Michael Thomasson has more than 10 000 games... and love Intellivision :)

[+Psionic]

This is a great looking collection but I'm pretty sure I just saw Syd's collection on Extreme Collections and it was around 15000 I thought. Also I'm pretty sure there are a couple of other AA'ers with similiar sized collections. Either way, it's big.....(if I had a dolar....)

Jason Wilson (DreamTR) claimed to have over 15,000 games back in 2009, and I'm sure he has even more by now. If I had to put my money on anyone having the biggest collection, it'd probably be him.

 

(And yes, Jason is certainly a member of the "125 Club", as you call it.)

[+Lathe26]

Most of my family, including my wife feel this way about my obsession with gaming. Particularly when it comes to retro games. I do think the outlook will change over time as gaming goes cloud based. I also believe gaming as a whole is constantly being recognized in the current media as an important creative art form that has real merit not just entertainment value.

 

Tangential comment: cloud based games have the pros and cons. The biggest con is that you can't go back and play old games once the site closes down (there are already XBox 360 games that are crippled because the servers have been shut down).

 

Alright, back to your regularly scheduled conversation, already in progress.

[mdoerty]

For those who doubt the collector qualifications of Michael Thomasson:

 

http://www.gooddealgames.com

 

He RUNS "Good Deal Games" -- as in the site which is making available Elektronite games.

[DreamTR]

Jason Wilson (DreamTR) claimed to have over 15,000 games back in 2009, and I'm sure he has even more by now. If I had to put my money on anyone having the biggest collection, it'd probably be him.

 

(And yes, Jason is certainly a member of the "125 Club", as you call it.)

 

I have around 17,000 different games now. There are at least 5-6 people off the top of my head that have more games than Michael. Granted he is the one that "went for the record", however, Guinness contacted me 4+ years ago, I went through the initial paperwork, and they disappeared. Essentially they were looking for stories but still never got back to me and even in the past month when this "record" blew up everywhere they never responded, so it's not as simple as contacting Guinness and going through steps. The first thing I did was mention everyone who had 15,000+ games that I knew of and then said to myself, "well, you might as well submit a record request", and that was that.

 

Most of the games Michael has for the big systems are not CIB as far as I know. The issue with having a 11,000 game collection but you are missing tons of NES boxes, Game Boy boxes, etc just doesn't make sense to me, all of the CIB collections I have are just that CIB.

 

So before anyone thinks I am some egomaniac here, keep in mind of the following:

 

1. Michael didn't believe I could have more games than him (or anyone) at first. He was told others had more games, his response was to have them go through Guinness (which you see is not the answer necessarily) he still denies he knew anyone had more.

 

2. Michael has been in Classic Gaming Circles for years, anyone that knows anyone has a basic idea of who has the most games, especially being in line this long. Bottom line is you would have to be living under a rock to not know the handful of people that have over 10K if you have been at expos for 15+ years.

 

3. I don't necessarily think I have the "record", nor do I care, what I do care about is that the "record" that people believe is official is plastered in Game Informer and all this media coverage makes Michael look great, but the fact is the information is false. Whether it be me or no (and like I said, I stated to Guinness the people I knew that had crazy numbers) the point of this is to correct the record.

 

4. I don't dislike Michael, quite the contrary, I've bought tons of games from him from his site and at expos, but the fact is he did know about this (and I have the name of the person who spoke to him that filmed a documentary that came through my place) and he is not admitting that he knew about it. So there is something awry there, but the bottom line is Joe Santulli, me, Rick Weis, adol, bojay, ianoid, who the heck knows, someone ELSE has that record beat by 1000s.

[gooddealgames]

Hello, I just found this thread as I rarely visit the forums other than the Colecovision page. No conspiracytheories DreamTR. It is as simple as seeing the record in my Guinness book and going through the proper hoops to get the collection recognized. For the record, most of my collection is complete, not a single scratched disc, and about 1/4 of the collection is factory sealed. All the games in the video are from my private collection and non of the www.GoodDealGames.com inventory is seen. That stock is in another room entirely. Also excluded from the count were PC games, VideoDiscs (such as CD-I Movies and PSP video, etc), most homebrew games, handhelds, etc.

 

The recent press has done a lot of good for the classic gaming community, given it a lot of much needed attention, and put it in a positive light. Now, let's see who takes the spotlight next! I've said it before and I'll repeat it again, I'm happy to hand over the crown.

Edited February 10, 2014 by gooddealgames

[Oscar G.]

Hello, I just found this thread as I rarely visit the forums other than the Colecovision page. No conspiracytheories DreamTR. It is as simple as seeing the record in my Guinness book and going through the proper hoops to get the collection recognized. For the record, most of my collection is complete, not a single scratched disc, and about 1/4 of the collection is factory sealed. All the games in the video are from my private collection and non of the www.GoodDealGames.com inventory is seen. That stock is in another room entirely. Also excluded from the count were PC games, VideoDiscs (such as CD-I Movies and PSP video, etc), most homebrew games, handhelds, etc.

 

The recent press has done a lot of good for the classic gaming community, given it a lot of much needed attention, and put it in a positive light. Now, let's see who takes the spotlight next! I've said it before and I'll repeat it again, I'm happy to hand over the crown.

 

 

Congratulations on your achievement and great to read you around.

 

It was great to see you wearing an Intellivision T-Shirt on the video

 

Cheers!

[gooddealgames]

I love my Intellivision shirts and the Intellivision. I've always been frustrated by the controller and no third party options, but I recently picked up the hand-made Neo-Geo conversion stick for my Intellivision and the world is a better place. Now I can play Beauty & the Beast in style! The di-hards will balk at my next comment, but I think that game is better than Donkey Kong.

[DreamTR]

It's easy to say "go for the record" when Guinness doesn't get back to people. If 10 people at once have 16K games claimed, you really think your "record" is in jeopardy?

 

The bottom line is Guinness was looking for "stories" more than anything.

 

Guinness contacted me, I went through the proper channels and they disappeared.

 

Talking about not counting "inventory" and all that, I mean, that's a given. GameStop has the largest video game collection in the world if we are going through that.

 

The pictures posted of games in question that have been discussed are mostly about if the games are "complete" then how come most of the cartridge based games NES on are loose? That doesn't really count in the matter, it's merely an observation, but the value declared for that collection if deemed true would make me a multimillionaire.

 

I'm not counting my collection of systems, prototypes, handhelds, 300 arcade and pinball machines (the pinballs are probably worth more than this collection alone) and my store stock.

 

It's not about "sour grapes" or anything, if claiming to have the world's largest so and so, you will get backlash from this, especially when it is well known and documented others have more stuff. If you don't know who has one or not sure how many people had x games, seeing an amount of games in "print" vs simple internet searching (especially if you are claiming to be a historian, and contrary to popular belief, even as recent as 2013 is considered history) would give you an idea about this.

 

I completely understand going for a "record" in a book that you see but with a documentary coming up on the horizon of the US's largest gaming collections coming up eventually I am sure a lot of stuff will be answered eventually with that. Until then, of course you have the "Guinness" record and all the accolades that go with it, but whether or not Guinness ever gets back to anyone it might stay that way for quite some time.

 

Again, I don't see anything wrong with going for the record that was seen in a print book that is outdated, but I do see something wrong with claiming people can just go to Guinness and get so and so record especially when I submitted this in 2010 when they contacted me (and I have the emails and went through site for it ti be done officially) and they went with someone who had way less games officially.

 

All in all this is probably Guinness's fault, but the bottom line is yes, it is a very nice collection. It is the world's best? No. According to a book? Yes.

According to a book I am the World's Best Ninja Gaiden player at 21,000 and I know for a fact that is 100% untrue and half the Ninja Gaiden players in the world on their first hour can beat that, but that doesn't mean it's super simple to just get that record broken because of all the red tape you have to go through, that is all I am saying. It makes it that much harder when they take submissions and disappear.

 

I really would like to see bojay or videogames from Edmonton or Joe Santulli go for this record if Guinness got back to people.

[Oscar G.]

I love my Intellivision shirts and the Intellivision. I've always been frustrated by the controller and no third party options, but I recently picked up the hand-made Neo-Geo conversion stick for my Intellivision and the world is a better place. Now I can play Beauty & the Beast in style! The di-hards will balk at my next comment, but I think that game is better than Donkey Kong.

 

Hey, I also read your interview in Retro. Great to know that you love Beauty and the Beast and that you mentioned it in your top 10 (or 12?).

 

I also share your opinion that B&B is (or was?) the spiritual Donkey Kong on the Intellivision. Great Intellivision exclusive! This is my favourite Imagic game.

 

Thanks for the heads up: I will try playing it with Grips amazing controller. Cheers!

 

[JoeM_Intellivision]

Dream TR,

I only currently collect for the intellivision my childhood system and just started to follow this thread and wanted to say I enjoyed your last post and info within - I agree with all.

Hope all is well.

Joe.

[Fushek]

One person went through the work, documented everything, and was able to catch the attention of Guinness. His name is in the record books and he's king of the mountain until someone knocks him off.

 

You want to knock him off the mountain? Do it ... either through Guinness or whatever means you see fit. Simply arguing with the king in a forum post that you (or someone else) have more games doesn't knock the king off his mountain.

 

Mr. Thomasson, congrats on being the current, documented record holder. I hope that you enjoy playing the games as much as you enjoy collecting them.

Edited February 12, 2014 by Fushek

[DreamTR]

One person went through the work, documented everything, and was able to catch the attention of Guinness. His name is in the record books and he's king of the mountain until someone knocks him off.

 

You want to knock him off the mountain? Do it ... either through Guinness or whatever means you see fit. Simply arguing with the king in a forum post that you (or someone else) have more games doesn't knock the king off his mountain.

 

Mr. Thomasson, congrats on being the current, documented record holder. I hope that you enjoy playing the games as much as you enjoy collecting them.

 

Unfortunately with Guinness being at fault in regards to many of their records the more faith you put into Guinness as the established definitive source doesn't bode well for the reputation of their records as it has already been noted they are not exactly reliable, hence why I mentioned the Twin Galaxies comparison.

 

If you read my posts you will see that I submitted and Guinness contacted me 4 years ago. Unfortunately you can't knock someone off a mountain if there is no way to climb said mountain. I think a lot of this stems from most people that are classic collectors aren't really aware of people out there with vast collections. Again, a simple google search will give you an idea and yes, I agree said person should try and knock someone off if they feel they should, however, I have presented the facts beforehand and Guinness who is at fault (and not Michael) basically means Michael is the king of the Guinness book, and not the true world record. You can argue that sentiment all you want but they have fees to "expedite" contact and processing but if they contacted me, and I went through the process and they disappeared and went with someone who had 6,000 less games than I did, that is their prerogative, but proclaiming him "king" of the mountain is a little much. There are many more collectors with more games but this is beating a dead horse at this point.

 

I won't post anymore because it's not like anyone can do anything and I'm basically arguing principle of the matter about a company vs an actual record but I want to stress this:

 

Michael originally did not believe anyone could have more games than him. This was said to me on a posting from a page when this was first discussed from when he first got the record. He stated he had complete collections of tons of systems, I want to say he said over 100. I started listing the amounts of games released for each system (big systems) and I started listing imports as well. I came up with 14,000 games just off the top of my head that I had just in 2 minutes of posting. That is when he said I should try to get the record, but the response to how one can "get" said record if Guinness does not contact anyone back basically gets thrown in my face for some reason.

 

Simple math shows you:

DS-1600

Wii-1050

NES-800

SNES-750

Genesis-700

Gamecube-700

XBOX-750

N64-250

Famicom-1000

PS1-600

PS2-600

Game Boy-450

Game Boy Color-450

Game Boy Advance-900

Dreamcast-300, etc

 

That's just an estimation, and we're not even on all the systems, imports, etc and that alone is 11,000 and I've got CIB collections of all the classic systems minus maybe a handful of boxes for 2600 that aren't even included yet...PC Engine and Mega Drive are monsters...I'm not some random new guy by any means but that is what I feel is going on here, people think I am the unknown factor when Michael is more of the wild card here amongst the big collectors because it's not at the 15K+ level for different games....

 

I've been collecting for a very long time, and I'm as old school as it gets, but I think a lot of the "unknown" can be stemmed from classic collectors not keeping track of anything other than pre 1985 games and homebrews for those systems and not keeping up with so called Neo Classics and understanding what else was released for what system.

 

Good luck to whoever can get a hold of Guinness, I definitely wish them luck!

 

 

 

 

[Fushek]

Good luck to whoever can get a hold of Guinness, I definitely wish them luck!

 

And that's why I said ... by any means you see fit. Document your numbers, take some pics or video, and let us know the totals. I don't think that we need Guinness to approve your numbers ... but we do need more than "I have more!"

 

By the way, it's not that I don't believe your numbers or estimates ... this is really my feeble attempt to have a look at your collection, drool over the pictures and/or video, and have something to show my wife that "my hobby could be worse" . A collection that large ... it's a sin not to share some pics with the rest of us!

 

(BTW, you may have pics on the forums that I'm not aware of ... I don't venture too far out of the Intellivision forums ...)

 

* Grabs popcorn and eagerly awaits pictures and videos of collection *

[Oscar G.]

Same for me, I do not check any other AA forums apart from the Intellivision one. Cheers!

 

I will be delighted to see some Intellivision collections of non-Intellivision (different consoles?) collectors....

[mdoerty]

It seems to me that one person is upset with another person because of the actions of a sanctioning body.

 

If you know anything about Guiness Book of Records, it is not perfect. But the posting of this record, regardless of its varasity, brought some attention to the hobby of video game collecting in the general/popular press -- which is not a small accomplishment.

 

And remember, video games are supposed to bring joy. There was about a dozen years or so ago a story of someone (I believe the name was Devin Knight) who basically ruined his life and lost his family because of his pursuit to get all video games. He eventually sold bus collection in total in an effort to start anew, we should all take this tale to heart.

[Andre81]

Wow, my p*nis is bigger than yours. Why does someone even care about such a record? Who cares about the quantity? I even have to wonder why someone is so unfocused in his collecting habits. Hoarding a ton of cheap stuff doesn't make a great collection. A great collection is a collection that takes years to accomplish and not one that you can instantly buy on eBay. No matter how many games you have.

[Andre81]

"He claims to buy an average of two a day, costing him $3,000 a year, and says he now has more than 11,000"

 

$3,000 / 730 = $4.10 per game.

 

"In order to play his mammoth collection, worth around $820,000, he also owns 108 consoles and computers dating back to the 1980s."

 

So he claims to pay $4 per game but every game is worth an average of $80.

 

Also I only see a lot of mass but no class. A ton of Xbox games and loose cartridges don't make a great collection.

[+DZ-Jay]

Wow, really? Smells like sour grapes around here. Congrats, Michael! It's great to see the recognition!

 

-dZ.

[Oscar G.]

I agree with dZ, mdoerty, Fushek and other AA members who have congratulated Michael on his achievement...

 

We should be happy that a member of our community got some external recognition and that our hobby is getting some positive attention.

 

Congratulations again to Michael. Seems that Michael is not only a collector, but also an avid player and a kind supporter of our hobby (via his website) as well.

 

I find it cool that our hobby is getting some positive media attention and that Michael hangs out with us in AA. Great!

[+DZ-Jay]

I wanted to bump this because I just read in Ars Technica that Michael Thomasson is putting his collection up for sale to raise money for some family affairs. Pity. I wish him luck.

 

-dZ.

Edited June 6, 2014 by DZ-Jay

[+DZ-Jay]

gooddealgames (Michael), if you read this, I hope everything is well with you and your family. Take care.

[JoeM_Intellivision]

Agreed - best wishes on successful auction and all real life matters.

[+Lathe26]

I hope things go well for him and his family. At this point, he has already raised $90,000 which should help.

[+Lathe26]

... and now it is at $230,000.

[+Lathe26]

... and now it is back down to $90,501. Looks like the high bidder backed out.