What modern games will be collectible in the future?

[YoshiM]

The bigger question would be asking if video games will still be widely collectible in the future or will people just move onto something else. Video games could become the same like beanie babies.

This. Besides, what fuels value of gamed to prospective buyers? Are younger, "current gen" folks going to be nostalgic for these games ten or twenty years down the road?

As mentioned before, what about digital downloads? Will it be a matter of just downloading the game or will people hoard their devices if it can't be easily downloaded? I can see it now:"iPhone 4S with Orig. Flappy Bird OMGRare!!!!!!!!!"

I'm going to predict that the market for modern games in the future is going to be pretty small. Many of the games that people (ie regular folk, not "gamers" per se) play are play and toss as they are about a buck a pop or free with ignorable micro transactions. I'd be very surprised if there would be a big push for something like the original "Candy Crush" or something along those lines. People will try to cash in on the concept ("Xbox 360 with Afterburner Climax RARE11112!!!Download") but will more than likely fail at getting anything reasonable or at all for such things.

[jb143]

This. Besides, what fuels value of gamed to prospective buyers? Are younger, "current gen" folks going to be nostalgic for these games ten or twenty years down the road?

As mentioned before, what about digital downloads? Will it be a matter of just downloading the game or will people hoard their devices if it can't be easily downloaded? I can see it now:"iPhone 4S with Orig. Flappy Bird OMGRare!!!!!!!!!"

I'm going to predict that the market for modern games in the future is going to be pretty small. Many of the games that people (ie regular folk, not "gamers" per se) play are play and toss as they are about a buck a pop or free with ignorable micro transactions. I'd be very surprised if there would be a big push for something like the original "Candy Crush" or something along those lines. People will try to cash in on the concept ("Xbox 360 with Afterburner Climax RARE11112!!!Download") but will more than likely fail at getting anything reasonable or at all for such things.

Not so much Flappy Bird and Candy Crush but I could see Minecraft and Fortnight, or whatever the kids are playing these days. In 15-30 years kids who played those will have the same nostalgia that we have for the games we grew up with. What the market will look like for playing these games no one can guess. Or how you even "collect" a digital only game, but the nostalgia will be there.

[Aussie2B]

I imagine those nostalgic for digital-only games will largely be turning toward emulation to recapture their childhood. But with the way Steam has more and more retro games available these days, the most popular digital-only games currently will probably be available to legally purchase when today's kids are adults. My guess is that there will be very little in the way of people buying systems because of what's installed.

[kupomogli]

In 20 years Nintendo Labo is going to be the next Earthbound..... except, well, it'd be the next Earthbound if Earthbound wasn't very good and you got bored of it in five minutes, but I'm atleast predicting Labo will be expensive. First off, it's a Nintendo product, then there's how easy this junk is to destroy. You can print the stuff out and create more, but there's still going to be the official Nintendo cardboard cutouts which will be rare to find in good condition. I'm not making a joke prediction. A complete version of Labo will be super expensive, but even if it's just the software, because Labo is such a massive failure, it's likely that it won't get more than one printing, and with it being a Nintendo product on Nintendo's second highest selling console(atleast I'm using that assumption anyways,) it'll have many more people who are interested in buying these in the future. What can I say other than Nintendo fans are stupid(j/k j/k.)

[gbpxl]

I wouldn't put any money on Labo becoming collectible mostly because I see hordes of them still being sealed in the next 15 to 20 years and no one wanting to buy them because there's no nostalgia for something no one used

[WulfeLuer]

I wouldn't put any money on Labo becoming collectible mostly because I see hordes of them still being sealed in the next 15 to 20 years and no one wanting to buy them because there's no nostalgia for something no one used

Labo actually has the potential to become even more collectible than most of its contemporaries. Yes, its a dud, but A) its a dud by Nintendo; even their failures tend to become sought after and even celebrated. B) its an actual, physical object. This is kind of thing that can collect dust at a pawn shop or Goodwill until some "Nostalgia Gamer" talking head discovers it and the internet lemmings run out and invert the supply/demand relationship 10 years from now.

Of the other modern stuff floating out there. I think that 'mini' consoles will have something of a collector status, with CIB unhacked versions being at the top of the heap. Regular modern consoles themselves will have something also, with the added wrinkle of being fragile and increasingly harder to repair as time goes on.

As for the games themselves, anything that comes with feelies will have something of a premium. Not 'collector/legendary/GOTY' versions, I mean stuff that comes with soundtrack CDs, busts, things of that nature. How desirable a regular copy will be probably be dependent on how easy it is to play it. We might see something like consoles being sold with desirable games with all the files and patches in the hard drive, "ready to play" as collector's items.