Monday Question Day- Video Gamers?

Today I am going to ask a question that some may not have any input to because of the subject. Would you be interested in video game card sets? 

I am not talking about a TCG/CCG, a set connected to a comic book series or a set like a SEGA release that is part of a sports release (or sports in general), but a full-fledge video game release. In the early 90s when companies were looking to make money as quickly as possible there were various by Topps and Fleer but nothing was constant and I don’t think I would consider them a major release but more a money grab for a year or two.

I am a gamer going back to Pong, but I do not think that there is enough of a cross over of hobbies to garner enough interest from most collectors for a company to invest for a major release outside of possibly a Grand Theft Auto set. 

We will find out soon because it was announced at SDCC that Dynamite Entertainment is releasing a Fallout set some time next month. It is a base set with a couple of chase sets of holofoils and die-cuts and is pre-selling at $99, which is where I lost interest. 

Another Cavalcade Of Griffey Cards IX

Normally I don’t consider buying custom cards that I can make but this one is an exception. The card is the cover of the PS4 The Show 17 game but it is a refractor so I thought it was cool. While I could make a card sized cover of the game I have never made a refractor custom card, I haven’t even tried yet, so that is how I ended up with this one in my collection. Eventually I would like to pick up one of the code cards too, I don’t play the game so if I ever come across a used code card I would be happy.

The Video Game Card Connection

These are some very cool pickups of Sid Meier from the 2015 Upper Deck Goodwin Champions release.

One of my vices is getting some quiet time and playing video games. I am a big fan of RPG and Strategy/Tactics games; I enjoy the thought process that goes in to building up a character or leading a nation. Sid Meier is the master of strategy games going back to the origination of PC games when he founded MicroProse in 1982.

I have a nice collection of his games on my PC and iPad because they are great to just sit down and build a world when you need a one-hour break. Some of his biggest games that I love are Pirates, Ace Patrol and Railroad Tycoon but his big hit is the Civilization series. Sid Meier’s Civilization VI came out in October but the previous release Civilization V and its expansions have sold 8 million units and the series total is 33 million units sold over 25 years which puts it in to the Top 25 video game franchises ever.

Odd as it is I only need his #62 base card to complete the main portion of his cards, there are two limited minis (Leather mini #/15 and Gold Rainbow mini #1/1) and printing platers but I only plan on picking up the base with my next COMC order. Here is what I have so far:

Base design:

Canvas mini

Cloth mini Lady Luck back #25/50

Base shirt relic

Premium patch relic #10/15

Base autograph

Inscribed autograph #3/10

Goudey inserts

Base

Base shirt relic

Premium floppy disc relic #37/50

Initially all I wanted to pick up was the Inscribed Autograph card and the Premium floppy disc relic but the rest sort of fell in to place. What is cool is that the image that Upper Deck used of Meier shows him wearing the shirt that most likely was used for the relic and patch. The shirt he is wearing on the card shows the older Firaxis logo, the current logo is bolder and has thicker lines that resembles a hurricane, and the patch that I have would be from the bottom left corner as the circle starts to swoop upwards.

EA Sports Madden NFL 12 And Marshall Faulk

Marshall Faulk On-card Auto Version 1

Inserting cards in to video game packaging is not new, in the 90s we saw Ken Griffey Jr. cards inserted in to boxes of SNES Ken Griffey Presents and SNES Ken Griffey Jr. Winning Run, but it is an interesting cross over because many collectors are still young at heart and we are often drawn to video games so it is a logical decision.

Marshall Faulk On-card Auto Version 2

Recently digital cards have taken the place of actual cards but this year EA Sports and Panini have collaborated to insert one of four different on-card autographed Marshall Faulk cards in to every box of Madden NFL 12 Hall of Fame Edition. Plus two redemptions (1 in an Xbox 360 version and 1 in a PS3 version) will be inserted for an 18k gold version of a Marshall Faulk card in the continuation of Panini’s Golden Ticket series. There will also be digital cards included containing 13 NFL Hall of Famers and former Madden Football cover players including Barry Sanders, Shaun Alexander and Larry Fitzgerald.

Marshall Faulk On-card Auto Version 3

The  Madden NFL 12 Hall of Fame version is limited to 125,000 copies (not sure if that includes both Xbox 360 and PS3 or if that is each system) and costs a whopping $89.99. I was thinking that with each video game including an autograph Faulk card that must have taken some serious time for Faulk to sign all 125,000 copies. That would mean that there are a little over 31,000 of each of the 4 versions autographed (31,250 to be exact based on the 125,000 total copies). Currently Faulk autographs are running in the $10-20 range I wonder with 125,000 new Faulk autographs hitting the market if those prices will fall even lower.

Marshall Faulk On-card Auto Version 4

I am not really a fan of the fourth one, it just looks like a golden version of the third image. I for some reason like the first one, the Score style just shouts EA Sports. The second and third versions do have some appeal to them too.

Shaun Alexander Digital Card

Larry Fitzgerald Digital Card

Barry Sanders Digital Card