Collector's Editions
I think it all started back in 1995 with Origin’s Wing Commander 3.  In the midst of the whole Hollywood meets games hoopla, Chris Roberts decided to build a special collector’s edition of Wing 3 that ended up costing gamers upwards of US $100 and was shipped in a 35 mm film can. (Wing 3 was one of the few videogames actually shot on 35 mm film.    Now, five years later, it seems like the trend started by Wing Commander III has become the biggest thing in PC gaming.    This year we’ve already seen collector’s editions for Diablo II and Vampire: the Masquerade, and before the end of the year, look for special editions of Red Alert II, Voyager: Elite Force, and even Wizard and Warriors.

Believe me, you’ll be seeing just about every big PC game of 2001 come out in collector’s edition size.  Is this a good thing?  I think so, as long as the added features are really something valuable for the player.  Diablo II’s collector’s edition was great, featuring a DVD of all the in-game movies; Westwood, never to be outdone by Blizzard, has made sure Red Alert 2 will be given similar treatment.   I just hope that publisher’s don’t start creating collector’s editions for the sake of marketing buzz.  I was a bit worried when Activision announced the Elite Force collector’s edition would include a “special” demo CD of other Activision Trek games (Wait a minute, I’m paying extra for this privledge?), but luckily the edition does include value-added items such as a 96-page comic book and Star Trek lapel pin.  Long live the collector’s edition!