The Game's Collector

Written by Jon Porter

Editor's note: My desire to own every great game ever made has been quiet lately, but still I understand Jon's plight all too well. - Aaron

It has been nagging him for years now. Thrown out in its prime; left to gather dust in someone else's collection; under-appreciated and under-played. The guilt has intensified of late, brought on by its two younger and one older sibling, winking at him from the shelf. Eventually a day arrives when he simply needs to get out of the house, he needs to go and -- as much as he hates himself for saying it -- shop for the sake of shopping. His collection will be complete, and finally he can rest.

The first shop proves useless; assistants looking on slack-jawed, bemused that you'd ever mention a game released earlier than the beginning of last year. Their second-hand section is almost as disorganized as themselves, row after row of FIFA and Tiger Woods' yearly releases crowd the shelves. Every couple of feet a spine catches his eye, only to send him away with subtitles such as "Sons of Liberty" and "Digital Graphic Novel."

With a sigh he leaves and walks to the next store. Here his question is greeted with more warmth, a casual suggestion that he try the shelf behind his left shoulder. FIFA 06, FIFA 04, Pro Evolution Soccer 3, and FIFA 03 again crowd the shelves. Behind them trapped the titles none have bothered to unearth. A sign catches his eye, and ten minutes later he's back walking on the street, five games better off, and $10 lighter. Still he is without his prize, but at least now he has something to show for his trip.

Next shop...

Browsing shelves...

FIFA...

Pro Evo...

Tiger...

YES!

Here it has been lying in wait for him. Never again will he abandon it for the lure of easy money. He doesn't care that the original manual's been lost; he doesn't care that he misses his bus; he's filled the gap between 2 and 4, and bought himself freedom in the process.

Back at home, the DVD case slides easily between its long lost brothers, pushing the row of boxes ever closer to the shelf's end. He'll play it later he tells himself, for now busying himself with the other five purchases.

One hour past midnight; his eyes still refuse to close. He thinks of San Andreas, sitting alone on the shelf, and remembers the copy of Vice City he traded in. He remembers Vercetti, Vance, and Candy Suxxx. He remembers the beach, the pink HUD, the pixels as big as his fist. With a deep sigh he pushes it from his mind.

It has been nagging him for years now. Thrown out in its prime; left to gather dust in someone else's collection; under-appreciated and under-played. The guilt has intensified of late, brought on by its eldest sibling's presence, winking at him from the shelf. Eventually a day arrives where he simply needs to get out of the house, needs to go and -- as much as he hates himself for doing it -- shop for the sake of shopping. His collection will be complete, and finally he can rest...

To be continued...

Comments (16)

This made me laugh. A very poetic and articulate way to say "I want MGS3."

Walter Wood , July 28, 2009

I love shopping for PS2 games; a few bucks can go so far. Very well written piece.

Alex Long , July 28, 2009

This really speaks to me! Well done!

Lance Darnell , July 28, 2009

It kind of annoyed him, how the article was written. As he scanned the page looking for where to click next. Would he add an emote? Who knows? Wink. Smile. Grin. All of the choices seemed to be not enough. Then he saw the submit button. Is this the button he has been looking for this whole time? He sighs.

Chad Tobin , July 29, 2009

-1

Wait, I thought he was looking for Vice City?

Suriel Vazquez , July 29, 2009

I'm in exactly the same place. I recently just bought Deus Ex again for PS2, after trading it in for the fourth time. And I've probably bought Amplitude three times already, as well as Red Faction. I've since sworn to myself that I will never trade in another one of my games.

And now, as Gamestop's Gamecube section shrinks rapidly (thank god I got all the Zeldas just in time), I'm in a mad dash to buy up all the PS2 games that I missed before they, too, disappear.

Adam Tierney , July 29, 2009

Great piece of writing, kind of annoying and compelling at the same time.
Everytime I pass a store that sells second hand games I get that feeling that a bagain could be lurking inside hidden behind rows of worthless junk. Invariably I walk away dissapointed yet dispite that I keep coming back.

eBay is my best friend and worst enemy (at least for my wallet) as I don't even need to leave the house!

Seth Coultas , July 29, 2009

I hate that when you're thinking about getting a game, and all the sudden you see a few games you've wanted for a long time in the bargain bin. There are so many games these days that you practically have to be rich to keep up with it all (and you have to have lots of time).

Brian Shirk , July 29, 2009

Thanks for all the kind words.

I totally see where people are coming from when they say it's annoyingly written, but I figured just one article in this style couldn't hurt.

Jon Porter , July 29, 2009

No manual! Then what's the point of collecting it?

Alexandr Beran , July 29, 2009

-1

I've been searching the internet and stores everywhere for ICO and I can never find it. I understand your plight.

Reed Brown , July 29, 2009

I have never sold, traded, or purchased a used game. Every PC and console game I own was purchased brand new, and sits on my bookshelf with all the original wrapping and documentation. Just thinking about selling a game, even one I didn't enjoy, makes me feel dirty. I'm weird like that.

Davneet Minhas , July 29, 2009

Even though I love the way this article was written, Chad's comment cracked me up. That's some of the more creative and entertaining negative feedback I've ever read.

I knew this story might not be for everyone when I decided to post it to the front page, but I found it to be interesting and different. You can read the same old, same old everywhere, but people come to Bitmob for something different.

Aaron Thomas , July 29, 2009

I actually really enjoyed this article. It was a poetic way of expressing the mind of a compulsive collector. The old fashion hunt through gamings shelf spam to find a a jewel in the rough. Flipping through countless cases instead of clicking a "buy it now". All for something that we'll rarely get around to actually playing.

a guest , July 29, 2009

I certainly have my regular haunts around my home city to find diamonds in the rough.

And it breaks my heart that you got rid of Vice City, although of course it is out there on the cheap. I swapped the dvd case on my copy with a hot pink one...perfect.

Tyler Thomas Moen , July 29, 2009

I've been down that road a lot of times. The last trip earned me Contra: Shattered Soldier, Xenosaga II and God of War II: 2-Disc Edition (this one still new!). Also, Little Big Planet and Valkyria Chronicles. I'd say they were entirely awesome additions to my collection.

And the eternal process is just about to be repeated while I go looking for Mega Man X Collection and Xenosaga III. Thanks for the reminder (and a very nice reading).

Carlos García , July 31, 2009