NAMED COLLECTIONS

In July 2019 we published a blog post that talked about the differences between a Named Collection and a Pedigree. In continuing to innovate and provide more value for collectors, we are rolling out a new service for collectors to apply for their own, named collections.

How does this work? If you feel your collection qualifies based on the criteria laid out in this post, email [email protected] and your request will go through an approval process.

But before jumping at this opportunity, we want to elaborate on what the differences between Named Collections and Pedigrees are, how these are treated at WATA, and what this means for your next submission.

 

What is a Named Collection?

A Named Collection as noted or defined by WATA can be any assortment of games that share a common ownership. They can be very uniform in scope and character or be a complete hodgepodge of games in varying conditions and states. It really doesn’t matter, and by itself, it doesn’t really have any meaning other than documenting a provenance or chain of ownership

Named Collections allow collectors to create a unique personal tagging of their own collection in order to preserve it in a way that means the most to them. Under our new process, you now have the ability to mark your graded games with a personal attribute (name, alias, gamertag, etc). 

Named Collections should not be confused with Pedigrees – Pedigree designations are determined by WATA’s sole discretion and have distinguishing characteristics beyond ownership that make them unique and notable. Moving forward, all Pedigrees will be clearly distinguished with Silver Flow holograms for the grade and the shared naming convention among all WATA Pedigrees that is some geographical location or city name (e.g. The Hawaii Collection, the Indiana Collection, the Plattsburgh Collection, etc.). Meanwhile, Named Collections will retain a standard Blue or Green Flow hologram and may not include geographical indicators in their names. 

WATA’s Named Collections process doesn’t cost anything extra but has specific requirements. If you’re interested in submitting your collection as a Named Collection, here’s how it works:

 

Process Requirements:

  • Email [email protected] with your desired collection name and details about the games you plan to submit as a collection. Including a photo or photos is recommended.
  • Include a 100 – 200 word general description of the collection and/or what makes it unique. By default, each collection will be individually posted on our blog with the accompanying description – you may opt out of this if you don’t want your collection publicly shared, but it will still be added to the live repository mentioned below.
  • Based on the criteria below, you will receive a response within 14 calendar days as to whether your request is approved or not. A submission will then need to be placed within 45 calendar days upon approval (if not submitted in this window and without reasonable explanation, the request will be voided).
  • We have created a live, updating repository at the bottom of this blog post that will track all of the Named Collections and Pedigrees that WATA has recognized. 

 

Submission Requirements:

  • There is a 30 game minimum. Any exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis for high-value collections such as NES Black Box sets.
  • There is no maximum.
  • All games must be sent in at once and submitted under the same order. A specific Named Collection can only be used once per customer (lifetime) and may not be added to at a later date.

 

Naming Requirements:

  • Your proposed name must adhere to the following guidelines:
    • No vulgarity
    • Roman characters only (no accents)
    • No trademarked words or phrases
    • No regions, cities, or locations (these are reserved for Pedigrees)
    • No proper names which are not your own or an accepted alias for yourself
    • No special characters 
    • @ symbols, underscores, periods and dashes may be used to indicate usernames or gamertags 
  • Ultimately, your name selection can be rejected for any reason, including reasons not outlined above. Attempts to subvert the aforementioned guidelines will also result in a name selection rejection.

Additional Details:

  • The collection name will appear on the label in the “Exception” field below the title but above the box variant.
  • The grade “Flow” hologram will follow our standard rules (blue or green depending on state).
  • If you have games that are already graded but want to update the labels, you may submit these as Reholders. All other guidelines still apply.

 

All of the collections that are recognized by WATA will be tracked in two live tables below, one for Pedigrees and one for Named Collections. Details about the collections and links to their individual pages will be included.

 

If you are interested in applying for a Named Collection or have any questions about the process or whether you qualify, please email us at [email protected]. We’re excited to see more of your collections!