How to Organize Your Game Collection - Retro Bird
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 9 ก.พ. 2025
- Collecting can be a lot of fun, but what about organizing all of it? In this video I give some of my favorite tips and advice for organizing your video game collection. In addition, I talk about why organization matters to collectors so much.
How To Organize Your Game Collection - Retro Bird
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"How to Organize Your Consoles and Controllers" will be done in a future video. Games played: Ghouls 'n Ghosts (0:11), Battletoads (0:28), Banjo Kazooie (0:41), Catrap (0:51), Thunder Force III (1:10)
Are you going to do a game room tour eventually? I like to watch those.
Thanks was gonna ask about cat trap lol
You ever get a knock down domino effect when selecting or putting your game away?
I store my games in a BOX! No, I actually just have to get a new (larger) shelf.
The scene where you threw away the game was by far the most hilarious part of this video lol. Question, have you ever played Flashback? The original 1992-1993 version?
I like how in the more recent videos, Bird has been adding a end gag, really adds a lot of character to the video.
Kinda reminds me of scott
I'm diggin those too! I also love how Bird doesn't have a long drawn out intro, he just gets right to the subject at hand. Keep up the great work Retro Bird 🐦
Glad you like them. I was thinking I'll probably make them a regular thing from now on.
I love them too! The little jokes like that are part of what makes this channel so fun
I’ve really been enjoying your channel lately. So much quality content!
Thank you! Glad to hear it :)
Great tips, especially the date night tips. My wife will find a whole new appreciation for my video game collecting....
I place items INDIVIDUALLY into a ziplock bag.
Usually a small bag for a cord. Usually a large bag for controllers, light guns, or power bricks.
Get a big box of generic bags for cost efficiency.
VERY nice because nothing ever gets tangled!
Same here... I put all chords, controllers and accessories in ziplock bags.
Then I put them in a basket. All the PS2 bags in one basket, all the GameCube bags in another and so forth.
Labeling cables is friggin brilliant, dude. Good insight. I have young kids so the 'keep everything on display' approach is a quick path to destruction.
I currently use my childhood dresser to store my games. I have a PlayStation drawer, a Nintendo drawer, and a cabinet to house my consoles that aren’t plugged in. Cans display then like I want but it works with my space.
I jokingly said to my wife a couple months ago that I wanted to buy another house and use it as the "game" house. Great minds think alike.
This guys on the come up. He'll be a big part of the community very soon.
You are hilarious, Retro Bird. I always know I’m gonna laugh when I see a know vid on your channel.
I use an acrylic nail polish display to show off my Gameboy games. It’s 4 rows high and can fit exactly 5 cartridges across per row. It looks pretty nice and let’s me see all the artwork.
Yes, I've seen this trick before too. I think it was Game Dave who did it. Great idea!
one of the best youtube channels for sure.
Small zip-loc bags are a great way to keep cables and controllers. Keeps them from getting tangled up, faster than using twist ties to wrap them up, and you can label the bags if it isn't obvious what the cable is for.
New to the channel, been loving the goofy comedy and laid back content you provide!
Welcome to the channel! Glad to have ya on :)
I do a hybrid. I group them by consoles, and obviously alphabetically but theres an exception to the rules. If it's part of a series, even if the names are different and alphabetically they shouldn't be next to one another I overlook it for the sake of having the sequels or series together. The Legacy of Kain/Soul Reaver series for example. Another thing I look out for is release order as well because alphabetically it could be correct but not the release order so that's another exception I make.
That Cassette holder for Genesis games is a cool idea! I have 5 areas I keep my games. I organize them by when the console came out and then in alphabetical order. I have a Drawer that I keep all my Nes, Snes, N64, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Virtual Boy, Jaguar, and 32X loose carts in. I use a couple Cd towers and Cd holders for my Turbografix 16/Pc Engine games, PS1, Dreamcast, and Retro PC games. Finally I have 3 tall shelves. One of them has the last decade and up displayed; Wii U, Switch, and PS4 games. The second shelf has the 2000s decade displayed; PS2, GBA, Gamecube, OG Xbox, Wii, Xbox 360, and PS3. My final shelf has everything from the 80s and 90s in it. Nes, Master System, Genesis, Game Boy, Snes, Cdi, Sega Cd, 3DO, Jaguar, 32X, Sega Cd 32X, Sega Saturn, Virtual Boy, PS1, Atari Jaguar Cd, and other Retro PC games.
I keep my games organized by when they came out too!
I have a large collection (just passed 1200 games total) and I'm extremely organized. All games are separated by system and alphabetized. Systems are grouped by manufacturer and then ordered by generation (NES -> SNES -> N64). I have two game areas; the main game room where all the home console games are and my bedroom which is where the handheld systems and games are. Speaking of binders and trading card sleeves are really great for storing GameBoy games. Makes it really easy to find stuff even if it isn't very exciting to look at.
I spray-paint the spines of all my game cases; colored coded by genre. The disks, however, I hang from a grid of nails on my wall--proudly displayed in neat rows and columns. Cartridges get heaped in a cardboard box in the back. It works for me and I'm known for my good taste.
Sounds perfect to me. You'll have to make a game room tour video.
Lol. That's a 1st.
After few additions to my video games collection the time has come to reorganize it and i had an idea. I decided to group my games by game system and then in chronological order by release dates. It took way more time than it is worth, but man, am I proud!
Your cartridge display for the Genesis/SNES looks really cool. I’ll have to try it with my SNES collection. Looking forward for the vid that answers the one that has plagued me for a while - how to store controllers!
Yeah I would love tips on that. At the moment I just chuck all of them into a drawer on the TV unit and it looks like a snake pit in there.
Ah yes... controllers are a beast of their own.
Pantry rack or woman's shoe holder hanging on the door. Cost about $15-$20 at Walmart. It can hold about 50 controllers and light guns. This was a big problem for me because I have more controllers than systems. Each systems consist of at least 2 controllers. More than likely, a retro gamer have about 10-15 consoles. So the controllers would be around 20-30.
Man, I don't know how you can pick a game out of that shelf display without accidentally starting one of those dominos sequences...
I died with laughter at your comment "Cord Hoard"! ROFLAO I use a Pelican Case for mine that lost its ability to sub merge under water. I think I picked it up at flee market for $25 it holds "ALL" of my cords. TV, HIFI, Game console cords and backup Atari 2600 controllers.
This video speaks to my soul 😂 just re-organized my collection recently, pretty much dealt with everything you talked about. I recommend custom game cases for cartridge based games, as long as you’re not a complete set collector. They look great, help protect the games, and don’t cost nearly as much as original CIBs.
Custom cases just look fake to me.
Devon Williams I hear ya, some are not as great as others for sure…but I’m ok with it overall. I know they’re not real boxed games, but still better than bland shades of grey carts for me, and easier to store than loose carts as well.
I don’t like cases that are not real either. I like to see the actual item and there is no nostalgia for fake cases.
Darko1226 I can dig it. I still get the nostalgia from the box art though. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I love em’. It solves my issue of storing cartridge games on shelves.
@@gtrlyfe1012 Whatever works for everyone. I know there are benefits to having cases. It would have been nice if the original nes and super nes games were sold in cases lol
This channel deserves more subs!
"It's date night baby! " that saying and a pic of you with your wallet would made a funny poster or T-shirt 😁😁😁
Love me some retro bird
Hat's off to you sir! I've always appreciated how nice your collection looks. You do a fantastic job keeping things organized and clean!
For N64 games, I use to put them into Disney movie cases with a homemade label on the spine, and the instruction manual on the front.
This is one of your best videos yet! Great thoughts
Loved the Cord Horde part as my son is one. Me I just throw them out & yep that bites me in the butt. Like my PS4 with no power cord right now. Who's fault is that? Me! Way to go me!
This year my Video Game Toys have to move somewhere else like my Banzai Bill, Goomba, Red Shells & Green Warp Pipes all have to find a new home away from my cartridge collection.
My kids are all ready calling dibs on some of my video game figures. It doesn't look as cool, but it sure does free up a lot of space to add more video games in the future!
The banana cameo was epic.
I love those recent little videos endings!
These are always very funny and thought provoking!!!
One of my favorite rambles on TH-cam
I haven’t done this but it is definitely something in my hopes and dreams but will probably never happen, just like getting a copy of trip world. But what I want to do in the future when I have money is something kinda like mrwhosetheboss has with his phone collection. Idk if you’ve seen it but it’s pretty cool. It’s like a wall with all the phones standing upright against it and it has leds that can be programmed to light up just whatever phone he wants. I think with some editing that initial design to be more space efficient and fit game cartridges would be so cool, and I would never loose a game as long as it goes back in the same spot. Now realistically I’ll never be able to do this but I hope someday I can
While not the most space efficient way, I like using the nail polish stands for displaying GB/GBC carts. I can see them all on risers, and can access them easy. I have the boxes stacked away on a different shelf. I also bought some cartridge stands to display my favorites for other systems, and then store other games out of sight if no room on the shelf.
A lot of good advice on how to organize the collection. I have three rules for my collection. Every game has to be on the shelf because otherwise it's very likely that I forget about it, it has to be easily accessible, meaning no stacking whatsoever, and the games have to be in alphabetical order or else it would just take me too long to find games from certain systems.
Cord hoard and cable labels are now my two fav rhymes 😂 great vid!
The bit at the end😂 I really needed that random jackassery it was absolutely hilarious. Love the channel !
Thanks for the tips! The end gag took me by surprise and had me dying, lol.
Your videos just keep getting better and better! Glad I found your channel.
Great video, so many unexpected laughs!! My tip is stay away from Ikea's Billy bookshelves and go with the Artiss CD/DVD media shelves. Easy to find on Amazon. Billy's are great for figures etc but I found the Artiss fit more games and had a smaller profile. Plus you can put all the left over shelves behind narrow cases so they sit flush. Anyway, hope you find your D64 cart ;)
Billy bookshelf has a large collection of books. 🙂
I really love your videos, they are my place to go when chilling out on video game videos
I keep my Game Boy and Game Boy Advance collection in card sleeves inside a binder. That's essentially making the most out of both vertical and horizontal space and gives a fun way to organize your games.
One of the funniest videos I've seen! Awesome work! :D
For NES, my favorite way is to stack them horizontally inside of dust covers, this way you can read the labels without tilting your head and pull them out without having to move anything.
oh man! Good idea mentioning the cord labels, I've got 2 drawers full of bundled cables it's a mess.
I really appreciate that I can store my GBA games in DS cases. The only problem is that I have to open up all the DS cases when I'm looking for a specific GBA game.
Deciding whether to organize by franchise or by console is tough. If older games were really cheap, I'd almost be tempted to get duplicates of my favorite franchises, just so I can have a few of my favorite franchises together, while also having all my games organized by console.
Anybody else who have games on their shelves & you don't play them? I have an idea for retro games. Just keep the top 10 games you love for each console & try to emulate as much as you can & keep that on your pc. Also buy ever drives for each system you own.
More than anything you are a brilliant comedian. As a side note, I don't organize games by alphabetical, I order them by publisher, and series importance. Sort of feels like Smash Bros character select screen.
Thank you for that! I also sometimes find myself wanting to organize by publisher. For example, I did that with the Sega games on GameCube.
Planning on spending some quality time with my cord horde tomorow.
probably my favorite hack for my game collection: storage boxes as display risers.
i only ever have 1 console connected at a time, and video and power ext cables are already run to the "active console" area, i just swap out what im playing with in the "active" area and never have to mess around behind the tv.
each console is displayed in ikea kallax cubby shelves, and sits on a riser which is actually a document box i got from the container store. each box can hold its consoles power and video cables, as well as a couple controllers and some odds and ends. so whenever i want to use a system, i take it off the shelf, along with its paired storage box, and im set up in 5min or less. and with this solution, i never have to worry about how to store controllers or cables, because its already integrated into the display solution for the consoles themselves.
This is one of those challenges that I face, but manage with it. I use a Regular Corner Shelf and My PC Game Boxes take up a the most space. I currently have 8 Box PC Games with varying sizes and it's all a variety of different Racing Game Titles. The only games I have stacked on top of one another are my Shell Cases and Jewel Cases.
I don't usually take these out, and I mostly leave them as is. I did recently use them to install onto my PC, and I'm glad I did. Installing all of em at once means I don't have to use any of Discs.
I appreciated the ideas given in this video on organizing a Game Collection. I agree that it's important to keep everything organized as perfect as it can be. I love the humor, the fact you treat your games like a family is wholesome. I'm getting so many ideas from ya on how to treat Video Games 🤣
I was thinking about my shelf recently and I went ahead and rearranged it in a way that I feel works better for me.
It used to be organized by console, in alphabetical order. I felt that was kinda boring. Now, it's by box shape, then by game series. I mix my PS4 with XBO, DS with 3DS, along with Wii U, Wii, Xbox 360 and Gamecube.
I only have a few GBA cartridges, so they just sit on the shelf.
I feel this way is more fun and interesting to look at.
I taped my Sega Saturn Magic Knight Rayearth to my head.
Fixed one problem.
Created a whole other problem..
I swear, I have almost as much fun organizing games as I do playing them. :-) I do like your Genesis game setup -- it really does show off the front labels nicely. How stable are they standing up? It looks like they might fall down like dominoes if you try to take a game out.
Some things I've had luck with:
- For GB / GBC / GBA games, I put them in 3-ring binders with archive-safe 12-pocket plastic pages more commonly used for coins. They're just barely the right size for these carts, store a lot, and you can have an end label on the binder to find them.
- As others have noted, nail polish display stands are great for putting games on display. I use one for irregularly-shaped portable game carts that don't fit in binders (GBC games that use AAA batteries, Codemasters Game Gear games, etc.).
- Plastic protector boxes are great for loose cartridges -- they will help you stand SNES and Genesis games on their side, so you can see the end labels on a bookshelf. I put the N64 end labels on these boxes rather than the games themselves.
- To my surprise, plastic protectors for cardboard boxed games can actually make a slightly worn-down box look cleaner. They seem to hide the imperfections and reflect light, making them look shiny and new.
Good luck to everyone organizing and displaying your games!
They're pretty stable actually. I'm guessing because they're so short. I've never had any issues.
I think alphabetical order is overhyped for small collections, but specially for large ones. Alphabetical order is only useful if you know exactly what you are looking for, but if you don't know the name or you are not looking for something super specific, then it doesn't give you any information at all. Imagine if libraries put all their books from start to finish in alphabetical order, no they section them off by genre first and then in order within the genre.
And if your collection is really huge and you want to be a pro, then you can have a list of all the games in alphabetical order that tells you in which section or shelf every game is. So you can have the best of both worlds
So many ways, to each is own...this is how I like my own games 🎮
Nothing worse than filling up the allotted shelf with games for a specific console and having to slot the one or two new games you got onto the next shelf with a bunch of random stuff… makes you feel like either getting rid of a couple games so they still fit, or buying WAYYYYY more games to fill the next shelf, so those couple of stragglers don’t get lonely. 😂 (currently having this issue with PS3) I decided to sell a couple games I don’t care as much about, but we all know it’s only a matter of time before I buy more that I like and run into this issue again.. 🤦🏻♂️
Also, those plastic drawer/cart things on wheels.. ( you know what I’m talking about right??) are a great storage option for the cord hoard, as well as extra controllers and other peripherals 😉
I sold all my PS3 & 360 games. I am not planning on playing them ever.
I watched this vid with my mom and she said "you should tape your TV remote to your forehead" to me. I always misplace the darn thing.
I currently have nearly all of my video games in a plastic container. I'd love to organize them on shelves nice and neat like books. I like the idea of a video game library. Though I do understand alternative ways of displaying games and always appreciate the effort as well as the personal touch it gives.
Might be worth trying out!
You organize your games beautifully dude. Looks enticing. I have no games on display. Most of my physicals are for consoles that either are no longer in my possession or no longer functioning properly. So these games just sit in my cabinet of disarray (well, one of 'em). Maybe someday I'll get a display happening. But in the meantime I'm pretty happy with having my (emulated) retro games organized in Playnite, alphabetically, sitting alongside my modern games. Looks pretty sweet imo. Does it lack character? Absolutely. But I like that I don't have to spend more than 5 seconds to find what I want to play. Also there are no cables to fiddle with. Just load up 'n' play! :D
Keep up the quality content. You'll have a million subs before ya know it!
Thank you and just keep on doin' whatever makes retro games enjoyable for you!
Thats legit.. my place is literally a mess.. but my game collection.. WELL organized!
Priorities I suppose!
Hey awesome you also bundle up your cords, ziplock bag and label them and then out them in a bin. Perfect cord hoard strategy
love the dk64 in the bananas lol, such a subtle joke
I keep mine pretty simple. I have a guest room that I changed into a game room since I never used it otherwise. I have two shelves on one the right side of the room and two on the opposite end (yes, my windows are blocked, but sacrifices must be made). The two shelves on the right I organize all my console games first by console generation, then by console and lastly alphabetically, and work my way down. For the two shelves on the left, the first one, I have all my handheld games displayed in the same way as I mentioned above. The second shelf on the left is where I keep all my consoles organized by generation once again. Near the entrance to the room there's a closet that I use to store any excess games for any console that can't fit on the shelves anymore (and if I don't like them as much as the ones on display already). This setup works so well for me because in the same room towards the back end, I have my CRT and 2k TV ready to play whatever I want in the same room. Unless it's on my PC that's in my bedroom, but you don't really need space for your steam collection, haha
Those are some great suggestions, need to get myself some of those N64 holders since they look awesome!
I organized my collection by franchise up until a couple years ago. It drove the wife crazy, lol.
I've got a video coming out tomorrow on game shopping, and couldn't help but notice some of the overlap in your video, lol.
Everything by franchise? Wow! That would've been interesting to see.
Hidden detail: the DK64 was hidden among the bananas, then the very next scene he’s playing an N64 with the banana controller 🤯🍌
LOL I've actually sold Paper Mario (for N64) cause I didn't have any space in my drawer for it. What a mistake on so many levels... man, you touch upon the most esoteric topics and I love it
also, I often store my games in chronological order in terms of the order I purchased them. It adds to the nostalgia as you visually scan through the stack and pinpoint exactly where you were in life when you bought/played that game
Years ago I got some old pear crates from a grocery store. I have those and finished pieces of wood to lay horizontally for some extremely cost efficient and not terrible looking game shelves.
As a Kid, I got Mario Kart 64 with my N64, Years later I wanted to play the game again, so I asked my Mother where the game was, she told me that she sold the game to "People who would use it a whole lot more", I told her that Mario Kart 64 was one of my Favorite games, She told me another reason she sold it was because it was in a storage container in the garage, and not in my Room, (Which was were my games were kept at the time). After that episode, I never let my Mother go anywhere near my games.
Yeah that's really annoying when parents, your girl friend just take your games & put them where ever. Cuz they move things around. I get pissed cuz I put them in a certain place for me remembering and have easy access to them.
5:55 Thumbs up for the sims 1 dance lmao
When you threw that game in the trash it had me cracking up
At least it's not a toilet like Scott the Woz.
I luckily have room for more games than I need, in a finished basement, so everything is on shelves. I also have large ziplock bags for each system, for power and AV cords, like you showed.
Unfortunately I gotta play Jenga w many of my games as I only have space for a game shelf. Definitely in need of some downsizing lol
Great vid, thought provoking and informative....
For me the standard has to be each console collection grouped together on a shelf unit and it then has to be in alphabetical order.
Always worth fine tuning the collection to get rid of The things that don't matter to you...might just be gold to someone else 😉
I love your idea of name tags and putting them in zip lock bags. I should do this for the plugs because It's hard to tell which is the Snes plug vs the Nes one.
Definitely and you can get the tags for really cheap.
I used bread clips. They're white so I just wrote the system name on them with sharpie and put them on the cable's end.
Yes that is my goal, 2 houses! How did you know you sneaky devil? My wife says all the time how shes gonna move our family to the country so she can build a second building to put all my game stuff in and my office so she can have the basement back. I can't wait. Hopefully after i graduate in May it can become reality.
0:36 This channel peaked right here... LOL
Great tips. I’m in the middle of total renovation of the game room and am excited to build it back up from scratch. Have you seen the video of the rich Aussie who filled his entire house with games and had to build a new house for his family? actually happened...
I had many Xbox games I was holding onto for no apparent reason.. Well one day I needed room so I trade all that crap in and got a CIB FF2 and I don't regret it one bit. Now I got more room and I got a very good game!
I think all of us need a " Game House!"
17 liter really useful boxes are perfect for storing DVD case games.
For under $20 you can get a complete set of N64 labels for the tops of the cartridges. It's made finding games in my N64 collection so much nicer.
Forgive me, Bird, for I have sinned. When I was in college, living in small spaces I had no room for stuff and I didn't yet care about collecting. I threw away most of my Gamecube cases in favor of keeping my games in those 12 disc holders (you know the ones).
It can happen.
My video game collection is small ,but well organized and I also have to keep cataloging my cartridges, CDs and yes the digital
I now have the goal of obtaining a "Game House", though to be fair it'll like be a cottage / cabin. Personally I had great ambitions for organizing my games when I moved in with my wife, but that's been a project & a half as running the lighting & general organization took a back seat to other things we both wanted to get done. It's something I plan to focus on getting done once I can get a break from disposing of mountains of snow on a weekly basis.
Im more about shelves galore. Im collecting them all ps1-ps5 so i believe this is the best way
I have a game room but 90% of my game packed in boxs.i hope to display one day..keep flying bird
I like to organise my collection based on the consoles, franchises and the games I like more being atop.
Those are great storage ideas!
This one was satisfying 🤘
5:17 this legit cracked me up haha
The best way to store games that have cardboard boxes is to put them in storage containers to avoid oxidization. Games in the typical plastic cases should be proudly displayed on a shelf of some kind. Consoles should be placed in spot that works best for you. Cleaning consoles and games can be annoying, so some collectors may want to put everything into a storage container to stop dust build-up. All games should be away from the light of the sun because that can wear out the labels over time. Cartridge games that are loose should be stored in a container or out in the open with one of those plastic things that prevent dust from ruining the cartridge. All games should be handled properly with care and clean hands! Disc games should NEVER be placed in a sleeve holder and do not place anything heavy on top of them. Do NOT stack loose discs. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE get a container to hold disc games because it drives me pecking crazy seeing loose discs.
I keep my NES games in old wooden 8-track racks. They're perfect. My PS3 collection is 3 games. Gotta get 3d dot heroes!
3:15 Donkey Kong 64 spotted.
It's 4:00 a.m. I can't sleep in this video is really making me want to get O R G A N I Z E D
I put my PS1, Dreamcast, and Saturn games in CD racks/towers. I can usually find those at thrift stores. Then DVD 📀 shelves for Wii/PS2/GameCube/Xbox games
You made me laugh so hard watching this video. 😂
Happy to hear it :)
I keep the modern games in a credenza in their own separate drawers. Then I have a closet that I got a bunch of storage for so now it's organized with the overflow. I now have adjustable shelves that are themed and allow me to swap out stuff from the closet to change it up. Very unconventional since people judge collections by how many games you have on the shelves, but as these get more and more expensive keeping them out of the sunlight will preserve them longer.