[QUOTE="YourChaosIsntMe"] Likewise, I can't imagine anyone feeling that various forms of media are clutter. In my opinion, literature, films, music, video games, photography, etc. cannot be clutter by their very nature. Clutter is garbage, things that will not appreciate in value or worth on any level at any point in time. I'm still pissed off at my mother and myself for sending my Genesis and like 15 games to my cousin who couldn't afford a PSX or find an older system. Haha, materialism.
garey017
Anything can be clutter. Clutter is not necessarily garbage. Go to your nearest second hand store. All of that stuff WAS someone's clutter, but it's stuff that other people will need & buy. And yes media CAN be clutter. If I never got rid of any video games, magazines, books, VHS tapes, 8-track tapes (yeah i'm old), cassette tapes, CD's, newspapers, etc... that I've ever had, I wouldn't have room in my house to move. Not to mention, moving across the country a couple times tends to weed out anything you don't use.
I'm not saying there's anything wrong with collecting stuff, that would be silly. But it's not for me. As much as I loved my old games, I'm not going to throw them in a box in a corner somewhere hoping someday they may be collectors items. I'd rather let others enjoy them, and give myself some extra space. The same with books. If I have no plans on reading a book a second time, I won't keep it. A lot of people keep all the books they've read. My brother does this, and he has a library, that admittedly looks pretty cool and sophisticated. But we know he's not going to read them again, except maybe a few.
Now, if you think you're going to want to play them again, even if it's way down the road, that's a different story. Or even if you just like collecting games, like comic books or baseball cards, that's cool. But some people kind of remind me of that stereotypical little kid who will hold on to a ball even though he doesn't want to play with it, just so no-one else can play with it either.
Touche on the kid holding on to the baseball. I have a friend that despises JRPGs, but holds on to his copy of Xenogears (and doesn't let anyone borrow it). So you do make an extremely valid point. A lot of people do seem to collect and horde.
I think you misinterpreted the portion of my post that you quoted. I was specifically referring to myself. Not to sound pompous, but I do have impecable taste in film, video games, music, etc. a lot of things go into collecting such items, building a library, narcissism, the "looking glass self-image," etc. I also made a statement that was far too general...I myself have trashed or donated various magazines, cassette tapes, and VHS tapes (and even a few video games...like Bubsy). One of the reasons many gamers collect their games, conscious or not, is because there really isn't a single organization or group that archives video game material (like the Library of Congress or the U.S. library system). My statement is also too generalized in hindsight given the culture we live in. As it related to me exclusively, it may not be generalized, but the average person purchases media for short-term entertainment. In a culture of consumerism, all forms of media are succeptable to commodification, which dilutes their purpose and worth. So it's really not as static as I asserted in my original post. It's certainly variable. If we're considering timeless classics (I'm sure I don't need to list them), then they can and should be collected, but the games many people purchase for entertainment don't really need to be collected. The same can be said for film or music. I don't believe this is the case with literature. I, like your brother, enjoy building a library, though it does come off as pompous and arrogant, to be sure. You're absolutely right about what that library is really worth too. I'll certainly read the works of J.K. Rowling and Ray Bradbury again and again, but will I ever actually read Sartre's Situations or The Federalist Papers again? I didn't even want to read them cover to cover the first time through. I just keep them there to let other people know that I'm more intelligent than they are, a product of my own self-doubt, obviously. If others did not know what I have accomplished in academia, then what did I really achieve? The collection of literature really is an arrogant venture.
Anyway, I digress. I do agree that for many people, anything can be clutter, but as the statement applies to me, I tend to purchase and collect only the most accomplished games which I do enjoy playing again (for example, I just finished Resident Evil 2 for the 8th time a couple months ago). Some of these games will also be worth money in the future. Will I sell them? Probably not. It's certainly different for other people, as you said, GT4 is looking dull now in comparison to what is currently being offered. I myself feel that this alone lends GT4 a certain degree of character. When I'm 60, I'm sure I'll prefer the first four GTs because of what they remind me of. GT5 will never consume me like past iterations have, regardless of how good it is. I simply will not have the time to allow it to do so.
Some people have said you'll regret selling off these old items, but maybe there's something ascetic about parting with them? But now we're touching upon how the human species applies an inordinate amount of importance or worth on various items in our vain attempts to disassociate ourselves with the inevitable outcome of our lives. Sometimes we forget what will become of us. Said collection extends our lives the very same way that accomplishment may do so. It's the unconscious application of our very selves into the material possessions that we acquire throughout life. Maybe you're the most informed and rational? After all, how do possessions, regardless of their artistic merit, lend purpose to life?
Now I kind of feel inadequate.
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