Thoughts on collecting just consoles (no games) ?

[arcadifvid]

im a gamer first, collector second kind of retro gamer... just wondering whats the general consensus on actually collecting "just" the consoles .. no games or probably missing/incompatible cables.. so its basically a display....

i ask because ive been seeing some deals on some obscure consoles lately wherein ill probably never get the chance to play the console.. i dont want to end up with too much clutter but maybe theres an appeal to just console collecting that i havent found yet

[Thierry Henry]

To all intents and purposes even non-working units would fit the bill.
Kind of like collecting just the outer shell of the console.
Being more interested in cosmetic appearance rather than functionality.

Personally, that doesn't hold much appeal.

[Anapan]

If it's for an investment, it's risky. If it's for gaming, I suggest just buying flash carts for every system, load up a shortlist in an SD and hook them up to play games. My friends usually lament the fact that I dislike sports games and have none of their nostalgic youth in my shortlists for them. I tell them to give me a minute, and then I lose at their remembered mastery. All good fun and we end up swapping controllers in Mario, Sonic or Megaman. A piece of plastic in a display isn't fun (IMO)...

[KalessinDB]

I see no appeal. I collect my stuff mostly for nostalgia. At the very least, I collect consoles for nostalgia and then games to see the length and breadth the system had to offer. If neither I nor anyone I know has played the console as a kid, I generally don't hang on to it (see: the stuff I've sold to Bone) -- notable exception being the CDi because oh god those wonderfully horrible Zelda games, but even that might end up chopped eventually (see: the stuff I'll sell to Bone)

But to not even have a chance to play a single game on the machine? I see no point.

At the very most, make like Thierry Henry suggested and just find a broken console. But even that, for me, wouldn't excite me.

[mjmjr25]

Art is subjective. I have a lot of nutcrackers that don't actually crack nuts. I enjoy looking at them. I have stuffed animals I don't cuddle, German beer steins I don't fill, and swedish dala horses I don't ride. If you enjoy looking at 'em, go for it.

[Luke]

^Yup.

If collecting just consoles, even non-working ones, is a hobby you are interested in, go for it.

People collect salt and pepper shakers, spoons, shot glasses, antiques... I have a friend who collects golf tees for some reason.

If you want to buy some cool stuff to look at you should definitely do so.

[8bit]

This is definitely not my cup of tea but if its something that would make you happy, go for it! It's a whole lot more interesting that collecting golf tees!

[Thierry Henry]

All my nutcrackers crack nuts just fine.

Don't know what else to say.

[arcadifvid]

well i get what you guys are trying to say. thanks!

ill be giving it a go, but will probably extra picky so it wouldnt be too much.

[Cronozilla]

My initial thought would be ... no, I wouldn't do that.

But then I realize I really want an Amiga CD 32, and there's almost no appealing games for it. So what would I be getting it for? It'd probably just sit there looking neat.

If that's your thing, go for it. Some consoles do look really awesome. And I definitely appreciate plenty of design choices made for video game products.

For instance, I freaking LOVE the design of Mega Drive cartridges. I think they look absolutely awesome. Genesis carts look like complete garbage trash in comparison.