Is your family supportive of your collecting?

[ReTrO-pLaYeR]

Just another silly question for all of you...is your family supportive of your collecting?

For me, I'll say about half and half. My mother always takes me to thrift shops and game stores all the time and lets me buy whatever I want if I have the money. However, she would kill me if I got another system. Because you have to "buy all these games for it", but why would she be worried if I was paying for it all? She thinks I'm a little nuts but screw that- I love what I do.

[todesengel]

My family see's it as a waste of money and just criticizes me for it, I could honestly give a shit about what they think about it though since it's not like I blow all my money on my collection.

[Voliko]

Now that I can drive, It doesn't really matter, but my parents HATE everything that has to do with video games. It gets really annoying when they are constantly nagging about how I spend my money on "pointless" things; especially since most of those things are obsolete. It seems that every second they get they have to say something negative about my gaming habits...

[Pichu]

My family is supportive actually. My mom is ok with whatever I do as long
as I keep my grades up. Thats not a problem though as I have a 4.0, and
an extremely elaborate education plan just waiting to be put into action.

[Dr. Dib]

Somewhat. My dad is the most supportive and he'll often go with me to thrift shops. This probably has to due with the fact that he enjoys collecting models and always hopes to find some there.

My mom is mostly neutral and doesn't really seem to care either way. Although she is somewhat supportive since she always goes with me to one of my favorite game store, of course that's because I'm accompanying her shopping but still...

My older brother is neutral to the subject. I'll show him games I got and he'll compliment me, but he usually doesn't show much interest beyond that.

My younger brother is the least supportive. We share a room, so he gets annoyed when I bring home some more crap to take up space. Of course when I bring him a game he enjoyed as a child his mood quickly turns around.

[deltoidsteep]

My family is pretty supportive of it, my dad even going so far as calling me when he finds a game at a thrift store to see if i have it. My lady friend is very supportive as she is also a collector of many things

[izarate]

Currently I'm living alone so that means that I don't get to deal with this kind of stuff but when I lived with my family their reaction was mild amusement, except for my father who sees the hobby as a great waste of time (but then almost every other hobby is, isn't it?).

Anyway, the prospect of marriage might be the end of my collecting days or at least the end of weekend hunting on flea markets ;) My girlfriend doesn't really care but I think that she wouldn't be happy with all my stuff taking space.

If worst comes to worst I have a backup plan: my room at my parents' house is empty except for my old bed so I plan to use it as storage for my games and systems. I currently have an HTPC made from old parts I had around that I can use to emulate older stuff so I would only need to keep the most current consoles. As for the games for said consoles I'm currently in the process of adding HDDs to the Xbox and PS2 so that would take care of that.

[buzz_n64]

My parents get angry even if I come home with one more game, even if I buy anti-virus software, they call it all useless stuff. When I was married my ex-wife tried giving me an ultimatum that I better get rid of my games or else. I told her I had the games before her, and I'll have the games after her. Years later, it has become true. lol I don't care what others think, I'll lessen, or stop my collecting for my own reasons, or when or if I choose to, not because of someone.

[Emperor Megas]

My wife is very supportive. I don't really collect hardcore like a lot of the other here might, but I've always been a gamer, and it's my number one hobby, so she enjoys getting me game related gifts because she knows it's always a safe bet. She also tolerates long waits in the van when we go shopping and I'm perusing in gaming and electronics stores. My mother-in-law gets me a lot of gaming stuff too for holidays and occasions.

[DefaultGen]

.....

[HappehLemons]

Not really. I don't know anyone who's really "supportive" of it. My friends think it's cool and my girlfriend doesn't really care for it althought it doesn't bother her. Pretty depressing haha.

This thread will most likly prove that games are the root of all evil.

[Demon_Attack82]

Whenever my mom visits the only consoles she can recognize are my Wii (loves Wii Bowling), my 2600 (she was surprised to know I kept all the games I had as a kid) & my Genesis 2 (she got one for us for X-mas). She collects Hallmark ornaments so she doesn't tease me much about my collection.

[Shadow Kisuragi]

My fiancee brought home a Panasonic 3DO FZ-1 with 26 games one day and thought I would be upset with her because she spent $200 on the whole deal...

She only gets upset if I don't share my finds with her before cataloging them and storing them away. She's more interested in Atari and hardware while I'm focusing on collecting anything Sega right now. She had me rent a van and drive 80 miles out of town to pick up a machine, and then I had to drag it into the house through mud to get it there :)

I'm just happy she's supportive and it's something we can share. I'd hate to be combative about it, since it's the only thing I've really ever spent my money on.

[chrissylas]

My husband and I collect together. We're always heading out on the weekends to go to either the flea market or garage sales. In fact, it's pretty much a normal Saturday ritual. The games, while fun, aren't really the focus. Instead, it's the time we spend collecting that really means alot to me.

Our families think we're crazy but that's fine, it's not their money and they do all sorts of things that I think are crazy.

[retroman]

i dont think they even care....

[HurricaneAndrew]

Whenever my mom visits the only consoles she can recognize are my Wii (loves Wii Bowling), my 2600 (she was surprised to know I kept all the games I had as a kid) & my Genesis 2 (she got one for us for X-mas). She collects Hallmark ornaments so she doesn't tease me much about my collection.

My girlfriend's mom has like 500 hallmark ornaments that she is selling on ebay... PM me if you would like me to get a link to her listing.



My father thinks it's pointless, but he could care less. My mother is pretty supportive. If she's with me and I've run out of cash, she'll buy something if I really want it badly. She just tells me to not let my father find out. My brother is really supportive. I am grateful to him for helping me build up probably 1/4 of my current collection. My grandfather has no clue what a video game even is. My girlfriend is supportive at times, even though she calls it a waste of money at some points.

[kupomogli]

I don't know anyone who actually collects. I have some friends who are always impressed by the amount of games that I own, but other friends of mine, even gamers talk crap about my collecting.

A lot of the time it's either. You're rich bla blah blah. You just go out and buy whatever games etc.

People don't know it but I don't really make that much money and I spend literally nothing on anything but food and a place to stay. So all the money I put into purchasing games is solely because I don't spend it on anything else. The rest goes in the bank as I save the rest, or rather goes in the bank first before it comes out for games.

Another thing is that a lot of the games I purchase are fairly old and cheap. I didn't pick up Sacred 2 and DBZ Raging Blast until the Gamedays sale even though I wanted both for awhile. Dante's Inferno I picked up $25 shipped from the EA store and that's only been out two months. It's rare when I get a game full price but even when I do, I can afford to do so more than once a month if I wanted to because I actually save all my money.

So yeah. I always end up feeling a little bit depressed when they say I'm so rich because I don't blow your money on other stuff and spend it on games or save it instead.

[Arcade_Ness]

I live in a apartment with my brother, and he doesn't really care much about my hobby. Besides he collects old guitars and amps, so we're both into collecting, just not the same thing. My mom always tells me to sell all my games and systems, as she believes its a waste of money. Though at the end of the day it's my money and I can do what I want with it.

All my friends are very supportive, and also are also gamers but are more into modern gaming.

[Arkhan]

they were the ones who got me into video games!

at times, they would get mad because I would spend so much time and money on games...

but when it got to the point where I got really into computers, and started doing alot with them as far as hobbys/education, they were like "ohhhhhh! thats where hes headed!" and now they are just used to me showing up with a trunk full of crap I found at a garage sale for 5$, lol.

[SEGA]

My dad doesn't really approve. His house is simplistic -- no "junk".
My mom just kinda rolls her eyes if I bring it up on skype or something. She's happy that I'm happy though.
My sister plays Aladdin on the Genesis and Mario Kart on N64 when she comes to visit. She could care less about the rest.
My friends don't really care either -- nobody ever wants to play anything when they come over and I have a couple thousand carts and discs for various platforms...

[Game Freak]

My parents generally disapprove because they dont like me "bringing more crap into the house" but as long as I clean my room every Friday to the extent there is a visible emptiness on my shelves then they will take me out to fleas thrifts and yard sales the following weekend

[armonigann]

My family is very supportive! There have been times where I was gonna sell but they woud'nt let me!! My family rocks.:guitar::guitar::guitar:

[Swamperon]

I don't think my family are especially bothered. It takes up a bit of room since I'm at Uni and everything is in a closet in my Mum's room, but she doesn't seem to mind. Also, every time I sort through it all and go to throw something out (like a controller box) she asks if I'm sure I want to etc.

My sisters generally have no opinion on it either, they like to play certain games so it's nice for them to have access to them.

My friends... depends on the friends. Some I don't even bother to mention to, it would be a non-starter. Then again, these are the sort of people who spend £250 on a handbag so... Others think it's mildly cool and get excited when they see I have an older game from their childhood.

I have some gamer friends who are only really interested in the latest thing and if a game doesn't have HD graphics, it's automatically crap. A few others are more like minded with myself and will happily play/talk about older/any games. Thankfully one the girls I'm moving in with come July is like this!

[ConsoleFreek]

My wife and I go together to Garage sales and second hand shops.

[bigred5687]

My wife is ok with it as long as i keep it into my one room in our house and if I can still pay the bills.

[Damaniel]

My girlfriend is a collector herself -- some games, but mainly DVDs and action figures -- so no problems there. We go out together all the time looking for stuff, and since we collect different things, we don't argue too much about who found what first. My family (dad, mom, sister) are all gamers, and they've always been extremely supportive (and in the case of my sister, jealous). In fact, they've helped me add to my collection more than once in the past.

On the other hand, my girlfriend's parents are not so supportive of her collecting. They call her stuff 'junk' and consider all of it a big waste of money. Now that she's living with me, she doesn't have to deal with that anymore, not to mention that her collection has increased at least 5-fold since she moved out. Between my collection and hers, I might need to get a larger house someday... :)

[portnoyd]

My mother and sister don't really care either way, but they just don't want me to spend so much that I end up in financial trouble.

I met my wife on these very boards so, as you can imagine, that we're both very supportive of each other.

[BetaWolf47]

Hmm, my mom is indifferent towards it, unless it interferes with my college work (which it does, but she doesn't know that!) My dad is for it, because he plays my NES from time to time. Everyone is respectful, and my mom won't throw anything in my bedroom out.

[Emperor Megas]

My father thinks it's pointless, but he could care less.


My sister plays Aladdin on the Genesis and Mario Kart on N64 when she comes to visit. She could care less about the rest.
How much less could they care, exactly?

[jonebone]

Well I don't live at home anymore, but when I did, my parents were indifferent towards collecting. If anything, it made my mom's relationship with the Post Office lady that much stronger, they are on a first name basis now and very friendly.

Now that I live on my own, my girlfriend hates it and always has. She mainly hates it because of the time spent doing it, not from a financial standpoint. It's all been funded through reselling so I'm not in debt or anything.

Though I admit her jokes about burning them all in a fire one day are quite old.

[tom]

totally, my cat shingalana

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c173/thomasholzer/winks.jpg

loves DC games best

(that's all the family I have btw)

[bacteria]

My wife is fine, in fact she comes along with me to car boot sales to buy my stuff. She buys her books, I buy my consoles and games.

Probably helps that I don't pay a lot for games, i'm not after sealed and pristine versions, any condition is fine as long as they play ok!

[allyourblood]

Everyone in my family is supportive of my collecting. Every member of my family has purchased video game stuff on my behalf at some time or other. My wife doesn't mind the collecting or spending one bit, but she doesn't like that it's starting to spill outside of my studio and gather in other areas of the house. She listens politely when I come home and blab on about whatever amazing find I acquired, and she buys me a new game or two now and then.

[zektor]

My wife "deals" with it. Supportive would be too much of a word tho...

Not a single person in my family is or has ever been supportive of my hobby, except for my 5 year old daughter of course...because she likes games too :)

[WanganRunner]

My wife doesn't mind.

Obviously, she doesn't want all the stuff stacked/displayed in the living room as if she's married to an eight year old, but as long as I keep it in another room, it doesn't bother her.

She doesn't care that I tie up money in it, because it's not really "spending" money. If you need the cash back, you can always sell things. It's just a playable savings account.

She doesn't play games at all, but the collecting doesn't bother her.

[jdc]

My wife accepts that having tons of stuff around is just......what comes with being married to me, I guess. I work in a bike shop, and I have so many bikes that we had to buy a bigger house to house them all. Last year I had 20...I'm "down" to 12 right now. Games are on every floor of the house. Retro is upstairs spare "office"...Atari in the living room...all the last and current gen modern in the rec room of doom. My 8 year old? I'm sure he figures that EVERYONE'S house has literally hundreds of games to play!! It's all he's ever known.

[ezbman]

My family is ok with it they just get pissed when I leave stacks of games all over the place. I am pretty cheap so they know I don't buy anything unless its dirt cheap. My mom actually loves going to yard sales, flea markets, and thrift stores so it works out pretty well. She has even made a few pretty epic purchases for me on days I had to work and couldn't go to yard sales.

[Porksta]

As long as I keep it all in the basement they don't mind.

Although recently my mom was looking for something in the basement and opened up the closet where I keep all my CE/LE boxes and stuff. She was not happy.

[NME]

My wife doesn't really understand it but supports me most of the time. She hates the "clutter." But then other times she will call me when she finds games (like last week when she found a box of 23 NES games at a Goodwill). Basically, the money that other people spend on alcohol, cigarettes and drugs is what I spend on Video Games. That is my drug. My son loves it. He grew up thinking that having every system and game was normal. The parents have no problem with it as my Mom is a thrift store/Craigslist addict and my dad collects baseball cards (mom threatened to divorce him if he bought one more card).

[Sabz5150]

"At least it's not crack." - The wife.

[WanganRunner]

"At least it's not crack." - The wife.

^^
This is the rationalization my wife uses for my car and games hobbies.

At least it isn't drugs, gambling, or cheating.

[otaku]

no much like my love of anime it is a waste of my time and money to them and also weird.

[Slate]

When I was into it my parents were very supportive. They're also supportive of me selling most of it which I'm in the process of doing.

Austin

[mastamuzz]

My wife is the one hunting for the games, last Christmas she hunted down a boxed jaguar with a boxed Jag CD and Tempest 2000 and a cd save cart.
My face when she gave me those boxes was priceless!

But she is not a gamer or collector she only wants to see me happy and remain at home with my daughters while she goes hunting for games and stuff, there is no better partner for me cause she is very supportive!

[duffmanth]

My family has never really criticized my video game collecting. They think that what I pay for some of my games and consoles is too much money, which I'm sure it is in some cases.

[MASTERWEEDO]

my girlfriend is supportive of my collecting. shes loves the stuff about as much as i do. my mom understands, cuz she collects barbies and other old dolls. my mom took me to yard sales as a kid, now days i take her cuz im lookin for stuff.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Define supportive... LOL

My wife was pissed when I brought them two 300lb CRTs home. She didn't know where the hell I was going to put them. Assuring her that "warm chocolate pudding will find a way" didn't seem to help my case much. It was momentary and passed, of course. It's degraded from pissed to mildly irritated and annoyed.

[Sabz5150]

Define supportive... LOL

My wife was pissed when I brought them two 300lb CRTs home. She didn't know where the hell I was going to put them. Assuring her that "warm chocolate pudding will find a way" didn't seem to help my case much. It was momentary and passed, of course. It's degraded from pissed to mildly irritated and annoyed.

http://planbredesign.com/__oneclick_uploads/2007/11/leg-lamp.jpg

[csgx1]

My wife gets pissed too and not supportive at all. She thinks games are a waste of time and money.

Within the last year we finally moved into a small house together and are slowly moving our "things" into our new home.

So the funny thing is, she doesn't know exactly how many games I actually own. She will probably have a fit when she sees 2 arcades, bunch of boxes of video games, game displays, and a whole lot more being moved into the house. She's in for a BIG surprise someday...lol:evil:

[Smashed Brother]

My gf is very supportive of my habit. She's always trying to get me to go to the game stores and buy stuff. When she was in Minnesota for a family event a couple of weeks ago, she even asked if there were any games that I was looking for. She was also sad when I started thinning out my collection, but she stands behind any choice that I make :D

My parents don't really care as long as I'm doing my own thing. My mom did see that Yahoo article about expensive games and she asked if I had any of those!

[Icarus Moonsight]

http://planbredesign.com/__oneclick_uploads/2007/11/leg-lamp.jpg

Oh my, nice parallel! :D

It is like electric-sex, gleaming in the gameroom...

[Xtincthed]

they don't pay attention to it.. unless the hall is so full of boxes that arrive that they get annoyed with all the space it's taking in