My Own World: May 2009

29/05/2009

Back to the origins... good old days

There's a particular reason why I created this topic. After such a long time I finally made up my mind and decided to get the closest cousins of my original two consoles (check the first two pictures of my blog): Sega Saturn Model 2 and PSOne. My first console was a Timex, an authorized Portuguese version of Spectrum ZX. Then it was Master System II. I skipped several consoles that I was able to play at my friend's homes such as Mega Drive. Then Sega Saturn made my joy, quickly followed by Playstation. Good old days never come back. Heck, I'm too young to feel old already! Both are mint, although Saturn's box sows light signs of wear. But I am happy because they were quite cheap!

The Pandora Torture... No more :)

I have to apologize to the Pandora team, as after all they figured it was a mistake. I hope this time is for real! It really seems that Pandora will definitely make it t my collection. After all these years learning I guess the old school expression "never say never" still applies to me. For those who read my previous post, just ignore it :)

To celebrate 1500...

Sorry, I don't really have anything surprisingly new besides some regular games. So what you will see now is something you have seen before, with some slight differences. I'd wish to get some editions that I was not able to, so I have to keep searching for those. Hopefully, someday, I'll get them...

Unlike my collector's edition Ridge Racer Type 4 Boxset that seems to be exclusive to French, the same box was used as a press kit for other countries. I managed to pick this one for a pretty cheap price. It's not the regular collector's edition, but the complete press kit instead. The box is the same, only the contents change. Enjoy the pic.

My Snes Collection has now improved

As you probably noticed already, I have just very few old Nintendo games for NES and SNES. No matter how much I try to increase my collection, the truth is that it's no piece of cake to get a hold of boxed games in the desired condition and that cartridges only are worth much much less than complete boxed games.

I was pretty lucky this time. I found a buddy willing to sell his SNES collection and he had all of his games in a great condition. Now his great collection has now become part of mine. Thanks a lot for taking care of your games so well Artur, I'm really glad these games became a part of my collection and I will take really good care of them. I still expect to get the boxes of the cartridges that are missing it =)

For those wandering, those vivid colors on the background are the same from the Snes logo, to express the colourful colletion that I now have:)

And since we're talking about rare accessories...

... here's another one, in a mint condition: the Sega Master System Converter II for the Mega Drive console. It does exactly what its name suggests: in allows you to play Sega Master System game cartridges in a Mega Drive console. I guess this is what we can call the first retrocompatibility feature that a console ever had - I might be wrong, until otherwise proven. Shame on you Sony, with so many great PS2 games still around you should not have removed that feature...

While the first version of the converter exists in quite a few numbers and it's fairly common, this second edition seems to be very scarce, specially in this condition. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty glad that I bought it. Works with both Mega Drive I and II consoles because it has a small piece that allows to controll the height of the adapter for each console. It just fits each one perfectly.

Cables? What's that for?

The two items bellow are incredibly hard to find, yet quite impressive pieces of technology that only the most recent consoles are using regularly. Wireless controllers have been there in the market for quite a while. Using their age's techology, SEGA released infra-red controllers for its own consoles. These were pretty expensive back then, and that's probably the main reason why they become so rare. I fetl pretty interested in Saturn's wireless controllers after I first heard they existed. When I finally had the chance to pick a complete set, I did not think twice. As for Mega Drive controllers, these took me quite a while to get as well but with a lucky shot I got them as well.

Even the oldest 8bit console has its own piece of advanced technology. Yes that's right, the Sega Master System console had its own infra-red controllers. While not being produced by Sega, this licensed infra-red controller was produced by WKK. A similar controller exists for the Sega Mega Drive as well, but now that I have the original ones there's no need to search too hard for the WKK version. If I have the chance to get one, I'll get it, but I'll not search exhaustively like I did with the other two packs. This SMS controller only exists in individual packs on a single controller. So I did buy a second controller and that way I have two of each :)

It's official! 1500!!

My collection is groing very very fast. And with the latest packages received by mail today, I'v reach the exact amount of 1500 games and editions! I'm not rich, but I have been able to keep up with some of the greatest bargains I could possibly find for both new and old games - excluding limited editions and press kits, but still some ended for qite a cheap price. As a result, my collection has hit the amazing number of 1500. This will be the last post bebore the next series of updates starting by the weekend.

Cheers!

Holidays!

Next week I'll be in holidays. I really need some rest so I'm taking the week to do some things I enjoy but didn't have enough spare time for them. I need to fix the labels on this blog, revise some typos, update my collection and list all my accessories as well - ironically I never paid much attention to accessories besides consoles and games but it's time to change that. In fact I already managed to get some rare ones and I can't even find the basic stuff still boxed...

I'll take some time to go on some small trips around my country to search for game bargains and visit some nice places, as well as meet with other friendly collectors. I'm also making a new blog about videogame collecting for beginners (in my own language though...) and that will take some time. Next update will include some new SNES games. I finally picked a full set from a very friendly person I met on a forum and thanks to that my SNES collection increased from 15 to over 40 mint games and 11 cartridges (I still hope to get the boxes for those some time soon). I am also very very close from reaching the impressive number of 1500 games and editions in my collecion and about 35 different systems. As usuall, I'll make some special posts with my latest favourite items to celebrate that :)

I'm giving priority in protecting my collection. I'll order a cellophane roll to pack all the boxes and editions in order toprotect them from dust and light damage while giving them a clean and crisp look. New screen protectors and labels will be bought to protect most of the systems I currently use from scratches and dirt, specially my 60bg ps3 console which will become an important piece in the future. It will take a lot of time to do all that, but it's all about collecting and the final result will compensate all the work! And, finally I'll also insure my collection and hopefully make some significant changes during summer if I have the chance :)

Pro Evolution Soccer in my collection? NO WAY!

Well, the title says it all... I hate football (or is it soccer?) the way it is now. I only enjoy playing with friends in real life, but I really don't like watching games on TV and I don't care about who wins/loses. One reason why I hate it is because of its popularity (compared to other sports, specially over here, where only football seems to matter...) and the way a lot of people react when their team wins or loses. Football has too much importance over here and it's considered a priority over interesting tv shows or important news.

Anyway, I am a collector and I still enjoy playing football videogames every now and then (though not for too long). I'd probably skip this game if it wasn't for this particular edition, which I'm pretty happy to own now: the promotional copy of PES 2009 Liverpool Edition. Quite rare, unavailable for sale. It's something really worth collecting for sure!