Collecting CE's - Thoughts in general

[Gemini-Phoenix]

Just a few thoughts floating around in my head at the moment...


Is it just me, or does the UK seem to receive more CE's than anywhere else in the world? Or at least it feels like it at the moment!

Japan are renowned for their love of fancy CE's. They have the nicest stuff, as well as the most random merch (Boobie shaped mouse pad for a console game which doesn't even use a mouse! FTW!). They also have some damn nice stuff, such as Space Channel 5 Part II for Dreamcast

America gets its fair share of CE's, as do we here in the UK and Europe, but I do feel as if we get slightly more than the Americans. Some games we get three or even four different versions, where other countries only get two.


I haven't even counted how many CE's I actually own, and i've lost count of how many I don't. For every one I get, two seem to slip through my fingers.

I remember once there was a time when a CE was a rarity which came only a few times a year, and was reserved for only the most deserving franchises. Nowadays it seems as if every RPG or generic "flavour of the week" receives some kind of special treatment, whether deserving or not.

There was even a time where it seemed realistic to try to obtain a full set of CE's for a single console, where now even that seems beyond most collector's abilities! As a multi-format collector, I can relate to just how hard it must be for others, especially when we're compelled to buy these expensive editions upon release, and sometimes even multiple variants for the same game!


And what of the pre-owned market? How often do you ever see any of the more elaborate CE's appear in your local game store pre-owned? I sometimes spot several SteelBooks, and maybe a few of the larger tins, but generally those who pay twice as much for something special are more inclined to keep hold of it for posterity. Collector's editions for collectors, as it were. Although in this day and age I think most people have internet access, and prefer to sell such things on eBay or privately on forums rather than trade it for peanuts down the high street...


As for investment, some CE's you only see upon release, and then never hear of again. They may crop up once in a while on eBay and command a stupidly high price, but you may go months or even years before you see another... To me, these are the special ones, and the reason why we bother collecting. The ones which many may know of, but few actually own, and it's always a real treat whenever one is offered for auction, especially if it's in nice condition


And what of the posterity investor scene - Some CE's have reached the point where they're so incredibly rare and sought after that they command an unbelievable price which very few collectors can afford, although is completely justified by the CE's scarcity or condition. Some of these are even for current-gen consoles, which makes it even more shocking! Some sealed CE's have reached a point where they are worth too much to be able to sell (Such as PAL Mass Effect for X360), whereas others will sell regardless of the top price (Eg, PAL Dead Rising SteelBook for X360)


I also think that with time some CE's will degrade or will be lost or destroyed or have parts of their contents misplaced or damaged. However, I aso feel that we ive in a time where collector's take price in their elaborate CE's. A time where collecting sealed CE's for posterity investment is commonplace amongst various collector's circles, after seeing past generations mistreat older games - Old Nintendo and Atari games used to come in cardboard cases, and many Mega CD and Saturn games would be scratched

It will be interesting to see in a few years time exactly which CE's were worthwhile, which are remembered, and which become sought after by an entirely new generation of collectors. We are only just now seeing a rise in popularity of CE's, especially considering we have just survived a recession where CE sales were surprisingly at their highest!

[mosavon]

hi, yes i think im with you on this one, for sure we have been lucky lately, i think europe in general get a pretty fair deal on CE, look at the GOW Trilogy as an example id take 2 extra games, artcards, 3 soundtrack CD's and a nicer box over digital content and an artbook anyday...then theres the KZ3 helghast edition with its extra digital content via the collectors edition and of course a steelbook, there just 2 that i thought of straight away, i know plenty of US friends on the PSN that really want a copy of the Heavy Rain special edition too, so yeah were doing ok.

[tallkid123]

I think Australia is a very unique place in terms of our exclusive CEs. For some reason, the average Australian gamer is quite unaware that some of the CEs/preorder bonuses we get don't come out anywhere else in the world.

- White Steelbook Yakuza 4 + Ichiban Box
- Lost Planet 2 CE
- The Conduit 2 Pre-order Agent Ford Figurine
- King of Fighters 2 CE
- Portal 2 CE
- Homefront 2 CE

For a country of about 23 million people and also in terms of distance, far away from Europe and the US, it's surprising how we get all these special things. However, we do end up paying a lot more for games than both continents as well

[Gemini-Phoenix]

Originally Posted by tallkid123

I think Australia is a very unique place in terms of our exclusive CEs. For some reason, the average Australian gamer is quite unaware that some of the CEs/preorder bonuses we get don't come out anywhere else in the world.

- White Steelbook Yakuza 4 + Ichiban Box
- Lost Planet 2 CE
- The Conduit 2 Pre-order Agent Ford Figurine
- King of Fighters 2 CE
- Portal 2 CE
- Homefront 2 CE

For a country of about 23 million people and also in terms of distance, far away from Europe and the US, it's surprising how we get all these special things. However, we do end up paying a lot more for games than both continents as well

Even more lucky considering most of those games we didn't get any LE or CE whatsoever! Homefront, Portal 2, and Lost Planet 2 were three games I would've expected to have had a CE here in the UK

But on the other hand, you also miss out on a hell of a lot of CE's which the rest of the world DO get, and a lot of the games sold in Australia are just imported European games from the UK

[tallkid123]

Originally Posted by Gemini-Phoenix

Even more lucky considering most of those games we didn't get any LE or CE whatsoever! Homefront, Portal 2, and Lost Planet 2 were three games I would've expected to have had a CE here in the UK

But on the other hand, you also miss out on a hell of a lot of CE's which the rest of the world DO get, and a lot of the games sold in Australia are just imported European games from the UK

Well;

The Portal 2 CE was a disappointment. Despite its exclusivity, it's just basically a rubix cube in a box with a copy of the game. That and the exclusive numbered edition crap basically amounted to a cheap sticker on the side of the box as well.

The Homefront edition seemed alright but as the game failed to live up to all the hype surrounding it, EB Games here still have them floating around.

The Lost Planet 2 CE is also nothing special. The monster plushie is incredibly small (as big as the inside of an average person's palm) and all the other postcards are pretty standard too. If I recall, EB Games still has copies on its onlin store here too.

[gurpswoo1]

I also agree with Tallkid123, Australians get some seriously unique editions. Yakuza Shiro edition, Brink steelbook are another two.

While we have been getting a lot more editions, the quality has someone reduced. The number of releases that have DLC codes only is scary. What's more steelbooks have become poorer types which are thinner,cheaper and are becoming increasingly comman.

I also agree with the UK and Europe getting multiple versions, Take Assassin creed for example. There are already three for brotherhood, Codex, special and Da Vinci edition.

Obtaining every UK release is now an impossibility and I'm only trying to collect the modern releases. Luckily the prices for collector's edition here in the UK have not got to the same idiotic level as the USA. Take their Dead Space Ultra Edition and Uncharted 2 Fortune Edition. The latter is listed for $5000, Why? It was $1000 just last year.

Judging how future generation will desire which edition is tricky, however I will stand by the games that have the most impact on the gamer, RPG and platformers. I don't think a huge amount of FPS will become rare, mainly because there are 100 released a year.

One thing I have noticed is that the absolute rarest of game are always released in the US/CA. Europe gets mountain loads which fall in price after 2-3 weeks after launch.