Video Game Collector

He Has 11,000 Video Games. And You?

    • rohit.david@timesgroup.com
    • Publish Date: Jul 4 2016 6:00AM
    • |
    • Updated Date: Jul 5 2016 11:03AM
He Has 11,000 Video Games. And You?

Michael Thomasson, 43, has an incredible collection of more than 11,000 games. He is believed to have spent almost £2,000 a year building it. Hear his story.

Can you tell us about the video game collections you have?
To begin with, I had 11,000 games, a fact certified by the Guinness authorities. I had 21 complete system sets, and 14 near-complete sets. The official Guinness count was 10,607, but afterwards we realised that they missed an entire closet that had another 600+ games within it. Plus, they disqualified several hundred games from the official count including PC software, demo discs, homebrewed titles, re-titled alternates, and more... and that didn’t include duplicates either. I am trying to develop my fifth collection as I sold off many collections in the past to pay off my college loans, buy an engagement ring for my fiancée, and finance my first business venture and most recently to take care of my family.


When did you first start collecting video games?
My first game was ‘Cosmic Avenger’, a Christmas gift from my grandparents in 1982. I seriously started collecting games in 1991 after my cousin gave me his old Odyssey2 and Sega Master System. I always wanted those systems as a kid, but we didn’t have money to buy them. When I was gifted the systems decades later, retro-gaming hadn’t really taken off. The games were easily available at reasonable prices.
 
 
Why did you start collecting video games?
Like every young kid of the seventies, I wanted to be an astronaut. The majority of video games at the time had space themes, and by playing games it was a sort of role playing for me. I could live that dream, as well as be a race car driver, tank commander and more!
 
What has been the most expensive video game you have bought?
I trade or swap most games. But the ones I have bought came on a tight budget. The most expensive title I have purchased was an ‘Intellivision’ test cartridge for $100. Typically I won’t pay more than $10 US for any video game.
 

What does your museum have?
I have contributed towards many museum projects over the years. I have been working behind the scenes on creating a dedicated video game museum and learning centre for several years.

Any advice for a youngster who wants to start a similar venture?
Barter. Trading is the way to go. Buy in bulk at a discounted price, pull out what you want, and then trade the remaining duplicates towards another lot. Be patient and don’t fall for the emotional purchase. Slow and steady nets the best deals and high quality collectibles.
 
 

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Comments

saidhruvan.k Pon Vidyashram - Valasaravakkam

i have only 12 ps3 games..he must be so lucky to have lots of video games...

Ayushi Pandey LILAVATI BAI PODAR (A)-SCRUZ

Very nice collection. You can play all the video games each day of the year. Well Done!! Keep it up!!

Vansh Sachdeva GURU HARKRISHAN PUBLIC SCHOOL, PUNJABI BAGH

Nice collection of you.

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