Question for people who are into collecting full region sets (Vita specific discussion, but any knowledge applies)

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

Hey all, so recently I've been doing some tightening up or final touches to my collection before I pull the pin on vintage stuff, being that the Vita is a fully abandoned platform in terms of cart based releases, it becomes easier to take a look see at what might be missing. Usually this is a pretty linear process, but I am finding information on this one both confusing and conflicting. Typically, I don't go for full sets unless it's a simple task since I don't want a lot of bad titles clogging up my limited space, but when using pricecharting I started to realize I might have almost every ESRB rated version that exist. This is a bit difficult to say for sure, I have 300 total games with ESRB ratings and a final number seems difficult to find, however there are unusual variables. While I have seen some discourse on people who believe stuff like LRG releases don't count (I have them all for Vita, not for the rest), but the Vita has a few other unusual instances. Instances like Binding of Isaac or VVVVVV which have physical releases that exist, but were never intended to be released in the hands of consumers (and aside the few that exist, never will be). Do you think these types of games 'count' towards what would be a full region set personally?

Despite owning quite a bit for Vita, I'd not call myself an expert on it by any means, and I don't intend to pursue those very pricey 'never released' games, so I'm curious what others think on what they would define as a full region set for a system like this?

Edit: As part of my final research for the system, here is the conclusion I could find on what I don't have in terms of ESRB physical releases, so it makes me conflicted if I should buy the games I don't want only to not end up with the 4 'they exist but barely' releases. Here is what I had left though.

Unreleased Nicalis releases that have a few prints floating around

1001 Spikes
Binding of Isaac
VVVVVV

Unreleased LRG releases that have a few prints floating around

Revenge of the Bird King

Normal Retail Stuff

Ben 10: Galactic Racing
Disney Infinity Marvel Super Heroes
F1 2011
Fifa 14
Fifa 15: Legacy Edition
Fifa Soccer 12
Fifa Soccer 13
Farming Simulator 14
Farming Simulator 16
Farming Simulator 18
Invizimals
MLB 12: The Show
MLB 13: The Show
MLB 14: The Show
MLB 15: The Show
Madden NFL 13
SpongeBob HeroPants
Supremacy MMA

Edited January 25, 2023 by goldenpp72

[Gloves | 11,777]

I'd definitely at the least restrict the meaning to consumer-available releases. From the PS4 on though even that is gonna get pretty rough when some troll company can make 1000 copies of a game about poop, destroy or hide 900+ of them, and consider their game tHe rArESt EvER. Especially when that company will also take your money and then never send you anything at all.

[OptOut | 8,884]

***Full-set definition thread hits the boards.***

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

I don't think I'll gun for the set either way since I don't want to add all the sports games, but I just finished the final logging, and have an even 300 physical releases for ESRB rated games, or 301 if you count the no cart/code in a box Minecraft

[phart010 | 1,707]

I think if it’s ESRB rated, then it’s part of the North American set. You may not like it, and nobody is making you collect it, but it’s still part of the set

[DoctorEncore | 3,691]

This conversation pops up all the time and always gets heated. I'm of the mindset that LRG and other limited print games can be safely ignored without endangering "full set" status. It's not worth arguing about and I don't even respond to people who get riled up about it, but it's enough to guarantee I will never even bother with set collecting for any console PS4 or later.

I'd say just enjoy what you have for Vita and don't even look for a full set list.

Edited January 25, 2023 by DoctorEncore

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

2 hours ago, phart010 said:

I think if it’s ESRB rated, then it’s part of the North American set. You may not like it, and nobody is making you collect it, but it’s still part of the set

I think that it depends on the qualifier a bit, stuff like Binding of Isaac to my understanding isn't supposed to exist, it just had some copies printed but something happened resulting in it never being issued. It's a mystery to me since the company involved had stated they wanted to do it but then went dark.

[a3quit4s | 4,098]

I’m pretty sure after hanging here for awhile, a full set is whatever it means to you. The most logical full set explanation is if you could just walk into a store in your region and buy it it’s part of the licensed set in your region (not a boutique shop like LRG, Best Buy, GameStop, etc). I also like @phart010s line of thinking on ESRB for US for systems that were introduced after the founding of the ESRB system. 
 

There is also a lot of value in specifying whether you collect a full set and either licensed or unlicensed. I feel like collecting an entire licensed and unlicensed for say the switch would be practically impossible!

Edited January 25, 2023 by a3quit4s

[MrWunderful | 2,927]

How are there multiple physical copies if its not intended to be distributed?

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

28 minutes ago, MrWunderful said:

How are there multiple physical copies if its not intended to be distributed?

No one knows from what I can see, as Nicalis refuses to explain their existence or intent. Basically, it sounds like they manufactured a batch of some kind and never went beyond that, either that, or they are sitting on copies they will release one day. Vita cartridges can no longer be produced to my understanding though, so there will forever exist 3 games that never were put on sale anywhere unless they do something as said above.

Basically, there was never a point in time a consumer could go on a site or into a store and buy these the traditional way, people didn't miss out, it just never happened at all, so it's a bit weird.

Edited January 25, 2023 by goldenpp72

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

I would say that the LRG copies don't count, as they're not produced by the game's publisher and are instead a fun little bonus, especially in cases where the LRG release actually comes out while the console is still viable.  If LRG releases counted toward all full sets, then every time they kicked something out for a dead system, people with complete collections for those systems would need to scramble into the dogpile and make sure they procured a copy of each title in order to retain their claim.

As for titles which weren't officially released and yet some copies have been found to exist, I would say to exclude those as well, as those are most likely production/sales samples which were created in order to gauge what a physical release would look and work like, but which ultimately didn't work out.  Granted, these are consoles, but take things like the Nintendo PlayStation and the Sega Pluto.  They're technically prototypes, but look like they're factory finished, given their molded shells, screen printed logos and labels, etc.  Would you consider a Nintendo or Sega console collection incomplete because someone was missing these consoles?  Of course not, as they weren't ever made available at retail, nor were they intended to be, regardless of how many or few were released.

32 minutes ago, MrWunderful said:

How are there multiple physical copies if its not intended to be distributed?

Sales/production samples which were requested, then never mass produced nor publicly distributed and sold.  Similar to the Nintendo PlayStation and Sega Pluto consoles.  Everything was done, and ready to go, but the creator didn't pull the trigger, thus they're neat bits of history but hardly part of any full set.

[MrWunderful | 2,927]

38 minutes ago, goldenpp72 said:

No one knows from what I can see, as Nicalis refuses to explain their existence or intent. Basically, it sounds like they manufactured a batch of some kind and never went beyond that, either that, or they are sitting on copies they will release one day. Vita cartridges can no longer be produced to my understanding though, so there will forever exist 3 games that never were put on sale anywhere unless they do something as said above.

Basically, there was never a point in time a consumer could go on a site or into a store and buy these the traditional way, people didn't miss out, it just never happened at all, so it's a bit weird.

I dont see how anyone could reasonably consider those as part of the set, personally. Do they even have barcodes? 
 

I would think the ability to purchase some way at retail to be a minimum qualifier to be considered “part of the set”

1 hour ago, a3quit4s said:

The most logical full set explanation is if you could just walk into a store in your region and buy it it’s part of the licensed set in your region (not a boutique shop like LRG, Best Buy, GameStop, etc). I also like @phart010s line of thinking on ESRB for US for systems that were introduced after the founding of the ESRB system. 
 

 

This is the correct answer.  However I would accept a nationwide game store franchise release as well. 

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

4 minutes ago, MrWunderful said:

I dont see how anyone could reasonably consider those as part of the set, personally. Do they even have barcodes? 
 

I would think the ability to purchase some way at retail to be a minimum qualifier to be considered “part of the set”

This is the correct answer.  However I would accept a nationwide game store franchise release as well. 

I believe they have been known to have their barcodes punched out, but it's hard to get hold of them to see obviously lol.

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

I did a final research of the Vita release list, and this is what I don't have. I just don't know if I should bother since I don't typically do full sets. It just got this far naturally somehow

Unreleased Nicalis releases that have a few prints floating around

1001 Spikes
Binding of Isaac
VVVVVV

Normal Retail Stuff

Ben 10: Galactic Racing
Disney Infinity Marvel Super Heroes
Dungeon Hunter Alliance
F1 2011
Fifa 14
Fifa 15: Legacy Edition
Fifa Soccer 12
Fifa Soccer 13
Farming Simulator 14
Farming Simulator 16
Farming Simulator 18
Invizimals
MLB 12: The Show
MLB 13: The Show
MLB 14: The Show
MLB 15: The Show
Madden NFL 13
SpongeBob HeroPants
Supremacy MMA

Edited January 25, 2023 by goldenpp72

[Tanooki | 4,933]

Up until the last some years where you get these weird stuff that's technically a release, or stuff that should have, but didn't, yet somehow a few crept out into the wild, it was pretty clear.  If it was for sale, it's in the set.

But now when you have unreleased games creep out, fangamer/lrg/etc doing some limited bs run of 50 of these 2000 of that within a 2min or 2 week period, and then other random one off junk maybe that went to largely media like those gold duck tales carts some years ago... crap like that 100% does not count.

A true realized fair full set would be something you could walk into at least 1-2 retail chains/stores within a territory/region and pick it up with money at any time like any joe schmo off the street could do.  Anything beyond that, it's a bonus, because it's not like they're unlicensed vs licensed mess you get on the old NES (color dreams, wisdom tree, bunch, tengen, etc) or some delicensed stuff like stadium events that got pulled.  That's a gray area dumpster fire of the 80s and early 90s.  And this is the modern generation of a similar dumpster fire.  Some will contest a licensed NES set of stuff sold and kept on retail shelves is it, which I guess amounts to something over 600 games, or you get into the pulled goods, unlicensed, odd run off shit like cheetahmen and then you're into the 700s.

That's where we are with Switch and the others too.  Full set, or full into the weeds set.

 

 

The way I see it would be like with me for the Virtual Boy which I do have all 14/14.  I do NOT consider the identical roms with special demo sticker for Wario Land and Red Alarm part of the set, they didn't sell.  And if by some fantasy a few hundred copies of Bound High were found on a pallet tomorrow, they never retailed, even if intended, so I would not also consider them part of the set either.  That would fall into the Switch realm of 1001Spikes/Isaac/VVVVVV entirely.

Edited January 25, 2023 by Tanooki

[phart010 | 1,707]

At the end of the day, people wanting the definition for “the set” to be this or that just comes down to how difficult/easy that makes it for them to pursue the set so that they can feel accomplished in having completed it. What if it doesn’t really matter whether you have the full set or not? 

If I was gonna write a book about PS4 or Vita games, I would include every single game that was ever made for the US market.. yes even the ones that we only ever found 5 copies of. If it’s worth being mentioned in the book, then to me its part of the set. Full set collecting is a thing of the past, but people don’t want to accept this reality. So instead of accepting it, they want to change the definition.

Edited January 25, 2023 by phart010

[Brickman | 3,986]

My thoughts have always been retail set = games available in retail stores. I did originally think LRG and the likes should be included but have moved away from that now that they release games for older systems.

If we're talking full set then yes I think every game needs to be included even the games with small runs.

I personally just work on retail sets.

[YOURTURN | 1,256]

I ended up concluding that a full set starts with a game, and that it also ends with standard retail sets. With a "+" added for every additional completion that goes beyond that.

For example, my main focus is the Japanese PS5 portion of the Final Fantasy VII Remake series. This is tricky because not only are there console variants of Crisis Core Reunion, there are "early purchase" (and possibly store exclusive) variants as well. Same with Final Fantasy VII Remake, with my variant being what I believe is a "situational reissue" of sorts. Hence why I am calling Remake a "PS5 adjacent" copy and moved on.

But for the long game, I'd say that a full retail set for Vita (and PS4) is the full retail listing during its lifespan.

With the rest being optional bonuses to be had, just like for those who seek out foreign variants/exclusives.

[GPX | 1,369]

At the end of the day, I don’t really think it matters how we each define a full set. What matters likely depends on:

- how you define what you mean by your “full set”

- whether you communicate to the right people who might care about your “full set”. 

[EdV | 9]

Everyone's full set is different.... Some people don't consider ESRB Invizimals or Epic Mickey as part of the Vita N American or even region 1 set. I believe every ESRB game is required for a full set. I personally would consider my Vita collection as obsolete if I didn't have 1001 Spikes, VVVVVV, The Binding of Isaac and Revenge of the Bird King. When I first lost out on the Nicalis 3 I was going to sell my collection. Thankfully I ended up with all of them. They truly are my prized possessions!

Edited January 25, 2023 by EdV
Error

[EdV | 9]

5 hours ago, goldenpp72 said:

I believe they have been known to have their barcodes punched out, but it's hard to get hold of them to see obviously lol.

One side had the UPC hole punch but the other side UPC is intact. They're reversible covers.

 

(Photos aren't my copies. Mine are sealed.)

 

And they're definitely part of my full set. For me, it's either all or none....

Edited January 25, 2023 by EdV
Error

[Brickman | 3,986]

Whatever we decide as a set I’m just happy to see more people getting into Vita. It’s a great handheld if you’re into rpgs, VNs and action games.

[EdV | 9]

5 minutes ago, Brickman said:

Whatever we decide as a set I’m just happy to see more people getting into Vita. It’s a great handheld if you’re into rpgs, VNs and action games.

Ditto! I found about the Vita Match 2021 and was hooked!

[goldenpp72 | 1,234]

1 hour ago, EdV said:

Ditto! I found about the Vita Match 2021 and was hooked!

I'm curious, do you have a working list of all US ESRB releases? I used Pricecharting but in that instance the Vita Database had a LOT of non ESRB rated titles or even digital stuff blended in. Figured I could put my list against yours if you had one off hand. Very cool that you have those 4 games though, I think I'll personally not gun for them unless they ever actually are distributed but it's still impressive to see. Do you know how many known copies there are for each?

[Brickman | 3,986]

19 minutes ago, goldenpp72 said:

I'm curious, do you have a working list of all US ESRB releases? I used Pricecharting but in that instance the Vita Database had a LOT of non ESRB rated titles or even digital stuff blended in. Figured I could put my list against yours if you had one off hand. Very cool that you have those 4 games though, I think I'll personally not gun for them unless they ever actually are distributed but it's still impressive to see. Do you know how many known copies there are for each?

A thread I started that you may be interested in reading : 

It has a list of all the LRG/EastAsia soft games.

Also @Mr. CIB posted a list in that thread of the full Vita set but you’d have to double check with him if it was 100% accurate as I wouldn’t know (I’m a Japanese Vita collector).