HoshiChiri

Now you too, can own an SNES with blacklight activated buttcheeks! http://www.ebay.com/itm/SNES-CONSOLE-SUPER-METROID-EDITION-XTREME-as-Sega-Neo-Geo-RARE-UNIQUE-/331843318755 Not a fan of the art, but I will acknowledge the time/effort it must have taken. I am concerned as to what paint this guy used, though- The wrong stuff would easily make that system overheat.

I have far too much interest in all the different consoles out there. I look at consoles the way some women see shoes- so many different styles to fit so many different situations! I tend to lean a bit toward oddities, things people might not run into during their normal course of gaming- but nothing inherently "bad". No R-zones or Hyperscans or such. I also typically don't build very large game libraries for each one, opting to cherry pick a few choice titles and move on. Not surprisingly, this means I don't have anything too odd lying around. All told, I have 26 consoles (not counting the extra 2 GBAs) & 650ish games. Outside of gaming- I collect US coins & currency (it is most convenient for me that PAX West takes place in a building with a coin shop!) and stretched pennies (if I'm buying stupid tourist tat, I want it small and cheap! Plus coins.) I also have a small collection of Obitsu dolls. They're a Japanese vinyl jointed doll with extreme poseability (something like 21-25 points of articulation, depending on what you get.) You buy them in parts, without faces, and customize to your liking. I do a lot of craft projects, and these guys lend themselves well to being involved with such. I suppose the anime/manga counts as a collection too, but I'm actively working on cutting that back as I've largely fallen out of that hobby.

Excellent Also- electronics are no longer affected by dust or hair. Specifically, pet hair. So I can be a crazy cat lady, playing games with Thor clones, while eating royalty-approved pizza. I like this plan.

There's a bit more to gaming than just mimicking the video well. There's practically a whole ritual involved with playing a game. I'm going to use my N64 for an example... I set the input on my AV switcher (you can feel the springs twang when you push the button) & my TV. I plug in a controller- probably the blue one, although the grey one is fine, just a little loose. The green one's kinda sticky, so I don't use it often. I put in the game cart- you can't push it quite all the way in or it won't work, you have to go just enough to feel it 'catch'. Then you turn it on, maybe back off to fiddle with the cart some more. Once the game starts, you're good to go. I could get a new computer ( I need one, really) and run some emulators... but I wouldn't have that twang, I wouldn't need to find the right controller, I wouldn't need to finesse the cart. I would lose the ritual, the tactile experience of starting the game up. It's kind of like fries without salt- it's not necessary, but you'll notice it's gone. I'm guessing a part of you feels the difference, and the otherness of it is affecting your actual gameplay. So, what to do? The trick is to try and hone in on what parts of the process are messing with you. I'd start with getting a controller adapter- just one, for a system you play a lot. Perhaps bringing the actual during-game tactile experience closer to the original will take the edge off the digital bootup. If that's not enough, maybe consider getting another flash cart for one of your handhelds, or a single everdrive (either for a system you play a lot, or one with a large amount of costly games you can't afford to own.) That's the closest you can get to the 'real deal' without actually just playing the real games, so if that's not enough you might have to skip the whole project. But, at least you'd know before you're fully commited.

I still feel like releasing the NX now is just a big mistake. The Wii U wasn't a hardware failure, it was a support failure. A bad first party lineup (rehashed New Super Mario Bros- twice! and no Zelda), poor third party support (Id've bought one over a year earlier than I did, if they hadn't let Rayman Legends slip its release date and go multi-console), and poor marketing (like them or not, I still remember the 'Wii would like to play' guys. I have no recollection of any Wii U ads.) I'd thought they were getting their act together for awhile- Super Mario Maker may not be the big new adventure we want, but it's still a fun and unique way to see Mario. Splatoon gives us a rare new entry into the first party IP family. And of course, we were finally going to get that Zelda. Then they go and pull this NX crap. Guys, no- just make good games for the system you have. Why is that so hard for all of the console makers right now? I don't want the newest, fanciest video cards and sound chips. I don't want to pay for a PS4.5 or an NX or whatever console you intend to spam out. I want. Good. Games. Make with the friggin' games already! Seriously, if this keeps up, I'm gonna go take some computer 101 classes somewhere, get a new machine, and finally set up a steam account. It grinds against everything I normally do for gaming... but at least I know Steam will give me my friggin' games. Sadly no- you can clearly see the circle pad under the thumb of the one non-blurred hand. They're 3DSes.

It's videogame heaven- all pizza is approved by Queen Margherita herself before it's sent out.

In videogame heaven, anyone who sees your collection is properly impressed. No more confused stares and trying to explain why a bunch of old electronics are a good and worthwhile thing. There are no replacement game cases in videogame heaven, because you don't need them- nothing breaks. Every Sega CD is in a lovely pristine case with intact hinges and the foam insert in place. Eh- can I have a run of Chris Hemsworth lookalikes instead?

Going back a bit more old-school, I'd very much like a copy of Holy Diver on NES. I have no idea how that never came out over here! I still have some tweaking to do with the new entertainment setup... when that's taken care of, I really need to find a reliable purveyor of homebrew carts. As far as the 'copyright' issue... there really is a statute of limitations on this, at least from a moral perspective. If you can't buy it new, then you can't make sure your dollar is going to the original creators. As such, where you get it from becomes a lot less important. No one is losing money on Americans downloading fan-translated Policenauts, because there's no product on the shelves to be ingored. If anything, it's a double-edged sword... seeing the piracy tells them people want an English version, but also that we already have one, so they don't need to bother. Basically- never worry about pirating old games no one's bothered to re-release. It's probably they only way you'll ever play it.

I like my nerd-wear more on the artsy side... I have this shirt: https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/134427-gamer-girl-nouveau

You could get a Teradrive- just get a hockey mask, a baseball bat, and High Voltage's address. (disclaimer: this is a bad joke. I'm sure High Voltage is a nice gentleman. Please do not beat AtariAge members and take their stuff.)

Ah, Cuphead- or as I like to call it, the reason I want an Xbox One. It kills me that it's a download game... I'd be pushing my budget a lot harder if I could get it on a disc.

So far, the worst casualites of my newer stuff are the rechargeable batteries in the Xbox controllers, which don't really hold a charge anymore. It's something I am paranoid about, though- I mean, my Xbox's never red-ringed even. Sooner or later something's gonna die! My PS2 succumbed to laser death, but luckily did so during the court-ordered free repair period, so I could get it fixed. It's been good since. Otherwise, I'd had an NES and a Sega CD both die on me. The NES didn't deserve it- the previous owner had covered it in black acrylic paint and used a mismatched AC with too high voltage. It never had a chance.

Never swapped systems (by the time I really got into gaming, playstation was dominating the market), but swapped games constantly. We'd actually plan out requests for gifts based on what we could borrow from each other.

Most anything for the Channel F- but especially Dodge It- made all the worse by the sound coming from the system, meaning you have no way to turn it off or down.

I've spent most of the last several years lumping PS1 and PS2 in my head as the 'high school' systems. I realized a few weeks ago that simply isn't true- I bought my PS2 with my graduation money, meaning 'high school' was almost exclusively PS1 gaming. It was an odd thing to realize. Anyway- most of my PS1 gaming was RPGs. Sooo many RPGs... wish I had that kind of time/patience again... Lunar:Sliver Star Complete and Eternal Blue Complete- these are so different from their Sega CD counterparts as to be completely different games. Some of my favorite stories ever in these two. Final Fantasy 8- I know it's got kind of a bad rap, but my enjoyment of a Final Fantasy stems so much from the characters, and I just really liked the cast of this one. Even mopey ol' Squall. Rayman- Damn near platform perfection! Rising Zan: Samurai Gunman- To be honest, I haven't actually played it... but that ridiculous old western opening song is so very worth seeing. Sheep- try to force a bunch of suicidal herd animals to safety. Surprisingly fun.

Sometimes I wonder if, someday, sports games will be hard to get as we constantly throw them aside or strip them down for homebrews. Then I see how many Atari Footballs are still around. (I got lucky with my double copy of Sonic 2 no one wanted... my Sonic-obsessed friend managed to lose hers in a move. I literally shoved it into her hands before she could inisist that she'd find her old copy.)

I understand being miffed about the UntestedBox, but it's probably for the best. I've bought/had the chance to buy 2 original Xboxes cheap recently. One was modded and wouldn't eject the disc tray, one kept closing the tray without prompting & wouldn't read discs anyway. Based on that, and things I've read online, it seems there's a lot of pretty f'ed up OGBoxes out there. Honestly, the main reason I'm not rushing about to get one 'before it's too late' is knowing my fiancé has one squirreled away I can run off with when he's not looking.

You should find out where your nearest DumpStop is... every GameStop district has a store in it where all the going-out and excess product gets dumped. It's usually one of the better stores to shop in, especially if you're bargain-hunting. It's probably not going to help you with the PS2 games though- my DumpStops are both down to disc only sports and rythmn titles. I'd say start hitting up pawn shops. The PS2 is still in its 'dark phase' where there's not a lot of demand for it, so places like that should still have some games they want to push out cheap. Game stores are gonna have a better selection, despite the higher pricing- if you've got a good one around you can at least avoid the shipping costs of Ebay. Given the time of year, you might try some yard sales too- just beware of heat damaged discs. I have a copy of Kessen 2 I beat half a dozen times without seeing the ending because that's where the game freezes.

Elite Beat Agents is a definite favorite for me- I bought import copies of the two Ouendan games that inspired it, beat all 3 on all difficulties. If you like (or at least can stand) Vocaloid music, the Project Diva games are surpisingly challenging for as simple as the gameplay is. I'd really like to get a Samba De Amigo set for my dreamcast. The Wii version is ok, but the motion controls don't seem to be responsive enough for higher difficulty levels. Well, either that or I really suck at it. Taiko Drum Master is great fun too- I should look into getting a second controller. I wonder how they've held up over years of getting beat on...

I doubt they ever had the system. Unless things have changed in recent years, items that get donated to goodwill are only partially sorted at the store level (to weeds out the pure garbage and the items they aren't allowed to sell. Like the box of porn and ammo that came into my sister's store.) After that, they go to a main center to be priced and re-distributed to the local stores/online based on whatever sales metrics that store has. If the system was donated, it probably went to a different store.

I think Geometry Wars is fantastic and bloody pretty! (Also hard as balls, but still pretty!)

I don't use codes or game genie-type devices, but I'll happily grab a walkthrough for anything. I have better things to do these days than run around a game mindlessly in the hopes of finding where I'm supposed to go. I'll do it myself when I get there, but I like a map sometimes.

I know, but I'm the weirdo who genuinely loves the authentic game. I will sit around looking at box/label/disc art. Seriously, I will stare at a disc, wiggling it around in the light to catch the edges of the screen printing & noting the different 'depths' each color is at. If I can't do that, then it loses a good chunk of the charm for me. Just a quirk of mine, I guess. (And for the record- yes, it's very hard for me to accept when a modern game I want is download only. I've skipped a lot of stuff I wanted with no physical copy.)

I'm not big into ROMs- if I didn't care about originals, I'd setup for emulation and skip having the consoles entirely. Interestingly enough, I had a co-worker years ago who was moving and selling off their game collection, including Panzer Dragoon Saga. Unfortunately, it was right before PAX and my savings was tied up in hotel costs. I simply couldn't make anything close to a reasonable offer. Which is fine, PDS isn't high on my list... but Magic Knight Rayearth, Dragonforce, Guardian Heroes... yeah.

The ones I expect to actually own in the fairly near future: A Neo-geo pocket color (this one just got on my radar, and the surprisingly reasonable prices put it early on the pickup list) An original Xbox (no rush, more of a 'when it happens' kind of thing) A Yurkie-modded Colecovision (my next big save-up purchase, and collecting goal for the year) The ones I desperately want, but don't expect to own anytime soon: A Vectrex (like everyone else, I adore the vector graphics, but I simply don't have the space for one- YET ) A Goddamn Sega Saturn (this has been on the want list since I was about 12... but by the time I was making my own money, the games had jumped in price to outside my range. I still want it, I just doubt I'll ever be able to afford to build a library for it)