How to Start a Collection?

[Andavive]

Hi! first post!

Nice Topic, i read all of the posts really good opinions.

I dont buy games for their rarity or popularity, i buy the one i like or that brings me good memories. No matter how rare it may be, if i dont like it i wont buy it. Well if it`s at a cheap price maybe i will so i can resell, but those are really rare cases. I think it happened 1 time, with Tombi (PSone)

I dont really understand the enthusiams for keeping the games sealed, i dont do that i want to play them. But everyone collects the way they like most

I have some games but im not an impulsive collector, i dont buy, buy, buy, i do it at least one game per month thats a good way for me to keep the rythm of collecting and playing the games i collect.

regards vive

[CRTGAMER]

Buy what you like but be careful to avoid wrath of wife.

Have everything hooked up through power strips and video switch boxes. Collections are no good unless you can play them!

We have a local unique Independent Video Game store. Their specialty is Retro Systems. Some very rare unusual finds are there. Web site just shows systems just E-Mail if you are looking for something particular. Gamestop quit carrying Guncons so I resort to these guys without having to go to Rip-off -Bay.

For the collector - Luna Video games:
http://www.lunavideogames.com/

[newt42]

I have a list of games that I want to buy over Google Docs. If someone says that game x is awesome, I add it to the list. If I happen to see game x at store for a cheap price, I buy it. I use eBay and Amazon for the "me want game NOW" instances.

You also might wanna think about how you want the games. Do you want the Dreamcast games in the case with the manual and inserts? Is it worth the extra cash?

[Ack]

Part of the joy of finding games is that you never know if you'll be coming across some new gem that you've never heard of.

As for me, I started small. I cut down what I wanted by console, and then genre. Even though I had a few SNES games already, I shot for all the fighters. On the way, I found a few titles I'd never known about that I liked a lot, like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Edition. From there, I decided I'd expand my collection further, checking out other consoles before finally deciding to go back to that SNES collection. Now I've got over 150 titles for it. They range in quality, but I've found quite a few gems along the way that I'd never gotten to play before. So hey, I'm happy.

[samsonlonghair]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

I searched a lot of small CD/DVD stores and found myself some good deals; I got a ton of Genesis games all in their original boxes for less than 15 bucks. Now I can officially say I have a collection started.

Good move. Genesis is a great system to collect for because there are lots of A+ games for less than ten dollars.

[DonSilvestre]

My collection started simply with what I bought over the years as a kid. I was never the kid that would trade in his entire collection of one system's games in order to get the next gen. That being said - my family wasn't rich growing up, so I didn't exactly accumulate a TON of stuff. Now that I'm out of college and working, I'm able to afford a lot more.

My initial goal was simply to collect every NES and SNES game I had ever rented or played as a kid. Nostalgia was the biggest factor in my game collection. There were a few select titles that I shelled out for because I wanted them immediately (Castlevania III, the Ninja Gaiden games, etc) - but for the most part I've been able to build up through the help of thrift stores. Just because you live in a small town doesn't mean you can't find stuff! The thrift store in my home town (less than 10,000 people) just had a stack of 9 mint condition Saturn games for a buck a piece. My dad found me a stack of 9 Virtual Boy games (including Wario Land! Booyah!) at a neighboring town's thrift store for a grand total of five bucks.

When starting though it's important to have focus (as many others have said earlier). Once you have the stuff you really want - it's fun to buy the extra stuff when you run across it. I just got a Dreamcast and Saturn in the last month. I had never played these systems growing up, but it's easy to collect for them now that I have accumulated the stuff I really wanted. Now when I run into other random games and systems at a thrift store it's a bonus.

In the meantime I continue to buy the modern games that interest me, and have no plans to get rid of any of those anytime soon I too recommend only going to ebay and amazon for your absolute must have games - otherwise it can get really pricey really fast. As your collection grows you'll figure out what exactly you're willing to spend for what. Stay organized and keep things on shelves! It will give you a greater sense of accomplishment and make things easier to find when your collection gets massive!