Random poster in a thread about games: "Please tell me you've played more than a hundred games in your life. Think about it. A hundred. Should seem like a small number, compared to probably over a million games out there"
Interesting question. How many games HAVE I played? For the purposes of this question, let's say games you've played for a minimum of one hour. Beyond that, the definition is up to you (arcade, phone, flash, console, PC, whatever).
How many games are in your Steam/GoG libraries today?
I'm going to work on a more accurate count, but my GoG/Steam libraries have about 150 games, and I have certainly not played all of those. I would guess my bodycount is between 300 and 400, spanning from the late 80s to today, with a greatly diminished count in the last ten years.
What's yours?
I worked at gaming conventions. I probably played hundreds at each one.
PAX?
And smaller shows throughout the Northwest. The Northwest Pinball and Arcade Show generally has 400-500 arcade games.
The Portland Retro Gaming Expo has about 200 arcade games, plus the console area has 50 consoles with 30 games each. Then there are display areas like Neo Geo or Portland Indie Game Squad.
Seattle Retro Gaming Expo is way smaller with 30-40 arcade games, plus a console area. Sadly they don't have the funding to continue.
ComicCon will have at least 30-40 arcade games each, plus indie booths and secret games. There are also secret games, but those take some explaining.
There are game displays that appear at malls by specific companies. Microsoft and Nintendo have a thing every year. They're generally 10 games on display each.
Indie game folks have mini conventions that have 20 games brought by members. That's a cool scene. I met the guy who made Five Nights at Freddy's through that.
The bigger conventions will also have mini conventions or displays outside. Every hotel will have an area for journalists or influencers. That's a weird thing because it's just tvs with consoles and guys in suits watching. Imagine seeing a hand puppet talking to a camera outside a hotel as well.
All of these places have games for sale. I generally go in with a $100 budget. The popular 3 years ago games sell for a $1. So my collection is a bit more vast than I like to admit. Gamestores will have a small thing, and I'll grab a game or two. Pawn Shops will have games for cheap because they're outside of the gaming bubble. I got a PSP for $15.
One of the biggest things about moving to Florida is I am generally away from that. I want to work conventions like FreePlay and IAAPA, or find the nice game shops. Its just not as big here, and I work with theme experience designers, so they're generally ignorant of any scenes nearby. The newest game being played in my office is Guild Wars.