MY VIDEO GAME OBSESSION - Happy Console Gamer 

Time for an intervention! I volunteer to take your game collection to help you get through this awful addiction.

Playing older games is almost like time travel. While playing them you can almost escape to the past in your mind to simpler times.

It's not bragging at all and even if it is who cares, I find it very Inspiring and heartfelt the stories you have behind the things you have.

My man, I work as a clinical psychologist and see people with addictions on a daily basis, and in my opinion you are certainly not one of them. You embrace your hobby/passion AND you have a wonderful family and social life. Wonderful. Power to you my friend ✌🏻

I learned not too long ago that it's pointless to hang onto games I'll never play again, so once a year I'll comb thru my collection and pluck out all the games I never wanna play again and sell em.

As long as it doesn't harm you or anyone else, why not indulge your passion. It's great to have something that sparks joy in your daily life. Nice collection & even better, it was a collection built over time, not just that i must own everything type of approach, it was the titles which fueled the fire of your enthusiasm for the system & it's many titles.

Johnny I adored this episode. Your passion is a great reminder of how awesome video games, anime, and that sense of discovery can be. I’ve never even seen a PC Engine in real life but your enthusiasm is infectious. Looking forward to hearing more about it on the show this year!!

Yes, I have a bad steam game collection. My account is 19 years old & at this point, I have 2,214 games lol.

Let's just take a second or two to appreciate Johnny's dedication to today's video by taking the time to remove all of those games from the shelve and then having to put them back up. Plus, not knocking them over. Kudos.

I'm so happy for you Johnny. Glad you're able to share a passion of yours with like-minded people. At 22, I know alot of people my age (not speaking for everyone) are only playing the games nowadays and don't take a moment to appreciate the past and history of great games. I definitely want to appreciate the games of my youth and the past since alot of them still hold up and are timeless. Im intrigued by the artistic vision behind them as well, and I'm very passionate about them. So I'm very glad you made this video and your channel to share that passion. Keep doing what you're doing. I wish I could meet more people like yourself.

It's really nice hearing your stories Johnny I really enjoy hearing everything you say every Sunday morning and it's really nice of you to share your memories with us I respect the video game nerd with passion for collecting😊 My video game obsession if you call it that I'm mostly obsessed with trying to play different styles of RPGs. I like to broaden my horizons from time to time😊

Hi Johnny ! I'm 4 years older than you, and I can relate to parts of your story ! I also had a friend named Rob. He bought a TurboGrafx-16 and Legendary Axe, (1989 Game of the Year ) ! We played the hell out of that game ! Not long after that, I purchased a TurboGrafx-16 myself, and to this day, it's still my favorite old school system ! I own other systems too, and treasure everything that I have ! Last but not least, I remember Rob and I playing at his house on his 8-bit Nintendo, and his dad asks us, "Why are we wasting our time playing video games" ? I said to him, " It's better than doing drugs " ! He agreed, and walked away ! LOL ! You're the best Johnny ! Take care !

This is definitely not an obsession, it’s a passion! 😎👍🏽

I am 46 years old, and people our age got to live through the birth and maturation of video games as an art. It’s like when we were kids and would see what early primitive movies were like, we got to live that primitive beginning for video games. What a blessing!

Because of my small apartment, I had to make the hard decision to get rid of a lot of my games. There is one game I'm obsessed with, though. It's Final Fantasy 6. I got it for pretty much every system (including Japanese ones), got the guides, and other collectibles for that game!

Your passion is truly inspiring, and you're so right about there being so many worse "addictions" out there.

I love your enthusiasm and passion for gaming.

Just finished this episode while making some breakfast and I've gotta say, this has got to be one of my favorites from you. I've always been a little embarrassed by my love for video games really, until I found your channel, and so much has changed this year ever since I discovered your show. No one ever criticizes someone with a large library of books, why can't a library of games be of similar value/prestige? Looking back, there is a rich history of games I've missed out on, and I now have this sort of false nostalgia for systems I never grew up with, like the Genesis, Dreamcast, GameCube, and Turbografx. Discovering these games now in 2023 has been so rewarding. I never valued collecting physical before this year (again thanks to your channel) and my little shelf of games is steadily growing and seeing it every day makes me so happy. And again like you said, there IS a bit of your identity wrapped up in there -- so many core memories, music, experiences tied to each one of your favorite games, and just doing a quick boot up of the game or thumbing through the manual is enough to take you to another place. It is its own form of therapy, and I respect you for what you do and talk about because it really brought all this to ligit for me. 2023 has been a great year for me because of it.

Man you’re a living museum. Actual museums can exist thanks to individuals like you. Huge respect!

I started my PC Engine collection a couple years ago, i am absolutely in love with your collection. I never knew about the console in the 90s, what a gem!

DUDE - this makes me sad I missed out on this but at the same time makes me kinda of want to get into it? I feel a sense of nostalgia even though I didn't ever play these. It's the art style and even the games themselves just look so cool. I never had a TurboGrafx-16 but my god, it looks like my thing. Just something I never had and never thought to even look into. I need to go down a rabbit hole on the internet now and do some research! That's the best part of this hobby - always discovering something new. Great video!!!

I have that same problem man. I just don't stop buying😅

Great call on the cover art book. I've been enjoying that over the past few weeks. The PC-Engine was a special system that really captured the innovation and imagination of late-80s Japan, and it remains vastly underappreciated to this day. Thanks for keeping the passion alive.

Im always tickled to see you doing anyrhing about the PC Engine 😊 I've probably told you rhis before, but you wete the first gaming channel I followed because you were the only person on YT talking about my favorite console of all time. When we met in person, I was fangirling so hard in the inside but truing to keep composed on the outside 😅😅 Hopefully we can meet again some day! And olease more PC Engine videos 🙏❤

It really is thanks to you that I'm aware of the PC Engine at all, so I'm very grateful for your passion and for your collection, Johnny. Sharing your stories and experiences with these games keeps them alive, discoverable, and sheds light on the artists behind each of them. Long live your PC Engine collection! And I am really looking forward to every one of those upcoming episodes about individual titles, buddy.

I started alphabetizing my collection again recently to add a lot of new stuff and was like jeez i gotta slow down and only get stuff i really want vs mildly interesting

Over the last couple years, it's been Falcom games. Johnny got me into Ys and Super Derek got me into trails. Now I have nearly a bookshelf full of games and merch. I can't get enough. But at the end of the day just like Johnny, it's because I love this series.

5:47 This is something that I can never explain to a lot of people when we talk about gaming from the late 80s and 90s. We always called the NES the "regular Nintendo". People look at me now like I'm insane when I say it today, but I'm glad I'm not the only one haha.

As someone who grew up in the 80s/90s, I get you. No need to justify what you love. And I know the feeling of discovering, enjoying, nay, devouring these items in that time period! I totally understand.

My obsession is exactly the same; everything TurboGrafx! Love this episode. I've been watching for years and this is my favorite episode.

I love your passion and enthusiasm for the PC Engine. I too have this burning desire and passion for all of Video Games and am only limited by financial hardships. Either way, I'm still pursuing my passion and love to share this feeling with people such as yourself.

I too grew up with the TG16 and then TGCD. I love it to this day and is probably why I first became interested in Japan and eventually moved here and started working in the video game industry. So happy to hear you are a fellow fan.

Oh hey... I spotted an easter egg! If you look REAL close, you can see Johnny, right between those two skyscrapers of PCE games! And yes, I have taken collecting too far lol. Most notably, is my recent obsession with collecting for Switch. I may have to do a response vid to this!

I don't have many retro games because I just can't afford to collect new & retro at the same time. Some time last year I did notice I had a significant amount of PS4 games compared to other systems, and as of right now I have 489 of them. I guess that's my crazy collection. I'm really looking forward to you talking about some of those PC Engine games Johnny. Love that machine. So cool that collection you have going there, all the personal value involved and all that.

I enjoy spending every Sunday with the Happy Console Gamer family. I love hearing youbtalk. Your passion makes me happy. Thank you for sharing the experiences with us, Johnny.

I understand your passion so much! Video games have always been part of my life too. I used to collect on many consoles, but since the past few years I focus on my Nintendo Switch. To be honest, it's becoming my favorite console of all time with it's huge library of games. You get old school classics, collections, remastered as well as newer stuff. Thanks to you, I discovered so many classics such as Grandia, Ys, Chrono Cross and so much more! It's always a pleasure to hear your personnal stories🙂

Thanks Johnny. You passion and positivity always puts me in a good mood.

Great video Johnny. I had a similar experience when I was younger being obsessed with video games, arcade games in particular. Growing up in Langley, going to Willow Video and the Binos arcade was what me and my friends would do to pass the time back in the day.

I have a fairly large video game collection that's well over 1000 games. I don't collect by consoles but rather collect games based on franchises or genres that I really enjoy to play. In fact a lot of franchises that I got interested in were from watching this channel (franchises like Ys and Dragon Quest).

The amount of incredible pixel art that came out and with the pc engine is truly amazing.

I am just a few years younger than you. I have the exact same level of nostalgia for the Sega Saturn. I wasn't lucky enough to get this stuff for Christmas, but my very first paycheck of my very first job bought me a $99 Saturn from Wal-Mart and it blew me away. I was scopping up used titles from Funcoland for practically nothing, and by the time the last 4 US titles were realesed in 1998, I had the whole library.

I went digital a few years ago because I got tired of amassing physical games. I can't let myself get rid of my old games, but I did stop buying new ones.

So many of these videos evoke my own memories of the late 80s and early 90s. This one, too: I had one friend with the console... but I knew more about it because I had every magazine. I appreciate your effort to keep these eras alive.

One of the many reasons I watch this channel is to listen to somebody who shares my lifelong passion for videogames - and even manages to surpass it (by quite a bit, probably, which is saying something). I'm glad you've found your community, and managed to spin your passion into a career. I've been fortunate enough to manage something similar, working in tabletop games development as a 3D artist / product designer for many years - yes, I'm genuinely excited to wake up every morning and go to work! I've been obsessively into collecting, painting, and (especially) sculpting miniatures since I was very young. I've moved internationally a few times, which always leads me to end up selling everything I've managed to collect and starting anew. Oh well - I've come to find that I personally find the process of research, creation, and/or engagement in "the hunt" to acquire something to be more satisfactory than actually possessing an object of interest. ;)

Beautiful collection John! I personally collect for ps1 to ps5 and it all started with a purchase of dragon quest 8. I bought it in 2016 and while I always was a hard-core gamer, it was like something clicked in my head got hooked and scoping out all the playstation retro catalogue. I would say my ps4 collection could easily rival that in number, but my God those titles for the PC engine must be so obscure now and it's wonderful gathering you have.

Heartwarming video John. What incredible memories you shared. Original Xbox is my passion. Going for a complete NTSC set.

I love this man it makes me think back on my happy gaming childhood! Atari started my love of games and once I started playing I knew I was hung on home video gaming!! Thanks man for sharing more of your wonderful passion John you're awesome!!

I have a huge Dragon's Crown collection obsession. Got the original game and remaster on PS3 and 4, along with almost every dragons crown statue relased. Several sorcereress figures, two different statues of the Amazon, and the elf.

I relate to this. I've got a problem with collecting japanese PS1/PS1 games. Its grown over the years into my largest game collection. But how your PC Engine collection connects to all these youthful memories, passion for anime style art and certain game genres. PS1 means so much to me. It was the system that made me realize just how much I love video games. It was also the system that cemented my love of RPG's. And exposed me to many various genres. While also being an era of gaming where game developers would just run with crazy game concepts and unabashedly flex creativity sometimes for better or worse. And in some weird way I feel like its a way to honor its legacy and impact on me as a gamer.

Your videos are always so comfortable, informative, and highly entertaining to watch. However, this video sparked some form of motivation for me. I wish to one day be as dedicated and loving to my passion for all my life and yet be so humble as to teach others of your hobbies. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and never change Johnny!

Video games have been my passion since I was 4. Your channel has been such a joy to watch for years now. I have learned about so many games I missed over the years. Game on!

I've never played or even seen a PC Engine in person but this was one of my favorite videos of yours. I think anyone who has a passion for anything can relate to this video. It's awesome seeing your excitement as you talk about your collection. You're the best, Johnny!

Those 2 seconds of Dragon Spirit immediately turned on nostalgia mode for me. Man did I play a lot of that game and I still love it today (guess my icon is an obvious tell huh?). Anyway, I miss gaming mags (and booklets) so much. It's why I ended up going digital this gen. Sure, apps and stuff but it's just not the same. Personally, my CD/vinyl and perfume collections are 100x what my gaming stuff is but I do get a kick out of seeing those big gaming rooms. I wish I had so much more time to invest in gaming!

19:23 "...some Tifa collections!" I feel like this was directed toward me. My mother is not proud.

Thank you for sharing your passion and love for video games. It is always intoxicating to hear your thoughts on them especially for a system that is less known in the mainstream.

when you love something, no justification is needed! thank you for sharing not just an awesome collection, but your loving memories from this era in gaming

I'm really into getting video game art books now. I'd love to see you make a whole video dedicated to your collection of those and maybe a list of which ones are the best or must owns!

Appreciate you sharing. I really enjoy all of your content. Keep it up!

Dude, I've watch all of your videos at least 3 times haha, I love that you are a genuine and transparent person and the way you share your passion in video games and collectibles. One of my top favorite channels for sure!

I played Ys 8 and Origins because of your channel, then i went back and emulated Ys 1 and it blew my mind, one of my favorite gaming accomplishments from the last couple years was completing that game

I’ve say it before & I’ll say it again. Love the videos, they cheer me up & my love & passion for video games gets more hyped every time I watch you talk about them. Thanks for all

I really love your stories so much.❤

I have a small collection of Gamecube, Wii, PS3, and PS4 games. Just stuff I owned at the time and a few I picked up cheap at the end of each console's life. My main passion though is emulation. I love having complete sets of all the old 8 and 16bit stuff with all the artwork etc that I can browse on my big tv before playing them. It's great to experience the art aswell as the games, they are a real time capsule and they take me back to that time in my life. It's a harmless hobby really, and like you said, better to be obsessed with games than something else! Thanks for the video, I really enjoyed it.

I understand 100% . Being born in 83, I can relate to what your saying. I wouldn't say I intentionally collected the games I have (NES, Sega, ps1, etc) but I bought them to play and have a good time. I have fond memories of them and looking at them from time to time really takes me back to what I consider simpler times.

Hey Johnny love your channel and the topics you cover. I am close to your age myself so I totally get where you are coming from. They simply don't make things like that anymore. The PC Engine was such an ingenious piece of hardware. It feels like a combiner transformers. You attach the CD unit here, multiplayer adapter there and Bang! Now you have one killer looking console!

I'm 32 years old and prior to finding your channel, I had no familiarity with the TurboGraphX or PC Engine or half of the things you showcase on your New Games Stuff episodes. What I love about your channel is that it educates people like me, and you do it with such passion and positivity. Keep up the good work!

Awesome video John! I just started collecting for the TurboGrafx a year ago because of you and I’m going for a full U.S. collection and I’m up to 60! Lol Love the PC Engine as well!

This reminds me of my Nintendo DS collection. 134 games... which is not a lot considering the library size of the DS, but I never would have guessed I would have such a large collection in the end.

WHAT AN AMAZING EPISODE OF THE PAST OF GAMING. YOUR CHANNEL WILL LIVE THE TEST OF TIME, YOUR A GAMING HISTORIAN JOHHNY,YOUR COLLECTION SHOULD BE IN A VIDEO GAME MUSEUM.

Hey John, I love hearing you talk about your passion for video games. Although I never owned a TurboGrafx-16, it holds a special place in my memories too. Im 42 and actually live out in the fraser valley and i used to go to Guilford mall with my cousin who lived out there in the early 90s too. My memories of first seeing TurboGrafx-16 were from when my parents took me to the PNE either late 80's or early 90's and seeing a big advertisement for it there....I was blown away and know exatly what you meant by it being cutting edge for the time. We were a Sega Master system house and this was amazing to me. But like you said, no internet and I didnt know anyone that owned one, but I remember playing the demo system they always had in radioshack stores in the mall local to me and loving Keith Courage game they mostly had in it. We went on eventually to get a SNES as our next video game system....having more than one system didnt even seem like a possibility to me back then, but I still rember always having fond memories of that system that I never actually owned and only played ocationally. Makes me think I really should track down a mini Turbo system that came out a couple years ago I believe. Thanks for refreshing my memory but also sharing yours.

I have a video game obsession too 😳 more than 1000 PC Games and a few 100 Games for the PS1 to PS5, XBox to XBox One and Gamecube to Switch Oled (every console), also a lot of handhelds and hundreds of games. I especially collect collectors editions, figures and guide books. Video game related things are everywhere in my flat 🤣🤣🤟

Watching you while waiting for my burger. Perfect this vid while waiting

I like how John is starting to look more like David Lynch with his hairstyle. :)

I agree with you about the PCE Engine/Turbo Grafx-16. Me and one other friend really got excited for this console back in the day thanks to shows like Video Power, magazines like Gamepro, and even commercial I would catch on tv for the TurboGrafx. We would eventually put our money together and buy one, trading it back and forth every weekend. It is a beast of a system just for its library alone. We both felt it never got the recognition it deserved. Hell I found your channel years ago looking for videos to watch about it on RU-vid one day. It was that system that brought me here and why I became a fan of your channel lol. If you’re going to start making more dedicated episodes specifically for the system and it’s games this has me beyond excited!

Up until recently, this feeling revolved around the Sega Saturn for me. I had literally one other friend with a Saturn, and then he moved away when we were around 9 years old, and at that age, an entire world went with him, it felt like in the 90s. But recently, more and more people are getting into the Saturn with breakthroughs in emulation, so it's great to see and hear about people discovering what felt like an unknown library.

Also I know how it is to not know anyone to talk to about games much less to even have someone to play them with,but I appreciate as you do being able to watch your videos and hear what you have to say about them.

I love this. I grew up with the TG16 too. I was 12 in 1990 and bought it with my own money. Sadly I have none of it anymore, except for a broken console and a worn box on my shelf. Thank goodness for emulation

Thank you for reminding me about the music of Ys 1 and 2. I love all versions of that OST ever since I played it about 6 years ago. It calms me down so much

Gosh the orchestrated music is amazing on some of these games man, just hearing it must have been an experience back then. So glad your parents got you the TurboGrafx-16 / PC-Engine and thank you for sharing your enthusiasm man.

Taking me back to 90's going to the local Flea Market Mall to buy games for the Turbo Grafix - Turbo Duo with my friend from school.

That is SUCH an impressive collection! For me, I've been all about collecting every JRPG I can get my hands on. I've had to course correct once or twice as I've gone, narrow my focus a bit in some cases, but by and large I just get so much joy out of building this genre library!

I really enjoyed this video. Watching you for over 10 years…..hope you do some deep dives on PC Engine. 😊

Hah, that's me with TTRPG books. As long as you're having fun man, that's all that matters. Love your channel

Listening to this at work, you threw me off with the guildford mall seing as I live in Guildford UK. Bitmap books are awesome, I have the master system but reeeeally want the gameboy one. Looking forward to some future PC Engine vids 😀

Love your passion, Jhonny! If it weren't for you I wouldn't have even have about the PC engine!

I feel you. I love buying PS4 games. This console allowed me to play many of the games that I couldn't have growing up. I can play Genesis, Game Cube, PS1, PS2, PS3, XBOX 360, as well as PC games that I couldn't afford back then. The generation of remasters and remakes gave me a unique chance, and for that reason the PS4 is my personal ultimate console. The one that got me back into gaming for sure.

My wife and I are both artists in the game industry but the amount of art books we have collected is amazing and a problem at the same time, love your positivity man, very inspiring!

I personally don’t enjoy having more games than I can play. For anything I am interested in but know I won’t be able to play, I watch on RU-vid or live out vicariously through channels like yours

what ive done is started only buying games that I find 10/10 games theres no need for me to have mountains of games but I do wanna be around the games that have made a huge impact for me. Nothing wrong with the hobby but theres no way you have time to play all of those games. As long as your not hurting anyone more power to you.

I love your videos about this era of gaming that's just a little before my time, I always discover a game, series, or developer that I have to find a way to experience :)

I kinda feel the same way about the sega saturn... It was the first CD-based console I ever owned. Fast forward years later, I got a japanese model 1 saturn and nad managed to get about 30 games for it and those are 30 games I like doesn't matter how much they are. Still have it hooked up to my TV with an HDMI upscaller. Always cool to play that system

Though I already had a PC Engine by the time that early Gamepro issue came out, it was articles like that and things like that electric purple photo that really cemented those consoles as more than a game machine - they were truly a magical experience in every way from their unique physical form factors, controllers and marketing aesthetics to the memorable box art that you mentioned. I've recently taken a look back at my collection as well to reassess, and the PC Engine stands out for me above the others too, for nearly the same reasons you have - but with different personal stories attached. I can't wait to be able to share them with you next chance I get!

the prank phone call anecdote brought up a memory of my own. i used to call home depot and ask them for tools that don't exist.

Brilliant video, me and my brother had the Amstrad cpc 464 back in the 80s, we got as a Xmas present of parents and came with a green screen. Few years later we got coler screen. We and my brother had hell of a time and still talk about the fun we had in the 1980s times amazing then great era to be brought up.

I’m somewhat obsessed and always loved video games . Sad part is at 48 years old I don’t have many adults in my circle that love video games to talk about the games oh well. We have you happy console gamer. 👍

Really appreciate this video Johnny, definitely brought back memories for me when I bought a pc engine off a friend from school back in 1990-91… 😊

I collect Dragon Quest merchandise 😂 I have so much, and sadly, i don't have the room to display most of it, so a lot of it is in storage. Someday I'll be able to spread out with it all, but it is not this day. Dragon Quest/Warrior I was the first rpg I ever played, and my soft spot for it has only gotten larger as the years go by. The power of nostalgia 😊

Man you got me nostalgic with this video....grew up around the same time as you ...owned nearly all the systems ..well not all...turbo graphx 16 and atari jaguar. I just love video games even though im not a fan of a specific genre I still keep up with them all. To this very day still passionate of em all..own all gaming systems pc, sony, nintendo microsoft, vr headsets like valve's index....not a fanboy of any specific company just a lifelong nerd.

I’m in the same boat as you John. I had a buddy in high school who worked at Radio Shack. Radio Shack of course was one of the few stores to really carry the Turbografx 16. Well when you take one high schooler, add in some disposable income, a healthy employee discount and you can guess what happened. We were hanging out playing TG-16, staying over on weekends living on pizza and Mountain Dew. I have a very fond memory of us all playing China Warrior while cranking Kung Fu Fighting on the stereo at a soothing billion and a half decibels and each of us making our own Bruce Lee sound effects as we played. Fast forward 34 years and the pride and joy of my video game collection is my complete US release set of Turbografx 16 games. It was my obsession for years to complete that collection and I was only able to do so thanks to collecting for years before retro gaming became a thing, a lot of hard work scouring every game store, garage sale, and flea market in every town I went through, and of course a very understanding wife. It is my pride and joy, the piece de resistance of my collection and I wouldn’t trade it or the experience building it and the 34 years of fond memories for anything.

My obsession for sure is finding toys, figures, statues, that really spark my imagination. I’m a stickler with the poses, so it takes time, but wow, the unfolding results are so fun 🤩