Askablog: Ask-A-Blog: Sealed Collecting - Thoughts, and do you do it?

What are your feelings on collecting sealed games?

I love sealed games! It's all I collect!

I love them, but you can't always have sealed games. What about playing them?

I have a few sealed games, but I don't actively keep my games sealed.

Each to their own, I guess.

I have a few, but sealed collecting is kind of silly. Games are meant to be played.

I have none, but I'm not against it, per se.

I have none, and am against collecting sealed games. THEY ARE MEANT TO BE PLAYED!!!

None of the above (Explain in comment section)

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Many people choose to collect anything they get their hands on, no matter what the condition. Others collect only complete examples of games; that is, with the Game, Box, and Manual (CIB). Then, of course, you get people who prefer CIB, but will occasionally buy cart-only. What could be better than a mint, complete copy? One may ask this question, and the answer is quite simple: a brand new game.

Those who covet the sealed game are a rare breed, although, not too rare. To only purchase sealed games means a much greater cost to the buyer, in a monetary sense, and of course, in the fact that many games are difficult to find sealed, with scarcity (usually) increasing exponentially with age. So, combining rarity, age, and price yields a more difficult method of collecting video games.

But is it really collecting games? If a game is sealed, can you really 'game' with it? It is along the lines of buying a case of Twinkies but never eating them, is it not? Well, that is the purpose of Ask-A-Blog, I want to hear from you, the reader, on whether or not it is true to video game collecting ethics or not, and so forth. As for my opinion...

Personally, I feel that the exclusive sealed collector operates in a niche market, and isn't really collecting the game for the game, but rather, the game as a trophy. Is that really what video game collecting should be about, showing off trophies in your collection? Granted, certain games are always a treat to own, even if they aren't really a great game to begin with. But, basing the majority of your collection on this principle seems, to me, to defeat the very principle of gaming. Why not collect coins then, if you aren't going to game with your games? Coins hold a better market and tend to increase in value, rather than decrease. What really is the point?

But, as I always say, each to their own. It is a wonderful thing, that people can have an opinion and operate on different levels. It is what makes us as humans such an interesting anomaly in the animal world. What do you think about sealed collecting? Is it blasphemy? Is it just another spin-off of what we do already? Is it the best thing since sliced bread? Or is it something you feel completely different about? Vote in the poll, and leave a comment below! We would love to hear your responses. This, is Ask-A-Blog.

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Comments

blcklblskt said on 8/8/09 6:58 AM

I personally don't have a problem with people collecting sealed games.

Me, I choose to keep the game sealed until I play it. This way, if I don't ever play the game, and one day it happens to be worth something, I could then sell it, buy a boxed copy, and play that instead.

BadEnoughDude said on 8/8/09 7:54 AM

I love sealed games. It adds an entirely new dimension to collecting.

Tondog said on 8/8/09 8:02 AM

I have none, and am against collecting sealed games. THEY ARE MEANT TO BE PLAYED!!

yassassass said on 8/8/09 8:27 AM

You'd think based on how I've responded to stuff in the past that I'd be against collecting sealed games. While I do strongly believe they are meant to be played... a lot of people collect open games and don't play them anyway so I don't really see a difference. If it makes the collector happy that's fine, I just think it's kind of sad knowing in the case of a very rare game someone out there is potentially disabling someone from playing it. Oh well.

captain_nintendo said on 8/8/09 3:59 PM

I have several sealed NES games. That being said, I also have duplicate copies of most of those for playing purposes.

I know some sealed collectors, and feel that I would never purposely collect this way. That being said, when I find a sealed game (NES), I don't open it.

Silent Scythe said on 8/8/09 4:11 PM

The only thing I'm keeping sealed is my Mega Man 9 Press Kit. The rest I have to play sooner or later.

Sirgin said on 8/8/09 4:54 PM

I have none, and am against collecting sealed games. THEY ARE MEANT TO BE PLAYED!!!

Crabmaster2000 said on 8/8/09 5:45 PM

@Sirgin

Sure games are meant to be played, but the are also meant to be sold and visually appealing. They were created with more than one purpose who are we to say which purpose it better?

Stamps are meant to be mailed and coins are meant to be spent, but that doesnt stop people from collecting them. It just seems silly be be so against sealed games just because you like to play them.

I dont collect sealed games myself, but have no issue with others collecting them.

Sirgin said on 8/8/09 7:05 PM

@Crabmaster2000: I don't agree that games were made for more than one purpose. A developer does not spend 3 years and millions of dollars creating a game for people who aren't going to play it. If that were the case, they might as well create some fancy artwork and put an empty disc/cartridge in the case.

Fuyukaze said on 8/8/09 7:17 PM

I have a few that are sealed. Buy em and open em when I'm ready to play them. No point opening them before that though.

jferio said on 8/8/09 7:41 PM

I've bought sealed games fairly recently, when I found a motherlode stash at a local thriftstore... but I unsealed 'em and checked them out when I got them home. I buy games to play in the odd moments. If I wanted a trophy, I'd get into collecting static objects of some form.

But I certainly won't stop others from buying sealed games and keeping them sealed.

gamepopper101 said on 8/8/09 8:30 PM

Me, it depends on the game, and if it's possible to get another copy, I only have one Sealed game on me currently and that one is a GBA game I may never play. I also had Jungle Book for the Game Gear that was sealed, but mainly because I had no Game Gear, and I traded it anyway.

Wehll said on 8/8/09 9:06 PM

It seems like sort of a 'Holy Grail' of collecting to find sealed games, and it makes sense, but collectin g sealed games exclusively seems to defeat the point.

bombatomba said on 8/8/09 9:14 PM

If the situation presents itself and I have the bread, then yes I will collect sealed games. But do I actively seek them out? No. I consider myself a functional collector, meaning that I will play everything (or nearly everything) that I purchase, and though I personally value the CIB over the Unopened, I would never turn my nose up at anything sealed (even a Game.Com).

Rajaat the Warbringer said on 8/8/09 10:35 PM

I open them when I get them, even if I won't play them for months.

Link41 said on 8/9/09 5:33 PM

@Rajaat the Warbringer:same here

NES_Rules said on 8/10/09 7:53 PM

In a nutshell, this is what I think about sealed vs CIB vs loose collecting. If the game is loose, fine, they're to play so that's all I need, but if it's CIB, then that's great because I can still play the game but it's also more collectible and looks nicer on a self, and if its sealed, then it's even better, I can proudly display it or if I want to I can open it up and play a brand new 20 year old game or sell it, but a CIB copy and make some money.

So what it comes down to, sealed games have the ability to be more useful than loose or CIB games, IMO. They can be collectibles, money makers or entertainment.

atari_wizard said on 8/13/09 3:05 AM

I have a few sealed games. Maybe 3 or so. I don't personally collect sealed games, as it get's very pricey. I'm totally for anyone collecting how they choose, that's what makes collecting so fascinating. I don't collect CIB games for the NES, N64, SNES or Atari, mainly for the fact that I never seem them complete in the wild. Though, if and when I do see CIB games, I snag them up. =) Great points everyone.

Duke.Togo said on 9/19/09 3:59 AM

I happen to have one sealed game, just because I packed it and forgot about it. Problem is now it is worth money, so I don't want to open it.

That's the part that would bug me about sealed collecting, being forced to just stare at them without playing. Loose or CIB gives me more happiness for less cash.

C_Six said on 9/27/09 9:55 PM

I collect all types of games; loose, CIB and sealed. While I like them all, the sealed copies I buy usually are for games that bring back some type long lost memories. I never had the pleasure of opening that wonderful video game for christmas etc as a child. So every box art is wonderful to me. I usually have it for display in my game room. I'm also anal when it comes to cleanliness and appearance so I actually prefer my displays to be sealed. Every sealed game I have I also have a CIB or loose. In my opinion a perfectly sealed copy is great. While some believe games are meant to be played I also ultimately believe that games were meant to be "sold." Once it's bought I think they care less what you do to them. Or in this case. Don't do to them. The only problem I have is that sometimes I want to open them.

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