New Survey: 11% of Games Purchased Left Unopened [Archive]

The 1 2 P

10-29-2008, 07:13 PM

This was one of the results for a new NPD gamer survey: http://www.gamepro.com/article/news/207677/survey-says-11-of-games-are-left-unopened/

After reading this I realized that they are lucky they didn't poll me. My unopened games are about 60-70 percent of my collection. But I'll get around to playing them.....eventually:)

heybtbm

10-29-2008, 08:27 PM

My unopened games are about 60-70 percent of my collection.

I open most of my current gen stuff, but PS2 RPG's...yeah they're about 95% unopened. Also, if I find a cheap or clearanced game and think I might have some interest in playing it, I usually pick it up but keep it sealed. My thought is that if I finally decide to sell it on ebay, I'll get more money for a factory sealed game than for an opened one.

roushimsx

10-29-2008, 08:28 PM

I did an inventory last night on my PS2 stuff and wound up at 28% unopened. :(

DigitalSpace

10-29-2008, 08:55 PM

I'd estimate 5-6% for me - a few on the PS2 and Gamecube, one PS1 game (Turnabout), one GBA game (Open Season, which I acquired a couple weeks ago for $1.58 at Fred Meyer), and one DS game (Looney Tunes: Duck Amuck, which I bought last week at Target, and coincidentally, is the only DS game I've purchased all year that wasn't used).

Then again, I rarely buy new games and if I do, it's usually something that I'll open and play right away, or it's on sale (Duck Amuck) or clearance (Turnabout and Open Season).

10-29-2008, 09:05 PM

Hey you have to open & play Turnabout. Great puzzle game, awesome music! I wrote a review on it for GameFAQS I liked it so much:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/review/R112665.html

otaku

10-29-2008, 09:14 PM

Even if I buy something that is hard to find new I'll still open it. I don't care if its new for the next guy either not even for a little extra money when I sell (if I sell) I mean if its worth alot and would lose alot then sure I'll keep it sealed. Current gen games you bet I open (and play how crazy am i!?) them

roushimsx

10-29-2008, 09:50 PM

one PS1 game (Turnabout)

Either open that sucker right now, download a disc image and play it, or borrow a friend's copy to play post-haste. Seconding that it's a pretty damn fun puzzle game. Completely took me by surprise; I only picked it up because I'm completely gay for Artdink and didn't have my expectations too high, but damn was it fun.

scooterb23

10-29-2008, 09:57 PM

0% unopened games here

super nes

10-29-2008, 10:50 PM

When i know that i have a game in my collection that im never gonna sell i always open it and enjoy it no matter what it cost me but if i know im gonna sell it in the future for a small profit then it stays sealed. so far all my games have been opened and played :)

carlcarlson

10-29-2008, 10:55 PM

I only have a few unopened games; Grandia III, Rogue Galaxy, one of the PS2 Arc games and the original Arc the Lad Collection. Aside from the latter I'll open any game if I want to play it. I have so many other rpgs though that I'm in no hurry to open these.

Oh, and for some reason I have a sealed Jurassic Park for the NES. I've probably purchased over 100 NES lots on ebay and the very first one I bought had this game in it. Strange.

emceelokey

10-30-2008, 12:21 AM

Luckily I buy a lot of used games because my precentage would hover around the 80% if that wasn't the case. I just buy a bunch of cheap games that I may have interest in and If I play them then I play them but if I don't then oh well. I pretty much sel all of the games I don't want to keep rather than trade them in so it's beneficial to keep the game sealed if I'm not going ot play it.

DigitalSpace

10-30-2008, 12:49 AM

Hey you have to open & play Turnabout. Great puzzle game, awesome music! I wrote a review on it for GameFAQS I liked it so much:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/review/R112665.html

Either open that sucker right now, download a disc image and play it, or borrow a friend's copy to play post-haste. Seconding that it's a pretty damn fun puzzle game. Completely took me by surprise; I only picked it up because I'm completely gay for Artdink and didn't have my expectations too high, but damn was it fun.

I'll have to play Turnabout the next time I'm on a PS1 kick. I'll admit that it's been sealed too long - I paid $4.99 for it at Best Buy a few years ago (before their PS1 selection was reduced to a few overpriced EA sports games).

SpaceHarrier

10-30-2008, 01:21 AM

Only 1% unopened here. Then again, I have a tendency to open games and then not play them.

videogameking26

10-30-2008, 03:42 AM

I have a ton of games not open, the majority of my huge current-gen collection is unopen, same goes with like 15 of my Wii, 10 PS3, 5 360, 35 PSP and 20 DS games are still in shrinkwrap, an example have already a ton to play thru but still went ahead and bought Fable II, Far Cry 2, Midnight Club: Los Angeles & Fallout 3 and they are all still in shrinkwrap...but plan to get to them soon because it's almost time for Gears of War 2 and Resistance 2 and many more.

Sudo

10-30-2008, 04:19 AM

carlcarlson

10-30-2008, 08:10 AM

I don't see why people keep buying games and not opening them, especially if they're current-gen titles. It's not like you have to go out and buy them right away. If I had a backlog of more than a couple games, I'd never go out and buy another one until the ones I already had were finished.

Yeah I don't get it either. It's not like it's going to be hard to find Fable 2 in 5 months when you finally have time to play. Heck there's already three on my local craigslist. Why waste the money?

Oobgarm

10-30-2008, 08:27 AM

Only 1% unopened here. Then again, I have a tendency to open games and then not play them.

I'm with you on that one.

I probably have no more than 10 unopened games out of 1000+.

mailman187666

10-30-2008, 09:20 AM

I almost always play my games. I have a few NES games that are sealed, and a couple PS2 and GC games I bought on clearance for about $5 that I haven't opened, other than that they've all been opened and used.

SegaAges

10-30-2008, 09:41 AM

Most of my sealed games I got on the cheap and are either for trade/sell, or I just haven't got around to opening them yet.

My situation for not opening games is not a normal one. I live in a basement with my roommates (they do not live in the basement, they live in a tiny house). The basement is uber small, and so I have been just hoarding them and putting them away once I get them until I can get my own place, so that I can pull the game off of the shelf and play it when I want to and not have to go through a buttload of boxes to do it.

I don't mind digging through boxes at all, but the problem is that there is only room in the basement for my bed, my boxes of games, and a small workout space where I have my treadmill and enough space to move when I want to do other excercises. I can't bust out the games even if I want to for lack of room, but once I get my own place, they will all be out to show.

namzep

10-30-2008, 09:45 AM

Still sealed I have:

4 Hyperscan
5 PS2
1 Wii
2 PS3
6 GBA
5 DS
2 Atari 2600
1 Gamecube
1 Game Gear

So, about 27 games out of a not quite 1200 total. So, a little over 2%. Most of the sealed modern stuff was bought with the intention of playing and I've just never gotten around to it.

theChad

10-30-2008, 10:10 AM

I didn't buy any of my sealed games "on purpose" aside from buying new ones; I didn't care that they were sealed, I mean - it just happened that way. Pitfall, Bomb Squad, Nova Blast, FFXII, F-22, Jeopardy, and Urban Strike. Out of 550-600 total.

darkhades

10-30-2008, 10:27 AM

I do have a few sealed games

NES - 14

PS1 - 1

PS2 - 11 (All bought for $9.99 or less, I couldn't pass on that, I will Play them eventually)

Gamecube - 14 (All Pikmin 2)

GBA - 2

BydoEmpire

10-30-2008, 01:18 PM

I don't know if anyone actually read the article linked to (the Gamepro headline was wrong), but it actually said 11% of GAMERS own unopened games (which I certainly fit into - but only a few per platform), not that 11% of GAMES bought are left unopened.

http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=20851

Jorpho

10-30-2008, 01:34 PM

I don't think I want to know my answer for this one.

Next question: what percentage of illegally downloaded games/movies are left unplayed/unwatched?

The 1 2 P

10-30-2008, 06:26 PM

I don't see why people keep buying games and not opening them, especially if they're current-gen titles. It's not like you have to go out and buy them right away.

Yeah I don't get it either. It's not like it's going to be hard to find Fable 2 in 5 months when you finally have time to play. Heck there's already three on my local craigslist. Why waste the money?

I think it becomes an addiction for some people. And I admit that I have been privy to this addiction myself. Having said that, however, my addiction doesn't really fall into the "current gen" batch of games. My unopened games are mainly those from generations past. I do have 10 sealed Xbox 360 games but this is because I still don't have a 360 to play them on. Also, they were all clearance titles for under $20(most were under $10) at either Sears, Target or Best Buy.

But I do agree with you two that I would NEVER buy a $59.99 brand new current gen title and let it sit on the shelf. Thats just kind of idiotic in my opinion. I can understand not having time to play, but then why buy it at full retail in the first place:?

Felixthegamer

10-30-2008, 09:40 PM

When I have sealed games, it usually just means I have not gotten to them yet. Sometimes I find myself looking at the game section in Target and elect to get a game and don't get around playing it for a while

DiabolicalAdvocate

10-31-2008, 01:26 AM

I mostly buy current games right now, and if I'm shelling out a full $60, I'll open it and pop it in within a couple of days of purchasing it. I may not finish it for a while, but I'll at least try it right away. Otherwise, If it's going to sit on the shelf for a few months, I may as well wait for a price drop.

Fuyukaze

10-31-2008, 03:25 AM

I dont buy many games new but those I do tend to get played. If I dont find the time to play them though, I just dont open them. Sure, it sounds crazy to spend 30 or more on a game and not even open it, but what's the point in opening something you dont intend to play right that very moment? Then again, I've kept some games as much as half a year unopened and come around to playing them when I had the time. Either I'll get around to them eveualy or I wont, it's that simple.

Jorpho

10-31-2008, 11:57 AM

I might add that there have been quite a few games that seem to vanish forever after I pass up buying them at a discounted price. Apollo Justice DS is darn hard to find now, for example (although I've never seen that priced particularly low).

backguard

10-31-2008, 12:18 PM

100% of games I purchase new stay unopened. (Let the flaming begin)

Sudo

10-31-2008, 12:41 PM

100% of games I purchase new stay unopened. (Let the flaming begin)

No reason to flame you. If you want to waste your money to make your house look like a game store, it's none of my business. ;)

Fuyukaze

10-31-2008, 12:57 PM

100% of games I purchase new stay unopened. (Let the flaming begin)

No need to worry about flaming from my side. Your money, you should be able to do as you damned well please.

roushimsx

10-31-2008, 12:59 PM

100% of games I purchase new stay unopened. (Let the flaming begin)

Nothing wrong with that. It doesn't mean that you don't play games, it just means that you don't open the ones you buy sealed. *shrug*

Leo_A

10-31-2008, 01:04 PM

It seems strange and pointless to me, but if its what you enjoy from this hobby, what could be wrong with that? I don't see why anyone here would flame you over it.

backguard

10-31-2008, 03:38 PM

Slate

10-31-2008, 03:42 PM

Most of the games I own are used. If I buy a new game it is most likely to play it. I am more of a gamer than a collector now.

The 1 2 P

10-31-2008, 06:54 PM

i don't want to turn this thread into a sealed collecting vs. playing thread, but i separate my collecting hobby and my game playing hobby. for collecting i want the best condition stuff (sealed/mint), for playing i want the cheapest stuff possible (typically used).

thanks for not flaming :)

I'm with you 100%. Lots of people get anal when it comes to sealed vs open games, but I just do what works for me. And like you, although 60-70% of my games may be factory sealed, I have a good amount of doubles of many of those so I can actually play some of them whenever I want.

Pretty much my entire N64, Snes, Gamecube, and PS2 game collections are unopened, but I use my loose cart only or extra opened copies to play the ones I want. But unfortunately I don't have doubles of all of them:(

HYB

11-01-2008, 08:05 AM

I only have 5 games sealed. One is CV Bloodlines and one is HoD ntsc. I have no reason to open those since I'm going to buy the pal version of Bloodlines and I already have a double pak to play HoD. When it comes to CV I'd rather buy sealed if I'm not going to play it, so mostly ntsc/jap games but I don't really hunt them out, I buy it if I see it basically. I only have 3 current gen sealed games, all of which I bought on sale and have no intention to play yet, but they'll be opened eventually. So yeah, I too separate the collecting/playing hobby. I think one of the reasons why I don't have more sealed games at this point is I buy most games used.

I think it's cool to have sealed game collections, even more so when it comes to older games. It's not my cup of tea but more power to those who do that.

Nature Boy

11-01-2008, 09:36 AM

0% unopened games here

Ditto. I want to know they won't play right after I've bought them, not find out 2 years from now when I can't do anything about it. I understand the collector, keeping it sealed mindset, I just don't share it. If I'm not going to play it I'm not going to buy it :)

videogameking26

11-02-2008, 05:03 AM

For me its I'm a collecter and player but if I have the money well usually pick the game up on release, yes it might say sealed for awhile but at least when I get a chance I can open up and pop it right in, yes friends ask me why pick-up all these games and not play them asap?...well for me with work it makes me feel better to know that I already own the game and if I want to play it then I just seal it open and pop it in. It might be a crazy way of thinking but it's just me and what I like to do...but I can say this usually only goes for this gen games and all my older stuff if it's still sealed then I bought it cheap most likely.

slapdash

11-04-2008, 12:19 AM

I think at this point the majority of my games are sealed, but I feel like a douchebag for not actually getting to play them. In fact, most of my Dreamcast collection is unwrapped, not because I found the time to play them, but because at that point I still EXPECTED to. So put me in the "still sealed, but sadly so" bucket.

Ed Oscuro

11-04-2008, 03:10 AM

http://steamcommunity.com/id/Archeoptrix/games

Also: Holy guacamole @ 11% unopened...but I also have a number of games sitting around sealed up for various reasons. Not enough time to play everything, or I decide that I don't want to play this or that game after all. Oddly enough I can't get enough out of FPSes though.

Iron Draggon

11-04-2008, 06:28 PM

Hey you have to open & play Turnabout. Great puzzle game, awesome music! I wrote a review on it for GameFAQS I liked it so much:

http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/review/R112665.html

Either open that sucker right now, download a disc image and play it, or borrow a friend's copy to play post-haste. Seconding that it's a pretty damn fun puzzle game. Completely took me by surprise; I only picked it up because I'm completely gay for Artdink and didn't have my expectations too high, but damn was it fun.

thirded... and make sure that you have plenty of time set aside for playing it when you do open it... a weekend should suffice... I bought mine for only $5 too, and I ended up devoting an entire weekend to it, without planning to... it's just so addictive that once you start playing it, you can't stop until you finish it... definitely one of the most underrated puzzle games of all time... I can't believe it still sells for so little, when it offers so much joyful playtime