Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}{{Featured Article}}

[[File:9-24-07-joystiqhalogiveaway_4451joystiqhalogiveaway 4451.jpg|link=Halo|frame|[https://web.archive.org/web/20141014112452/http://www.joystiq.com/2007/09/25/joyswag-joystiqs-legendary-halo-3-giveaway/ Joystiq] [[Up to Eleven|elevates]] [http://www.ataristoteles.com/page_data/images/xbox360/b/halo3le.jpg this] [[Serial Escalation|past eleven]]!]]

{{quote|''"Limited to [[Exact Words|the number they can sell]]."''|'''Jerry Seinfeld'''}}

Of course, you usually have to pay US$5-5–$20.

Worth it? Depends on the individual work, as well as who you ask. In any case, this is a good marketing strategy, because it feeds into many people's compulsion to own the "best" version. It's particularly clever if you can get people to buy the "ordinary" version, discover how cool it is, and then go shell out ''again'' for the [['''Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition]]'''.

Another practice is releasing films both separately and in box-sets with sequels. As more sequels come out, more editions with the entire series come out. The box sets traditionally come with extra features. This is also done with TV series -- fourseries—four episodes will be on one DVD. Then another four. Then another four. And finally the whole sixteen episodes of the season in a neat little box set.

Note that, with regard to video games, this should not be confused with [[Updated Rerelease|updated rereleases]], because that's when a game is rereleased with brand new content and significant alterations to the gameplay. The [['''Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition]]''' comes out alongside the regular edition and just adds bonus content separate from the core game.

<small>'''[[Lousy Alternate Titles|Also known as]]''' [[Lost Forever|Limited]] [[Deus Ex: Human Revolution|Augmented]] [[New and Improved|Deluxe]] [[Palette Swap|Gre]][[Green Aesop|en]] [[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series|Super Special Awesome]] [[Infinity+1 Sword|Ultra]] Extended [[Command and& Conquer: Red Alert 3|Premier]] [[Violence Is the Only Option|Combat]] [[Arnold Schwarzenegger|Commando]] [[Alien]] [[Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot]] [[Vin Diesel]] [[Dragon Ball|Widescreen]] [[Gotta Catch Em All|Collector's]] [[Unrated Edition|Unrated]] [[South Park|Uncut]] [[Command and& Conquer|Kane]] [[Hellsing|Ultimate]] [[Rule of Sean Connery|Sean Connery]] [[Pani Poni Dash!|Game of The Year]] [[Cosmetic Award|Editor's Choice Edition:]] [[Author Appeal|Director's]] [[Re CutRecut|Extended Cut:]] [[Colon Cancer|The Lost Scenes:]] [[Neverwinter Nights|Gold Platinum Diamond Chaotic Lawful Evil Good]] [[Baldur's Gate|Saga]] [[StarcraftStarCraft|Bat]][[Warcraft|tle]] [[World of Warcraft|Che]][[Diablo|st]] [[Xtreme Kool Letterz|Megapak]] [[Spore|Galactic Edition]] [[Half-Life 2|Ora]][[Portal (series)|nge]] [[Team Fortress 2|Box]] [[God|Omega]] [[Department of Redundancy Department|Limited]] [[X Meets Y|With]] [[More Dakka]]: [[Blade Runner|Final Cut]] [[Street Fighter|Champion Edition]] [[The King of Fighters|Ultimate Match]] [[Yes but What Does Zataproximetacine DO|Heartburn]] [[Square Enix|Inter]][[Final Fantasy|national]] [[Kingdom Hearts|Final Mix]] [[Precision F-Strike|Fucking]] [[Halo|Legendary]] [[Final Fantasy IV|Spoony]] [[The Spoony Experiment|Bard]] [[The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings|Dark]] [[Overly Long Gag|Edition X]]... [[Don't Explain the Joke|Do you get it because there are tons of these limited edition box sets for a single movie/game/book Edition]]</small>

* With the US release of ''[[Code Geass]]'', Bandai planned out three different releases, specifically targeting the different levels of anime fans. For casual fans, there's the [[Vanilla Edition]] single DVDs and "volume packs" (two DVDs packaged together). For the real fanatics, there's the [[Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition]], which is a two-pack plus [[All There in the Manual|a Sound Episode CD]], an official soundtrack CD and a volume of the spinoff manga.

== ComicsComic Books ==

** The first Blu-Ray set contained nothing more than the theatrical version of each movie in HD, and the bonus features that accompanied those versions' initial DVD releases. A 15-disc box set of the extended versions came a little over a year later.

* The ''Ultimate [[The Matrix|Matrix]] Collection'' is perhaps the Holy Grail of the Ultimate Special Collector's Edition concept: not only do you get all three films, but the [[DVD Commentary|DVD commentaries]] on each film are provided by well-known members of the philosophical communities -- alongcommunities—along with seven extra discs providing a massive art gallery, almost sixteen hours of 'behind the scenes' documentaries, ''The Animatrix'' (an anthology of nine short films), and an extremely-detailed archive of production assets, music videos, TV spots, and concept artwork. When it says 'Ultimate Matrix Collection', that's exactly what you're getting.

** Sometimes, Disney also releases [[Up to Eleven|pricey box sets]] of the Diamond Editions. ''[[Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Disney film)|Snow White]]'' had one containing a book and some drawings and pins, and ''The Lion King'' had 3-D, Blu-Ray, DVD, and Digital Copy versions packaged with DVD and Blu-Ray copies of the sequels inside a drum.

* ''[[Help!]]!'' was released in a special collectors' edition (costing £50 as opposed to £15 for the standard edition) which came in an A4 (210mm*297mm)*50mm box; for that extra £35 one got reproductions of the lobby cards, publicity posters and shooting script, plus a "Making Of" book.

** After the third ''[[Toy Story (franchise)|Toy Story]]'' movie came to Blu-Ray and DVD, the whole trilogy received a 10-disc set<ref>containing Blu-Ray, DVD, and Digital Copy versions of each movie and the extra features disc of ''Toy Story 3''</ref> packaged in a replica of Andy's toy box.

*** Despite the high disc count, the door still seems open for ''another'' [[Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition]] of the trilogy; the 3-D versions and some of the extras from 2000's "Ultimate Toy Box" DVD are not included.

* Not only the [[James Bond]] series gets some rereleases (''[[Casino Royale]]'' itself has the one, two, and three disk editions)... but a few decide to offer the whole collection (currently [[Long Runner|22 movies]]) [http://www.cashgenerator.co.uk/action-adventure/james-bond-attache-case-44-dvd-box-rare-new-sealed-hs497 in a case]{{Dead link}} (a model known in some countries as a "007 case", to increase the pun) instead of a box.

* A new and improved version of ''[[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (novel)|Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]]'' released recently{{when}} advertised sparkly new content from Jo Rowling- which turned out to be a single sketch of Snape. Ouch.

** The ''[[Harry Potter and Thethe Deathly Hallows (novel)|Deathly Hallows]]'' special edition seems to have had little more than some new art added. It's still pretty nice, though.

* The Easton Press produces fine leather-bound collector editions of books. These are specially made for bookcollectorsbook collectors and come in landmark series like ''The 100 Greatest Books Ever Written'', ''Library of the Presidents'' and ''Great Books of the 20th Century''

== Live -Action TV ==

*** Recently, British rock bands have gotten in on the "re-release with the new single on it" game. Want "Flux" by Bloc Party, "Kiss of Life" by Friendly Fires or "Heavy in Your Arms" by [[Florence and+ the Machine]] and don't want to buy the single? Guess what albums you're going to have to buy again?

* [[Sufjan Stevens]]' ''Songs for Christmas'' collection got the deluxe box-set treatment: 5 discs, 40 pages of liner notes (including guitar tabs for most of the songs and short stories), an animated music video, a poster with a full-page comic strip on the back, and stickers. There was no [[Vanilla Edition]] of ''Songs for Christmas''--most—most of the songs had leaked to the internet a year beforehand, and one suspects that this deluxe treatment was done to give fans some incentive to pay for songs they had already downloaded.

* [[Nine Inch Nails]] released the LP set "Ghosts" in 6 different editions, including a vinyl release and a deluxe edition containing 2 CD's, a data-DVD with audio streams broken down for mixing and sampling, a [[Blu -Ray]] disc of the four albums and an accompanying slideshow, and a 48-page hardcover book. However, the '''Ultra-Deluxe Limited Edition''' was the king, housing everything from the deluxe edition, plus a 4-LP 180 gram vinyl set in a fabric slipcase and two exclusive limited edition Giclée prints, numbered and signed by Trent Reznor.

* On September 9, 2009, EMI re-issued every album by [[The Beatles (band)|The Beatles]]; the stereo mixes being released standalone and as a box set. A monoaural set (the mono mixes preferred by the band and producer, plus mono mixes of the albums which were originally in stereo... with the albums being "[http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51wU1%2BXEVjL.jpg mini-LPs]") was planned as a very limited edition with only 10,000 copies planned for release. Massive pre-orders forced EMI to reconsider. When it finally came out, it had sold 12,000 copies in the United States in its first week. In Japan, it sold 20,000. New copies can still be found at online retailers such as Amazon.

* The recent2010 re-release of [[The Rolling Stones]] ''Exile on Main St.'' got put out in ''four'' different formats. The regular Single-CD version, a Double-Vinyl edition, A Double-CD version featuring 10 bonus tracks to go along with the regular album, or, if you [[Crack is Cheaper|really wanted to splurge it]], an Limited-Edition Autographed Version of the album signed by all the band members, which would have set you back around $2000 had you got it when that version was available. A fifth version called ''"Exile Onon Main St. Rarities Edition"'' which contained just the 10 bonus tracks, is also available at Target.

** It started in [[The Nineties]]. Most of the Rykodisc rereleases of his 1969-80 back catalog over 1990-92 had bonus tracks (alternate takes, demos, unreleased songs, B-sides, etc.), and EMI/Virgin followed that up by giving his 1983-1989 output the same treatment in 1995.

* Fans of [[The Hunger Games]] film have at least three soundtrack albums releases to choose from: the "Original Score" CD (which contains [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin]] - the actual scores for the film), as well as ''two'' different versions of the ''The Hunger Games: Songs From District Twelve and Beyond'', which was a collection of [[Captain Obvious|songs]] with vocals all of which either appeared in the film (if only in the closing credits), or were "inspired by" the film. The latter includes some lovely indie rock, folk, etc., by people ranging from [[The Decemberists]] to [[Taylor Swift]] (with many critics noting the latter's tracks were more interesting and "mature" than some of her previous releases), and was overall critically well-received. However, its [[Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition]] was little more than shameless marketing: the only new ''content'' you get is a download code (!) for a single bonus song, "Lullaby"; everything else is [[Feelies]], but they consist only of "nine collector's cards" (which are really just little more than a nine-piece double-sided puzzle of two of the movie poster designs), and a not-so-exclusive poster, which though nice, is both a common promo poster design and''printed on the back of the song guide''. Which does not have lyrics included, and which by default means it is not a standard poster size, either. Luckily, said "special edition" is only a few bucks more.

* In general, popular inclusions for a video game's Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition now in this era include some combination of a "making of" disc, a soundtrack or soundtrack sampler, a metal disc case, an art collection (either a book or stand-alone files), [[Revenue Enhancing Devices|content that is otherwise available via download]], and a figurine of a character from the game.

* Proving they've had a [[Heel Face Turn]], EA brings us the ''[[Dead Space 2]]'' Collectors' Edition. It comes with a replica plasma cutter, a special code, the soundtrack and the game (and one other thing). The Replica Plasma Cutter is awesome and actually holdable (and the trigger can be pulled). It's only $80.

* While "Ultimate" in ''Ultimate [[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]'' refers to [[Ultimate Spider-Man|a comic book series]] (which the game is a [[Spin-Off]] of and [[Canon]] in the comic book continuity, being plotted by the same writer as a part of the series), there was still a Limited Edition released, with, among other things, a mini-sized Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition reprint of the comic introducing Venom.

* ''[[City of Heroes]]'' and ''City of Villains'' have one of these every so often; the most recent is the "Good vs. Evil Edition", which comes with both games, the [[Expanded Universe|comic books]] and [[Strategy Guide|Strategy Guides]]s in digital form, exclusive costumes, and the Jump Jet and Pocket D VIP powers for all your characters. For most of these, you can buy the extra game content as a separate thing on the website.

* ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]: The Battle for Middle Earth 2'' was released in this way. One of the extras is a palette swap of a regular unit.

* ''[[BioshockBioShock (series)]]'' has a special "Collector's Edition" which includes a special case, a "making of" DVD and a Big Daddy figurine. Interestingly both the decision of having a Collector's Edition in the first place as well as what it contained, was decided by fan feedback.

** The $100 Collector's Edition for [[StarcraftStarCraft]] II comes with the game, a behind-the-scenes-and-cinematic DVD, a 100-page hardcover artbook, a comic book, a soundtrack CD, guest passes for [[StarcraftStarCraft]] II and [[World of Warcraft]], a [[WoW]] [[Feelie]] in the form of a creature, ''and'' a dogtag-shaped USB / keychain that contains the original game and the expansion. Oh, and there's a Hardcover Collector's Edition [[Guide Dang It|Strategy Guide]] too that comes with a MP map clipboard. Needless to say, Blizzard's Collector's Editions tend to be quite generous.

* The Limited Collectors' Edition of ''[[Doom]] 3'' on the Xbox came in a metal DVD case with developer interviews, a making-of documentary, concept art and [[Embedded Precursor|the full versions of]] ''Ultimate Doom'' and ''Doom II''.

** Taken to new heights with pre-orders for ''Fallout: New Vegas''. Along with the standard Collectors' Edition - which contains poker chips from Fallout: New Vegas casinos, a deck of cards, a graphic novel, and a making-of documentary DVD - Bethesda is offering a total of four different Equipment Packs, each of which contain unique items that are otherwise unavailable in the game world. The catch? Each pack is offered at a different retail outlet, which means if you want them all you'd need to ''pre-order the same game at four different stores''.

*** New Vegas followed the similar-Mass Effect 2 store-exclusive [[DL Cs]]DLCs and these equipment packs are available on [[X BoxXbox]] Live/PSN for a few dollars (Courier's Stash).

* ''[[Sim CitySimCity]] 4'' had both the [[Expansion Pack|Rush Hour expansion]] and the original game packaged in the ''Sim City 4 Deluxe Edition'', which was cheaper to get than each one individually. it was re-released a few years later in the [[Sim CitySimCity]] Box, which is also the only way to get the Destinations expansion to [[Sim CitySimCity]] Societies (aside from digital download).

* The Premium Box of ''Dengeki Gakuen RPG: Cross of Venus'' includes limited edition Nendoroids (pint-sized, pseudo-bobbleheaded figurines) of [[Shakugan no Shana|Shana]], [[Kino's Journey|Kino]], [[ToA AruCertain Majutsu noMagical Index|Index]] and [[Toradora!|Taiga]]. And they are [[Incredibly Lame Pun|toradorable]]. Due to those, it also happens to be the single biggest box for a [[Nintendo DS]] game.

* ''[[Blaz BlueBlazBlue]]'' had its deluxe edition released a month before its regular edition, and came with a DVD of tips and a two-disc soundtrack. It also cost the same as a standard new release, taking much of the sting out of the "pay extra for feelies" issue.

* Played hard, and then subverted, by ''[[Star Trek Online]]''. The initial release had (like many games) special in-game items specific to the particular vendor you purchased the game from, in addition to the Digital Deluxe Edition ''and'' the Collector's Edition. Then, five months after release, a good chunk of these special items have been made available for purchase by anyone. A fair chunk of the playerbase was... annoyed. It has also fueled speculation that other items -- suchitems—such as the in-game ship that is the reward for recruiting five friends to play the game for two months -- maymonths—may be added to the game's store as well.

* ''[[World in Conflict]]'''s Collectors' Edition came with, among other things, an ''authentic piece of the Berlin Wall''.

* Both [[Mass Effect]] games thus far have had special editions, but special note must go to the second game's [[Stealth Pun|Collectors' Edition]], which comes with special armor and weapons based off the main enemies, an art book, comic and bonus features disc. Note the apostrophe. <ref> For those who haven't played the game, the main [[Mooks]] are a species known as [[Thethe Collector|the Collectors]]s.</ref>

** The Collectors' Edition of the [[Mass Effect 3|third game]] comes with a tin case, a hardcover art book, a soundtrack, a comic, an N7 fabric patch and a lithograph of the Normandy. The game ''itself'' includes alternate outfits, an exclusive weapons pack, a [[Robot Dog]] for your off-mission time, and a secret character with their own mission.

* [[Subverted Trope|Subverted]] with [[The Witcher]] 2. The Premium Edition includes a Making Of DVD, soundtrack CD, a game guide, a map of the game world, two pieces of papercraft and a physical version of an in-game pamphlet and a coin. The catch? That's the base version for your standard 50 bucks, and there's no plans for a [[Vanilla Edition]]. The digitally distributed version also has a digital version of all the above minus the coin (and there's no digital vanilla edition yet). Played straight with the Collector's Edition, which throws in a 200 page art book, a set of five dice with a bag, a guide to cheating in dice and card games, a special set of playing cards, another coin, another bit of papercraft, a set of stickers and marble imitation sculpture of Geralt's head on top of the Premium Edition.

* The [https://web.archive.org/web/20130916082054/http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2011/05/limited_edition_catherine_copi.php "Love is Over" Deluxe Edition] of [[Catherine]] comes with your standard art book and soundtrack (the same preorder bonus as the Vanilla Edition), but also includes a t-shirt, a pillowcase, and a pair of boxers, all packaged in a pizza box. They are all story-relevant.

* The [https://web.archive.org/web/20110614171855/http://nintendoeverything.com/67054/ boxart] for ''[[Bit.Trip]] COMPLETE'' claims that it "includes limited edition soundtrack CD with 18 full songs".

* The Collector's Edition of ''[[Sonic Generations]]'' packaged the game with a fancy slipcase, the [[Sonic the Hedgehog 2|Casino Night]] Pinball DLC, the "''20 Years of Sonic Art''" book, the "''20th Anniversary Sonic Soundtrack''", the "History of Sonic: Birth of an Icon" documentary, a commerorative Gold Ring, & a statue with Sonic in both his classic & modern incarnations. This was for the Xbox 360 & Playstation 3 release of the game, limited to 12,000 copies, and [[No Export for You|only released in Europe & Austrailia]].

* The Limited Collector's Edition for ''[[Forza Motorsport]] 4'' gives you 5 exclusive cars, the 10 car "Muscle Pack" (normally 560 MS points, or about $7) for free, a metal case (with an [[Nintendo Hard|impossible to release disc holder]]), and a art book with some of the cars from the game's Autovista mode. In-game, you get a crown next to your name (you're a "VIP"), and auctions started by [[VI Ps]]VIPs are listed before non-VIP players. VIP players also get some exclusive events to win rare "Unicorn" cars, which are exclusive performance versions of some cars (i.e. the stock Mazda RX-7 is in-game, but the RX-7 Spirit-R is an exclusive unicorn car) that cannot be acquired normally. VIP players occasionally receive "gift cars" from the developers, usually Unicorn Cars or existing cars with exclusive vinyl paintjobs - though players are often quick to replicate the paintjob on a separate car to sell on the storefront.

* ''[[Shadowgirls]]'' [[The Merch|Season 1]] has two hardcover versions [https://web.archive.org/web/20111223213018/http://th3rdworld.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=29&products_id=199 available]: Regular and Artist Edition. The latter comes with a sketch card and a page of original artwork.

* ''[[Sinfest]]'': [httphttps://wwwweb.archive.org/web/20140209185316/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=200 widescreen edition] ("Catch all the crucial details that were cut out--which is why so many episodes made no sense!"). And [httphttps://wwwweb.archive.org/web/20140209155701/http://sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=222 Sinfest DVD] ("{{smallcapssmall-caps|parental ADVISORY: explicit shit}}").

* While initially getting a couple [[Vanilla Edition]] DVDs, the [[Powerpuff Girls]] recently got a massive boxset covering the '''entire series''' as well as loads of extras and even gathering all of the commercial bumpers in 2008!.

[[Category:Limited Special Collectors' Ultimate Edition]]