Merry Christmas everyone :)

And it's that time of the year again, when everyone goes out on a shopping spree. I like Xmas but not as much as I used to - all the confusion I find in streets, supermarkets and shopping centres when I go out regularly make me stay at home when I wanted to go out, look for games and meet a few friends, but I can't stand noisy, crowded places.

Anyway, this year was average at best. So many wrong things are going on over here and will probably get worst the next years to come (think positively they say... yeah right...) which makes me feel happy and sad at the same time. 

Please meet the new family member... a Wii U console! This is the last console from the last gen, even though some people consider it current gen on par with Xbox One and PS4 (I certainly don't). And this may pretty much be the very last console I will be collecting games for.

The good news are: I didn't buy the console. I won it in a regular competition with an incredible amount of luck involved. I was actually pretty happy because I would not be buying it any time soon but I already had plenty of games for it, at least half of all the ones I want.

Merry Christmas everyone :)

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AC everywhere...

I am still not sure if this was a good or a bad decision, but I've bought the portuguese version of Assassin's Creed Buccaneer Edition. It's exclusive to a store over here and most are either sold or in terrible condition because these editions are victims of torture by regular retailers who simply don't care about the sh!t they sell. It took me some time to find a near mint one. This is the PS3 version because it's the only one available in Portuguese. All the other versions for different systems come in Spanish only...

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A small step for man...

I've made some small updates to this blog in the last couple of days. I've read through several posts and corrected a few grammar errors and typos, but there's still too much that could be done. 

However, the greatest improvement should be the labels. I'm still in the middle of the process to add new labels and update the current ones in existing posts, but right now if you filter the posts by using labels the results should be far more accurate than before. Unfortunately blogger doesn't allow more than 20 labels per post and there are some pictures with too many games and editions that easily fit several labels, so I had to restrict which labels I could use and leave many behind. These posts with too much stuff in them are always labelled as Misc.

More pics of new stuff coming shortly :)

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Since we were talking about AC...

Here's a little extra I received not too long ago: the exclusive Austrian wooden box of Assassin's Creed Revelations. This one was also for the Xbox 360 and it was very cheap: only 14 euros. The game is used, but I just wanted the box anyway :). It's called Black Edition, which is not the most original name for an AC edition considering the second instalment already received something with the exact same name. 

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Being a pirate is... expensive!

It finally arrived, the yearly fever of Assassin's Creed collectors is here and this time it brought us two very special editions among other equally important press kits, editions and promotional items.

Ubishop, the online store I hate the most for valid reasons, released one exclusive Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag: the Black Chest Edition, which I was able to get for the Xbox 360 thanks to a very kind buddy from CE. Thanks a lot Sneaks, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't be able to obtain this edition unless I paid stupid eBay prices :)

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Oh... My... GOD!

As you can probably guess, several months without posting anything here means I still have several items to show, but it's enough for today, so I will end it with something really special that I never ever imagined I would be able to get...

I originally entered this competition because I had some ideas about what to do. My drawing skills are kinda rusty and my digital artwork skills are very poor, but after some time and effort I've decided that I should enter the competition. I never really expected to win anything, but I actually did win. This has to be the first press kit I've ever gotten without having to pay anythign for it. 

The prize is possibly my newest number one item because it's both awesome and extremely hard to get. I must say that, however, I was slightly disappointed though... This was supposed to come individually numbered, but the version I received has no number :(. On top of that, I was expecting to win a PAL version but ended up getting an american version instead. In the long term the american version might be worth a lot more, but since I am mostly a PAL collector I'd love to get my hands in a PAL version of this - something that is close to impossible. 

Anyway, I can't complain much - I have a new "rarest" item in my collection, and  - I must say - a very special one: The Ducktales Remastered Press Kit with the working NES golden cartridge. This competition was open for residents in US and Europe. I can hardly ever win national competitions for much less important things, let alone something so special with such a global scale. The thing is, I did win and I still find hard to believe... 

In order to win this, there were several options: either sing the Ducktales opening theme, draw a classic Capcom game cover with the Ducktales crew or "duckify" a Capcom character so it could fit Disney's and Ducktales' universe. I've decided not to complicate things and make a duck version of the most notable character in Street Fighter series: Ryu. The final result definitely isn't a pro level masterpiece, but for someone inexperienced with computer drawings I even surprised myself. It took me some time to create it, and every second and minute I've spent working on it was totally worth it!  

I'm now the proud owner of one of these beauties, out of 150 produced in total. When they announced the initial set of winners one day before the end of the competition and I saw Capcom's e-mail saying I was one of the winners, I nearly fainted. I was stressing so much after losing my first and greatest chance of winning one of these copies that I never imagined I would eventually win one in the bigger competition.

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Controllers everywhere

Just a small update with two bundles that took me some time to get (because their prices took too long to drop :P), both for the 360: the Halo ODST Special Edition bundle with the green controller (not a big fan of that controller...) and the Sega Rally Online Arcade Wireless Speed Wheel bundle.

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What? Another PC game? No way!

Yup, I've bought another CE for PC, for a game that I actually don't know that well -  Total War: Shogun 2 Collector' Edition. For a reduced price of 20 euros, I've decided to get it. I know there's a bigger one out there, but not being a huge PC collector this was a good purchase :)

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And the second reason why I still haven't updated the blog...

... yup, it's Pokémon. With almost 400 hours of game and a complete pokédex, I seriously wasn't expecting to spend such a long time with this game. The last game I played before this was Ruby. I've just made a huge comeback. Pictured bellow are Pokémon X (sealed), Pokémon Y (currently playing) and the preorder bonus Pokkeball cart case, still in the official plastic bag. One of the coolest preorder items yet :). I didn't change the background on this one because it's troublesome to deal with the pokéball's plastic bag.

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The first reason why I haven't updated this blog in a while...

^... is because this beauty came out and I couldn't resist to play it on day one. I even bought a regular copy of the game for the PS3 to play the game before the CE arrived at my door. GTA V is a beast of a game, seriously, it's so huge and so impressive that it's impossible not to be surprised. It's been a long time since I was so surprised with a videogame - not just with its graphics and quality, but with the huge amount of work, complexity and detail behind this game. Even now, after beating the game and attempting to get 100% (damn collectibles...), I am still impressed with it.

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I could have died that day

Not too long ago, I left home and went shopping after dinner. As usual, I walked around the shopping centre visiting the regular places where you can usually find games. Every now and then it's possible to spot a bargain so I visit these stores once in a while. This time I was absolutely surprised to find something I wasn't expecting - at all.

I visited that particular store two months ago when it was being remodelled, so half its area was closed at that time. This store is just one in many around the area I live at because it's part of one of the biggest multimedia stores' chains around the country. On this day, the store was fully remodelled and working normally. I walked in and rushed to the videogame section, ignoring everything else just like I always do most of the times. I looked at the showcase behind the information balcony, and to my surprise, I found this baby sitting there, without a price tag. I immediately asked how much it was, expecting to hear an exorbitant price, but since there was no tag the employee had to find out first. So I came back a few minutes later and once I heard the price there was no way I would leave this over there: The Last of Us statue, exactly the same statue you get when buying the north-american Post Pandemic Edition. I knew it was available separately but I seriously never expecting to find one for sale over here, much less in that particular store for only 50 euros. No brainer! The inserts even have space to hold the game and the artbook :).

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It's been a while :)

Yup, it's been a while. It's not the first time I take a break from updating this blog, but I usually don't take so long. I'm still unemployed but thankfully I have quite a few things to do to keep me busy. I seriously need to get a job soon but things over here are quite messy and I don't intend to emigrate just yet, unless I really don't have a choice...

I recently switched rooms and now I'm in a room a little larger than the previous I had. I've managed to gain some extra space and bought two new bookcases to place most of my regular retro games. It's looking better than ever and I am quite happy to see some evolution in the way I store and display my games. A new bookcase will be coming soon to store regular DVD-sized game cases from the last 2 gens (mostly PS2, PS3 and Xbox games). Hopefully all regular games will be stored in this room and my old one will be used exclusively to keep and expose the larger boxes, collector's edition and press kits. 

This is just a small picture of how it looks like now, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Not everything's finished yet, but hopefully it will soon...

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I don't know how some of my posts have so few views...

... and others get so many. This is probably one of those getting the biggest number of views, because it's a well known and sought after The Last of Us UK press kit. I must thank Jacob for making me an offer I couldn't refuse. My press kit is actually signed. 

I've played the game from start to end and I absolutely loved it. I think there was space for certain improvements so I wouldn't consider it a 10/10 game, but definitely a remarkable videogaming experience and I enjoyed every bit.

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And yet another country exclusive

It took me quite some time (several years...) to finally get something I've been wanting to buy for a long time. It's not rare or expensive, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to buy it. Then suddenly a factory sealed copy appeared before my eyes and I though that was the moment to finally get it. Sorrym don't get too impressed, because it's nothing that special. It's just the french version of Gran Turismo 2 with a slightly different cover, double CD case and bonus disc with extra content. Totally worth it, since GT2 is still one of my racing faves out there. It's still factory sealed with a couple tiny cracks on the case that don't worry me that much.

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Back to the purples...

Some time ago I wrote a few messages about the purple Master System games only released in Portugal. It's been a while since I've completed the full set of these with the console included, so I decided to take my time and make yet another group picture with all the titles and the console. Hope you enjoy it.

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The Last of Us is finally here.

This was the latest game I've finished and I seriously need to say - what a masterpiece! The reviews were definitely not exaggerating. I loved it. The only thing I didn't like was the ending, but that's my personal opinion. The game by itself is truly amazing. There are many good action games out there but this one is just one step ahead. I've made quite an investment on this game: bought the two special editions released over here, Joel Edition and Ellie Edition, as well as the Amazon IT exclusive Ellie Collector's Edition. I loved this game so much that I've decided to spend more money on this franchise. The Press Kit should be on his way to me, and I will hopefully get some other editions from different regions!

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Italy does it again

Just like several countries in Europe, Italy is at the top of the list when it comes to exclusive stuff. We've seen extremely limited editions of Mass Effect 3 and later Halo 4. But among those editions, there's also one less known for Tekken Tag Tournament 2 called the King of Iron Fist Edition. Limited to about 1200 units or so, this editions comes with just an Alisa figure (which is sold separately) and a copy of We Are Tekken edition. To be honest, these don't feel like official stuff even though they probably are.

I managed to grab the King of Iron Fist Edition for a rather cheap price, but without the "We Are Tekken Edition" (which I plan on getting later). It also came with a Tekken Hybrid Collector's Edition (NTSC) without the regular game, which was a nice addition to my collection as well.

Now I just need the games :)

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Cute and fluffy

Yep, since it was limited to 1000 pieces and so cheap, why miss the limited Edition of this MMORPG from Playasia? I think I took the right decision, especially because this edition looks cute. I can't tell much about the game because I didn't Play it - I'm a sinner, not knowing what I'm buying :/

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Zelda Collection approaching its end

I'm not a hardcore collector of certain series or franchises, so I'm happy as much as I get each individual game or special edition released in Europe, excluding variants and budget lines. Now that I've managed to get Spirit Tracks Limited Edition, I'm just missing the original Link's Awakening game for the original Gameboy and the Wind Waker slipcase on the GC. I will probably never get the Gold Pack for the SNES or that Ocarina of Time pack with the t-shirt from Germany. Those are two items people bid the sh!* out of them and the final prices are ridiculous, so I'm not even counting those. AfterI get the missing game and that slipcase, I think I'm done with Zelda. I wish I could say the same about Megaman :P

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Injustice: Gods killing each other

The newly arrived game from DC studios combines Mortal Kombat gameplay (sort of...) with DC characters of all sorts. This Collector's Edition is quite decent. The statue is actually pretty cool, looks very good IMO and it's much larger than I originally expected. It's not top notch, but far better than I first expected and that's good to know. I played the game for a little while and I enjoyed it, but still doesn't beat my favourite fighting games gameplay-wise.

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How many are there?

This is yet another one of the dozens of different Dead Island Riptide editions released around the world. Another Polish exclusive, very similar to the Survival Kit from the previous game which I didn't manage to get as I was mostly concerned about the Treasure Edition. Includes all sorts of bonus items but nothing particularly impressive. What makes it cool is the quantity of tiny items and bonus altogether that form this edition and the fact that it comes from a country with a language that makes it hard for foreign buyers like me to get this stuff. Dead Island is roughly a new franchise that only received two different games so far and yet there are almost 20 different editions for both games. Damn!

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Not just in the US after all!

Mortal Kombat Ultimate Edition was originally announced as an NTSC exclusive only release in America. I wasn't much interested in that edition mostly because it was too big and expensive to import. But then I found out that a PAL version exists. France received its own 'Edition Ultimate' which is certainly better than the crappy and over-expensive Collector's Edition we got over here.

And then the price dropped to less than 60 euros and I got it. I'm actually happy that I was able to get this edition for such a good price and arrive in perfect condition, still sealed.

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Temporary insanity

I remember when the first game came out: it looked great and it was amazing. So I preordered the second game, but it was pretty annoying to play.

And now here we have the 3rd game: Far Cry 3. I wasn't expecting to buy this so soon, but the price was too good and the reviews and screenshots looked great as well, so I was really tempted. I might give this game a try when I have the chance. It's not a bad edition at all. I'm glad it's not huge like so many others.

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Oh, those country exclusives...

This time, good ol' France received this particular boxset for the PSP: Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker with the accessories made by HORI if I am correct. These accessories were available as a separate bundle, but GAME in France received it as an exclusive special edition pack that comes with the game, which makes this an exclusive collectible.

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A little love to Forza

I guess I won't take too much time talking about Forza, a great driving sim created for the Xbox. The latest games were pretty good, but I didn't have the chance to give Horizon a try. Unfortunately, unlike the previous games, there was no Portuguese release, so I just took my chance of getting the Collector's Edition from Game UK as soon as the price dropped to something I was willing to spend on it. And so here it is: Forza Horizon Limited Edition. Edit: Actually, I don't know what happened to the picture so I'll update this post later :o

And now something a little more special... Well, actually, not really. It may be rare, but it's not that great: the spanish exclusive Forza Motorsport 3 Press Kit. It barely comes with anything else but a larger outer box and a promotional copy of the game. I think it also came with a key chain but I believe it's missing. I need to confirm this.

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Not sure how this fits in my videogame collection...

Found a Forza 4 Car wash kit. It doesn't come with the game and it's probably just a promotional item but I found it quite amusing and it includes a booklet with information. The price was appealing too, so I thought "hey, why not?" and bought it :)

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I promised a huge update within a couple of weeks. I lied.

Unfortunately I didn't have the time and the patience to update the blog, but I have many things I still need to add. I've added a few items so far, but there are many more I still need to include. I seriously hope to take care of that within the next few days :). Cheers!

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Too... many... please... stop it!

Assassin's Creed really is a major pain in the ass to collect. I hate Ubisoft, but it's true that they sometimes do a very decent job with their videogame releases. It's their mandatory online connection, milky DLCs, crappy costumer service and UPlay's restrictions to countries they don't like to post to (without even explaining why) that make me dislike this company.

I already had the Animus Edition, but now that the regular Collector's Edition price dropped to 20 euros, why miss it? It's Assassin's Creed after all and there are many crazy fans around the globe so price is certain to increase.

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'This is the last game I will make', said no Kojima ever.

Okay, this one wasn't exactly made by Kojima, but still, it's another Metal Gear (in title, at least). I was a little envious that the Japanese goto a pretty awesome Play Arts Kai figure of Raiden. I don't really need to have a figure or statue in every edition that I buy but I really expected to see a Limited Edition in Europe with that figure. And that's exactly what they did! The bad news is that the editions come with nothing else but the game and the figure. That's a little poor, but still nice anyway.

This is yet another game I still didn't have the time to play. "So what the hell do you play if you buy so many games?", you ask. Well, I played Tomb Raider recently as well as Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations. I've also been playing some older Mega Drive games.  I want to play this game, God of War Ascension and Bioshock Infinite but first I might pick one of those HD collections recently released (probably Zone of the Enders) and give it a try.

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Greetings from Japan

I've finally decided to get some of Japan's best exclusives for Super Famicon (SNES), PS1 and PS2. I'm starting with the exclusive RPGs (not all of them of course) but I'm also targeting some mecha-based videogames, starting with Gundam games. The first LE to arrive at my collection is Mobile Suit Gundam ver 2.0 Limited Edition in mint condition. I'm pleased :).

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Blood. Blood everywhere.

The new game is finally here and comes with a Collector's Edition, as expected. A Portuguese version was released and I decided to get that one mostly because it usually includes many more languages such as Portuguese, which is not available in most other versions. The outer box is kinda fragile, the statue is average size and not very detailed and it includes the Limited Edition sold separately, but for about 85 euros including a free PSN subscription wasn't that bad! Now I need to play the game but that's gonna take some time. I'll probably wait for a price drop or borrow from someone instead of opening my copy.

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1000 chapters later...

Naruto is one of those japanese series that I love and hate at the same time. The show becomes epic, then boring, then becomes epic again. I stopped watching the anime because the fillers are damn boring, but I love the manga.

15 years ago it was unthinkable for us, European gamers, to see a series receive a game where the storyline goes beyond the anime in Japan. And that's exactly what happened with Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 3. Being a fan of the main story, I am usually disappointed with some of the games that add a lot to the fillers as well. But I really couldn't let pass the newest game

And because I was still missing the previous game, I managed to get a good deal on a near-mint copy of Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations. Unfortunately too many things are missing in the main storyline of each character, but overall the game is still well worth it.

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Lara Croft is back. And broken in several pieces

I'm a pretty big Tomb Raider Fan. I was able to enjoy almost every game released so far. I obviously couldn't miss the latest game, but I was kinda septic about it, specially after seeing the initial gameplay footage. In the end, the game is pretty amazing. Took me a few days to finish and was kinda easy but it has plenty of other things to do. I got the Survival Edition to open and play the game. I also got the Collector's Edition and keep it sealed. Finally, I couldn't miss the German steelbook with slipcase, mostly because it has the slipcase as I couldn't care less about the steelbook. I've finished this game and to be honest it surpassed my expectations, which were actually fairly low. In the end, the game is very good.

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Mother of Castlevania!

It took me over 5 years to buy this game. It's not the only one that I'm missing but it certainly is, by far, one of the hardest to get. Castlevania Vampire's Kiss for the Super Nintendo, complete. Outer box is not mint (I wish it was) but it's still in a very good condition and it's the real deal, not a repro. Now I'm only missing an original copy of Belmont's Revenge for the original GB, the first two NES games and Order of Ecclesia for NDS.

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Not exactly Miss UK...

Yup, the new gruesome edition of Dead Island Riptide caused some trouble to Deep Silver, who made a public apology for releasing a completely ripped apart. I'm already used to there creepy items (Ghost Hunter / FEAR 2 Press Kits anyone?) but I had to get this. I heard the 360 version was exclusive to the UK. I had no idea when I originally bought it :P

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It's a Huuuuge update

Yup, I've been away for some time now, but the collection hasn't stopped growing. I now have way too much stuff to list here. I also need to update my collection list, take pictures, write some worthless things about the stuff I bought etc etc. But within the next week you can expect a pretty decent update with some interesting items :)

Cheers!

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