Is collecting modern games pointless?

[Gemini-Phoenix]

We now live in an age where all the current-gen consoles and handhelds are connected online. Some people don't have this luxury, but for the majority of us our consoles are tethered to the internet, either permanently or semi-permanently. Unfortunately, we also live in an age where t is commonplace for a publisher to release a video game unfinished or loaded with bugs, which are then subsequently fixed via compulsory downloadable patches

Which leads me to ask: Is collecting modern games pointless?


In the past, games were released regardless of whether they were polished products or laden with bugs - Some of which are now infamous for having been released with amusing errors or glitches! Games were released, and that was final. No patches, no fixes. Unless a publisher recalled a product and re-released an amended version, every copy of the game was exactly the same, and remains the same to this day. However, this can not be said for the current generation of games, where almost every new release has had some kind of patch issued - Some bigger than others (Eg, Gran Turismo 5). The game you bought brand new, and the games we're collecting, are effectively unfinished or broken products. In the future, some of these games will be playable, but others are so full of bugs that they're practically worthless.

Has anyone ever stopped to think what will become of your X360 or PS3 once the respective companies stop supporting them? What happens once these companies decide that they no longer want to support these consoles and stop supplying the necessary patches to older games? In the case of games like Skyrim or GT5, it's a big deal!

While the games will still be playable to some extent in the future, they won't be the same experience without the patches. I have friends who play current-gen games but don't have their PS3 or X360 online, and they're constantly complaining about this bug or that bug. I keep telling them that these bugs have since been fixed and patched, but they don't have internet to download them, so they have to suffer playing a broken game. This is what it will be like in the future! Retro collectors of the future will look back at this generation of games, only to see that what they're collecting are worthless broken games


And what of the games which rely on online servers and are online-only? You just have to look back at the last generation for answers. For example, Twisted Metal: Black Online is pretty worthless these days, except to the real die hard collectors who just want it for "completeness", and Steel Battalion: Line Of Contact is equally as unplayable. Phantasy Star Online for the Dreamcast has an offline single player mode, but the game was designed primarily to be an online experience - Unless you're part of the minority who invested in some specialist equipment, this game is also now redundant and of little use to anyone except those who want to play alone. Will anyone want to collect current-gen games like Final Fantasy XI in the future?


Looking forward, who will the future collectors be and what will they want to collect? The majority of us here are now in our 30's or 40's, and grew up with 8bit and 16bit consoles when we were children, and the 32bit consoles in our teens. We're now seeing younger collectors in their 20's collecting PS1 / N64 which they remember from when they were kids, and PS2 / GameCube / Xbox from their teens. Future collectors will be seeking to collect this generation of video games - The first HDMI generation, and potentially the last physical media generation (if the rumours of the next Xbox and PlayStation hardware are anything to go by) - But will they want to collect broken games? Especially if the X360 and PS3 patches are no longer supported in years to come...

If we were to open and play a sealed SNES game or PlayStation game, our experience would more or less be the same as it was back in the day when the game first came out. However, if we did the same to an X360 or PS3 game in ten years time, the experience would not be the same without the aid of the relevant patches - Gran Turismo 5 is an obvious example here, which has had no end of improvements added since launch via downloadable patches and updates, which have practically turned it into an entirely different game than the one initially sold on disc back in 2010

[HIPPEEDUDE]

Wow thats a mouthfull to read,lol. Colllecting anything isnt pointless if its what you enjoy,if it wasnt none of would be here to begin with. A majority dont collect for financial gain but for the simple enjoyment of it,regardless wether something has a glitch in it or not. In fact its entirely possible that these collectables with the glitches will be of more value or rarity than those without,purely because there wont be many around. As it is now,first print runs of games are popular because they are a first print. It,to me doesnt matter if i can play anything online,if i can play it thats all that really matters. Even then,you only play to relive a memory,to remember the joy etc you had when you first played it. Sure its more fun with more people but theres ways to have more people join if you want. Then it gets packed away for another few years. I still have an ATARI 2600 somewhere & every so often i will crank it up to play space invaders,frogger etc purely for the hell of it. On the subject of online servers the original xbox is a good example,even though the xbox 360 was released in 2005 these consoles continued selling well up intill 2007. Online servers for the original xbox was only shutdown on April 15 2010,the last game played online was Halo 2 which was not shutdown until May 11 2010. The official date is April but due to some diehard fans keeping the consoles on/connected it took a month for it to finally shutdown. So,maybe its entirely possible this will happen again,that online servers will still be kept going even after the console has been replaced. Maybe this time it will be longer,maybe the servers will never be shutdown.
In conclusion,to answer the title statement simply collecting or doing what gives you happiness for whatever reason & whatever way is never ever pointless

[The Russian Bear]

One of the many reasons i game on PC. Dedicated servers means i don't have to worry about companies stopping support for online titles like EA did recently and the amount of user made fixes and patches can make almost every broken game very playable.

Being forced to rely on one service is horrible because as soon as that is discontinued, you lose everything. Its becoming a more pressing issue in PC gaming due to many games relying on Steam but the great thing is that even games that use Steamworks can be downloaded and played with all updates from internet. Technically its piracy but if i want to play fallout new vegas in 15 years time and Steam has died or been replaced then i can just download it from the internet without issue.

As for your main question, no i don't think collecting modern games is pointless. If your a big fan of Assassins Creed and you collect all games and special edtions etc, are you really affected if the servers go down and you can't play it online. As a gamer, sure you lose out but as a collector you don't since you still have all your nice physical special/collector's edition. Again if its a MMO and the servers shut down, i'd feel worse if i didn't have something to remember the game by such as a nice SE or CE.

I do agree that the future will go almost entirely digital and retail games will die. Its already happening on PC with the rise of Steam, Gamersgate, GOG and more. It seems to be a hell of alot more profitable than retail games. Look at Paradox Interactive, who report 95% of sales are made via digital distribution. I see consoles going the same way, not only is it much more convenient for the average gamer but it also substantially increases the profit margins of the publisher since they don't have to manufacture disks, cases, manuals etc.

[HIPPEEDUDE]

I used to play online occasionally with my PC,but i gave up. It was Need for Speed World by EA games,i was constantly glitching out,getting cut off,waiting for this or that patch,constant offline servers in the end i gave up. What made it worse is when it first started you had to pay to get in etc,then they made it free.

[The Russian Bear]

Originally Posted by HIPPEEDUDE

I used to play online occasionally with my PC,but i gave up. It was Need for Speed World by EA games,i was constantly glitching out,getting cut off,waiting for this or that patch,constant offline servers in the end i gave up. What made it worse is when it first started you had to pay to get in etc,then they made it free.

All the F2P games by EA are all f**king horrific and they are P2W as well.

[HIPPEEDUDE]

Originally Posted by The Russian Bear

All the F2P games by EA are all f**king horrific and they are P2W as well.

When i first joined it wasnt F2P,you had to pay. At that time it was ok,no real bad downtime or server issues etc that were worth worrying about. The minute it became F2P it all turned to doggy doo doo. I dont know what its like now,i havent been back on there for a very long time but,it probably hasnt changed

[gurpswoo1]

This is beauty of Collector's Edition, irrespective of the game and its requirements for online. They will always be worth collecting. They contain extra items outside the game.

I get your point about the patches which can change the game entirely, but the core game will be there regardless of these patches.

Secondly these patches also usually result in a game of the year edition which has these updates. you could purchase these edition aswell or later on as they won;t be worth anywhere near as much as the CE's .