VGCollect Forum
General and Gaming => Classic Video Games => Topic started by: jobocan on March 13, 2011, 02:57:32 pm
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I see that we have quite a few avid collectors on here, so I thought I'd ask about something of interest to all retro game collectors: How do you go around buying old video games for your collections? Do you have specific stores that you go to, or flea markets/swap meets, or do you go online, or what?
I'm interested in seeing what everyone has to say about this.
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As for me... There's no thrift stores/pawn shops around here that ever have games, only one retail store that has retro games (that overprices most games) and the flea market is terrible (lol @ Mega Man 2, cart only, for 35$).
There is one tiny store in a tiny flea market (about 40 minutes away from me) only open on Sundays that has really good selection, but the prices are hit or miss. Sometimes they have great deals, but sadly the owner knows about the Ebay prices of games so any rarity you might find there is priced accordingly (I did see Little Samson, Bubble Bobble Part 2, Snow Bros and Surprise at Dinosaur Peak there... all over 100$), and some common games are priced higher than they should (no game is priced less than 5$, other than Atari 2600 games which are 2$ each). Still not bad, they sometimes have some surprising things (I saw a Vectrex in the advertising they put on Kijiji once).
I sometimes use Kijiji (since craigslist sucks here), but people around here are idiots who WAY overprice their stuff. The worst I've seen is Final Fantasy cart only for 100$, but it's almost always stupid like that. I got a few good deals on system bundles there, but generally kijiji isn't too great here.
My best bet for collecting classic games seems to be online stores. Not all of them are great, since shipping to Canada always costs a lot (that includes Ebay, I never use that). I generally use jjgames.com for NES/SNES/Genesis, or atari2600.com for atari games. I'm always looking for other sites, so if you know any good sites to order from, post them!
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There are a few local stores in my area that are pretty good to find common games. I've hit them up a few times just to grab a few titles. The problem with these stores is that anything of value is marked up about 50%. So that usually leads me to eBay, Amazon or Digit Press. Hopefully once our user base grows I'll start doing business in our own marketplace.
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I have a really good pawn shop locally that I buy snes, nes, ps1 and more modern games. i also frequent yard sales and some thrift stores. I try to avoid online buying. I enjoy the hunt of it all.
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I hit up the same shops that Matt does, maybe every other month. But for a lot of things I hit amazon or ebay mostly. I was able to get a bunch of complete Game Boy accessories really reasonably on both. As far as games go, I'll pick up games pretty much anywhere, since I'm more interested in the carts themselves.
Perhaps I'll go yardsaling this summer.
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I frequent Goodwill... Ive picked up quite a bit from there.
Only one brick and mortar store in my current city that sells retro/classic games. The common stuff is all buy 1 get 1 $5-$10, but outside of that forget it...
There is also a nice store in my hometown in OH that every time I go up to visit I pickup a few games.
I also do ebay for junk consoles and fix em up.
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I never think to check Goodwill...
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Most of them I get at local small/independent game stores. A couple here and there at pawnshops and swapmeets.
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I should probably check out a few of our local pawn shops. It's been awhile since I'm made the rounds. Spring is coming and that is yard sale season which really excites me. I almost never find anything gaming related nowadays but it's still fun to get out in the field.
And @scott, I check Goodwill often and never find anything worthwhile. :/
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We seem to have quite a few local retro game stores around the valley, 7 or 8 I think. So I hit those pretty regularly when I'm on my route. In the summer, I go to the one big swap meet at least once a month. In Utah, there is a local classifieds listing that is part of a big local news website that is very popular here, so I'm on there almost every day looking for good deals. Surprisingly enough though, I've gotten about 50 to 60 games from friends that don't want them anymore, and know that I collect this stuff. Not to mention, I've been given 2 NES, 1 SNES, 1 N64, and an Atari 800xl for free.
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Sometimes I check out Play 'N Trade, even though I don't buy anything there. Sometimes you can find a good deal at a flea market. A couple years ago I got a complete copy of Alundra for the PS1 for only $5. And the other place I go to is the Estarland Warehouse in Fairfax.
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There's a store here in Austin called "Game Over" with an incredible selection of old games from every system, and I mean _every_ system. When it comes to retro games, I really only collect NES. Their NES selection is insane, but mostly overpriced. Lowest cart only I could find there was $7 for Harlem Globetrotters. The rest ranges from $10 up. Rarities like Genghis Khan sit in a glass case with super-high price tags. It's sure fun to browse there though!
That said, I've either stumbled into my games at thrift stores on the cheap (BurgerTime CIB for $2 comes to mind), or ordered them in groups from eBay sellers.
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@bsmith I know exactly what you mean. Here in mid-Michigan we have a few small shops but all of their stuff outside of sports titles is all over priced. Such is life in a post-eBay/Amazon retail world I guess. I still enjoy browsing though.
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@matt I have to say that the Buy two, get one I got this weekend was a decent deal.
As long as the free game is close to the same price as the other two, and you don't burn it on some $3 cheapy. ha
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Oh wow.... This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen....
So I remembered there was a small game store within a video store that had a few old games near here (basically the only store in my whole city with old games). So I decided to check it out after work. They have a Bally Astrocade with 7 games for 300$, which, by my calculation, is slightly too high, but that's not the ridiculous thing there.
So I see a fairly okay condition copy of Mega Man X on SNES, and the first thing that catches my eye is the big sticker on it that says "special collector discount: 15% off!!!!". The price? 99.99$... And you're telling me THAT'S after going 15% off?
Seems people around here, even game store owners, REALLY are morons when it comes to game pricing.
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Man I just went back to the store I mentioned a few posts up again today. They emailed a 10% off coupon so I figured maybe I'd find something...
Looked a little closer and they're charging $35 for a cart only copy of NES Mega Man 2 with a torn label. $30 for Bubble Bobble, the trend continued in their glass case of standard NES favorites.
I also have an extra copy of NES Double Dribble which I brought for trade, in case I did find something worth buying. Guy said he'd give me 25 cents for it. I went over and they had a copy in worse condition than mine priced at $10 on the shelf. Yikes.
They do get my props however for having a working Sunset Riders cabinet on the store floor! Probably the only reason I'll go back.
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I suppose it all comes down to overhead. The dude running a used game store has extra bills for rent, etc. Where the guys online only have to worry about net costs, ebay % and shipping. :(
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> jobocan
> Oh wow.... This is the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen....
So I remembered there was a small game store within a video store that had a few old games near here (basically the only store in my whole city with old games). So I decided to check it out after work. They have a Bally Astrocade with 7 games for 300$, which, by my calculation, is slightly too high, but that's not the ridiculous thing there.
So I see a fairly okay condition copy of Mega Man X on SNES, and the first thing that catches my eye is the big sticker on it that says "special collector discount: 15% off!!!!". The price? 99.99$... And you're telling me THAT'S after going 15% off?
Seems people around here, even game store owners, REALLY are morons when it comes to game pricing.
That reminds me of this one old couple at a flea market nearby. They were selling old SNES and N64 games for terrible prices. Ocarina of Time (gray cart) was $30!
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> scott
> I suppose it all comes down to overhead. The dude running a used game store has extra bills for rent, etc. Where the guys online only have to worry about net costs, ebay % and shipping. :(
Even then, I don't exactly get that. In my mind at least, selling games at proper prices seems to be the best way to go if they want to cover those overhead prices, since pricing the games too high will make people not buy from them at all. So my basic logic is "More sales at lower prices > a lot less sells at higher prices". But maybe I'm just stupid :P
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@jobocan That would make sense to me, actually. Lets open a game store, ha.
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@scott
That would be awesome, and it's something I've been wanting to do for some time now, but I doubt it would work well around here... where I live, "gamers" are mostly people who play NHL/CoD/Halo and nothing else (unless they're parents buying wii shovelware for their kids).
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There are a few used game stores around here. But I've always liked the idea of it, or a record store. ha
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I really should try some charity shops and the like, but I never really get the urge to go in. Mostly I'm resigned to paying ebay prices and hoping to get a bit of luck with a bad spelling or something like that. (Worked very well for my Parasite "Evil" II game+guide I got)
Knowing a few friends who are ignorant to the value of some games is great too.
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Most people who run retro game stores are very stupid. Their main goal is just to show off their collection. They don't want to sell anything. The price elasticity of demand for classic video games is very elastic at current prices. Making prices reasonable would lead to a more frequent turnover, which would lead to more money.
Disc Traders in Lansing is very reasonable when it comes to prices and they have a decent selection to boot.
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I may need to make a trip that way soonish and see what they have on hand.
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I have several stores close by (4 Vintage Stocks, 2 Game Xchanges, and a Play N Trade). I also use forums, ebay and CL. Most of the retail stores have a great selection and are semi-competitively priced if you take shipping charges into consideration for online purchases.
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Gamedeals. they have 2 locations in BC. I also use eBay alot.
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How's Gamedeals? I always wanted to go but, you know, other side of the country and all... BUT they just announced that they started franchising in North America so maybe I'll be lucky and one will open up here :D
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it's actually really good. Prices are somewhat competitive to Ebay. I picked up a genesis for $20. FFIV for Wonderswan for another $20. With shipping, they would be the same or more online.
They have good selection, obviously loose carts (Nes, SNES, Genesis) are a little more than they should be and bundle deals on ebay are better but if you're looking for something specific, they'll have it at a decent price.
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*sigh* I told myself I wouldn't go back to gamedeals in a long time. I'm going back tomorrow (ill be in the area) and I went last week...I was thinking along the lines of a month when I said I wouldn't go back. now gotta be strong and not spend much.
I found a store near vancouver. It's also in New West Minster. It's called Press Start. They have awesome deals, super cheap prices and game night :D
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My friend and I hit Thrift Town/Goodwill/Movie Trading Company/Half Price Books and every garage sale in-between them on Friday mornings. This has been going on for many years, and I've hit jackpots at almost every one at least once. We also go to two Flea markets every other Saturday... they are ok. We used to have one that was tear-shedding beautiful only a few miles from where we live, but it was closed down when the owners sold the lot after the flea market had been around for about 30-40 years :(
We typically avoid pawn shops... I wouldn't mind going in just to check, but they are getting more and more expensive. There are also a few mall-based retro stores, but they are so laughably overpriced it is almost sad. ex: We where at one with a TurboGrafx 16 in a case with a bunch of SNES games. Games like FFVI(III) where about $100 and where sitting next to an un-priced Earthbound. My friend asked the lady at the counter how much the TurboGrafx was and she didn't know, so she went to get the owner. When he came he said "You wanted to know how much the Earthbound is?" and my friend said "No, I don't even want to know." Then I asked about the boxed Intellivision games price, and he said it depended on which one... There are really very few that would need anything more then a flat price... and he still wanted $15 for the one I was interested in.
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@hexen ...so how much did he want for the TG-16?
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My friend actually owns a video game store which I work at part time. I can usually swing a %25 discount on most stuff with him still making profit so I usually get my stuff through him. I've never got any used games online, just never saw the need for it, I don't even have an ebay or paypal account. I might consider it if it was something I really wanted but I've never been desperate enough for something that I couldn't stand waiting until it came through the store.
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@scott It was $70, which is actuly pretty tame compared to the rest of the outrageous prices in the place. It was still too much for my friend, however.
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@hexen I, well my mom who gifted it to me, was able to get one for $50 with all the hookups and Keith Courage (which sucks, but still). I don't think it'd be worth buying one for much more than that.
Back on topic, I usually get mine from random places... pawn shops, stores, eBay, the works. Just wherever I can find it cheapest while still maintaining quality.
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gameofjapan.com have been really good to me. They offer good quality and below eBay prices. Its still a little pricy but if you're looking for specific japanses games, you have to import them anyways.
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Oh, that's an interesting site, I'll have to check it out someday. Maybe some of the imports I want will end up being cheap there.
Since we're on the subject, another site I used once for retro imports is japangamestock.com, they seemed pretty good from what I remember.
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Hmm they're selling Dracula X for 84? Not bad. I may also have to check this out soon.
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Japangamingstock is WAAAY overpriced 0.o
$80+ for FFVI? I paid $20 xD
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Japangamingstock is WAAAY overpriced 0.o
$80+ for FFVI? I paid $20 xD
Yeah, some of their things are expensive, but others I think are pretty well-priced... It's also a good idea to check for japanese versions of games that were released in America, because sometimes they're cheaper than the american versions (I got Rockman X2, Rockman X3, Super Castlevania 4 and Super Metroid for less than what Megaman X2 costs here alone).
Sucks that a lot of the japanese games I want are really high-priced no matter what though, like Umihara Kawase.
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Japangamestock.com is terrible. I made the mistake of purchasing Cocoron there, and I am sincerely embarrassed to say how much I paid. Did you know there are fees involved beyond the purchase price? I didn't.. >:(
Now that I know better, I will never go there ever again.
Also, I would like to add that the TurboGrafx I refused to buy seven posts ago was missing the back cover and had no controllers. Ridiculous.
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Japangamestock.com is terrible. I made the mistake of purchasing Cocoron there, and I am sincerely embarrassed to say how much I paid. Did you know there are fees involved beyond the purchase price? I didn't.. >:(
Huh? I didn't pay anything beyond the games' prices and the shipping fees the one time I ordered there... What extra costs did you have to pay?
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It wasn't actually JGS, it was the service they had me pay them through. They charged me a percentage to use them, and I wasn't given any other options. I don't remember what it was called.