When people left games at your house YEARS ago...

[tbonesteak4dinner]

So I have a small moral dilemma here 

TLDR: If someone left a few games at your house years ago that have now become relatively "valuable" and you've since lost touch, gotten on bad terms, moved, or whatever, should you go through the effort of unburying old contacts that might be better left buried to give them back games they might not even want or remember?

The deats:
Over the past year as I started collecting games again, I found about 3 games that people had left at my house when we were kids/teenagers (we're talking over 10 years ago). Sculptor's Cut was left at my house by a friend one night after a sleep over and he never brought it home again. It sat in our cabinet for months and then years and eventually got put in a box when we moved. It wasn't valuable at the time, and he and I both had pretty much forgotten about it. I mentioned it a few times while I lived there, and he would say something like "oh yeah, I'll grab that next time I'm over", but he never did even though we put it out on the counter for him. We lost touch in high school and then I moved out of state, finding it in a box years later.

Another friend loaned me Zelda Master Quest and Star Fox Adventures to play through a few years after the first story. (Now keep in mind, I HATE people who borrow things and don't return them) I played through both and then set them aside. It was a situation where he said he was "done" with them for now and didn't mind me holding on to them for an extended period of time. He and I both ended up forgetting about them, and they just sat there. Every once in a while I'd remember and it would be a similar thing where he'd say "oh yeah, I'll grab those next time" but he'd either end up leaving them there or say he'd do it later again.

I wasn't on bad terms with either of these people, but it's just been so long since we've talked that it would be pretty awkward to try to make contact again, and I have no idea if they'd even be interested in getting this stuff back. Some friendships are best just left in the past you know?

[Arseen]

If they burn your hands you can send them to me...

but really:

If you can somewhat easily contact them still, contact them and ask do they want them back.
But if it's too big hassle, just keep the damn games.

[zane_7849]

If you just sell them without contacting them you'll prol always feel a little shitty about it. Suck it up and try to contact them to see if they want it back. Money is never more valuable then piece of mind.

[Mick Dundee]

No contact for years? Tried giving it back several times way back when? OUT OF STATE....that one is a definite.

 Keep em. Its been years, chances are they would be sold, or they wouldn't care anyway. Leave them in the caring home they are in now and enjoy having them.

    And you are correct, some friendships are best kept in the past. Usually the ones that stay in the past aren't worth the effort anyway.

[Moviefan2k4]

I'd say that you should make every conceivable effort to contact your old friends, since the games still rightfully belong to them. If they answer, and want them back, then do the right thing. If they don't answer, its their loss.

[wiggy]

If they wanted them, you woulda heard about it by now. If you've got an email address, hit em up. Otherwise I wouldn't make a huge effort.

[Moviefan2k4]

Not if they forgot; it has been years after all. Call or email them, and put forth the effort to actually ask. If they say to keep them, do so. Otherwise, give them back.

[Superchop]

I agree with Wiggy...if they really wanted their games back or even cared to get them back, I'm sure you would've heard from them.  Chances are that they no longer care about those games seeing as how it's been years since they've last touched them/played them.  Or possibly they may be cursing you out since the one is seeing how much sculptors cut is going for lol

And from what you said about them saying "oh i'll just pick it up some other time" that line right there, at least to me tells me that they didn't really care and to an extent it'd just be more "junk" for them to have around.

I say just keep them in your collection as a type of momento of the past.  Every time you see those games you'll be reminded of your friends and all the fun you've had.  It would be cool to get back in touch with them after so long but I wouldn't make the sole reason to get back in touch with them be just about those games.  Get back in touch with them also because you want to and in a way you want to try to bring them back into your life.

[wiggy]

Not if they forgot; it has been years after all. Call or email them, and put forth the effort to actually ask. If they say to keep them, do so. Otherwise, give them back.

It probably wasn't terribly important to them if they forgot. 

[Moviefan2k4]

Not if they forgot; it has been years after all. Call or email them, and put forth the effort to actually ask. If they say to keep them, do so. Otherwise, give them back.

It probably wasn't terribly important to them if they forgot. 

Regardless, it's still theirs. If you you don't make every effort to return something you know belongs to someone else, its the same as stealing.

[wiggy]

Like I said, shoot them an email or whatever if you've got it, but don't go hiring a private detective to hunt them down.  What I'm saying isn't separated by more than a few degrees of what you're saying.

The way I look at it, it's not stealing or like stealing.  They forgot it, not T-bone.  Sounds like he already tried to get the items returned forever ago but the owners of said games weren't really all that concerned. 

[SasoriSoren]

I have had friends do the same, though with books. I still have my friend Josh's books on Buddhism (I was studying the religion and a few books front he Dalai Llama never hurt). I asked if he wanted them back on Facebook and he never replied so I have kept them to this day. I he ever wants them back I live 5 miles away.

If the person left them there and hasn't contacted you in years about them, they have no idea it is there anymore and obviously don't have a dilemma about them missing otherwise they would have made sure to contact anyone who may have them. That said, simply not giving them back would be pretty slimy. I say try to find them on Facebook, and if you don't see them on the first page of results, don't search any longer and know in your heart and mind that you tried to do the right thing.

[palmer6strings]

I'd say keep them, like others have said, they would have tried to get th by now.
I've had this happen so many times myself and they never seemed to care so I just kept them.

[Moviefan2k4]

Like I said, shoot them an email or whatever if you've got it, but don't go hiring a private detective to hunt them down.  What I'm saying isn't separated by more than a few degrees of what you're saying.

The way I look at it, it's not stealing or like stealing.  They forgot it, not T-bone.  Sounds like he already tried to get the items returned forever ago but the owners of said games weren't really all that concerned. 

If he's already tried and failed to return them, that's one thing, but no one should keep something like that without making every honest attempt to contact the owners. Hiring a detective might be a bit much, but then again, maybe not; I'd say it depends on the circumstances. With so much info online now, you can get a current address or phone number for almost anyone from a records search. Some of the fees are large, but many are small.

[segamer]

Well, I'd say that it's hard to keep something that isn't yours. Try and contact the owners and ask them if they'd like their games back. I can't tell you how many times my games weren't returned to me. It's upsetting.