Video Game Collecting: Don’t Quantity Collect

One of the best ways I have learned about game collecting is by listening to others and their experiences. This usually involves heading over to r/gamecollecting or another game collecting community and browsing people’s new pickups and hauls.

The trap of quantity collecting

Often I’ll see a post and think, “Wow! What an incredible pickup! I wish I could do that!” Or I’ll notice the sheer size of someone else’s collection and question my own. “Should I have bought that lot on eBay? What about that Facebook offer I turned down?”

Impressive collections are worth posting and talking about, but it’s important as an individual collector not to simply “quantity collect.” Quantity collecting is buying a game for the sake of buying it, regardless of whether you intend to play it or think it adds value to your collection.

Value is not necessarily a monetary number; it is value to you. If you think a game purchase adds value to your collection, consider the purchase. If not, save your money for the next game you would rather have.

There are no rules in game collecting

My favorite thing about this hobby is that it has no rules or guidelines. If you want to collect every sports game, go for it! If you want to show off a set of every Guitar Hero game released, do that too! But chasing after games you may never play, or that you feel don’t add value to your collection, should be avoided.

Sure, it may get a ton of upvotes on Reddit or look great on the GameEye report section, but it may not add value for you. After all, you (along with your friends and family) will be the one(s) to fully enjoy your collection.

Collect what you will actually enjoy

Pick up the games you feel are worthwhile to have in your collection.

• Don’t buy random games from the bargain bin just to fill a shelf.
• Don’t spend your disposable income on games you will never enjoy.
• Don’t buy brand new games you would like to play but are afraid to unseal.
• If you do not support the new movement of graded games, don’t buy them.
• The same is true of the opposite: maybe you do like collecting brand new, sealed games for a nice display. That’s fine too!

Be proud of your collection

Everyone’s collection is unique and should be important to them. If you got MotorStorm for $3 and would like to play it, then play it. Be proud of the collection you have and the games you add to it. Enjoy your collection and the hobby of collecting games!

Keep reading: more retro gaming

Looking for your next pickup? These retro retrospectives cover games worth hunting down, and some that are hard to play today.

• Blur (2010): The Forgotten Xbox 360 Arcade Racer, a rare and pricey physical copy that still holds up.
• What happened to Crackdown?
• What happened to Medal of Honor?
• What happened to Army of Two?
• What made RollerCoaster Tycoon so much fun?
• Call of Duty: Roads to Victory, the PSP FPS
• Trophies Are Better Than Achievements

Browse everything in the series at All Retro retrospectives.

Header photo by Oliver Beer on Unsplash.