After you beat a physical game, do you...

[Ack]

I was under the impression that the console services don't let you keep access because of those issues with PSN, or things like Arkham Knight being pulled from Xbox Live so that even paying customers couldn't access it anymore.

[Exhuminator]

It's actually that I hate going to the post office.

I do too. I loathe it even.

Thankfully eBay now allows you to buy and print USPS shipping labels directly from your own My eBay account. After you sell a game, you simply purchase and print the label directly from your seller account. This costs less than going to the post office plus no gas money expenditure. You simply put the sold game in your mailbox with the flag up and you're good to go (tracking is built in). Now you can sell a game from your house, and ship it from your house, without ever going to the post office. This critical difference is why I'm back in the selling games business again.

[BoneSnapDeez]

I replay many games.

I also don't sell anything except duplicates. I put a lot of thought into things before I buy a game.

[isiolia]

I keep them. My mentality is more along the lines of having a library of stuff. I can't really rule out ever wanting to play a game again, or having friends or family that might want to play it.
For some things, selling and rebuying would have been a viable option. Others wind up being out of print, and possibly more expensive to reacquire in the event I'd want to (anime and such more often).

Somewhat in keeping with that though, if I "upgrade" a version of something, I will tend to give away the old one.

Other questions...

Do you think it's worth buying physical games today?

It varies. Given the option, I like being able to just buy a game with all the content on-disc/etc, since I'm more confident about it working long-term. That said, if the practical option is digital, then I'll do that. Either way, the potential ability to resell the game doesn't factor in for me.

Do you think of buying games as an investment or just a hobby?

Hobby. I do buy some games with the thought that they might become rare and expensive, but only when they interest me anyway. I've yet to turn around and sell anything I have that's gone up in value.

Is it ethical to hold on to games you've already beaten, if you never plan to play them again?*

I think any "ethics" involved in that fall to the publisher moreso than on me. If the demand is there, they can reprint the game or port/emulate it for modern release.

[alienjesus]

I can't think of many games I've beaten once and literally never played again that aren't pretty recent purchases. It might take a few years, but I tend to get back round to things eventually.

[prfsnl_gmr]

Do you think it's worth buying physical games today?

Yes. Collecting physical copies of video games is a fun hobby, and I like having content in a physical form. (Also, it is usually less expensive to acquire a used, physical copy of a game than it is to acquire the content digitally.)

Do you think of buying games as an investment or just a hobby?

It is just a hobby. "Investing" in video games is a very, very bad idea.

Is it ethical to hold on to games you've already beaten, if you never plan to play them again?

I have no ethical qualms with keeping my games. Publishers are always free to reissue or reprint them, and since I do not hold the copyrights to any of them, I am certainly not responsible for restricting people's access to the content. Moreover, I collect terrible video games (e.g., BeBe's Kids, Elf Bowling 1 & 2, Fugitive Hunter, Rap Jam Vol. 1, Ride to Hell, Rogue Warrior, etc.), and I should probably be lauded for my efforts in keeping those games off the market.

[Exhuminator]

I should probably be lauded for my efforts in keeping those games off the market.

Or goaded for creating any demand at all. ;p

-

Recently I realized that I very extremely rarely replay a game once it's beaten. There's too many other games not yet played to try. Failing that, there's tons of books, movies, and manga I want to experience, and would rather do that, then rebeat a game I've already finished instead. Also I have a very good memory, and replaying longish games is just a trip down deja vu land as such.

Now, that doesn't mean I won't keep a few all time favorites for nostalgia's sake. Even after beating them. Because the true 10/10 games are indeed worth replaying years down the road.

Why buy in my situation then? Because I like to have the games at my disposal as I deem necessary. I don't want to wait on GameFly, or deal with crappy rental copies to begin with. I want a pristine game to play, when I feel it's time to play it. So I buy them all the same.

I don't mind selling beaten games to finance buying new ones. Though most games quickly depreciate in value. But for some reason many GameCube games seem to be worth their weight in gold lately.

[Sarge]

I went with collector instead of hoarder, since I'm actually relatively choosy what enters my library. I don't buy things unless they hit the right price-to-personal interest ratio. I'm willing to sell duplicates, and occasionally, if it's a game with a high resale value that I know I'll never, ever play, I may even sell it. I sold a copy of Animal Crossing on 3DS, with the idea to maximize profit at the time (I got it for very, very cheap), and when I found it down the line for even cheaper, I'd pick it up again.

So yeah, I occasionally flip. I really should look into selling some of my dupes, though. I've got some NES titles that would be worthwhile to some folks.

[Forlorn Drifter]

I keep them unless they were terrible, or in the case of something like Deadly Premonition, a good experience, but too clunky for me to be willing to play through again. This is why I answered "other", because it just depends on the game itself. Most stuff I keep because I will probably play it again some time.

I personally believe its worth getting physical games today because I know that after college, I likely will have shit for an internet connection, so I need the actual game if I ever hope of playing it. There's also value in having a copy I know will be there and in good condition, seeing as I take good care of my games, that will last.

Games are just a hobby. "Investing" in them is like investing in DVDs- even though there is a market, its a volatile and fickle one, despite how things may seem now. Especially considering re-releases, emulation, and the move to digital. Why try and track down Baldur's Gate when I can just download it from GoG?

Ethical to keep games I've beaten? I payed for it, the thing is mine. That's all there is to it. I generally don't personally keep games I don't plan to play again because of space, but I'm not going to sell something just because I might not play it. You'll rip my boxed copy of HM64 from my cold dead hands. (or for above current market prices, whatever.)

[laurenhiya21]

I keep most of the games I beat. So far I've only gotten rid of ones that I didn't enjoy playing (unless my boyfriend wants to play it), but I've been debating a bit about if I also want to sell games that I might not play again. Not that I've been debating too much about that though, since it's not like I've played most of my games anyway