When I was twelve years old, I got my first taste of being a video game hoarder. Perhaps compulsive collector is a better term, since even in my early youth I had a penchant for collecting things like coins or Go-Bots or marbles. My dad definitely fueled my emotional need to build and hone my collections, as he managed our family VHS collection which, at its peak, topped 1000 movies and rivaled our local rental shop. When asked to spend my summer helping out at the family go-kart track and arcade, I leapt at the chance. When told I’d be paid in games my father could barter with the neighboring game shop owner in exchange for go-kart rides, I couldn’t have been more pleased by the arrangement. By the end of my summer stint as go-kart attendant and arcade sanitizer, I had amassed a collection of over 700 NES and Master System titles.

As an adult, my collection grew to include nearly 2500 games across various systems. While I have actively been purging the majority of my collection in preparation for the arrival of my first child, I was completely expecting to start my next major collection with the arrival of the Xbox One; but the Xbox One is different.

The Xbox One still supports physical discs, but the value of those discs is basically worthless on their own after they’re used once. The whole purpose of an Xbox One disc is to speed up the required installation of an Xbox One game. That step is only needed once and is entirely optional as most, if not all, Xbox One games will be available on demand via Xbox Live Marketplace. This completely turns the idea of game collecting on its head. This makes collecting console games pretty much like collecting Steam games, if Steam offered a physical CD for every release.

The physical media is going to be nicely designed and look great on a shelf, but a collection of Xbox One discs and cases is arguably pointless as there is no value or function to those discs outside of resale to a participating outlet. Games aren’t going to go up in value as they become more scarce. Games aren’t going to draw a high price for being pulled from the Xbox Live Marketplace since Xbox will control the ability to license each installation and can simply prevent you from using your disc. There is no easy argument for purchasing the physical discs for any reason outside the desire for pretty shelf-candy or if your internet precludes you from readily downloading the files on demand.

Of course, this could be all for naught, as I may end up collecting the media for the sake of collecting it, much as I did when GameStop offered a limited-run case for the download-only Marvel vs Capcom 2 for PlayStation 3. It was an empty case with a code inside, sold for $14.99. It now sits on eBay with other identical cases drawing $300 a pop, again, for an empty case. Time will tell if buying and collecting the husk of a game is going to be as fulfilling as the real thing, or if console gaming taking a page out of the PC gaming handbook may save me from my desire to collect. Who knows; maybe, just maybe, collecting physical Xbox One games will somehow lead to one of the rarest collections of them all.

Konami opted to kick of the E3 season early with a pre-emptive pre-recorded press conference on their events site. They showed off Castlevania: Lords of Shadows 2, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (voiced by Kiefer Sutherland?!), and Pro Evolution Soccer 2014. Everything looks like it’s definitely polished, but where is Ground Zeroes? Will we see it next week or is that too much Snake to handle?

Dark Souls was an often dark game set in a beautiful and eerie world. Udon has announced they will be publishing a collection of concept art, character and weapon studies, sketches, and monster design. Dark Souls: Design Works will attempt to capture the relentless world of Lordran when it hits shelves this October. Pre-order at Amazon now!

Activison and Bungie have dropped a little treat for those looking for a bit more hype around Destiny. This 60 second trailer explains how the law of the jungle applies to our war to reclaim our solar system. Keep an eye out for the full gameplay reveal at the PlayStation E3 Press Event on June 10th.

The Next Generation Xbox has been revealed. Meet the Xbox One. Featuring rapid, seamless app switching and multitasking, and a fully functional media guide, the Xbox One aims to be the central hub for all entertainment in your living room.

Under the hood, the Xbox One features an 8 Core CPU, 8GB RAM, USB 3.0, 802.11n with WiFi Direct, Blu-Ray, 500GB HDD, HDMI In and Out, and a completely beefed up Kinect. The new Kinect has detailed limb rotation detection, can easily detect joints and movement, and even boasts an accurate heartbeat detector for when you’re exercising. It reads in 1080p resolution with depth of field focusing to ensure your movements are tracked as your own. There is also a 2 Gigabit/sec data transfer that allows for rapid voice detection across multiple users in the same household. The controller gets a slight modification as well with the addition of programmable feedback in the triggers. Smart Glass will play a role in completing the experience with X1, now allowing for interaction between your tablet or smart phone the new Kinect.

Xbox Live is getting an overhaul, increasing the server capacity from 15,000 servers today to over 300,000 for Xbox One Live. Achievements are taking on a more active role allowing developers to create context-based goals, timed achievements, and presumably incentives for playing during certain events. You can also do matchmaking and server hunts while multitasking with the TV or video apps. If this all pans out as they’re showing it, it’s going to truly feel like a new generation in gaming.

The Xbox One is slated for release later this year. No specific date or pricing available now, but we may see something at E3 in a couple of weeks.

WB Games revealed their first official trailer for Batman: Arkham Origins, scheduled for release October 25 for every platform under the sun (including Vita!). If you’re looking to avoid all info about this game, godspeed and do not watch this trailer.

For everyone else, be prepared for some fun appearances from some of Batman’s more logistically challenging foes. The game is said to bring back much deeper detective aspects blended fluidly with the more aggressive and rich combat you’d expect from a younger Batman.

Today, Arc System Works announced the next installment in the Guilty Gear franchise. Guilty Gear Xrd: Sign was unveiled at the Arc System Works Festival, and is back under the direction of Daisuke Ishiwatari.

Guilty Gear Xrd: Sign utilizes the Unreal Engine and seems to take a similar approach to character animation as King of Fighters XII, taking 3D models and overlaying hand-drawn 2D sprites.

Check out the debut trailer!

Rumors about the next Modern Warfare entry in the Call of Duty franchise have been circulating for a few weeks, but today it was made official. Call of Duty: Ghosts will release this fall for current and next generation consoles, which should make for an interesting launch window if Respawn Entertainment, made up of former Infinity Ward members, debuts their first title in the same time frame.

Ghosts will run on a new game engine, and start a new spin-off brand that takes us away from modern and future warfare. Mark Rubin promises this entry will be something “different” for players, and offer a fresh, new experience. My hope is there is a strong stealth element to the game, somewhere lighter than Metal Gear Solid and Splinter Cell and more fast-paced than Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six. Odds are, it’ll be Modern Warfare meets Black Ops.

Rockstar Games revealed today the three new trailers for Grand Theft Auto V, each depicting the context around the three new protagonists, Michael, Franklin, and Trevor. It’s hard not to think that this game is not a next-gen launch title, but so far there’s no mention of release for PlayStation 4 or Xbox Durango. There is a release date given of September 17, which could spark speculation of launch windows for the major new consoles being announced this year since the original release date was Spring 2013.

It would be interesting to see a female protagonist released as DLC or an expansion down the road, especially considering how fun it was to run Saint’s Row as a hard-as-manicured-nails business woman.

Major Nelson announced a press meeting at the Xbox campus on May 21 where the next generation Xbox will be revealed. The event will be broadcast live on Xbox.com, Xbox Live, and Spike TV, with more details and hands-on time being slated for the E3 Expo in June.

Tune in on Tuesday, May 21, at 1PM ET/10AM PT to see the future of Xbox gaming.