Japanese for Gamers 101: Pile of Shame

I’ve been neglecting this blog for some time. There are a couple of reasons for that. I was finding it harder and harder to find Japanese gaming words to talk about. My work schedule went fucking bananas. I began to drink rather than write in order to medicate away the horrible emptiness at the core of my being. But I was not playing many games. As a result, I have a fairly comprehensive list of games, both old and new, that I either haven’t finished, or haven’t even started yet. So, in the spirit of leaving things un- or half done, today’s Japanese gaming terminology is “Pile of Shame.”

Word: 積みゲー　or つみゲー
Romanization: tsumige-
Etymology: From the verb 積む/tsumu (to pile up, accumulate) and ゲー/ge— (abbreviation of ゲーム/game).
Definition: A stack of games that is currently gathering dust because the owner doesn’t have the time or inclination to play them.

In his article on the subject of tsumige-, game industry commentator Hiromu Taori mentions several reasons why gamers often hoard more games than they can possibly play:
1. They enjoy waiting for the release dates of anticipated games.
2. Shopping for games is a sort of hobby.
3. They enjoy just owning the games and lining them up on their shelves.

Towards the end of the article, he concludes that owning an extensive Pile of Shame is not necessarily a colossal waste of money.

The value of a game is not just the contents on the disk. The excitement of waiting for the game to drop, the time spent hunting for a game you want, and the satisfaction you get from owning the game, are all included in its value.