Torment:ToN - The Collector's Edition
 

The unboxing of the Torment: Tides of Numenera collector's edition at PCGamesN:

More information.

To me, it doesn't make much sense to collect PC game boxes any more.

While I can't care less about boxes, I'm crazy about artbooks…
But sometimes even those have silly editions like this one for example:
http://www.biowarestore.com/the-art-…imited-edition

http://www.biowarestore.com/media/ca…ofmea-main.jpg

Who the hell needs "A portfolio including three blueprints of the Tempest exploration vessel"?!
Yea, if it was Normandy I'd probably sing another song…

Anyway, I've preordered the art of ME4, normal edition, on Amazon. The book. Not the game. It's still a question if I'll ever buy the game.

Those templates do look silly. I don't know about others but I absolutely loved the Art of Morrowind booklet that came with Morrowind Collectors' Edition. I wish we had more stuff like that, you don't see that often.

I wish we still had good cloth maps, the one that came with D:OS collectors edition was a joke, and the one that came with PoE's wasn't a ton better.

I think the problem is that today the cloth maps are collectors' edition geegaws. Back in the day, when they were included as a regular part of the game, they were effectively integrated into the gameplay. What I remember about my old Ultima cloth maps isn't looking at them as works of art, but sticking push-pins into them and using them to plan my exploration of the world. They were an integral part of the game.

They sure don't make 'em like they used to!

Years ago, I would display Ultima maps proudly on my wall…
http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/j…psa0e9d23b.jpg

Nowadays, I keep them hidden in the box…

Divinity: Original Sin
http://abload.de/img/20140707_173941dcshr.jpg

PoE
http://i.imgur.com/RdrEPkp.jpg

Why is it so? To me collecting non-existing, non-permanent using-rights (aka STEAM games) doesn't make much sense. And it never did, because you actually own nothing (read the EULA).

Me:

Boxed CRPGs collected: 443 (85 since 2010)

STEAM-games collected: 0 (since the dawn of time)

Game boxes take up useless shelf space and collect dust. Games themselves depreciate rapidly over time, so they're usually not good investments. If my Steam collection goes away some day, it'll be easy to replace.

Well, that something physical takes space is not something that was different in the past. But Collecting chinese vases is something different than storing photos of those vases in a dropbox.

I am very eager to see if your collection can be replaced when STEAM hopefully crumbles one day.

Fun fact: All over the world countries try to preserve games in boxes as art for later generations. The German Bundestag just releases millions to do so. And IIRC the Library of Congress does that, too.

Seems to make sense for some people, doesn't it.

To me the digital platforms (Steam and GOG) are just so damn convenient. I threw out all my old boxed games a couple of years ago (the ones I really love are in my GOG library anyway), and I haven't regretted it yet. Maybe Steam will crash one day, but on the other hand my computer no longer has drives for older media, not even DVD. And I doubt I would get my old games to run on a new system even it had. And getting those games to run smoothly in another ten years or twenty?

I find your lack of faith… disturbing. :p Meh, I've got piles of old media that no longer work, old game books I no longer read, and old gaming maps that now look rather pitiful. Companies like GoG will be around to pick up the pieces if and when Steam folds.

Yeah there are museums of old junk. Guess what though: they only need one copy.

This is why I only buy games on GOG (or some other DRM-free platform if a game I want isn't on there for some reason)

I've come to really dislike physical boxes and whatever gewgaws they stuff in collector editions. All useless junk you can admire for a few seconds and then does nothing but sit on a shelf. I have one collector edition box left to toss out and then I'm free of all physical media and assorted cruft. It's very liberating.

Personally, I rather like being able to pull out my old Ultima Underworld 5.25 floppy boxed edition from the days of yore, read through the Memoirs of Sir Cabirus and other such gaming paraphernalia. The physical space my collection takes is well and truly compensated by their value in pure nostalgia and capacity to create vivid memory recollections of happy gaming experiences, recent or otherwise. I value them as much as my books, films and vinyl.

That pure tactile factor and notion of being able to peruse something simultaneously to the experience is largely missing in much of the mainstream digital only driven culture.

I can relate to that, and understand the nostalgia factor. But still, those 5.25 disks don't do much good. Maps and manuals I can understand.

Well, that's not necessarily true if you're into collecting old computer technology as well. ;) But I take your point. Modernity does have its hefty share of technological conveniences.

Maybe being an adult with a wife and adult friends might have something to do with you not putting fantasy maps from RPG games on the wall… no?


BTW, ya'll are forgetting a major thing. The REASON for all this extraneous bit of lore and maps is because they couldn't put it in the game itself. Once they could, the extra lore bits went away… for the most part.

Well, considering that money would no longer be of any value and electricity would be gone (ie end of the world scenario), I think I can live with the fact STEAM would be gone. ;)

If STEAM crumbled, so would GoG and the internet itself. Basically, it would take an apocalyptic event for Steam to just disappear out of the blue.

What happens with Steam when North Korea nukes Seattle? :lol:

Fallout LARP.

pibbur who will come back and edit when he's found the proper pibburism for this post

Hey, I'm sure some of us are middle-aged, single and still living with mom… and not ashamed of our fantasy maps. :)

And some of us with a wife and adult friends are not ashamed of our fantasy maps from RPG games on the wall, yes!

pibbur who, among other paraphernalia, has got a wall full of game maps and posters in his den, as well as gargoyle figurines, a rattle snake (figurine) and a bust of Geralt wearing a tie (decorated with MRI's of the knee).

They are probably putting it up in the gaming room not the living room :) Also, I imagine quite a few of us have friends who don't care or who are actually interested in this kind of thing. If you feel you have to hide stuff from your friends I would question whether they are actually good friends or not. Caring what other people think is not a recipe for long term personal happiness (my opinion of course).

My pride and joy which has been shown off quite a few times and is still 100% mint with no scratches as I handle it with great care and affection:

I proudly displayed BG2 map on my little cubicle wall at uni when I was studying Honours. Everyone looked at me like I am biggest nerd alive. I didn't care, I studied chemistry - I am nerd, you guys are nerd trying to act like hipsters :D

Pics or it didn't happen. :p

I believe Pibbur released the photos of his den before. I remember some of the described artifacts.

True. Found the one with the gargoyle and Geralt bust, but no wall with maps and posters.

I think you're spot on for this matter, certainly.
I've got that U7 box too incidentally; nice one. The Fellowship medallion remains blue-tacked on my ol' CRT monitor. :)

Just a quick comment on the evaluation judgements when it comes to maps on walls:
I still have many of mine up - I don't think one should ever be ashamed of a hobby that brings as much pleasure and joy as quality gaming time does. The exploration of imaginary worlds also arguably makes for a deeper inner world when the experience is adequately reflected upon. Making some kind of binary between adult-child in this regard is artificial and not particularly useful in my opinion.

In my case, whilst my dad collects external world geographical maps from his hiking adventures, I collect maps of interior worlds from mine. :) It's a curious little dualism of sorts.

I guess I'll get a nice tan and be playing Fallout.

I thought you'd never ask…Posted them in a new thread: My Den.

pibbur who had forgoten how to link album pictures. For about 5 minutes.

Well I got my Torment CE (from the KS campaign - much different from the one they unboxed in this video) today and it has probably the best cloth map I've seen in a game in 20 years or so. Good of them to respond so quickly to my demands from post #5.

Congrats on getting it. I haven't even had my UPS tracking notification yet!

edit: Just received the UPS tracking number. Speak of the devil.

Sadly, the rest of it, beyond the excellent cloth map, isn't very impressive. Would have rather had the retail collector's edition with the statue (that they unboxed in this video), which ended up even costing less than my pledge too. inXile hasn't exactly been the best about respecting their backers.

Side note: I thought some of these posts were funny, and reminded me of a book I'm reading, its a pretty good sci-fi/thriller book where America is not only nuked, but also bioterror weapons are deployed, turning most of the population into zombies…talk about a one-two punch! lol Seriously, entertaining stuff if you like that sort of thing.

https://www.amazon.com/Unleashed-V-P…/dp/B00H27GOVS

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon….gL._SY346_.jpg

Finally got the UPS tracking number today. Being shipped from Poland. :lol:

Hah, mine came from France (to the US).

Mine arrived today.

The packaging was rather disappointing, as the cardboard inserts were damaged.

Mine looks like the photos here.

Yeah mine is pretty much the same way, whoever thought those cardboard flaps would hold all the weight of the items inside is an idiot. The square piece in the middle was just floating around freely in my box. I really can't imagine a single one of these made it "fully intact" to the recipient.

Not really sure what the square piece is for. The edges weren't even folded back.