Is NES collecting even a realistic option these days?

Takumaji

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A factory sealed game that has survived that way for 20 years? A truly "rare" title that was either low production of a one-off? Fine, it's expensive. A Gold NWC cart, although nothing I'd ever want, is literally the definition of "rare". I can see why it would fetch huge $$. A lose Super Metroid cart going for $50+, a lose NES Contra cart going for $40+? No fucking way. These items aren't "rare"...if there's hundreds of them constantly on ebay, they aren't rare.

Yup. Trouble is that a bare contra cart still gets sold for 40 bucks because there are enough idiots ready pay that stupid price for a game that was mass-produced in high numbers.

It would be so fucking simple to break the upwards spiral - don't pay insane prices for common stuff and keep the real rarities to the collectors ("I'm just innit for the games, honestly!!1!") with more money than brains, problem solved. Ah well.

To be absolutely blunt, I'm glad that I already have all the games I ever wanted to play and honestly pity the poor souls who haven't.
 

BanishingFlatsAC

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Yup. Trouble is that a bare contra cart still gets sold for 40 bucks because there are enough idiots ready pay that stupid price for a game that was mass-produced in high numbers.

It would be so fucking simple to break the upwards spiral - don't pay insane prices for common stuff and keep the real rarities to the collectors ("I'm just innit for the games, honestly!!1!") with more money than brains, problem solved. Ah well.

To be absolutely blunt, I'm glad that I already have all the games I ever wanted to play and honestly pity the poor souls who haven't.

I don't want to spend $50 for famicom contra, but no one is selling their copies for anything less anywhere. All this means to me is that I won't play contra, but to others they just say fuck it. No common sense anymore.
 

StevenK

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None of these items have an obvious value that can be placed on them, and by that I mean the sum of their parts (a bit of plastic and a few bits of paper) is as good as zero, plus the cost of their production has long since ceased to be a factor as it was 20 years ago. Therefore, you are left with items that have no value whatsoever other than people's desire to own them.

With the genuinely rare carts you could argue that there is scope for manipulation, someone buying all 5 of them in existence for instance then setting the price themselves, that kind of thing. But with the common titles you are left with something there are plenty of, with no residual value and all costs sunk. It really is the purest form of supply and demand, you're arguing against the most basic principles of economics here guys.

Yes, you could try and convince all the buyers of the carts to hold out on the sellers, thus dragging the price down. All this would do would end the legions of adults going back to their parents basements, dragging out their old collection and selling them on because they've heard they're worth something now. So, the supply dries up and no one can get hold of the game any more, which means it actually is scarce now so the price goes up. Back to the basements, sell off old games collections that are worth something etc etc etc.

There is no way around this other than to wait until the generation who grew up with this stuff is bored with it again.

The only difference between us and them is that we never grew out of it.
 

Pasky

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I don't want to spend $50 for famicom contra, but no one is selling their copies for anything less anywhere. All this means to me is that I won't play contra, but to others they just say fuck it. No common sense anymore.

I just flashcart the absurd shit now, has helped immensely when I wanted to play a game where emulator lag is annoying as shit (like Mike Tyson punchout or similar) and it's stupidly priced. Stops me from impulse buying dumb shit.
 

Cylotron

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Seeing as how you live in La Jolla, I'm sure it'd be no problem for you to acquire a full set of whatever you want... unless you're a student at UCSD :spock:
 

Takumaji

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I don't want to spend $50 for famicom contra, but no one is selling their copies for anything less anywhere. All this means to me is that I won't play contra, but to others they just say fuck it. No common sense anymore.

There we have it.

Despite the community babble, everyone seems to be innit for the money these days.

Thankfully there still are some people left who couldn't care less for the current collectors and money circus and try to be more sane with their pricing.

Yeah, there are microdrives and whatnot but I prefer the real stuff. Much more convenient and I like the whole artwork and haptic thing that comes with it so fuck the price gougers and CD scanning bitches, that stuff belongs to gamers, not rabid hoarders with too much fucking money. Sometimes the "l@@k RaRE" thing makes me smash some fucking C64 t-shirt wearing early-30s nerd skull.

Fuck you and your retro bullshit, the lot of you hipster f00ks.
 

smokehouse

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I don't want to spend $50 for famicom contra, but no one is selling their copies for anything less anywhere. All this means to me is that I won't play contra, but to others they just say fuck it. No common sense anymore.

I got this way with SNES Earthbound. I passed it up for $15 years ago...honestly, I had a $20 on me and had the choice between it or Mario RPG...chose Mario RPG.

I had that game on my "to do" list for years, by the time I got around to actively looking for a copy (maybe around 2005 or so), the price was already in the $75 or so range. I said "fuck it" at that price...the current asking of $200+? No freaking way. You need to get your head checked if you drop $200 on that silly game...it's neat-o, not $200 neat tho.

What is silly to me is that a common game like Earthbound is going for well over $200 when an extremely rare SNES title like Final Fight Guy (that at the moment I could only find 2 real copies of on eBay) is going for less than that.
 

Electric Grave

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It's funny, I got Hagane, bought it for 15 bucks, complete, still has the sticker I bought it from...A fellow member here puts his just cart Hagane up for auction...700 bucks! 700 fucken hundered bucks for a SNES game...lol, fuck that shi! I ain't selling mine but if I didn't have it, I wouldn't be speding 700 bucks for it, hell no! Everdrive to the rescue, big time!
 

BanishingFlatsAC

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I got this way with SNES Earthbound. I passed it up for $15 years ago...honestly, I had a $20 on me and had the choice between it or Mario RPG...chose Mario RPG.

I had that game on my "to do" list for years, by the time I got around to actively looking for a copy (maybe around 2005 or so), the price was already in the $75 or so range. I said "fuck it" at that price...the current asking of $200+? No freaking way. You need to get your head checked if you drop $200 on that silly game...it's neat-o, not $200 neat tho.

What is silly to me is that a common game like Earthbound is going for well over $200 when an extremely rare SNES title like Final Fight Guy (that at the moment I could only find 2 real copies of on eBay) is going for less than that.

Earthbound is expensive cause the characters are in smash bros. and the Nintendo tards will pay top dollar for anything.
 

StevenK

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Tak, Smokes, you have to admit you are not prolific sellers. Why is it that you get to keep hold of your games but you want everyone else to sell their games to you at less than market price?

I'm fully aware that arguing with a mod is a shit idea by the way :D
 

Electric Grave

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lol, I think Stevie got dropped on the head during his infancy...
 

snes_collector

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Earthbound is an interesting one, for all the copies online and the stories of Walmart clearance I could never find one locally for cheap. I was probably 7-8 years into collecting before I stumbled into a game store with a copy and bit the bullet. Another one I could never find was Chrono Trigger, which ended up being one of the last SNES games I bought. Guess it evens out as I found plenty of harder to find games over the years but I had no luck with either of those.
 

wyndcrosser

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Haha I know right? Just woke up from a drunknap and was all 'what's up with this guy?'

Oh boy is my face red! From drinking and embarrassment.

But you know what I really regret? Never playing Kickmaster.

Kickmaster is the shit. So is Vice.
 

smokehouse

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Tak, Smokes, you have to admit you are not prolific sellers. Why is it that you get to keep hold of your games but you want everyone else to sell their games to you at less than market price?

I'm fully aware that arguing with a mod is a shit idea by the way :D

I'm not a buyer either...at best, I'm in hibernation. At worst, I'm lazy and need to sell some stuff but do not want to mess with it.

Sellers can ask for the sun/moon/stars for all I care, I'd never ask for someone to sell it to me for less. I just won't buy it.

I know many of you aren't shooters...but .22 long rifle is suffering fro the same thing. For my entire shooting life, I could get .22 LR for $20-25/1000rds. Now? After the pointless ammo scare of late 2012, not only is good .22LR damn near impossible to find, the quality stuff goes for $80+/1000 rds.

I'll never ask some moron gouger to sell it to me at 2012 prices...but on the other hand, I absolutely refuse to pay that for it. I haven't bought a box of 22 locally since summer 2012.

I'll sell every 22 firearm I have before I pay artificially gouged prices.

...the same goes for games. The few that slipped through my fingers back in the day are now ones I'll never buy.
 
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BanishingFlatsAC

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Earthbound is an interesting one, for all the copies online and the stories of Walmart clearance I could never find one locally for cheap. I was probably 7-8 years into collecting before I stumbled into a game store with a copy and bit the bullet. Another one I could never find was Chrono Trigger, which ended up being one of the last SNES games I bought. Guess it evens out as I found plenty of harder to find games over the years but I had no luck with either of those.

Chrono Trigger was a close out game at KayBee Toys. They were selling for 14.99 and Funcoland was giving 45.00 for them. They also had Breath of Fire II, Kirbys Super Star, and Donkey Kong Country 3 for similar prices. I paid for a large portion of my Saturn collection buy buying the games and trading them in when I was just out of highschool. I also bought a jaguar, jag CD, and a pile of games for under $50 and traded it about a year later for a Japanese Virtual Boy countertop display.
 

Takumaji

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At most, I sell my games for what I've bought them for, that's all I can say. No, I don't sell a lot of stuff because I'm extremly careful with my game buying, I usually buy to keep and play, not to try and sell off. I can't (and never could) afford making expensive mistakes.

Oh, and you can argue with me to your heart's content, don't worry. At worst I fall asleep or drop drunk from the couch, whichever comes first. :D
 

StevenK

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I'm not a buyer either...at best, I'm in hibernation. At worst, I'm lazy and need to sell some stuff but do not want to mess with it.

Sellers can ask for the sun/moon/stars for all I care, I'd never ask for someone to sell it to me for less. I just won't buy it.

I know many of you aren't shooters...but .22 long rifle is suffering fro the same thing. For my entire shooting life, I could get .22 LR for $20-25/1000rds. Now? After the pointless ammo scare of late 2012, not only is good .22LR damn near impossible to find, the quality stuff goes for $80+/1000 rds.

I'll never ask some moron gouger to sell it to me at 2012 prices...but on the other hand, I absolutely refuse to pay that for it. I haven't bought a box of 22 locally since summer 2012.

I'll sell every 22 firearm I have before I pay artificially gouged prices.

...the same goes for games. The few that slipped through my fingers back in the day are now ones I'll never buy.

Why is it impossible to find?
 

Pasky

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Earthbound is an interesting one, for all the copies online and the stories of Walmart clearance I could never find one locally for cheap. I was probably 7-8 years into collecting before I stumbled into a game store with a copy and bit the bullet. Another one I could never find was Chrono Trigger, which ended up being one of the last SNES games I bought. Guess it evens out as I found plenty of harder to find games over the years but I had no luck with either of those.

I got Earthbound for $15 at a bargain bin at Gamestop in 2004. I didn't even own a SNES at the time but played it in emulator a ton so had to have it and went out and got a SNES as well the following year.

I see it for sale now and it's like holy shit, no one wanted this fucking game before, and everyone calls it RARE, R@RE, L@@K when you see like 30+ listed at once on ebay at any given time. It's one game I'm glad I picked up because I like to play through it about once a year.
 

snes_collector

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Chrono Trigger was a close out game at KayBee Toys. They were selling for 14.99 and Funcoland was giving 45.00 for them. They also had Breath of Fire II, Kirbys Super Star, and Donkey Kong Country 3 for similar prices. I paid for a large portion of my Saturn collection buy buying the games and trading them in when I was just out of highschool. I also bought a jaguar, jag CD, and a pile of games for under $50 and traded it about a year later for a Japanese Virtual Boy countertop display.

That was a good way to do it. I started collecting around 2004 so I missed all the fun on those. I was just getting into it when GameStop/Software Etc was clearing out SNES/NES/Genesis games as I bought a good bit from them, after that it was all independent game stores/flea markets/ thrifts until I finally started buying online in 2011ish. I never did run into either of those at that time. I had a terrible time finding DKC 3 as well for some reason when I was just getting started.
 

BanishingFlatsAC

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That was a good way to do it. I started collecting around 2004 so I missed all the fun on those. I was just getting into it when GameStop/Software Etc was clearing out SNES/NES/Genesis games as I bought a good bit from them, after that it was all independent game stores/flea markets/ thrifts until I finally started buying online in 2011ish. I never did run into either of those at that time. I had a terrible time finding DKC 3 as well for some reason when I was just getting started.

Yeah, working at a funcoland for so long and having almost zero resposibilites besides rent made me a full on collectard. The best score we ever had was finding a pile of Dragon Ball GT for PSX at a discount hardware store for 4.99 each. I bought every copy they had. Gave all my close friends a copy so they could get Dreamcasts and one game for basically nothing since the games traded in for $250 each. We had to get special permission from the DM to trade them in and had to store them in the stores safe till one by one they were sent out to other stores.
 

StevenK

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...so much collecturding...so devoted...so gamerz!

ElectricGrave on this thread yesterday:

So much more to say about the hobby, it just doesn't end...but for some of you it's just looking at a spine...collecturds, you're a disease, you've always have been, not just for video games but for everything in general, just take the joy out of everything, sports, comics, music, you name it!

ElectricGrave in the collections gallery less than 2 hours later:

Pretty classy!

LOL

Maybe make your own mind up about things before you start telling people how they should think?
 

BanishingFlatsAC

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...so much collecturding...so devoted...so gamerz!

Dude. When I got my second collectard wind in 2005 we spent a lot of our free time out buying games. Between console and arcade the three of us had that place fucking crammed full of games.

God I'll never do that again.
 
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