A new old hobby

So a few weeks ago, I walked into a Walgreens, and randomly situated up on the impulse item rack between the candy bars and the gift cards sat a box of 2012 Topps Baseball cards, opened up with about half its packs already off to good homes. For the first time in, I dunno, 5 years, I picked up a brand new pack of baseball cards.

Fast forward, and 10 packs later, I have a nice start to my 2012 Topps collection.

It's been a LONG while since I collected a new series of baseball cards when they came out. I think the years started with a straight number back then. Anyways, I noticed how much the hobby had changed when, with 10 cards in the pack, two were for insert subsets, and 8 were for the normal base set.

These subsets are beautiful, and they have a gold theme going this year, which looks pretty good, but I have one thing bothering me here.

I now have cards from 8 different insert sets, most with Gold in the name, and cards from 2 of the 3 parallel base sets with a different coloring on the outside.

I can handle a couple of insert sets. I can handle not getting an insert in each card. What bothers me is that I have no chance whatsoever of completing an insert set with all the different kinds out there, simply by buying packs. It's just mindboggling how many cards I'd need to collect to collect ALL that Topps is putting out there, and that's not even before considering the LONG odds of getting the REALLY good stuff, the autographs and the like.

The Series 1 base set is 330 cards. I have to believe that there are just as many if you took all the cards from the various insert sets and put them together.

I sometimes feel like I'm old before my time. I like dice games, I prefer to stay in rather than go out the majority of the time, and I like my baseball card sets simple. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go sit in my rocking chair and fall asleep with baseball on TV.

Madden, and why I don't play it much any more

Why am I posting about this? Why not?

I tend to get Madden as a gift these days, or off the clearance shelves. I think the last time I plopped down full price was in 2007. Today, I picked it up, started a franchise, simmed a season, and drafted a franchise quarterback in the first round with the team I decided to play (hint: Not the Packers. That whole franchise QB thing is covered there). Played a game, great come from behind win over the Giants at home, even though I am very out of practice at this.

It was after this game that I started thinking why I don't do this more often (besides the potential for property damage). My main gameplay gripe is that it seems like the players seem like they're running under water. Compared to the NCAA game, they react very very slowly in changing directions. This has been an issue since, oh, I don't know, 06?

I think my main gripe though is that in the XBox/PS2 age, there was more of an attachment to your franchise. You could do, well, a hell of a lot more with it. The rookie scouting changed throughout the years, but it was always fun. It stinks now. I think 04 had it right by giving you hints about a player without giving away the farm, but making it easy enough to suss out what the scout was trying to say. Also, I loved the preseason drills that you could put your team through to improve them. While it may have been a boon to the human player, it also made you get to know your team a bit better, and made you feel more connected to your club, even if you sim quite a lot.

I don't think I really have a main point to this, but I thought it was worth saying. You'll see me playing MLB the Show, the NHL series, and the NCAA series (even though, right now, my regard for the real NCAA can't get any lower) before you'll see me invest major time into this game. I'm slowly giving up hope that this series will be any fun for me any time soon.