burnt out right now bc I have so many things I bought that I just don’t play due to time constraints of parenthood.