"Special Edition" Game Packaging

[Bada Bing!]

I like collecting stuff, all us gamers do. Most of us have OCD of some description, and there's no point trying to deny that one too. So why then do publishers offer us special collectors edition games with stupid f*cking packaging that causes me pain when I look at it on my shelf?

I like stuff to all look the same. When it doesn't I want to kill my family. Thankfully none of them live with me now, but my fianc?e and 2 cats are still at risk.

Latest culprit is that stupid metal tin that comes with PDZ. I'm about to swap it for the standard version so my shelf can return to normal, and my fianc?e and 2 cats can stand down red alert.

Surely I'm not the only one this annoys?

[Light]

I actually like the PDZ collector's edition tin. You know what frustrates me though? The sleeve it came in. I really really want to throw that piece of **** away, but feel like its part of the package, so can't bring myself to do it. Help me.

Yeah... I also wish that the US DMC3:SE box art didn't have the awful greatest hits label... the red colouring protrudes from the rest of the collection on the shelf and is becoming an eyesore. ft:

[sj33]

I love collectors editions and Limited Editions and will buy them for games I like without hesitation.... but I'm not one who will buy a game solely based on the packaging.

I'm not too keen on these Tins that have been pretty common in PAL territories in the last year or so though. Such as the RE4 one... would like a little more imagination put into it, such as the Korean version of RE4 that came with a fully working flashlight from the game. This is more interesting.

Oddly, my PDZ is the UK game but came with an Italian sleeve =( I'd really want to change it for a UK one...

[Bada Bing!]

I only paid ?32 for my PDZ:LE from my local Tesco's the other day, so I don't mind swapping it for the standard edition, so I can restrain the pedant in me.

[bingowings]

most of the time 'special' (as in school and olympics) packaging is nothing more than a waste of materials. cardboard sleeves are the worst offender - there is no reason for a videogame to have a slipcase - it doesn't make the game any better. except JPN Gamecube games of course - but they are so teeny and cute i'll let it pass.

[Bada Bing!]

Silent Hill 2 was another offender. I had the "Special" or (by bingowings' accurate description) "brave" edition packaging and it was just ridiculous. How on earth can that look good on my shelf?

[sj33]

Silent Hill 2 was another offender. I had the "Special" or (by bingowings' accurate description) "brave" edition packaging and it was just ridiculous. How on earth can that look good on my shelf?

I always see them in bargin bins looking tattered to death.

To make it worse, the Directors Cut - the one you would be more likely to want in nice special edition packaging - comes in a Platinum case =/

[bingowings]

i want my games to be in durable, hard-wearing plastic packaging. not something i have to wear gloves with, just to remove from the shelf. the main exception has to be PAL Dreamcast games - just to look at them the wrong way makes them crumble and disintegrate.

i just recently picked up the Halo 2 tin, and while it's nice and heavy and feels sturdy, the bastarding plastic sleeve ruins the whole effect and i just know it's going to get knackered.

[sj33]

You people don't wanna see the flimsy bit of cardboard that the Biohazard DS Limited Edition comes in!

[angelx]

i want my games to be in durable, hard-wearing plastic packaging. not something i have to wear gloves with, just to remove from the shelf. the main exception has to be PAL Dreamcast games - just to look at them the wrong way makes them crumble and disintegrate.

i just recently picked up the Halo 2 tin, and while it's nice and heavy and feels sturdy, the bastarding plastic sleeve ruins the whole effect and i just know it's going to get knackered.

Dreamcast games have the worst casing since the saturn games even if you did look after them they still loved to fall apart, not to mention they were a bugger to open.

That L.E halo tin is the same style they use on Perfect Dark, I do like them and agree though the slip is pretty awful and scuffs very easily

[MikeRox]

I thought the PAL DC cases were great... so long as u try not to open them :P

I can't stand cardboard packaging though. I hate that the odd game (normally on PS2) is still released in it now, it's just SO easy to ruin an crease simply by opening.

[bingowings]

cardboard sleeves are generally the work of the devil - no matter what they are holding. they are just so easy to destroy. i got my Aeon Flux 3 disc set from Amazon, and while it looks lovely and contains wonderful Flux goodness, the sleeve it came in is bashed on one corner and has a bend in the spine. balls!

[Kubrick]

I find the random shapes/sizes/styles that DVDs come in to be more annoying than games. At least 90% of games look the same, and it's only a few that are different.

I thought the PAL DC cases were great... so long as u try not to open them :P

Even if they're mint, they're still garbage. I liked that they had that seperate compartment you could stick the manual in, otherwise they're just awful.
Even with a decent row of them on the shelf they don't look very good - the spines are all different shades of blue, with different fonts, some with the actual game logo, some without...

I'd have to say JP Mega Drive games are easily the winner when it comes to looking cool on the shelf. They're also ultra-durable. Probably the best videogame packaging ever.

[sj33]

Later PAL Saturn game cases, the ones that came in the proper plastic boxes (as opposed to the nasty digipak-esque cases) are probably some of my favourites, as they're durable as heck and don't shatter/crack like PAL PlayStation and (to a greater extent) PAL Dreamcast cases do.

I'm not a fan of proprietory game cases though (for anything but Limited Editions, anyway)... Japanese games being in CD cases is cool because you can replace them with ease. Wish they'd just stick to CD/DVD cases and be done with it. Would look better on cabinats alongside DVD movies too.

[Darwock]

cardboard sleeves are generally the work of the devil - no matter what they are holding. they are just so easy to destroy. i got my Aeon Flux 3 disc set from Amazon, and while it looks lovely and contains wonderful Flux goodness, the sleeve it came in is bashed on one corner and has a bend in the spine. balls!

This is completely true, and I actually chose the regular case for PAL Ico rather than the limited card one... having said that SotC is tempting me to go down the card path.