WeWantWaffles Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 (edited) Heya, I felt like ranting I wonder why some games have to have such ridiculous pricing and others not so much. I'd say the average Genesis game on Ebay is 10-20 dollars. I can appreciate that well enough, especially when you go for auctions and win a game for 60% of the price. But then there's that cool game you want to try and they charge insane amounts of money for it. - Castlevania Bloodlines: 45$ - Mega Turrican: 100$ (discovered through this forum) - Sailor Moon: 90$ (I'm a girl, shush xD) - TMNT The Hyperstone Heist: 55$ - Trouble Shooter: 45$ (and I rly want that)* - Truxton: 60$ ** * Sold for 18$ once, I'm still kicking myself ** Got Raiden Trad instead. I seem to prefer it over Truxton. I know Trouble Shooter and Mega Turrican are in fairly high demand with collectors but the supply is not as limited as they'd want you to think. I even saw a "RARE! Mega Turrican!" among 10 other copies, which is what really frustrates me. I hate these artificial prices and the fact that people keep driving them up to create a false rarity; Some of us care about the games and not about making money. I think it's prices like these that make reproduction carts a tempting purchase for people. I don't think it's wrong to do it with games that were only released in Japan, or barely released outside of it, but for people to charge this much for extremely common 25 year old games is a little disappointing at times. One more thing! Do people -really- care about boxed versions? The boxes are half-eaten a lot of the time, and it's remarkably easy to find a cover on www.thecoverproject.net for universal game cases. It strikes me as odd that some people would pay 20-40$ extra for a plastic box and a torn manual when they can have a clean look instead. Edited July 6, 2015 by WeWantWaffles 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted July 6, 2015 Share Posted July 6, 2015 Love me a good rant and welcome! It *is* amazing what some people are willing to pay for Genesis or SNES games. NES too for that matter. Hell, even some TG-16 games! Fact is, we're living in backwards times. Prices of console games have been going through the roof the last few years, while real arcade video games continue to depreciate. People spending more for a CD version of Gorf than what the real arcade machine can typically be had for is another example. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Yeah, prices have been going through the roof for a while now. It just seems like the Genesis is finally catching up with the NES and SNES market, unfortunately. I'm not surprised Mega Turrican has gone up, that was a hidden gem for so long! As far as why people buy complete, I guess it has to do with personal preference. If one's concerned mostly about saving money while having their shelves look nice, then going the cart-only route and making your own boxes/covers is probably fine. If you are a serious collector though and are, say, going for a full boxed collection, it doesn't really "count" if you just buy the carts and print up your own covers--you need the physical box and instructions. Of course, it all depends on what you are trying to do and what your goals are. Myself right now, I just use a flash cart because prices are so high. If I pick up the random game here and there just because I see them cheap, I don't mind loose and I don't really bother with printing covers. If I was buying more often I might take that route just to make things look nice, but since I have so little it's not a big deal right now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutsy Doodleheimer Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 First off welcome to Atariage and the forums!! Games have been increasing even as we speak. I tend to collect my cart games loose. In my standpoint I just like the look how it is stacked. Especially the Atari 2600 games with all the colorful labels. Only thing I have complete is the disc based games. Hardcore collectors that want to get a complete library opt for the boxed games. I use my modded xbox which has every emulator stored on the hard drive or my flash carts to play the games I don't have. I am not picky, if there is a game I want, I'll get it regardless if it's loose or complete. Just another piece for my gameroom/library. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyHW Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 OMG there's a girl on AtariAge. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhomaios Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Wow, that's insane. Truxton was barely a $10 just a few years ago. Seems it shot up in price in the past few months. Mega Turrican is pretty obscene, too. I like my games complete, but have been known to cannibalize other cases and print out reprinted covers. I only do this though if it's way too expensive to get it complete. I do want a real manual, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeWantWaffles Posted July 7, 2015 Author Share Posted July 7, 2015 (edited) OMG there's a girl on AtariAge. xD Reading that with your Fry profile picture made me laugh. I'm only here for the Genesis stuff but retro is retro! >.> Love me a good rant and welcome! People spending more for a CD version of Gorf than what the real arcade machine can typically be had for is another example. Spanks! I'd go crazy for a Streets of Rage 2 arcade machine but that's not a thing >.> I like Neo Geo but apart from the price it's also a bit too heavy on fighting games. As far as why people buy complete, I guess it has to do with personal preference. If one's concerned mostly about saving money while having their shelves look nice, then going the cart-only route and making your own boxes/covers is probably fine. If you are a serious collector though and are, say, going for a full boxed collection, it doesn't really "count" if you just buy the carts and print up your own covers--you need the physical box and instructions. Of course, it all depends on what you are trying to do and what your goals are The idea that a game doesn't "count" when it isn't in a torn 20 year old box and manual that's been sat on, is a bit strange to me. But I suppose this sort of thing is for people who have a lot of money to spend on games they'll never want to physically play? I wouldn't feel right playing a 300$ game like Twinkle Tale at least.. Seeing as plenty of loose cartridges often have writing and torn labels on them, they're probably not interested in buying those either. Only thing I have complete is the disc based games. I am not picky, if there is a game I want, I'll get it regardless if it's loose or complete. Just another piece for my gameroom/library. Disc cases are pretty logical since you don't want discs to scratch up ^^ .. I get everything on a loose cartridge and fix it up with a uniform look, myself. It's a lot of work but you only need to do it once per game. Wow, that's insane. Truxton was barely a $10 just a few years ago. Seems it shot up in price in the past few months. Mega Turrican is pretty obscene, too. I like my games complete, but have been known to cannibalize other cases and print out reprinted covers. I only do this though if it's way too expensive to get it complete. I do want a real manual, though. I think part of the reason why Truxton went up in price is because of Classic Game Room xD It's a youtube channel that reviews games and the guy preaches Truxton all day long, and I imagine people drive up the price for it because of that. But hey like I said, Raiden Trad has been more fun for me so I got that one instead for less than half the price! Horrendous Engrish and box art though, but that's got a certain charm. Edited July 7, 2015 by WeWantWaffles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algus Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Hyperstone Heist has been pretty expensive for a long time now. I've actually never picked it up because of that. The only game I really paid through the nose for was my boxed Streets of Rage 3. $45 for Bloodlines isn't to bad these days. Lots of speculators in the retrogaming market these days so popular games still command high prices even if there are tons of them. It's worse for NES and SNES but Genesis has not been immune. Probably doesn't help that with Genesis I only bother to buy boxed thanks to the nice clamshell cases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg2600 Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I wouldn't pay 20 bucks for Truxton. Looks and sounds great but far too difficult. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+thegoldenband Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 I wouldn't pay 20 bucks for Truxton. Looks and sounds great but far too difficult. Yeah, I didn't much like it either, and you have to loop it a few times (at least) to get the real ending. I think $60 is way high. Like Austin, I mostly play on flash carts, and generally only pick up Genesis games when I find them for a good price. I've gotten a bit spendy on games that really benefit from the CIB package, especially Koei games and RPGs, but otherwise I'm content to wait for the right deal. I found a moderately sun-faded Mega Turrican last year for $10 boxed. I'd picked up the manual and a clean insert a couple years ago, so I was able to put together a nice CIB copy and sold the sun-faded insert locally (to someone who had a boxed copy w/ a repro insert) for the same $10 I paid for the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeWantWaffles Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 (edited) We're such scavengers if you think about it xD Like my dad: "Don't throw that away-! I can fix that! I need it!" Seeing as this subject is about labels and boxes and such as well, I've included my latest work. I basically taught myself photoshop last night (well, GIMP cuz it's free..), and after four hours I made a custom box cover. The idea is to make all my games have this layout, except Japanese exclusive games would be blue with Mega Drive on them, but there aren't many of those ^_^ .. What do you think? EDIT: I slightly improved it since then, but it's roughly the same. Edited July 8, 2015 by WeWantWaffles 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhomaios Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 You chose red? I hated the switch to red covers. I thought they looked too bright. I much preferred the subdued black checkered pattern, or even non-red with a neat logo (like Streets of Rage 2, for example). Having them uniform is a pretty neat idea, but I personally couldn't get over the red. If you enjoy it, go for it! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutsy Doodleheimer Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 You chose red? I hated the switch to red covers. I thought they looked too bright. I much preferred the subdued black checkered pattern, or even non-red with a neat logo (like Streets of Rage 2, for example). Having them uniform is a pretty neat idea, but I personally couldn't get over the red. If you enjoy it, go for it! Agree!! The 1989-1993 carts and boxes were the best. If I recall it was either late 1993 or early 1994 the red ones came out. About the same time the model 2 came out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algus Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 I dislike the red boxes as well, probably because I associate that with them discarding the clamshells for cardboard. My favorite box design was the originals from 1989. BTW Alisia Dragoon is an amazing game! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zylon Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Here's my pile of gen stuff. I draw the line at $7 or less per cart. I just play them and really not care how they look. Rest of mine (not pictured) are mega-clone stuff. I do agree the prices are rather high and many approach or pass their "when new" prices as I remember them. The thing is, someone must be paying them or they would fall. I remember UMKIII selling for $5 new and see it today from 15 to 45. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 EDIT: I slightly improved it since then, but it's roughly the same. I think it looks good. I'm a bit the opposite to those above me and I prefer the red box styling over the original patterned boxes. Always felt the red looked (and still looks) more modern, in a good way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeWantWaffles Posted July 9, 2015 Author Share Posted July 9, 2015 (edited) I love the bright colors, myself. Also the checkered pattern would be hard to work with for me anyways seeing as I taught myself Photoshop on the very day that I made this cover. Overall I love the flashy red because of how it stands out, and sometimes thecoverproject.net has similar designs that let me skip 20-30 mins of resizing as well. Here's my pile of gen stuff. I draw the line at $7 or less per cart. I just play them and really not care how they look. Rest of mine (not pictured) are mega-clone stuff. I do agree the prices are rather high and many approach or pass their "when new" prices as I remember them. The thing is, someone must be paying them or they would fall. I remember UMKIII selling for $5 new and see it today from 15 to 45. Last night I said hi to a friend.. He owns an SNES.. I remember him having Megaman X2 and Secret of Mana for it, so I told him he's got a big pile of money sitting in his house and he doesn't even know xD The fun part was that he was kind of amazed like, "whoa if I sold these I'd have so much money" .. and then a minute later he just went: "I'm never selling this." It's nice to hear that people can value these games for what they are and were, and not for the money they're worth. Ultimately my own little designs are a tribute and will hopefully keep these games timeless. At least back then they made games that mercilessly kicked my butt. Also I see you got Steel Empire! That's pretty cool. Edited July 9, 2015 by WeWantWaffles 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blazing Lazers Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 This just my own impression on the matter, but lately a lot of what seems to be driving the Genesis prices are whether or not the copy still has the manual or not. Genesis manuals tend to get lost over time, or messed up by the cases themselves. The collectors and/or speculators paying premium prices for good condition complete copies is having the effect of driving up average prices for a lot of Genesis titles. It also doesn't help that the Nintendo collectors/speculators seem to be discovering the Genesis as of late now that they've exhausted all of the "Hidden Gems" on the NES. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zylon Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Last night I said hi to a friend.. He owns an SNES.. I remember him having Megaman X2 and Secret of Mana for it, so I told him he's got a big pile of money sitting in his house and he doesn't even know xD The fun part was that he was kind of amazed like, "whoa if I sold these I'd have so much money" .. and then a minute later he just went: "I'm never selling this." It's nice to hear that people can value these games for what they are and were, and not for the money they're worth. Ultimately my own little designs are a tribute and will hopefully keep these games timeless. At least back then they made games that mercilessly kicked my butt. Also I see you got Steel Empire! That's pretty cool. yes, that's a good one. I was always more into Master System and then Saturn. Most of the games I wanted were on those 2 so buying for genny was not needed. The console in pic I got for free and dremeled the cart slot to fit the chinese repros. The few nuggets I wanted are only $4-$6 range and work quite well. I recently ordered an everdrive so that should get interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+thegoldenband Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 This just my own impression on the matter, but lately a lot of what seems to be driving the Genesis prices are whether or not the copy still has the manual or not. Genesis manuals tend to get lost over time, or messed up by the cases themselves. The collectors and/or speculators paying premium prices for good condition complete copies is having the effect of driving up average prices for a lot of Genesis titles. Yes, there can be a huge difference in price between a boxed copy and a 100% CIB with all registration cards and posters. The corollary to that is if you ever get a chance to pick up extra loose manuals or empty boxes, do it: you can save huge amounts of money that way. I put together my Contra Hard Corps CIB for under $10 just by buying an empty case + manual at a yard sale -- "Really, you want that?" -- and then patiently waiting for a cheap loose cart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hwj_chim Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 I passed up a Bloodlines CIB for 20 bucks in 2011. I regret that every day 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+remowilliams Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Yeah, prices have been going through the roof for a while now. It just seems like the Genesis is finally catching up with the NES and SNES market, unfortunately. Makes me that much more glad that I got my 200+ (mostly CIB) Genesis collection already Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariTexas Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 I got about 110 or so CIB games for my Genesis.....but have been out of the loop with that system for a long time so not sure what I have is good or not. Just glad I got most of these from Goodwills and flea markets when they were practically giving away Genesis games many years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wongojack Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Welcome to AtariAge. It sounds like you've been saved from the worst parts of this hobby up until now. You'll find that various degrees of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder are rampant in the video game collecting world, and people seem to be incapable of resisting the draw of completing things. The push to complete an entire collection of . . . anything is enough to make some people spend lots of money on something that really has a much lower value - like a beat up box for example. Many are interested in acquiring original copies of items as the collecting bug is a way to connect with the past. A reproduction doesn't hold the same emotional value, and the fact that a reproduction can simply be . . . reproduced means it isn't as hard to find. The hunt for these items is often more compelling than possessing them or even enjoying them as games to be played. I have my own demons to fight against when it comes to collecting, but I've managed to stay away from the draw of collecting expensive cardboard (or Genesis plastic). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeWantWaffles Posted July 11, 2015 Author Share Posted July 11, 2015 Welcome to AtariAge. It sounds like you've been saved from the worst parts of this hobby up until now. You'll find that various degrees of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder are rampant in the video game collecting world, and people seem to be incapable of resisting the draw of completing things. The push to complete an entire collection of . . . anything is enough to make some people spend lots of money on something that really has a much lower value - like a beat up box for example. Many are interested in acquiring original copies of items as the collecting bug is a way to connect with the past. A reproduction doesn't hold the same emotional value, and the fact that a reproduction can simply be . . . reproduced means it isn't as hard to find. The hunt for these items is often more compelling than possessing them or even enjoying them as games to be played. I have my own demons to fight against when it comes to collecting, but I've managed to stay away from the draw of collecting expensive cardboard (or Genesis plastic). Oh em gee. I feel the pull as well sometimes! I have 23 games currently, and they are all games that I love and will probably finish to the end. I felt like I had to have game xyz as well even though they don't interest me at all, but I luckily managed to scratch them off the list as time went on xD There are also games that I would love to have but that are just way too expensive. Mega Turrican, Twinkle Tale .. I try to avoid those .. but honestly I don't care if they're reproduction at this point, and while I'm kind of opposed to paying people for reproductions, if the price is right then I might snag one and put an american/european cartridge case on it. I can hear some of you cringe now xD Also instead of paying a lot of money for boxes I spend enormous amounts of time into designing my own. I guess that's the trade off here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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