Did you ever stop collecting for a system?

[yok-dfa]

Well did you? I certainly have:

- Atari Jaguar. Over here in Europe it is very hard to get all the games for the system. It seems they only released a subset of the games in abundant quantities, so those are easy to get. But any of the other titles are almost impossible to find locally. Also it didn't really get that much play time (maybe it's just me, but most games are not that good). So after a while i decided to give up collecting for it. Sold/traded most of the items i owned. I think i still have a spare joystick and Rayman which are both on my tradelist. Don't regret this decision for a moment.

- Pong consoles. As with the Jaguar i grabbed these whenever i could. At some point i owned over 75 models or something, but then i realised that these took up almost all the space in my room which was hardly worth is because most of them are all the same games in a different packaging. Soccer/football, Ice-hockey, Squash and some come with an extra shoot-the-dot-game. That's about all the variations you get. I kept a few of the more cooler models i had (but only if i had them complete in box) and sold the rest on eBay. I had one guy buy about 40 of them from me. I send him a huge package

- Atari 7800. Got a few of them from flea markets but never got into collecting for it big time, so i decided to sell all of it before i did. Just to make sure i wouldn't start feeling bad about it later on.


Now that my collection is slowly starting to grow to a rather large size again (and i started collecting PS2 games) i am afraid i have to get rid of some other systems. On my list are:

- Intellivision. Don't really play this as often, and the non-standard games are rather hard to get for a reasonable price here in Europe.

- Colecovision. Same as Intellivision. The joysticks are not helping it's cause either. They always cramp my hands. The games are quite faithfull arcade translations though.

- PS1. I have a bunch of PS1 games, but i only play a few. Maybe i should just sell the others. On the other hand, they don't take much space and i can always use them in my PS2.

- Game Gear. Only game i sometimes play is Columns, and the TV Tuner is awesome. But for the rest it just sits on the shelft...


If you ever stopped collection for a system let me know which one and why. Maybe it can help me with my decision

[Mattiekrome]

I tried to stop collecting for PS1 and Genesis. I had all of my PS1 and Genny games up for sale/trade, with EVERY intention of selling them... A few days later I hit a lot of 15+ minty complete Genny games at the Goodwill for $2 bucks per, then hit 10+ PS1 games at EB on sale for about $3 each (after 2 for 1 discount, and EB card)... Just cant bring myself to get rid of them...

My biggest concern is selling off all of one system, then finding a few games for it at a yard sale or Goodwill... Thats my biggest problem. Seeing something sitting there for a really good price, and leaving it behind... JUST CANT DO IT! (its a curse, really!)

[Poofta!]

i never started collecting for a system i never cared about. i collect for the PSX. GENESIS. and GBA. by collect i dont mean i buy every freaking game i see, i only buy the good ones i want and some famous ones, i dont care if i find a bunch of cheap games tomorrow, if i dont like/need them, theyre staying there. they also must be mint/complete.

i have a few other consoles that i dont necessarily collect for, but want to have a small number of games for, again, its only games i like/care about. these systems are: NES. SNES. XBOX. GC. SCD.

they still follow the same criteria, gotta be good, mint, complete games. but these consoles have significantly less games i want to have, maybe 10-20 for each console.


so my suggestion, get rid of anything you dont care too much about. personally i loathe anything pre NES, ill never ever play it, and have every game for a system does nothing for me.

[Pantechnicon]

Super NES is the one and only system thus far to which I consciously said, "I'm done." and sold off the lot.

There are a couple more I can see myself closing the book on early: N64 and PSX, being that there are but a few more titles for each I specifically would like.

From a collecting standpoint every other system I have still remains open to varying degrees; some perhaps moreso than they should be.

[Trebuken]

If it doesn't fit in the room, sotre it til you can get a bigger room. It seems most people who sell thier systems and collections regret it years later...

Your either a player or a collector...part time collecting just seems irrational.

Liquidating a collection of Pong machines for space seems reasonable though...

I've 'finished' collecting for several systems, but it's because they are completish and there are more substantial collections to pursue. I think I tend to get stuck on a systems or two at a time, but I always go back to the others when I discover something new about them; usually something I read on DP, or an unusual item I've seen on ebay or in a gaming magazine.

Selling a SNES collection seems inconceivable to me. I think most of us here at DP cannot live on emulators alone. The real deal is the only way to go...though that PSP emulation scene is tempting...

Later,
Trebuken

[Jumpman Jr.]

I stopped collecting for the Intellivision and the Virtual Boy eventually.
But thats only because I obtained every game released for those two consoles. .
Other than that though, I can't say that I have.

[jcalder8]

I've only ever gone after games that mean something to me so I'm not really a collector. I have sold off a few systems over the years and I have never really regreted it. There will always be a couple of games that I want to play on each system but I'm happy with roms for the most part. Its only the NES that holds my interest.

[Anthony1]

The first system I stopped collecting for was NES. At one point, I was super hyped at collecting NES. Even though I was just collecting loose carts, I was really into it, buying every loose cart I could find. Ultimately, what really happened, is that I became so comfortable with the NES emulator on the Xbox, and I started to really tire of having to blow the cartridges, to practice springing the toaster the right way, etc,etc. I changed the 72 pin connector, and it worked great for 4 months, and then all of a sudden, it starts going on a blinking rampage.


So I ended up deciding that ultimately, when it came to the NES, I could get by with Emulation. I've been gaming from the time I was 7 or 8 years old (1977 or 1978). Started with an Atari 2600. I got my NES in 1986 at 16 years old. About a month after the TurboGrafx-16 came out, I sold all my NES items and used the money to buy a TG-16 and some games and a TurboBooster. You see, I wasn't really into it until 1989 when I got a TurboGrafx-16. In 1989, I started to turn into a hardcore gamer, and the TG-16 was the first system I was messing with, when this transformation happened, so it happened after I had already abandoned my NES. (I've always abandoned my systems way too early).


Anyways, I just don't have the same feelings for the NES as I do the Super Nintendo or TG-16 or Genesis, etc, etc. And I can live without the blinking lights and the blowing on carts. I actually don't have a XBOX anymore (see, I told ya I abandon systems too early), so I can't get my NES fix via XBOX emulation, but I do have a PSP, and the NES runs mighty fine on that. I have a pretty large collection of SNES carts and Genesis carts, but when it comes to the NES, I just don't think I want to go there. I think I'll just live with the emulation.

[wrldstrman]

I pretty much quit collecting for the atari 2600 I have 99 percent of the 8s down .but you would have to have a unlimited money supply to keep up with trying to have a complete collection.

[Push Upstairs]

I only buy the games i want for systems i actually want/play.

There are only a finite number of games i want for a system (for example Saturn) so when i get all the games i really want for it I stop.

I'm not a complete collection person because i hate owning games i'll never play or owning games i know are really shitty.

[jdc]

I used to be a collector of everything. Now I'm a collector of nothing.

If you came over to my house today you'd see that I now keep what would be considered to be a library of "should haves" for each system that I own. I'm happier this way. Less clutter, less money sitting idly on shelves. But that's just me. Having been a hoarder, I can relate to people who want to collect everything. And that's cool too.

Later on? Who knows. I may pick a system and avidly collect for it again. Probably not though. I've really become comfortable with the "gotta haves" libraries. I have lots of games and they're all stellar, no filler.

[diskoboy]

The only system I quit collecting for would be the Jaguar.

I have all the good games that were released on the system (which happen to be 6 games - Rayman, Tempest 2k, Defender 2k, Breakout 2k, Attack of the Mutant Penguins, and Alien Vs. Predator)

Aside from those games, there wasn't a single other game I want for that system. So I just leave it alone. I don't even think I've hooked my Jag up since 1996. It probably doesn't even work anymore.

[Sniderman]

I used to be a huge fan of the Atari 2600. Had tons of carts and periperals, bought every homebrew that came down the pike, frequented some of the more Atari-centric web forums, etc. But I just grew tired of the system and some of the politics surrounding it (don't ask), so I sold off everything I have. Never regretted it.

(However, I *do* have a 2600 adapter for my Colecovision, so if something worthy DOES come out, I'm not left high-n-dry. )

[Poofta!]

I only buy the games i want for systems i actually want/play.

There are only a finite number of games i want for a system (for example Saturn) so when i get all the games i really want for it I stop.

I'm not a complete collection person because i hate owning games i'll never play or owning games i know are really shitty.

amen.

[fishsandwich]

I've stopped collection for EVEYTHING since I've run out of space and time, but these were the things I stopped collecting for first...

Anthing before the NES. ALL true classic consoles.

I stopped for the SMS and then picked it back up again.

7800

Jaguar

3DO

[drewbrim]

I've recently gotten rid of all my Saturn and PS1 collections. For two reasons

A. I never play them, ever
B. I never grew up playing them

I kinda skipped over this whole generation of gaming. I was a poor student in school, and didn't really have the time or money. Most of my extra cash went to the bars around campus. Not saying that was a good way to spend it but that's a story for a different thread .

The point is I have no sentimental attachment to them or that era. I have no feelings of nostalgia when the playstation/saturn logo pops up, unlike what I feel inside when I hear the opening music for dungeon explorer or the legend of zelda.