Retro game prices out of control?

I really should get the NES out my mum's loft. No rare games with it, but a decent little collection.

Might flog it.

Man!

I remember around 10 years ago walking into Argos and seeing that all star collection snes sealed going for £60. They must have found it in some dark corner...

Don't know why I didn't buy it... Crazy really.

In ten years time retro games will have to be sold with the gamers account and won't take a physical form. I say the value will start increasing, particularly the cartridge based games. I miss the old days, but love having everything on one HDD and immediately accessible.

Licensing certainly doesn't help, some games either don't appear on new systems or the licenses lapsed and are taken down.

Just checked the ebay price for my "rarest" game, Paper Mario on the N64. A USED copy with the box, instructions and in good condition (As mine is) are all going for over £100. :shock:

My other game would be Burning Rangers on the Saturn. Again, good condition, boxed with the manual is about £60.

Sitting on a gold mine here. :lol:

[iup=3571370]Cheeky Devlin[/iup] wrote:Just checked the ebay price for my "rarest" game, Paper Mario on the N64. A USED copy with the box, instructions and in good condition (As mine is) are all going for over £100.

My other game would be Burning Rangers on the Saturn. Again, good condition, boxed with the manual is about £60.

Sitting on a gold mine here.

I do find it odd, with the Virtual Console release being pretty cheap, but I guess it's all about owning the cartridge, box and manuals.

Dan. wrote:If ridiculous pricing is a virus, then retro video games are the optimum environment for that virus to thrive.

No other form of consumable entertainment re-formats itself with the same regularity as gaming.

Plus the old boxes used to be cardboard, meaning their survival chances were far lower (thus increasing the rarity of those that did manage to last unscathed).

Moral of the story: never throw away your boxes

Oh god please don't say that. My banana split brother threw away maybe 20 cubic centimeters of flat packed boxes saying it was a waste of storage space while himself hoarding a whole load of random gooseberry fool lose in boxes.

Victims include both GBA Metroid games at about £30 each, it doesn't sound like much but these all added up to a few hundred quid I am never going to pay again. I've clawed back every single item I own since.

[iup=3571370]Cheeky Devlin[/iup] wrote:Just checked the ebay price for my "rarest" game, Paper Mario on the N64. A USED copy with the box, instructions and in good condition (As mine is) are all going for over £100.

Traded mine in when I traded in our original N64 for store credit. Have since bought back all the N64 games I ever owned in either Virtual Console or cart-only form, but it still hurts. :cry:

If I ever have kids, they won't be allowed to part-exchange games. Ever.

I kept the box for Banjo Tooie. I was on a school trip to dieppe and I spent all my money on a copy in an indy game store there, I was shitting myself getting home to play it. I temp swapped it for ocarina of time with a mate and now it's in an attic somewhere. Just checked and £55 quid boxed and £30 just for the cart. :/

Most of my old games are in fairly good condition, sadly most are easy to come by and as such aren't worth much.

I have a few which I suspect will go up in value though, such as my mint condition Spirit Tracks in a tin with Link figurine(s).

You also have to consider inflation, but it's still nice to know that what you spent x on is still worth at least x in today's economy. Gamecube was a great choice for this. :nod:

I like knowing that if I really wanted to, I could part with a few games and get a brand new console with games.

I like collecting games, but only for enjoyment / nostalgia factors rather than monetary value. I've got many games that are worth peanuts and a couple that are worth a bit; but I'd hate to get rid of any of them.

But, yeah, I don't buy many retro games because of their high cost and, often, ropey condition. Condition is important for me; I'll only buy complete items that are of good (i.e. good and not Ebay-style good) quality. A few years ago I was into collecting but I rarely get anything now.

I just hope publishers start prioritizing ports of older games. You'd think Konami would re-release snatcher seeing how it is like £200 on ebay.

Reissues in collections and digital downloads are great and have become the best way for me to keep in touch with where I first got into gaming but the lack of licensed games is a glaring omission. So many great movie tie ins and other licensed games that won't appear on any platform because of all the extra hurdles involved. Particularly with the 8 and 16 bit consoles where they were often quite good. Barring the odd Turtles game, are there any others? The Simpsons Arcade game on XBLA I guess but both of those licenses are still relevant today. What if I want to play The Addams Family or T2 The Arcade Game or DieHard Trilogy or Alien 3..

I've never traded in a game. :cool:

I do have no idea where all my N64 boxes are though.

[iup=3571604]Hyperion[/iup] wrote:I've never traded in a game.
I do have no idea where all my N64 boxes are though.

Now that is impressive! Never felt the need to hold on to games I was never going to play again and the various remasters and Virtual Console releases have been fantastic for me.

With Digital Distribution we will have no choice but to keep the game!

I do miss opening a new videogame that feels like a big purchase, with a nice colour manual and thoughtful coverart. We should be thankful we experience gamings golden age.

[iup=3571608]gamerforever[/iup] wrote:With Digital Distribution we will have no choice but to keep the game!

I do miss opening a new videogame that feels like a big purchase, with a nice colour manual and thoughtful coverart. We should be thankful we experience gamings golden age.

But with digital distribution, at least on PC, the competition between the various sellers drives prices down pretty fast, so that's not really a problem when you can pick up a game a month or so after launch for less than 50% of launch RRP. That and smaller games launching at a reasonable price point in the first place.

I remember that period, but I think it's only remembered fondly because we didn't have anything else to compare it to.

I used to trade-in games all the time when I was a kid as it was the only way I could afford 'new' games.

There was a second hand games stall in the market which part exchanged games for a fiver, I used to swap games every few weeks.

Then there was the odd occasion of seeing cheap games in random shops, Zero Wing for £4 in Poundstrecher and Rocket Knight Adventures for £8 in Morrisons.

I also have a few ex-rental megadrive games from Blockbuster when the 32 bit era arrived, they were practically giving them away.

[iup=3571625]Trelliz[/iup] wrote:
[iup=3571608]gamerforever[/iup] wrote:With Digital Distribution we will have no choice but to keep the game!

I do miss opening a new videogame that feels like a big purchase, with a nice colour manual and thoughtful coverart. We should be thankful we experience gamings golden age.

But with digital distribution, at least on PC, the competition between the various sellers drives prices down pretty fast, so that's not really a problem when you can pick up a game a month or so after launch for less than 50% of launch RRP.

On the flipside though, when I spent £50+ on an N64 game, you could bet your arse I played the living gooseberry fool out of it. Compared to my countless STEAM games never even installed, never mind played or completed.

[iup=3571713]Andrew Mills[/iup] wrote:
[iup=3571625]Trelliz[/iup] wrote:
[iup=3571608]gamerforever[/iup] wrote:With Digital Distribution we will have no choice but to keep the game!

I do miss opening a new videogame that feels like a big purchase, with a nice colour manual and thoughtful coverart. We should be thankful we experience gamings golden age.

But with digital distribution, at least on PC, the competition between the various sellers drives prices down pretty fast, so that's not really a problem when you can pick up a game a month or so after launch for less than 50% of launch RRP.

On the flipside though, when I spent £50+ on an N64 game, you could bet your arse I played the living gooseberry fool out of it. Compared to my countless STEAM games never even installed, never mind played or completed.

Agree on the last point - i buy far too many deals nowadays, but playing them is not going to happen!

Retro game prices out of control?

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