Retro collecting is dying!

[90snostalga]

I was skeptical of a bubble before. I was more of a fluctuation type of guy. Prices are high before they settle. However, the recent troll bidding on the NWC's driving up the prices of actual NWCs sold, mixed with the Flintstones crap, mixed with Gamester81 stating he doesn't collect for the NES anymore because of the prices has me thinking there is something more happening.

I got out of Nintendo collecting years ago because of how the scene changed. I've mentioned that before. However, I did not think too much about it. I have a low tolerance for that crap. But when someone like Gamester81 stops collecting for something, that makes me think things are really bad.

I still stand by, I don't think retro gaming is a bubble that will pop. I think Nintendo/Sony collecting is a bubble that will pop. SEGA collecting still feels like it and Nintendo collecting was in the 90s. There are a few exceptions for really high profile games. But it is a handful. Meanwhile boxed SNES games being over $100 is not uncommon at all.

Side note: Wow, exonerator. Someone loves evangelion.

I really want to hear your point of view because its always good; however, I am not fully understanding what you mean.  Is Gamester81 a user on VGCollect that you are referring to?  What do you mean you think there is more happening?  How is it really bad?

Can you explain your theory in a different way?  Maybe I can understand what you mean.

[burningdoom]

^ Gamester81 is a popular YouTube gamer. He reviews rare systems and accessories and such, and even the occasional game review.

But that's crazy he said he wouldn't collect NES games anymore due to price. No doubt prices have been rising on them. But the stuff he has way outclasses NES games. He spends a small fortune every week, I'm sure.

[spac316]

It is ridiculous. It's getting more and more difficult to buy old games with the over blown prices they go for. Games that are considered rare are probably not as such.
The problem is that people search eBay for prices and ebay should not be the "going rate", ebay is a site where any price can be determined by the seller and is a far cry from being either stable or a fair price for any game, rare or not. It's decided upon by unprofessional price gougers, not by some collective authority of any worth. Anyone who sets a price based on a lazy ebay search is going to the wrong source for this information and it's not what the majority accepts as the standard rate, it's what individuals (most of whom are resellers who use shady methods in the first place) decide all on their own. There's only one reason anyone working at a retail store or pawn shop would search ebay for a price on something, and that's so they can set the bar 10% higher than the highest thing they can find, and get away with it.

Of course it doesn't help that some people do pay for those prices like the suckers they are...

I also hate to say that the YouTube gaming community that often glorify retro gaming are to blame for these prices. Sorry to say but that's part of it to me. 

[bikingjahuty]

It is ridiculous. It's getting more and more difficult to buy old games with the over blown prices they go for. Games that are considered rare are probably not as such.
The problem is that people search eBay for prices and ebay should not be the "going rate", ebay is a site where any price can be determined by the seller and is a far cry from being either stable or a fair price for any game, rare or not. It's decided upon by unprofessional price gougers, not by some collective authority of any worth. Anyone who sets a price based on a lazy ebay search is going to the wrong source for this information and it's not what the majority accepts as the standard rate, it's what individuals (most of whom are resellers who use shady methods in the first place) decide all on their own. There's only one reason anyone working at a retail store or pawn shop would search ebay for a price on something, and that's so they can set the bar 10% higher than the highest thing they can find, and get away with it.

Of course it doesn't help that some people do pay for those prices like the suckers they are...

I also hate to say that the YouTube gaming community that often glorify retro gaming are to blame for these prices. Sorry to say but that's part of it to me. 

I agree with most of what you said, but resellers and collectors are sort of left to their own standard for what a game is worth; some use Ebay completed listings, some use Amazon, and others use sites like Price Charting to determine the value of a game. There is no gold standard unfortunately, so you have prices all over the place, however 98% of games tend to gravitate around a certain price at any given time, and that is usually what I base whether or not I am getting a fair price.

A lot of resellers and game stores do sadly look at the highest completed listing price and use that to price their games, or they add 10 to 50% onto it. Over the past year I have seen at least five places i used to score at all the time do this and it sucks for everyone. One place has a $30 copy of Perfect Dark on the N64 that they have had for 2-years now, nobody will buy it. It is getting out of control and even hipsters that pride themselves on the image of owning an SNES rather than actually having an SNES wont even pay these insane prices.

And yes, popular youtubers are at least partially to blame for the price inflation. I know one of the managers at a local game store pretty well and he said that if AVGN does a review of a game, any copies that he has will generally sell out within a week. Increases in prices on some of his reviewed games are also evidence of this. And don't even get me started on the hidden gems videos that James an Mike did, Hagane is now insanely overpriced because of that video, as are the other games that appeared on those videos.

[tripredacus]

I'm not sure if game prices are indications that the bubble will burst. I was thinking the other day when I read that Amazon is going to release a game console similar to OUYA. It might be true that the 80s crash could be related to the upcoming one based on the number of consoles available. Too many options and people's limited attention spans are what will probably cause it. Now you can play games on PC, in a browser, phone, OUYA, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii, WiiU, Xbox 360, Xbox One, retron clones, Steambox, this Amazon thing. Heck I think I can even play games on my satellite box. Too many companies getting in on the market and I don't think the demand is there to keep it up. It might even burst when the Retron5 comes out, presuming it actually works on HDTVs like they say it will. Nintendo stuff might even go higher in price than it is now!

[DreamsDied13101]

I'm not sure if game prices are indications that the bubble will burst. I was thinking the other day when I read that Amazon is going to release a game console similar to OUYA. It might be true that the 80s crash could be related to the upcoming one based on the number of consoles available. Too many options and people's limited attention spans are what will probably cause it. Now you can play games on PC, in a browser, phone, OUYA, PS3, PS4, Vita, Wii, WiiU, Xbox 360, Xbox One, retron clones, Steambox, this Amazon thing. Heck I think I can even play games on my satellite box. Too many companies getting in on the market and I don't think the demand is there to keep it up. It might even burst when the Retron5 comes out, presuming it actually works on HDTVs like they say it will. Nintendo stuff might even go higher in price than it is now!

For newer games the bubble has already burst in a way. Game prices have not really gone up much in the past 30 years although inflation has. With more and more free games on phones and multiple "gaming systems" available we see games come down in price from $60 to $20 normally in a matter of months. This same trend is happening to movies.

Only tentpole games are able to prosper in the retail marketplace now at full price. (Same thing is happening with movies)

As more and more of the new generation of gamers are raised on IOS, android, web browser games, etc... we will continue to see the dwindling of new retail games and the prices they are able to maintain.

It would be interesting to see what would happen if a company like Nintendo catered to the retro market and actually produced a vintage style NES game in original packaging and everything. It will never happen because the cost to manufacture a NES cartridge will not yield the same kind of return as producing a DS game or something similar.

[sin2beta]

But that's crazy he said he wouldn't collect NES games anymore due to price. No doubt prices have been rising on them. But the stuff he has way outclasses NES games. He spends a small fortune every week, I'm sure.

That's my point. The dude has crazy stuff. Granted he may be more of a hardware collector than anything. But it certainly tells me that the NES is overpriced.

[exonerator]

I'd be lucky if I get much more than the 250 NES games I have within the next 2 years.

[burningdoom]

NES games aren't expensive, though. Unless you're going for the World Championship Cart or something.

One of the best games on the system, Super Mario Bros. 3, goes for around $15:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00004SVV9/ref=sr_1_1_olp?ie=UTF8&qid=1392253712&sr=8-1&keywords=super+mario+3&condition=used

Legend of Zelda - $20

http://www.ebay.com/sch/Video-Games-/139973/i.html?_from=R40&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_nkw=legend+of+zelda+nes

Metroid - $15

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=mega+man+3+nes&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_osacat=139973&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR10.TRC0.A0.H0.Xmetroid+nes&_nkw=metroid+nes&_sacat=139973&_from=R40

Dragon Warrior - $6

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=legend+of+zelda+nes&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_osacat=139973&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xdragon+warrior+nes&_nkw=dragon+warrior+nes&_sacat=139973

Castlevania - $15

http://www.ebay.com/sch/Video-Games-/139973/i.html?LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_from=R40&_nkw=castlevania+nes&_pgn=3&_skc=100&rt=nc

Gradius - $10

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=castlevania+nes&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_osacat=139973&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xgradius+nes&_nkw=gradius+nes&_sacat=139973

Mega Man 3 - $20 (not super cheap, but for old-school Mega Man games, it is)

http://www.ebay.com/sch/Video-Games-/139973/i.html?_sop=15&_nkw=mega+man+3+nes&rt=nc&LH_BIN=1

Double Dragon - $9

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=metroid+nes&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_osacat=139973&_from=R40&_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR10.TRC0.A0.H0.Xdouble+dragon+nes&_nkw=double+dragon+nes&_sacat=139973

[sin2beta]

Everyone of those games are expensive. Mario 3 is not a $15 dollar game. It is not that rare. Dragon Warrior is not a $6 game. The Game X Change in Tulsa used to have stacks of those. Dragon Warrior is a $2 game.

A world where Mario Bros Duck Hunt is $5, is a world with expensive NES games.

$5.34 shipped seems to be the cheapest.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/99-Cent-Game-Super-Mario-Bros-Duck-Hunt-Nintendo-NES-1985-/221368285599?pt=Video_Games_Games&hash=item338a93f99f

For a comparison: check out Funcoland
http://1-media-cdn.foolz.us/ffuuka/board/vr/image/1376/97/1376977095816.jpg

Mario 3 = 2.99
Stadium Events = 0.39
That's the way it should be. 

OK Stadium Events is an oversight (kinda). But Mario 3 at $2.99 is dead on. Today it should be $5-$8 max. Most NES games are twice what they should be. Honestly, $15 for one of the most popular cart only games on a popular console from 30 years ago is insane. It may not be a lot of money. But it is overpriced. $100 should buy more than 8 of the classic NES games.

[exonerator]

Agreed on all points, sin2beta. A comparison could be made that $4 isn't a lot of money, but for a pack of M&Ms, it's insane.

[burningdoom]

Yeah, it'd be nice to buy NES & SNES games at those prices. But when those prices were listed (in the 90s), that was just last-gen for then. And we can get last-gen games at those kind of prices right now. PS2, Xbox, and GameCube games are dirt-freaking cheap at the moment. That's something that's always been a trend in gaming.

I'm just saying that NES games really aren't as bad as people are making it in this thread. I mean it's not like Saturn, TurboGrafx-16, Sega CD, or SNES games. Those are the wallet-killers to collect for.

[DreamsDied13101]

Agreed on all points, sin2beta. A comparison could be made that $4 isn't a lot of money, but for a pack of M&Ms, it's insane.

I totally agree with this! The cheap prices we are used to for NES are not around for really anything any longer. You can't buy a comic book for under $3 now. You can't buy a pack of gum for less than a $1. Yet somehow NES games are supposed to stay $3 for a common game?

As minimum wage raises across the country (a lot of states already have laws in place that minimum wage goes up every year) your cost of goods will continue to rise. The more people make the more things cost - simple economics. It is what will always keep the poor poor and the rich rich.

[elraiser]

PS2, Xbox, and GameCube games are dirt-freaking cheap at the moment.

it is time to purchase them, guys!!!

[tripredacus]

Everyone of those games are expensive. Mario 3 is not a $15 dollar game. It is not that rare. Dragon Warrior is not a $6 game. The Game X Change in Tulsa used to have stacks of those. Dragon Warrior is a $2 game.

The local game store near me is way overpriced as well. SMB3 sells for $25. Tecmo Super Bowl is $30 or something. Any Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Castlevania (you know the big series) are marked up to an insane premium. It is ridiculous and the price gouging is usually just the Nintendo games. They also put weird prices on foreign games, especially they sell Derby Stallion 96 with no memory pack for $10. Well they try, that one has been sitting in the display case for over a year now.