Misunderstood Because You Collect Games?

[Arrrhalomynn]

Oh come on. Everybody nowadays plays games. We don't live in the early 80's anymore. NOT playing games would be suspicious and odd. It would surprise me if I were to start talking about videogames with someone younger than 30 and he/she wouldn't know what I'm talking about.

[Izret101]

Not so much the games they play now but the games they played as a kid.
Some really good clasics sometimes kinda obscure games can come up in convo.

[Zimbacca]

Most of the people play games but they only play the HUGE releases, like Halo and GTA.

[thx1138]

i was in GAME in Bedford, last year. An older lady, maybe 60, was in. Buying violent light gun games.

I was listening, assuming that she was buying them for a grandkid., Nope, they were all for her - she wanted one with zombies in.

[bum-man]

I love to play games but going out hunting is the biggest thrill for me.

I gotta second that, I have always liked playing games but now it's much more the thrill of the hunt that keeps me in it.  When I tell people about it most seem to understand the games more then the vintage computers I collect (I have over 200 systems).  Some people ask stupid things like "Do you use all of those computers?" or "Why do you need all of those computers?"  I have learned that if you get a question like that don't even bother trying to explain.  I even used to get comments from the people at work, then I hired a guy the collects comic books (he has almost 18,000 of them), now they give him shit and leave me alone.  I have met lots of people doing this, I can't make a quick stop at the local thrift store because I know everyone and end up talking with them for 15 or 20 minutes when I stop in.  Not many people understand my other hobby either, performing in musical theater, but you don't get a lot of computer geek, gamer, collector types doing theater    I wonder why that is?

[Sauza12]

I am also getting to the point where it is becoming more fun to hunt than play.  I also share Anti's joy of cleaning the games to.  It's like somebody said "Hey, I'm gonna sell this game, but I'm going to dirty it up so bad that no one will ever buy it." and I prove them wrong.

[den68]

I get a kick out of cleaning games too. It's fun finding that old Colecovision that looks like it's been stored behind the garage for 20 years and making it look like it just came out of the box.

[Antimind]

Indeed. I also rather enjoy coming up with storage options for my stuff. None of my games and memorabilia is really stored in the typical shelves and/or binders. I'm really anal about my magazines too. Those I put in the bags with boards (like comic books) and then sort by issue number in magazine holders on a bookshelf.

The main issue with my game room and I'm sure I'm not the only one, is dust. Keeping my things nice, shiny, and dust free is equally as important as having them in the first place. Everything that isn't in a case of some type lives in a ziplock...lol

[Izret101]

@ THX
Its funny because me and my Grandmother trade of games and memory cards sometimes.

And Freak is right most of the people who play games but not really only play major releases and don't know much about anything else.

[Lord Nepenthean]

I used to get a lot of ridicule for my game collecting, but that has slowed down a lot since I got out of high school.    Even then, though, people very quickly dismissed my game collecting when they found out that I helped write a book on old video games, and that I ran/help run a website on them.  Collecting might get me a few nasty comments, but when you helped write a book on games and run a website on them, suddenly your geek factor jumps beyond measurement for most people.  That's the real reason I sometimes get treated like a bit of a freak.

Random Person: So, what are you working on?
Me: Oh, I'm editing a proof copy of this book I helped write.
Random Person: Woah that's amazing!  [eagerly] What's the book about?
Me: It's sort of a collectors' guide about old video games.
Random Person: [frightened gaze] Oh....  cool.  [walks away]

The website thing is a lot worse though.  Combine a shy person with an old video game collecting and an internet dork and you get something very scary.

[thx1138]

I've been interviewed on local radio about my retro collecting.

[Izret101]

That is so cool.

Does everyone in the whole town know you?
It sure seems like it.


As a side note
I was showing my collection pics on the site off to some kids the other day and they thought it was pretty cool.

[den68]

it is cool. I get a kick out of it because I was there for all of it. I had the LED hand held games when they were new. Same thing with Pong and the Atari 2600. I remember going to friends house to play Intellivision. I watched the old commercials with George Plimpton, saw all the cool game ads on the backs of my comic books. I worked in a toy store at the height of the NES and the waning days of the Atari 2600. I sold people SMS's and NES's and 7800's and the Atari Lynx. Had marathon Blades of Steel tournaments in my basement, then NHLPA Hockey when Genesis was king. My first computer was a VIC-20 then a C64. I played Space Invaders in a corner greasy spoon and Defender at 7-11. I went to REAL arcades. Now I'm just filling holes, getting all the stuff I saw but never played or played but never owned. I have all the state of the art stuff too but I'm old enough that everything out there was state of art to me at some point.

It's cool stuff and a cool hobby. don't let anyone tell you different. if they think you're a dork so what, it's their loss.

sorry for the long rant but I'd guess anyone here get's it.

[Antimind]

I hear ya Den! Love getting all nostalgic

I remember the days of good arcades and I miss them terribly. That's why I'm so thrilled that my local arcade has a retro room that is reminiscent of the good ol days. Come to think of it, most of the arcade is like that! When asked what my fav console is I respond with a toss up between 7800 and NES. The greatest games ever made came before some of our members were even born and -nothing- will ever top them.

[thx1138]

Yesterday, after drinking a few beers in a bar in town. I went to the local "arcade".

"arcade" is a joke name. Theonly machines they have are Fruit Machines (slots?). That's it. Just full of sado's gambling their social security away.

There is a pool table.   They used to have a  couple of  shoot em ups, and a pinball table.  The pinball was "ADAMS FAMILY". The replay was set to high score, and the high score was always reset to 50,000 every morning. I cold stay on that table for over an hour with £1 (which got me three plays).

Now they have all gone.

I spent half hour, wasting £4 on the cheaper slots, but it was not the same, there was no fun for me. They don't even have video poker.