my collection dilemma

[bloodrusher123]

I am a long time vintage game lover and have just been welcomed into such an incredible group, I never knew that there was so many people that shared my passion for classic gaming.

 

I'm 22 and have been collecting on and off since I was 16 , and I love the classic gaming scene , not just collecting but enjoying the greatest consoles ever released.

 

I have always been interested in focusing on collecting one systems games collection , but have had trouble making up my mind.

I am really enthusiastic to collect only Atari consoles and games but its been difficult with so many other great well known titles on other platforms.

 

I own : an Atari 2600,7800, master system, mega drive, nes , SNES, n64, game gear and a playstation . with various games for each console.

My question is , is it a good idea to reduce my console collection so I can focus on one platform (Atari!)

[karokoenig]

It depends a lot on how many and wich consoles you are able to set up at home, and how much you actually play on each. Sooner or later, you will see which ones get the most love, and focus a bit more on those.

 

Personally, I hit the flea markets with as little tunnel vision as possible. I check out Atari, NES, SNES, Mega Drive, SMS, Gameboy, GBC, GBA, N64 and PS1. My focus lies strongly on the 2600, NES, SNES and MD. I do pick up stuff for the other systems, but only if I get a great deal. I also keep an eye open for unusual stuff and pick up an oddity now and then.

 

It helps to be patient and set yourself limits in order to keep the collection a bit more focused. For example, I vowed never to pay more than 2 Euros for a Gameboy cart.

 

 

P.S.: Welcome to AtariAge!

Edited April 17, 2014 by karokoenig

[Manoau2002]

You should sell them all and buy a colecovision collection

 

 

1. Collect what interests you. One of my favorite systems (besides the colecovision) is the vectrex. I had never even heard of the vectrex until about five years ago. I would love to own ever game and own a light pen and imager. Maybe someday.

 

2. Buy what you can afford. Don't go into debt over video games.

[Reaperman]

In my experience, any reduction in my collection always leads to regrets later. I say keep playing the systems/games you like to play (maybe pick up a flash cart or two and reduce the temptation to buy 'stuff' for them) and for the future, maybe only make new purchases to add to the collection of a specific system.

 

I know opinions vary, and I suppose mine comes from the perspective of somebody who has never considered really limiting my collection to one or two systems, but has casually considered going for a full set or two.

 

Heck, I have a lot of systems around that I don't even like, and a few that I've never even played.

Edited April 17, 2014 by Reaperman

[mtshark7]

If you want a complete collection, personally I'd stick with the 7800 since it's thousands cheaper than the 2600. ..also welcome to AA!

[+Charlie Cat]

Hi guys,

 

The most important thing to ask yourself "is it going to break for finances?". Welcome to Atariage! :)v

 

Anthony...

[profholt82]

I agree with Reaperman. If you sell off part of your collection, you will most likely come to regret it. If you find that you like certain consoles more than others, then focus on them, but don't get rid of the others because down the road you may want to play certain games for them. Selling them is just instant gratification and eventually the money will be gone just like the consoles.

[bloodrusher123]

Thank you for your advice, I do love all my consoles but only for certain games , the problem being is it takes up a lot of room Having all these consoles and I will always love the classics, I have about 15 new games, 8 SNES games , 6 n64 games , 14 mega drive games 5 master system games and 8 Atari 2600 games , I have only just received my 7800 and haven't even started collecting for that system yet. I know the 7800 have a limited commercial list of games which i considered to be high quality of the majority, when compared to a nes which I own 3 of are all temprimental and knowing the huge selection of games the system has , it still has the majority being not quite my cup of tea.

 

I think I will see how my collection progresses with the Atari systems and make a more informed decision.

 

Colecovison has never interested me but then I have never played one or have any friends whom have owned the system but if I see one down a boot sale / garage sale I will consider it

[bloodrusher123]

I also have a R.O.B. for the nes which I picked up for about £7 almost complete , its quite unreliable like the nes consoles.

( what I mean by unreliable nes consoles is the I have to take the pin connectors out almost everytime to lightly bend the pins back into place )

[desiv]

I wouldn't arbitrarily limit it to something like "Atari" consoles. Unless that's what interests you as Manoau2002 said.

I have a variety of systems, but not all Ataris/Nintendos/Segas, etc...

 

As for reducing your collection, yeah, be cautious about that. There can be a lot of regret there.

That said, I did that a bit ago.. I think the trick is to be patient..

I had a few systems that I was happy to get when I got them..

After a while, I did a review. What systems have I really not used in a few years?

Only if I hadn't used it (or just barely) in a few years did I decide to move that one on..

 

So, take your time on that..

And enjoy yourself...

 

desiv

[DesertJets]

I am going to be a dissenting voice here. If you are not enjoying or particularly like a particular platform don't feel bad if you decide to let them go. BUT if space is not really an issue does it matter if you just box up a system and its games and store it in your closest till the bug bites you again. It doesn't sound like what you have for any given platform is very extensive and should you later want to pick it up again you can do so -- but the cost may be higher. I had a Dreamcast for about a year, never had more than 10 titles for it and ended up selling it back. I don't regret it, though every now and then I really want to play Crazy Taxi and I can't.

 

I think you just need to collect for what interests you in the moment. Personally I collect for 2600, 7800 and the Atari 8-bit computers -- there are other systems in my home that I could collect for but I don't because they simply don't interest me. I totally go through phases, I haven't even touched any of my classic systems since the holidays this past winter. Even though I have bought a handful of new 2600 and 7800 games.

 

 

The answer for you is collect for what interests you at the moment.

[bloodrusher123]

I understand what you mean by regretting selling a certain console or game , about 4 months ago I thought I would sell some SNES games and started with legend of Zelda link to the past but then a month ago I had a real itch to play it , and what really got my goat is that the cart went for less than I expected :/

 

I think I will be patient and build up a 7800 and 2600 collection.

[Rhomaios]

In my experience, any reduction in my collection always leads to regrets later. I say keep playing the systems/games you like to play (maybe pick up a flash cart or two and reduce the temptation to buy 'stuff' for them) and for the future, maybe only make new purchases to add to the collection of a specific system.

 

I know opinions vary, and I suppose mine comes from the perspective of somebody who has never considered really limiting my collection to one or two systems, but has casually considered going for a full set or two.

 

Heck, I have a lot of systems around that I don't even like, and a few that I've never even played.

 

This! If you're really unsure of what to keep, you can always just buy a cheap, used PC and emulate. It's not the same, but it works for many here.

[CatPix]

Thank you for your advice, I do love all my consoles but only for certain games , the problem being is it takes up a lot of room

You should consider maybe letting only the consoles you play the most hooked up, or maybe, organize your play time in "machines"; so this way youo enjoy all your game systems equally, and as you keep most of them stored, you save a bit of room (unless you mean room on a general scale and not "around the TV" room).

This way, you might also see what systems and games you never pull out of your storage shelves, so that one you might get ride of.

[English Invader]

I would recommend using a Harmony cartridge for the Atari 2600. Harmony costs less than £50 and is 100% compatible and will free up space for systems that don't have reliable flash solutions. You can also use Harmony on the 7800 so you could lose the VCS/2600 if you wanted to reduce the amount of systems you have. I've heard that the N64 has a very reliable Everdrive cartridge, but it's a lot more expensive than Harmony.

 

Watch out for the Game Gear. The games can be bought very cheaply and some of the packaging can be very appealing to collectors. My advice is to be selective with the games you buy and buy loose with clam-shell case where possible; treat yourself to the occasional boxed gem (they're too delightful to ignore completely), but don't go overboard.

 

Stick to loose for NES, SNES and N64 because the prices for CIB are insane.

 

Personally, I like a bit of everything. I have pretty much every system in the mainstream market with either a flash device or a collection of in and around 30 games (sometimes both) for each system. The only systems I don't have are ones that are either prohibitively expensive (Neo Geo, Jaguar) or ones that don't do enough for me to justify the investment (7800, Amstrad, Atari 8-bit, Mega CD/32X).

[CatPix]

Multicarts and/or flash carts are indeed a good way to either reduce his collection to consoles only, or to decide which game is really worth buying.

As for early CD-based system, they have no CD copy protection (wink wink nudge nudge) so you can enjoy the Neo Geo power for just the price of one of the Neo Geo CD consoles (the most common model can be found for like, 120$ with one pad?) or the Mega/Sega CD, as well as the 3DO.

The Philips CD-i is supposed to read burned CD too, but apparently you need a software that can burn in "CD-i" mode. I never get mine to read anything but official discs.

But hey, from that list, the CD-i is probably not the most interesting system to get first

Edited April 17, 2014 by CatPix

[fiddlepaddle]

It's a hard question to answer, actually. I've gone through periods where I am focused on playing my favorite games, then my brain changes somehow, and I start focusing on COLLECTING (the hunt and acquire activity)...

 

Then, my mood changes again and I go back to playing, but am fanatic about some new games I've never played, but then I'm back to playing Kaboom or Pepper II every day for days on end. Then, for some reason, I start to focus on LOOKING at and ORGANIZING my collection, testing out storage solutions, making storage labels. Then, I go back to playing something... Bottom line, my interests change and as long as I can afford the space and cost of keeping what I have, I do.

 

Lately, I've actually begun to identify duplicate crap I don't have any use for and have been letting it go, but nothing I'd ever really miss. One caveat: if you find you need to rent a storage unit, take a long, hard look at what you are considering putting in there. Alternatively, after 5 years, if it's still in storage, you don't really want it.