Tide turning against steelbook video game collecting?

[Saturn]

Originally Posted by ob1ob

I feel that the CE should always include the steelbook. In fact the guy in this Just Cause 3 CE review posted below expressed my exact opinion. I preordered the Just Cause 3 CE from Best Buy and then bought the steelbook from Target. I considered keeping the steelbook and selling the standard copy from the CE like I have done in the past for other games, but I'm just going to return the CE.
https://youtu.be/Ar3WMY0M8mo

I think the exact opposite, I hate when CEs include steels but my opinion is just too unpopular for that to happen. Thankfully not enough people seem to have voted on the steel for Just cause 3.

[Isauretjuh]

what i hate is when they put different steelbooks in different collector's editions. Im looking at you tales of xillia and zesteria now i have to import the us versions.. And well its a bit of an overkill on steelbooks releasing atm. I mean my steelbook collection has been expanding explosively in the past 2 years.

[GameTrigger]

I think SB is easiest way to give "collecting value" for game - I collect only FF related steels but if I have option to buy game with normal case or with SB; I choose SB

[KnightOfTruth]

It seems pretty true here in the states that MANY companies are no longer going with the steelbook release. It seems like the only major company that is still doing a bunch of them is Ubisoft. Everyone else seems to have jumped ship to metalpaks or whatever-in-the-heck-that-was in the Tomb Raider CE ("PlasticPak"?). Even ubisoft has been doing some "metal cases" though. I'm just really glad that we got actual steelbooks for the Witcher 3 as those were classy. I'm curious to see if someone has put together a timeline and region release chart of steelbooks vs. metalpaks anywhere on the web? Would be interesting to see what percentage in the states is now non-steelbooks vs. the % in the UK (and the amazing job amazon.de is doing).

[game_player_s]

Only see one steelbook at present time, but I know I had a second one at some point. My gripe with them is that if they get scratched then the painted/printed on "cover art" is damaged, whereas with a regular plastic case if it gets scratched the artwork is on paper under what was likely scratched, not indestructable and more resillieant to damage.

And like others, rust is a serious concern with steel case games due to the rather poor grade of steel sheet metal from which they are made. Don't get me wrong, I love the concept of the steel cases, but the manufacturers of these cases would be wise to do one of the following to futre cases they make.:
1. Switch over to making the cases from aluminum or a corrosion resistant alloy.
2. Electro-plating the steel with a corrosion resistant metal, such as nickel.
3. Galvanizing (zinc plating) the steel to make it rust resistant.

[Interinactive]

Can't stand steelbooks myself. I get them bundled in CEs I order all the time, but I don't actively try to collect them.

I remember in 2004/5 I went to buy Metal Gear Solid 3, and the guy at the store tried to give me the steelbook version instead of a plastic one. I said no since I didn't like the look of it, and this was well before I started collecting. They just seem to look and feel cheap, like they're not genuine. Plus, not all games have steelbooks, and I like my console game spines to line up with the labels pointing out consistently.

[Gunmaster51]

Steelbooks are no longer the niche item they once were. The market is often flooded with multiple steelbooks for the same game in different regions (see The Division for a recent example). Before, only a handful of retailers gave out steelbooks as pre-order gifts or as part of special packages (I remember the good old days of FutureShop in Canada before they closed down lol). Now, almost every major retailer (such as Amazon, Bestbuy, etc.) sells steelbook editions of games. Most official special editions of games also have steelbooks.

I still love collecting steelbooks and have a shelf devoted to them, but in terms of rarity, the new steelbooks are just too main-stream and mass-produced to be considered Collector Items anymore imo. I used to pay upwards of $75 for single steelbooks back in the day. Now, I wouldn't pay more than $30 for most of the new ones.

[rapister]

yep, definitely a lot of mainstream steelbooks now.

rare steelbooks are released less often now

so, my suggestion is just to get the ones for the games you like

for the casual collector, this is good news, since they are readily available for your favorite games

also, at least there is less bragging on the internet