What do you do with old games you don't want to keep?

With the rumor of Microsoft making a console that won’t play used games swirling about and after reading some of the arguments about the used game market, I was wondering what do people plan to do with games they’ve finished and no longer wish to keep. If, say someday, that game won’t be playable on another system, what becomes of it?

I know that PC enthusiasts say that this is part-and-parcel for their corner of the hobby, and I too have a pile of oversized boxes still lying around in my closet that I’d like to get rid of. The only option I can think of is to throw them away. Is that the direction that the entire video game industry wants to take itself? It seems very environmentally unfriendly and wasteful. I know some will retort that the preferred option is digital download only, but we’re not there yet. Brick-and-mortar businesses are still viable in the marketplace. Wal-Mart is a major retailer for games just as Toy-R-Us, Best Buy and [shudder] Gamestop are still important to the publishers.

I read a poll report from 2010 that had 25%-50% of console owners depending on the platform not connected to the internet. That’s a sizable amount of consumers to lose if console makers rush to implement direct download only too quickly. I am not personally against it happening eventually, but I don’t see it as the smart choice for this next generation. Between spotty broadband penetration, unsteady speeds and varying download caps, it seems unwise at this time.

So what to do with all those played discs that take up space and can’t be resold or even given away. Remember all those AOL start-up discs that piled up in our homes a decade ago? They’re going to be with us for another 200 years before they decompose. I suppose we should recycle. Maybe electronics stores can have bins where we toss our old games.

Why would I not want to keep an old game?

Also, I really wish people would stop talking about that rumor. It's a RUMOR, and it's not true. ZERO PERCENT CHANCE. Not happening. There is absolutely no way that the next Xbox console won't play used games.

@MooseyMcMan said:

Why would I not want to keep an old game?

Also, I really wish people would stop talking about that rumor. It's a RUMOR, and it's not true. ZERO PERCENT CHANCE. Not happening. There is absolutely no way that the next Xbox console won't play used games.

I'm with Moosey, you don't get rid of games. You could put them away in a box or something but you shouldn't throw them out, you'll just end of regretting getting rid of a particular game.

And the thing with Microsofts next Xbox not playing used games, could be true but the only I see it possible is if they include CD-keys like PC games have. Also I doubt we'll see a digital-download-only console within the next couple of generations, that would be suicide. It'll take longer than that before such a console would be viable.

But if you really want to get rid of your games then make sure they are recycled at least.

I set them on a shelf and not play them

I keep them and don't play them.

I keep them and don't play them.

I trade them in for new games. I'm not made of money.

@EarlessShrimp said:

@NTM said:

I keep them and don't play them.

I do this but I call it 'collecting.' Self-delusion for the win!

Respect due.

I ebay everything but wish I'd done it a long time ago because I've got tons of stupid PC and Snes games that I won't throw away but are worth so little there's no way I'm selling them for 50p.

I hide them away in my "Do Not Want" category on Steam...

If I really hate the game, I'll trade it to GameStop. So what if I only got $5...at least I got something out of The Force Unleashed that wasn't utter shit.  Otherwise, I just sort of let them collect dust on a shelf. 

My 60-70 PS2 games are all stored in a cardboard box in a cupboard.

.@PenguinDust said:

I know that PC enthusiasts say that this is part-and-parcel for their corner of the hobby, and I too have a pile of oversized boxes still lying around in my closet that I’d like to get rid of.

Um, I don't know about you, but I've traded PC games with my friends before and that's without making copies. You simply have to have the disc in the drive. You could give all those old games to some needy kids rather than letting them mold in a box. Heck, at least donate them to Goodwill or something. Unless you're talking about C64 or Amiga games or something. I doubt too many people have those.

As for Microsoft's next console rejecting used games, I call total B.S. It will either not use physical media at all or it will play all discs. And I don't think we're going strictly digital download yet.

If that hypothetical situation arose I would donate my games to some kind of video game library or archive or something. I wouldn't just toss them out.

@upwarDBound said:

.@PenguinDust said:

I know that PC enthusiasts say that this is part-and-parcel for their corner of the hobby, and I too have a pile of oversized boxes still lying around in my closet that I’d like to get rid of.

Um, I don't know about you, but I've traded PC games with my friends before and that's without making copies. You simply have to have the disc in the drive. You could give all those old games to some needy kids rather than letting them mold in a box. Heck, at least donate them to Goodwill or something. Unless you're talking about C64 or Amiga games or something. I doubt too many people have those.

As for Microsoft's next console rejecting used games, I call total B.S. It will either not use physical media at all or it will play all discs. And I don't think we're going strictly digital download yet.

If that hypothetical situation arose I would donate my games to some kind of video game library or archive or something. I wouldn't just toss them out.

The video game archive option is part of the reason I collect games. Current game collectors will be some of the go-to guys when video game museums/archives/preservation efforts become a serious reality.

I keep all my games. I get so attached to them for whatever reason I can't get rid of them.

I keep all my games. I really wish people would stop worrying about consoles that forbid you to play used games- for one, that's just a rumour; second, I fail to see how the games industry would be able to implement something like that without crippling their industry. If developers are so desperate to milk us for a few extra pennies at the cost of cutting off their own legs, then I wonder what they'll do when I and people like me that hate their anti-used BS don't buy their game...

I'd like to think I could one day exchange the piles of old games I have lying around for virtual copies, in an improbable future gaming utopia where you only have to buy one copy of a game once and forever be able to play it on anything that can (or is allowed to) run it. A system like that might bankrupt Nintendo though, so it's probably a "careful what you wish for" scenario.

As for the physical discs, I don't mind where they go. There's a lot of things to be said for having a physical copy of a game, but I'd rather have the space for something else. Then again, whoever has the physical SNES carts (and some sort of generator) when the world ends will be the guy with all the power. The various gangs of wasteland raiders will no doubt unite under the rule of the one person with the only surviving copy of Bebe's Kids.

give away or sell them at game stop or sell to friend.

I try to trade/sell them on CAG, but most of the time its just quicker to take them to GameStop or Best Buy.

i keep all of my old games. they just lay around. i plan on having a huge amount of video games just laying around in my room.
something like this.

I sell them on ebay since trading them in directly isn't worth the money. Personally, I don't have the money to stockpile games, especially considering that the longer you collect, the more likely you'll never revisit the game.

As for the neXtBOX inability to play used games, I don't think they would cripple the industry. Think of the AAA titles and how many people rush out on the release date. And seeing so man comments about people not selling games, maybe it's they really don't have to worry about it.

Every couple of months I go through my games and see if there are any I can get rid of. I only tend to keep the games that I consider excellent / will play again ( e.g. I have the whole MGS series on my shelf ). I ebay the ones I want to get rid of, can usually get around £10-30 based on how new they are.

I have one of those large disc folders that I put all my games in, and I leave the empty cases on my shelves. If I will never play a game again it goes back in the box on my shelf. I don't throw out games any more, I've had too many instances of throwing something out then wanting to play it a few months down the line. So now I collect them.

Put them in a box.

If I KNOW I'm not going to ever want to play them again, I'll sell them. I'm very cautious about it these days though because I've sold a lot of that I regret. So I try my best to make sure I never want to touch em again. It's also only newer games, I never sell older games like ps2 and such.

Depends on the game.
 
Games that I enjoyed a lot or have some replay/multiplayer value I will keep.
Other games I will play through once or twice and sell them for store credit or to a friend.
 
Hey I let a lot of games collect dust for years, and the moment I realized I was never gonna touch them again I started selling them (except the ones I really enjoyed ofcourse).
It funds new games!

@iam3green: I'm pretty sure that I know somebody who knows the guy who owns the games in that photo. I had a brief email exchange with him about a year ago and manage to make myself look kind of silly.

EDIT: Oh so anyway...if anybody doesn't want their old games just send them to me.

Generally it depends on if I liked the game. If I didn't like it I usually sell/trade/give it to a friend. If I like the game I keep them on my shelf so I can see them all and enjoy them. I don't know why but there is something to be said about looking at the stack of games and just thinking to myself, "Man, I played all those beauties and I don't regret a single minute."

I unfortunately don't have any of my GBA boxes and most of my NDS boxes as they were all destroyed a few years back from a break in and this collection is only updated about once a year when I go through and stack all the boxes up. (I keep the discs themselves in a separate disc chest because I move around alot and it's easier to carry the discs in a chest then all the boxes.)

I tend to keep only the very good games and sell the others. I'm starting to regret it though.

A few months back I found an old pile of crappy Psone games. The fun I had replaying that shit with a friend of mine...

I trade 'em in and keep the evil empire (Gamestop) in business. The no used game new XBox is probably the silliest rumor I've ever heard. It ain't gonna happen.

If anyone makes their console not play used games it's Sony. Since they love online passes so much, they will just take it a step further

I never sold a games in my life

I give them or sell them. 

I'm actually a hoarder when it comes to games that I really think is worthwhile to keep. Sometimes I do sell them to get other games, but can you blame me?

@iam3green said:

i keep all of my old games. they just lay around. i plan on having a huge amount of video games just laying around in my room. something like this.

I also would love to have something like this.

I put them in boxes and stash them in the attic, I really can't be bothered to try to sell them or trade them in, too much work for what you get out of it.

I very rarely trade in my games or sell them, unless I'm real hard up for cash.  The games that I have that I don't really want any more (most of my Genesis games) aren't worth anything, and the games that are I would never part with.  I have a bookshelf full of games, but much more stuff that's just in boxes (AKA the Gerstmann Model).

I never want to get rid of games, which is why I have an overflowing entire room full of the damn things.

On a side note, if anyone does feel so inclined to throw away any old gaming related items I do know of a good home. :)

I only keep my favorite games the rest I sell.

There are a few games I would give away, but never got around doing that.