I am a digital hoarder/My epic back log

[Metalhead]

Whether I am hoarding anime series on my PC hard drive or adding more video games to my Xbox One hard drive, I have become obsessed with digital hoarding the last few years. I keep telling myself I will eventually go through everything I acquire, but now I have to accept that is an impossibility at this point and I just feel more comfortable with watching my collection grow to obscene levels. It is a time and money sink that I need to snap out of. Any ideas?

 

[tree]

Yes.
I had an idea.
It's not helpful, but it's definitely an idea.

I was thinking of Digital hoarding....meaning stacks of fingers and toes.
That would be a real problem I think; a collection of
toes and fingers, evermore increasing.

Bit of a niche market, but medical schools might be interested.
Or maybe museums.
=========
So, do you figure your collection in the 1000s or the
10s of thousands? Or what?

 

[pjcnet]

Well if money is an issue there's masses of legally free video games on the PC, some involve grinding if you don't use the micro transaction cash shop or even worse they're pay to win, but there's some really good ones too and there's even some totally free games. If your Internet speed is reasonable you could also join PS Now on your PC that gives you access to literally hundreds of PS3 and now some PS4 games too via game streaming for a reasonable fixed monthly fee. Your PC doesn't have to be high spec because it's only streaming the games that are actually running on a remote system and it's like a Netflix for games, there are other game streaming services too, although PS Now seem to have by far the best selection at the time of writing. Unfortunately because it's run by Sony who are rivals to Microsoft it's not available on the Xbox One however, I'm kind of surprised it's supported on Microsoft Windows. You can use an Xbox One controller connected to your PC via micro USB, but some PS4 games won't work without a PS4 Dual Shock 4 Controller when they use the touchscreen. There are also other reasonable PC fixed pay per monthly services where you get access to a good library of PC games, although your PC will need to be up to spec to run them unlike game streaming.

What type of games do you like?

 

[Metalhead]

I do not own a PC. I am a console gamer only. My favorite games tend to be the ones that have good storytelling attached to them. I play a lot of walking sims and visual novels, for example.

I did not mean to rate your post as Funny, just the one above it. Sorry about that.

 

[Progster]

I'm a digital hoarder, too, but no video games: only audio files. I currently have 13055 music albums!

 

[Suzanne]

I did not mean to rate your post as Funny, just the one above it. Sorry about that

Just to say that you can undo a rating and press the one you want.

 

[pjcnet]

I do not own a PC. I am a console gamer only. My favorite games tend to be the ones that have good storytelling attached to them. I play a lot of walking sims and visual novels, for example.

I did not mean to rate your post as Funny, just the one above it. Sorry about that.

You said that you hoarded anime on your PC hard drive so I assumed you owned a PC. There is a somewhat similar service to PS Now for the Xbox One called Xbox Game Pass that you may or may not know about where you can play a large number of Xbox 360 and Xbox One games for a reasonable fixed monthly fee which is $9.99 at the time of writing in the USA, but the big difference is the games need to be downloaded and installed on your console which takes time, unlike Sony's PS Now service which streams the games from a remote system meaning they're ready to play in seconds without any installation. This means that Xbox Game Pass is less like a Netflix for games and you'll only be-able to fit a limited number of games at once on your hard drive, but the quality of the game's visuals won't ever be reduced by streaming compression, there's no risk of network lag (although I've never noticed it when I've used it) and you won't need a consistently good Internet connection while you're playing even if it's a single player game, so there's advantages and disadvantages. Xbox Game Pass is only supported on the Xbox One, where PS Now works on a PS4 and Windows PC too (not that it effects you) and there's not as many games as on PS Now which has over 500 games while Xbox Game Pass has around 190 at the time of writing, although this is still a large number and it's not just about quantity, it's about quality too and there appears to be some excellent games on Xbox Game Pass including newer games. Xbox Game Pass also has a free 14 trial option, but if you don't remember to cancel before the 14 days are up the subscription payment of $9.99 will be taken automatically from your bank or credit card and it will continue being taken every month until you cancel, so don't forget! (PS Now has a similar trial, but it's only 7 days.)

Here's a link to a list of Xbox Game Pass games:

Xbox Game Pass Games | Download Video Games | Xbox

I like a decent story too, but I mostly like RPGs and JRPGs. I'm now 48 years old, but no-one dares to tell me I'm too old for them and I've played video games since I played Pong and variants on an early console in the mid 1970s as a very young child, followed by an Atari 2600 and then various 8 bit computers which ended with the Commodore 64 followed by the 16 bit Atari ST and Commodore Amiga. I used to hoard games when I was a kid on tape and then disk, they weren't exactly all originals either, although I used to buy as many originals as I possibly could too.

 

[Misery]

Yeah, I do the same thing.

PC gamer, so my collection of games ends up being utterly massive due to the gargantuan selection of awesome things to be found.

My collection on Steam alone comes out to 553 games, and I buy more whenever I bloody well feel like it. Outside of Steam, I have.... some number of other games, I have no idea how many.

But then there's the roms. Hoboy. Quite awhile back I decided to go after arcade roms... I'm a huge fan of the golden age of arcades, but most of the games are nigh-impossible to find anymore, as arcade units are rare now, and the vast majority of arcade games never got a home version. So the solution was simple. Download the roms. Download *ALL* of the roms. Every... single... one. There are thousands. I think it's close to 9000 roms? I forget how many exactly but it's a really huge number. Every arcade game made before a specific date (mid 2000s I think is the cutoff, I dont give a fart about anything past that) is on this machine.

Apparently I also have every NES rom. I dont remember downloading that, but okay, sure, why not. I've been a fan of the original NES since it came out... I love the thing. So that's good.

And then... there's the picture archive. If you've ever heard of Imgur, I go there really frequently. I download anything that's funny or interesting or cute to put in the archive. Memes or cat photos or exciting gifs or whatever, currently there are nearly 3000 pics in there.

The fun part though... is that I'm getting a new computer within the next week or two. I... am not looking forward to The Transfer. ALL of that stuff, those kersquillions of files, need to be moved onto that PC. How am I even going to do that without it taking 10000 years? Ugh.


So yeah, I'm a totally unapologetic hoarder. In my case though, I'm in the rare position of being able to afford to do whatever I feel like, financially... I dont have to worry about that. But for those NOT in that position, yeah, some willpower is definitely important.

It is MUCH easier with PC gaming to get things for a very low cost or even free, but when you're using consoles, the prices get really nasty really fast.

Honestly, the best piece of advice I could give you, OP, is to choose a couple of games on your list, and refuse to buy any new ones until you have completed those couple of games. Some people decide to go through their ENTIRE list before buying again, but... that takes willpower I cant even conceive of.

As for making it take less TIME.... I have no idea. Perhaps consider trying to find a second hobby... something you can switch to so you're not JUST doing gaming. I've found that to be a good thing to do. Having some variation in your activities is a very good thing.

 

[Misery]

I like a decent story too, but I mostly like RPGs and JRPGs. I'm now 48 years old, but no-one dares to tell me I'm too old for them and I've played video games since I played Pong and variants on an early console in the mid 1970s as a very young child, followed by an Atari 2600 and then various 8 bit computers which ended with the Commodore 64 followed by the 16 bit Atari ST and Commodore Amiga. I used to hoard games when I was a kid on tape and then disk.

Honestly as far as I'm concerned, anyone that tells you you're too old for this is a bloody idiot. Or just really stuck in the past.

Gaming stopped being a thing for kids MANY years ago. Now it's a thing for ALL ages. I've seen gamers who are 60+, for instance.

I wonder what it was like though, to be gaming in the 70s like that. I'm in my mid 30s, so the ultra-ancient Pong era was over before my time. I grew up with an Atari 2600 (which I still love, actually I need to buy a new one soon as my previous one went all wonky... yeah I still play those games, I'd take those over some AAA game any day) and later an NES and SNES. As well as DOS PCs... holy heck do I miss THOSE. It was a very different time, yep...

I always wanted a Commodore 64 back then, but never had one. It very suddenly occurs to me that there's nothing stopping me from buying one NOW. Huh. Maybe I'll look into that.

 

[pjcnet]

Honestly as far as I'm concerned, anyone that tells you you're too old for this is a bloody idiot. Or just really stuck in the past.

Gaming stopped being a thing for kids MANY years ago. Now it's a thing for ALL ages. I've seen gamers who are 60+, for instance.

I wonder what it was like though, to be gaming in the 70s like that. I'm in my mid 30s, so the ultra-ancient Pong era was over before my time. I grew up with an Atari 2600 (which I still love, actually I need to buy a new one soon as my previous one went all wonky... yeah I still play those games, I'd take those over some AAA game any day) and later an NES and SNES. As well as DOS PCs... holy heck do I miss THOSE. It was a very different time, yep...

I always wanted a Commodore 64 back then, but never had one. It very suddenly occurs to me that there's nothing stopping me from buying one NOW. Huh. Maybe I'll look into that.

If you own a PC you can reliably emulate the Atari 2600 and in fact all reasonably well known 8 and 16 bit computers and consoles. It's debatable whether downloading the games themselves is legal however unless you own the original even though they're readily available all over the Internet. Many will say they're abandonware which means they're so old that the developers don't care about their copyright any more for personal use, but technically it is still piracy if you don't own the original if they wanted to make a point of it so please be advised. You can also use an open source DOS emulator called DOSBox that allows you to run old DOS games on a modern PC.

I agree that some of the older games were excellent and more playable than a lot of games today even though the graphics are obviously very dated. Even some younger people are starting to appreciate play-ability over high end graphics however with an influx of indie retro style games on the market, some have become very popular.

 

[Metalhead]

Yeah, my PC died two months ago, and I do not have the funds to replace it currently. I never did much gaming on it. It was primarily my anime hoarding machine.

Thanks for the advice, everybody.

 

[Misery]

If you own a PC you can reliably emulate the Atari 2600 and in fact all reasonably well known 8 and 16 bit computers and consoles. It's debatable whether downloading the games themselves is legal however unless you own the original even though they're readily available all over the Internet. Many will say they're abandonware which means they're so old that the developers don't care about their copyright any more for personal use, but technically it is still piracy if you don't own the original if they wanted to make a point of it so please be advised. You can also use an open source DOS emulator called DOSBox that allows you to run old DOS games on a modern PC.

I agree that some of the older games were excellent and more playable than a lot of games today even though the graphics are obviously very dated. Even some younger people are starting to appreciate play-ability over high end graphics however with an influx of indie retro style games on the market, some have become very popular.

Feh, I've never cared about the screwball legality of roms. Something that rom-users learned very quickly: nobody gives a crap about it. Even Nintendo, one of the most annoyingly strict companies, the most they ever do is that on very rare occaisions they might contact some rom-hosting site and demand that a couple of really super specific roms be taken down. Not ALL of the roms. Just like... 3. Mario, Zelda, and Metroid usually. They dont seem to care whatsoever about any others, which doesnt make sense to me, but whatever.

I suspect the reason is simple: Nobody makes money off of these old things anymore so they simply dont care. It'd be too much trouble and expense for them to actually DO much about it (not to mention that actions like that REALLY irritate the hell out of consumers, which obviously is best avoided when possible). Even Nintendo's Virtual Console is falling apart... heck, the Switch doesnt even have it.

As it is, I've already got 9000 arcade roms and 700 or so NES roms and also some 2600 ones buried somewhere, so... yeah, I"ve never been too bothered by that. Though when it comes to the 2600 I really prefer using the original cartridges. There's something special about that old machine. Plus the things are littered around my room anyway for no apparent reason... really, cartridges everywhere.

DOSBox I've used but it's often a bit beyond my patience. Well... beyond my patience to find the freaking games. Though I did play through Arctic Adventure recently, an ancient CGA game from the days when colors were a very limited resource. You got exactly 4 of them and that was it. I still remember the 3 most common color schemes even after all these years.


And yeah, those older games were often just great. And when I compare them to today's "main" stuff, well, the modern ones honestly hold up very badly, at least to me. The major companies have all become hyper-greedy, the quality of games has hit rock bottom (but OMG TEH GRAPHIX, sigh...) and I stopped buying AAA crap a long while ago. I stick almost entirely with indie stuff and retro games nowadays. I prefer my games to NOT suck, and also not be full of lootboxes or other horrid schemes.

 

[Metalhead]

Well, I have spoken with my sponsor about this yesterday. I have a 4TB external hard drive that is full of anime that I torrented (most of it is stuff that I grew up with in the '90s that is no longer in print in the USA). I have two hard drives attached to my One (a 4TB and a 2TB). Between them, I have exactly 678 games installed on that system, and you can blame my impulse buys on the Xbox weekly deals for that. My sponsor had me give a verbal contract to not add to that massive backlog until I play through the campaign modes of at least 25% of what I already own. That will take a while, but I think it might be worth it.

I own quite a few AAA games, but I tend to gravitate more towards story-oriented experiences. I also enjoy co-op action games when I can find a partner for them - just last week, a friend and I had a blast playing through Army of Two together.

 

[Lichi]

I hoard on Facebook articles ever since “save post” function came. I always save things for later, but never get around to them after.

 

[Metalhead]

My backlog is currently sitting at over 800 unfinished games, and this is coming from somebody who is solely interested in completing SP or co-op campaign modes at the highest difficulty levels.

I need to find the motivation to conquer more of what I already own before I visit a used game shop again. Talk about first world problems.

Do you have a backlog? And if you do, would you be willing to do some co-op with me on the Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3 or PS4?

 

[tlc]

I'm a digital hoarder, too, but no video games: only audio files. I currently have 13055 music albums!

You easily got me beat. I've got about 500-600 CDs and I think I counted at one time about 800 tapes. But they were all purchased for next to nothing.

I don't do games, but I have a digital hoard of everything else I've accumulated in my life. Photos, project and reference information, programs, drivers, links to things I thought about buying. For me it's a time capsule of my life since I got a computer/internet in 1997, exactly like someone would hoard on American Pickers. Things are arranged to how I did it at the time, then at a new chapter of my life I started a new folder and just kept expanding upon that, but they're all scattered throughout. There are times I thought about sorting through it all and taking inventory, but that would ruin it. Only part of the memory/experience is the actual information, the other essential part is how I categorized it. But storage is so cheap and easy that I just keep it and re-plop it into a different computer if I get one. I've got maybe 6 GB of stuff on my work computer accumulated over 20 years of being there, and maybe 20 GB of stuff at home. All I need is a cheap little flash drive.

I can appreciate how physical hoarders do the same thing, because I bet many of them feel the exact same way. The stuff is only part of it, it's what was happening in your life when you put it there and arranged it that way. And how you were feeling at the time, which may have been a particularly happy or memorable time and that's your way of remembering it. However I refuse to live in a house that is that way. Now an old barn out back, no problem.