It's happened to everyone at one time or another. Whether due to changing life circumstances or sheer curiosity, most of us will have looked at our video game collection and wondered how much hard cash we could get for it. We've interviewed serious collectors in the past and gazed longingly at row upon row of rare treasures, but the majority of us gamers make do with a much smaller selection of carts stashed in a drawer or lined up in a Billy bookcase. Most of us don't have mint sealed copies of Japanese curios or one-of-a-kind prototype hardware, either. Nope, our well-loved copy of Super Mario Bros. 3 wouldn't fetch much, not that we'd ever part with it.
You see it on eBay... the seller has simply multiplied the number of games they've got by $60.
Still, sometimes the bug to downsize and sell off bits and pieces takes us. This writer, for example, decided to it was time to sell a couple of dusty games and free up some shelf space. Reasoning that updated Switch versions were probably incoming, it seemed a waste to keep Killer7 for GameCube and the Metroid Prime Trilogy disc for Wii simply for the sake of it, and so on eBay they went.
Obviously, they were snapped up and three days later they were winging their way to new homes and I was left with a minor cash injection and two DVD cases' worth of extra space on the shelf. My newfound funds were quickly swallowed by a bill or petrol for the car or some other mundane thing I didn't keep track of and I instantly wondered if I'd made the right decision.
Ultimately I have no regrets – I’m still convinced we’ll see them on Switch before long – although I’m glad I didn’t follow that original train of thought further and auction my NES off as well. Still, with retro games getting more valuable by the year and digital distribution meaning there are usually multiple other ways to play those games, the desire to cash out can sometimes be attractive. While video games remain one of the best value forms of entertainment available, it's easy to look at a collection and imagine dollar signs corresponding to the thousands you’ve spent on them over the years.
You see it on eBay; giant collections listed for improbably high sums, and although the lots contain the odd high-value gem, it appears that the seller has simply multiplied the number of games they've got by $60. For the most part this is ludicrously wishful thinking. You wouldn’t expect the same if you were selling your DVD collection, would you? It seems delusional to rely on attracting a single collector whale to swoop in for your retro game stash with a five or six-figure cheque.
Then again, crazy things do happen. A mint copy of Super Mario Bros. sold for a record-breaking $100,150. The upcoming sale of the Nintendo PlayStation is expected to fetch well over $1 million. Entire console libraries are sold for thousands to collectors looking to pick up every game on a system without the fuss of hunting them down individually. Whales do exist, although personally we don't have the bait to catch them. So, what treasures do we have on our shelf?
Not much, it turns out. At the time of writing Computer Exchange - a Europe-wide retailer that specialises in secondhand media - would pay us £812 for a mint PAL copy of Snowboard Kids 2 thanks to its rarity. A shame, then, that we don't own that one. Why oh why didn't we pick up the sequel to one of our favourite N64 games? Our mint copy of the original would fetch a measly £29, although 'mint' might be a generous description. It's in good condition, but opening N64 boxes invariably led to cardboard creases, even if you were being careful. Very few of our NES or N64 games would get an A++ rating.
Any complete-in-box title in decent condition would likely recoup its original RRP, though, not adjusted for inflation. Perusing our shelves, the pristine copy of Conker’s Bad Fur Day would bring in over $100 according to Price Charting, and we could get similar amounts for Probotector on NES, Chibi-Robo and Majora’s Mask. Not bad, but we won't be jetting to the Seychelles on those earnings.
A survey around the office at Nintendo Life Towers yields better results, with some staff members not having this writer's limitations when it comes to storage space or smaller family members gnawing on a near-perfect copy of Battletoads & Double Dragon before spitting the torn, gummy remnants of the box at the cat.
Going around the office there are plenty of individual games which could finance a decent night out. Invader for the GBA could potentially bring in $250, Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge for Game Boy has a going rate of £150 (not bad for a 12 quid investment back in 1998) and San Francisco Rush 2049 could net us nearly $500. Lovely NL video chap Zion has an enviable 400 DS games in his collection so far (you’ve all seen that beautiful wall of games in his videos), which could fetch something, no?
Perhaps more interestingly, over the years we’ve also had the privilege of occasionally meeting industry luminaries and personal heroes. It’s hard to put a price on a 3DS signed by Charles Martinet, for example, let alone a 3DS signed by Martinet, Takashi Tezuka and Shigeru Miyamoto, but they've got to be worth something. Then there’s the game-related collectibles. A full set of six Sanrio x Animal Crossing amiibo cards would bring in around $300, and how about a K.K. Slider amiibo signed by Hasashi Nogami? Your guess is as good as ours.
The thing is, though, we’re not talking about life-changing sums here, and nobody gets rich buying and selling video games. We might be able to scrape a couple of months’ rent, but even a significant collection doesn’t represent a nest egg to retire on and the time and effort required to find the right buyer for your gear also eats into its value. The internet makes things easier, but you’ve still got to find someone willing and able to pay for your game whether it’s a Black Box NES title, Stadium Events, a Nintendo World Championships cart or Editor Damien's Mega Drive copy of Castlevania: Bloodlines (worth £300-£400 "depending on who you ask"). Sometimes needs must, and it might be worth selling a treasure to fund a new console or fill your gas tank, but nobody is living off the sale of their retro collection for long.
The libraries of media we’ve built up over the years will invariably end up in landfill when our descendants see no value in them
To satisfy our curiosity we totted up (via Price Charting) the amount we’d get for selling our entire PAL GameCube collection – that’s 26 games, plus the console, Wavebird, a white controller and a pair of DK bongos, all CIB and in great condition. Apparently, the going rate for every GameCube-related thing we own is $670.46. We use dollars because it looks more impressive in dollars, although maybe we should switch to yen.
Your reaction to that sum will obviously depend on your circumstances – for some that’s a huge amount of money, and for others if wouldn’t cover a month's utility bills. We weren't sure what to think really. It's a decent wodge of cash which would cover the car insurance for a year, but it somehow feels a bit paltry given the years of intangible pleasure we've got from our 'Cube.
This is all academic anyway - we ain't selling. We might have periodically shaved our collection down in the past, but tied up in every box still on our shelf is a memory - not just of playing the game, but of opening it, reading through the manual because we weren't allowed to play until after dinner, carefully cutting out the logo from the bottom of the box to stick on the spine of our Nintendo-branded plastic N64 cart cases (thankfully we found most of the logos from magazines, although ISS 64 is missing a section of its bottom flap). You can't put a price on memories like that. Just as well, really, because no-one would pay what we'd ask for anyway. No wonder people charge so much for complete libraries.
Even if we had the means to purchase entire software libraries, we're not sure we would. Convenience aside, it eliminates the thrill of the hunt that makes collecting at any level so addictive. There’s something exciting about hitting your local retro gaming shops or fleamarkets in search of a treasure. Unearthing some dusty artefact in amongst the questionable odours and junk of a second-hand shop makes us feel like a modern-day Indiana Jones digging up priceless antiques for our personal museum. Steadily building and curating a collection is the attraction for many people, not just hoarding and trading entire libraries like stock.
When we talk about our ‘personal museum’, we have no interest in gatekeeping things that could be lost. This should be obvious given that we're not in possession of such treasures anyway, but we’re firmly in the camp of the video game historians looking to save and distribute as much as they can – people like Frank Cifaldi over at the Video Game History Foundation and the preservationists which banded together to buy and dump the Satellaview version of Cooly Skunk. No, our museum really is a 'personal' one filled with our own trinkets. It’s just nice to have little library, no?
Keeping our personal copy of Ocarina is like keeping Tolstoy or Shakespeare on the shelf
That's an increasingly old-fashioned way of thinking. The banks of physical media we’ve built up over the years will invariably end up in landfill when our descendants see no value in them, just as many of us cleared out our VHS tapes to make room for DVDs, which have since been turfed out for Blu Rays or hard drives. Ultimately, it's all just data storage, and the smaller, the better.
So, our copy of Conker and the other usual suspects – the Marios, the Zeldas, etc – are mini memorials, testaments to digital experiences and a form of record; proof that we haven't frittered away our youth on 'nonsense'. Keeping our personal copy of Ocarina is like keeping Tolstoy or Shakespeare on the shelf - even if you haven't read it for years, who in their right mind would sell it? All those memories!
Perhaps that’s why $670.47 feels a bit paltry compared to the personal value we put on our GameCube games. Perhaps that’s why people expect to earn tens of thousands for their entire gaming collection. You can’t assign a dollar value to memories, can you?
What’s the most valuable game in your collection? Would you regret selling it for a tidy sum, even if you have access to it by other means? How much would you be prepared to let your collection go for? We'll be taking a look at some of the most expensive Nintendo games on the market soon, but until then let us know your tales of sales - and regret - below…
Comments (110)
'How Much Is Your Video Game Collection Really Worth To You?'
Far more than you'd be willing to pay, I'm sure...
All kidding aside though, I do own quite a few N64, GameCube and Dreamcast games that now go for the most ridiculous prices in shops and on sites like eBay, so if I was inclined to sell them, I should definitely be able to get a pretty penny for them. And then there's my astounding 200+ OG Xbox/Xbox 360 collection, which also already contains some really hard to get games, so yeah, I'm basically sitting on money here...
Priceless. It has been a way to escape what was really dark times in my life (committed suicide twice, scars aren't gunna go away for some time). Every world I visit, no matter how horrible they are in retrospect, have been experiences I wouldn't give up now.
Then I was an aspiring game designer in college, even bad games shown me some proper experiences to know what to do and not. It's amazing how one can look back and see the rise and fall of great genres cause popularity and social mediums change.
That stuff I cannot quantify with a price, but if family needed to, I would relinquish it in a heartbeat. Cause my family is now more than what I was.
My collection is for personal nostalgia. I rarely play the games, they are stored away and once a year or so I get them out and browse, reminisce and dream of the good old days. I don’t think it is worth a great deal, but hopefully my son will enjoy inheriting it one day.
I regretfully got rid of my PlayStation 1 and 2 collection when I got married. It was simply a space saving exercise and crazily it was my own idea. I kept some key titles and that was it. A bit stupid considering we now have a big enough house to store it and my brother’s gaming collection has been with my parents for years without them complaining.
Thankfully, between me and my brothers, we have a collection that spans all Nintendo, SEGA, Sony and Microsoft consoles and handhelds. So one day I’d like us to combine it somewhere, hopefully without arguments.
Man, I love games.
I do have a lot of dumb filler games that I bought for the sake of buying when I first got enough to money of my own to spend, honestly I've gotten a lot more picky as of late so I'd like to think that I could pretty much cut my collection to about 5th or 6th of what it is now, I have a ton of games on my shelf that I will likely never play again.
I could never sell my collection. They are stored on shelves in my games room and more often than not I just look at them, read the back of the boxes and reminisce about where and when I bought them. It brings back memories that can never be made again. A lot of people scoff at my hobby but to me they represent key moments in my life. I only buy what I want to play or sold in the past so no filler so to speak. I also have full runs of Super Play, N64 Magazine and NGC magazine and love reading through them too. Worth nothing to anyone but me.
Each one of my games is bought because I like them. I do not see a point in collecting games to never be opened (sealed copies). Games are art that is meant to be played just like books are to be read.
I would never sell my collection
you may find you won't regret cashing out as much as you think you do. these games are not going anywhere and there will ALWAYS be a way to play them. Physical or not. I'm willing to bet............
“Ultimately I have no regrets – I’m still convinced we’ll see them on Switch before long...”
You’re really expecting Killer 7 on Switch? Based on what evidence?
We can’t even play Ocarina of Time on it, and the Switch has been out for 3 years already!
I got path of radiance for 30 bucks or so earlier last week. Shocked to see its usual price
I sold my pink Gameboy Pocket ages ago and I still regret it. I could have sold my copy of Suikoden for around 100 € last time I checked out of curiosity (and didn't even consider it), and I'm still buying used 3DS games for my collection. And yes, it's entirely for my own enjoyment. Because hobbies.
During the last tornado scare, I had a big box into which I was ready to dump my Switch, GameCube controllers, fixed Pro Controllers, and all amiibo. The games? The chips fail and can be replaced. But those save files! Those are MUCH harder to replace!
The only things I held on to from my childhood are my Pokemon cards, which I consolidated to only keeping the holographics. And my Super Nintendo with all the games I used to play and some rare ones that I come across and buy to build the collection. There's a couple thousand dollars worth of stuff there but I don't think I would ever have the heart to sell them.
I wouldn't even go as far to clean the SNES alone I feel like the yellowed look adds to the memories
Sentimentality is the only reason I have a physical collection. I only buy stuff I want to play and really never plan on reselling. Just my own personal library of games that I like for me. I don't buy games for the sake of having them if I'm never planning on playing them.
Even posterity's sake isn't an issue since, legal issues aside, none of these games are ever going away as there's more readily available online than was ever even actually released (unreleased games, unreleased versions, betas, etc...). The only ones that are in danger of that are specialized ones that use specific hardware, but even that usually has some kind of workaround.
Looking at my collection I do have some great gems (complete MvC2 ps2, sealed super Valis SFC, Castlevania Bloodlines complete) but I honestly have no intention of parting with them. If I can find a better looking copy I sometimes trade up or sell the older copy. One game in particular I traded in and have felt sellers remorse ever since (it was Robotech Invasion on ps2) yes it was a "unusual" game but what I got for the trade in wasn't any better.
For me games can also have a sentimental value. So I loved Secret of Mana because I played it in my teens. Playing it now on the SNES Mini still holds me in thralls even though I can see it’s many faults in today’s gaming era.
Last generation, I have a soft spot for Fire Emblem Awakening as I was going through a lot of personal problems at the time of playing it and I felt my struggles mirrored what was going on in game.
So as a result I rarely get rid of old games, but if a new console has backwards compatibility then I do sell off the original console to free up shelf space.
Like the article says I recommend creating a free account at https://www.pricecharting.com/
Here's my link for those curious:
https://www.pricecharting.com/offers?seller=fvzpfeakiqt52dybv2qyzq5aka&status=collection
It takes a little time but when you get your games inventoried there you'll have a more accurate idea of what your collection is worth especially over time. The site also features options to buy/sell/trade that I really don't use but hear good things about them. Personally I plan on just holding onto everything for now, but given another 10, 20, 40 years I may thin out my collection and hold onto just the games I enjoy more. Eventually I may just pass them on to my kids.
In 2011 I hit hard times between jobs. To buy groceries and gas I had to sell my game collection. Of course with the time constraints the buyer got too good of a deal from me but I had few options. Sometimes life decides the value for you. Just pick up and look to better days
I own around 500 physical games. I started seriously collecting a couple years ago pretty much from scratch after graduating college. While I have way more money invested in my collection than my wife would ever want, I don't buy or sell games because I expect to turn a profit one day. Likewise, I don't buy games I have never played or don't plan on playing. Almost every game I own has some sort of story to it, whether it be personal or one that I feel is significant to the platform, genre, industry, developer/publisher, etc. I like to think of my game room as a sort of library that contains all sorts of information on the video game industry. I would never want to sell my collection. But at the same time, life happens and finances change, and that could cause me to have to change my stance. I had to sell off my small collection to finish funding my last year of college. I hope that day doesn't come again because, not to sound overly dramatic, but my collection is a big part of who I am and tells a sort of broad story about myself.
I sold a lot of my stuff when I got married. I then sold a lot of more stuff when I had kids. I needed space.
Now I have a bigger house with space but I don’t regret it much. I still sell and trade in my recent games that I know I won’t play anymore or I just didn’t enjoy.
The wii/Wii u really got me back to enjoying my games as I played a lot of titles with my kids. Listening to their strategies on how to beat this and that boss was always a pleasure.
Priceless as far as I am concerned, it's the culmination of years of interest and everything I got is tailored to my taste.
@NinChocolate Same. I remember selling my valued N64 collection with the component cable you could only buy from Nintendo directly. Console, six controllers (all in pristine condition), and maybe 10 or so boxed games for around $100 on eBay. At the time in college, I wasn't sure I'd play them much being busy with school and considering marriage. I even sold my preorder Nintendo Wii to help pay for my wife's wedding ring.
Now I'm out of college, married, and have three kids that I play games (including N64) with several times a week. I've slowly built my collection back up buying used as the price is right. I don't have everything I had before but my current collection is around 75 N64 games. I still need to rebuy Smash, Ocarina of Time (preorder gold cart), Majora's Mask and a few as I find deals, but ultimately I have a bigger collection in general now than I ever had before.
My gamecube games and the console itself were stolen by someone. It was my favo console and I have very nice memories about those games. Mario sports games, sunshine, zelda...
Then I started getting a physical collection on PS4. That got stolen again by the same person. (sounds unbelievable but with the gamecube, I was a child so I just thought I was being sloppy with my stuff.)
Now I moved out of the house and finnaly started to get myself a nice switch-games collection. Have bought some games that I won't even play now, I may make up my mind later however I still have very nice games with a story to them.
I now have bought a few stupid limited run games that I dont even wanna play but I wanted to first. Looking to sell them now.
@Paraka Oh man, thank you so much for that post. I'm struggling with depression very seriously, and to be honest - I know how it sounds - my little Switch and its library helped me to prevent commiting suicide dozen of times in ths last 8 months. Also it pushed me to contact with other people, even by reading comments without interacting on the websites like this. So I have to thank all of you for keeping me alive. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.
@KoekiieWoekiie I know I've been eyeing the Limited Run Games for Turok from Best Buy. I know I don't need them as I have them digitally, but they are tempting.
I'm doing KonMari to focus on what truly brings me joy, and after years of collecting, I can happily let things go. With digital prices being so competitive, I've stopped physical purchases outside of when the price suits me. As for my classic collecting, I have sold off most of the games I've collected over the last 10 to 15 years at prices I never expected and I couldn't be happier. I don't want to spend any more of my time in hording and sorting things I know I won't use or play. I'm happy they go out to people whom will get more enjoyment than I would, and I usually give a cut to charity in the sale. A win-win in my head.
I had a pretty decent N64 collection, sold it for almost nothing, just to regret it later. But my real gem was a GameCube collection. It was my most anticipated system of all time. I had the Broad Band Adapter. I had the super duper ultra rare component cable. I had very rare games. And a genuine japanese orange controller. And a WaveBird. And the list goes on. I sold it for so cheap i'm ashamed to say for how much I lost it. Just seeing the cover for this article gave me the chills.
I learned a long time ago that selling my games is never worth it. I will never trade in or sell another video game.
I’ve regretted selling games only to put the money on bills. So I now only buy digital and any physical media I sabotage to make it impossible to sell. I don’t keep covers, artwork etc. disc only in a paper slip.
No idea what my collection is worth but with gems such as Panzer Dragoon Saga plus immaculate condition Conkers Bad Fur Day, Resident Evil 2 (N64) and the Gold Ocarina of Time amongst many many others I suspect I'd do alright if I ever decided to part with them
I think the only game I sold and then rebought was Pokemon HeartGold/SoulSilver (originally got HG when it came out, sold it for over $100, just bought SS which I originally wanted for $110 Canadian). I like what I have between by PC, Switch and 3DS right now (along with SNES mini and PS2 to compliment). I am giving my Wii U loaded with Virtual Console games and a stack of physical Wii U/Wii games to my sister for her to enjoy since she just moved out for the first time.
I sold all of the N64 and Gamecube stuff (save for GC controllers)...I can only collect so much. We'll see what the future brings and whether or not I'll sell off the 3DS and Switch stuff. As long as I have access to a load of my favourite older games. That being said, the PC with 8bitdo controllers is quite serviceable. If I ever own a house and produce children, I'm sure I'll have a few old TVs with old consoles and 'essential' games lmfao.
Like, I bought some collectible games like Conker's Bad Fur Day and then hardly played it. I can only value something I will actually return to and keep playing my whole life. I guess I just didn't have the history with it like other folks do. Whereas OoT, MM are accessible and better on 3DS (in my opinion, understandable if others feel differently).
I’ve got a whole lot of Nintendo games spanning every system. I’m not sure what my rarest would be though. I do have a Power Glove however!
Same with Xenoblade Chronicles on Wii (still have that copy)....will probably end up getting it on Switch.
Sentimental value and child-age broke-ness aside, the only times I ever really consider selling games/consoles these days are, 1) When they go for well over their original values, 2) You're looking to downsize and absolutely know you aren't going to touch or even look at them again, or 3) You're so hard pressed for money that the few extra bucks will save your butt.
For most of us who work, the price you might get for a moderately valuable game can be about the cost of a few hours/days on the job. That, in my eyes, is too negligible to go in on, when having a physical collection looks (and feels) valuable in itself.
I have at least refrained from selling off my record collection...I've got all of the 60's Mothers of Inventions original pressings!
Selling a bunch of my 3DS and Wii U games on Ebay starting later today. Too many games that I don’t have time to play.
Let's be honest, game collecting is on its way out. Things are slowly going digital just like music, and later films. It's a shame, but then again, thinking back to when I had some GameBoy Colour carts, half wouldn't work, and for the ones that did, they wouldn't save because the battery was knackered! Nostalgia ain't what is used to be. I fired up and old DS game a few months ago and was shocked at how bad the graphics are compared with today's Switch. Sure there are still some classic older games that stand the test of time, but would rather play on a VC or emulator than have the original game.
No much in terms of money I'm sure. Have 300+ ps4 games all digital and about 20 physical switch games. Not a collector at all so systems aside maybe a couple hundred bucks lol
@tadix - We all go through those dark moments, my friend. It's outright hell sometimes, cause you always hear that voice, the one that makes enigmatic connections why everything is your fault. But there are other voices, like the one that goes "woah" when you peak your head over the horizon for the first time in Red Dead Redemption, or that hellish intro of Red Steel 2 as you're being dragged on the back of a motorcycle. Those moments we should relish in, cause it makes those voices louder, and the other one... it doesn't go away, but you can drown out the noise with such experiences and sharing them.
I won't ever say you're alone the moment you take a step back and see where we all are. On Nintendo sites, sharing our opinions and enjoyment of gaming. Not just Nintendo, that's incredible when you think of it.
It's amazing when I look at it, I always loved those zany and obscure games. One that stands out is Mushroom Men. Cause you're a mushroom, fighting in a mushroom world, smaller than any of our backyards. When you saved the world, in the grand scheme of things on a larger perspective it should feel like nothing.
But for those Mushroom dudes, it was EVERYTHING. And that's deep, for us our small victories for ourselves may be bigger than what anyone else could perceive.
I have a pretty significant game collection, but don't actually own any of the super-rare games that would reach four figures or above. The game worth the most I own would be TMNT: Tournament Fighters for NES, which I have complete. That brings about $400. Still, if I sold all my big-ticket games I have entered on PriceCharting, I'd make $22,000 off of them. A lot of money, yes, but it's worth more to me right now to keep them.
I have a tasty collection of Amiga games (and their huge boxes) and three Amigas to play them on.
But the emotional heart of my collection is my complete collection of Amiga Power, (including issue 0) and the disks, postcards, posters, books, etc. I'm currently reading through them and the nostalgia is great of course but the best thing is seeing the first seeds of the future appear: the demise of the Amiga, the impending arrival of the SNES in the UK, a rumoured thing called the PSX, a FIFA game (which was full of scripting and could do with a sequel), a Gamesmaster TV programme (also full of scripting and in need of sequels), the Internet, jokes about Michael J (snip, that's enough seeds of the future - ed).
Would I sell it all? Yes, once the novelty of nostalgia has worn off.
@Paraka Cheers, my friend.
When you think about cartridge rot it makes you think about the fact that some of these old games that are worth pretty good amounts of money are they worth continuing to hold onto when eventually they will be unplayable due to components going bad makes me sad. Then again I haven't played any of my super nintendo games from the games themselves in such a very long time due to going through various SNES & retron type systems that have crapped out on me, amazingly I still have a working N64 though lol.
Priceless to me but everything that I have collected I have actually played or wanted to play not really one of those who has sealed copies I paid £15 for cannon spike on Dreamcast and cex will pay £149 cash but I just can’t part with any really regret selling my GameCube collection but at the time I needed to
Was forced to give my NES collection away when I was 11. The console broke and my parents were like "you have super games now and the neighbor kid could use them" so I begrudgingly let them go.
When we moved houses at 16 the moving company charged by the pound and my parents convinced me my Nintendo Power Collection needed to be left behind for thr good of the family.
When the last standard definition TV left my household in 2009, my wife convinced me to sell all my SNES and Genesis games to pay down my college loans. Got $80 for Earthbound at least. I told myself one day when I was making enough money I'd at least be able to play the games on modern systems eventually.
Years later I'm an office manager and I bought an NES mini day one, SNES mini day one (took days off to stand in line outside Target in the 40F morning for three hours prior to opening), hacked them with no regrets, bought a Switch day one and have been buying games for it whenever I please. Have the Genesis, Atari, Namco, SNK, Megaman, X, Contra, Castlevania, and Konami arcade collections and a smattering of NEOGEO games. I also have a Genesis mini, Atari Flashback 8 HD Gold, the playstation mini ($25 felt right), and an X Arcade tankstick hooked up to an old computer loaded with arcade games in my man cave.
I don't regret losing my physical NES, SNES, and Genesis games, but I really wish I could get my hands on those Nintendo Power magazines again.
How much is my collection currently worth to a reseller? Probably $1,000 used with all my old consoles and games.
To me, its a source of happiness from this world we live in and I'm glad I've started buying so many little digital games since if my house just randomly burns down, I can get a new Switch and redownload most of them right away.
I would also like to point out that my pair of DK bongos did not appreciate in value XD
I sold most of my collection a few years ago and I'm happy I did. Games I already replayed to death and wasn't touching. Collectibles that were a lot cooler when I was 15 than at 35. I'm happy to have less STUFF. I made at least several hundred dollars, all of which I used as a fund for buying new games.
I used to be a collector. Now I'm just a gamer (and a minimalist). And for me, it's better that way.
I regret buying so many. Resale is ridiculously low for most. I would be lucky to get $3-$5 a pop for most of my Wii U, 3ds and Xbone games. Maybe even less. I is to the point that it is insulting to even put them out for sale.
@redd214 you must have some serious storage for your PS4 think mine was full with about 6 games (500gb) had to buy an external drive which is now full and that’s 1tb
You can't put a price on my games collection...it's not for sale!
I have a complete copy of Cubivore, purchased when it was still in the $80 range. That’s probably my most valuable game.
I have my entire game collection (all the way back to Atari) proudly displayed in my living room and I hope that when it’s time for me to go I’ll be able to give it away to someone who will love it as much as I do.
I bought a lot of games back then but I never considered myself a serious collector so I honestly took for granted a lot of the games I had. I adored my GameCube collection but since I wanted to buy and play PS3 games I ended up selling some that I regret doing like paper mario ttyd.
Now I would never sell my games and take better care of my collection of PS4 and switch games along with a decent amount of retro collecting too. So yeah, I consider my collection priceless now lol.
I own over 1000 games so if we lowball it and say they average out to be worth $10 each (I have stuff like a mint condition copy of Panzer Dragoon Saga and all three Zelda CDI games that balance out the lower stuff stuff) that would get us to $10,000. I'd probably put it closer to $15,000 but maybe I'm being optimistic. Not that I'd ever sell my collection because I adore it.
I have probably 1000 games going back to NES but few boxed and mostly used so prob not worth too much.Still won't part with any yet though!
@rockodoodle You've got to think about the long game. Yes, Wii U, 3DS and Xbox One games are cheap now, but the Nintendo games will appreciate in value over time. The Xbox games, maybe not so much, because they rely on a download to play them.
The Wii U sold less consoles than the GameCube, so it's reasonable to expect prices to one day match those. Sure, some games will always go for peanuts, but some will rise to three figures one day.
I only started collecting in 2014 really, so I'm still growing my library, rather than looking back on it. Will I play and beat all the games that I'm buying? Probably not, but they're all of interest to me and I really love the medium so having a collection of the greatest games ever made and available to play legitimately whenever I choose feels cosy.
I actually paid three figures for a couple of games recently. Not something I thought I'd ever do, even up until a couple of days before I did. But I have them now and that longing has been satiated. Will they fall in value? Quite possibly, but they're not for sale.
Personally, I have over 1,200 Switch games that are worth well in excess of £15,000... BUT with the exception of one solitary game, it’s entirely digital. Therefore, in reality, my Switch (and 3DS for that matter) collection isn’t worth a bean, but to me? It’s absolutely priceless and I wouldn’t change a thing! 😉
@Paraka @tadix I hear you, guys. I’ll be 47 this summer, and video games have helped me through some of the toughest times I could have ever imagined.
This goes all the way back to 1999 when my parents (aged 47 and 51) died just six weeks apart. Both died suddenly and without warning. I wasn’t really into gaming then, but playing FIFA on Playstation with my brother and watching him play Mario 64 and the just released Ocarina of Time on his N64 showed me not only what escapism was, but more so, what it truly meant.
Since then I’ve battled severe depression and anxiety, coped with serious bowel disease, had a horrific motorcycle accident and, worst of all, separated with my wife after 25 years of marriage. I will always love her, and leaving was the most difficult thing I have ever done, but not being under the same roof as my beautiful daughters has nearly destroyed me. Now I live alone in a tiny flat away from those I love the most, and if it wasn’t for my Switch, I’m not sure that I’d still be here today.
Indeed, the Switch has proved to be a lifeline for me. When I was very sick back in 2007, I spent more than four straight months in hospital and having my PSP really helped (at least until the guy in the next bed stole it to buy drugs while I was in theatre). Ever since, I’ve had what I can only describe as a love affair with handheld systems. I’ve never been able to feel quite the same sense of attachment with the home consoles I’ve owned, but I’ve always adored my Vita, 3DS and especially my Nintendo Switch, which I wouldn’t part with for the world.
Stay strong my brothers. The Switch community is a very special one. You may not realise it, but there are always people out there who are available to talk if you ever want to. Myself included. So please do reach out if you need to offload.. or simply spend some time by talking about our favourite pastime. It really can help!
I was starting to worry about my Gameboy saves on things like Link's Awakening recently. Then I found out that with an N64, ED64+ and the Gameboy Transfer Pak, it was not only possible to back up my own original carts, but that crucially important savedata too. So now after half an hour or so of cart/save backing up, my completed Pokemon Blue pokedex will be with me essentially forever along with the rest of my collection.
Even better... I was able to back up my GB Camera. And the photos can be extracted from that save to jpegs using a PC program. So I now have the lovely tiny photos I took back in the day, too.
When I was 13, I sold my entire gaming collection (Master System and 3 games) for $30 to Cash Converters, just to get myself a bit closer to being able to afford a Mega Drive. Back then, for me $30 was a fair amount of money and I wasn't going to get a chunk of cash like that from anywhere else. Plus the concept of "retro" or "nostalgia" was meaningless. But after the sale, it gnawed and gnawed on me that I'd thrown away Psycho Fox, my favourite game in the world. I have never again sold off any of my gaming stuff. It may just be sitting in big plastic boxes in my parents' garage in another country from where I live now, but it's mine.
It belongs in a mus... in the hands of someone who will play it.
One of my big regrets is selling my Virtual Boy. I didnt realize how rare they were as a kid. I traded it for a GBA when I was super young.
I've never sold a game in my life, and never will
I regret selling my cartridge games with the save slots. For instance I had goldeneye finished on the hardest level. Why'd I sell it I have no idea. Otherwise in general I can buy games again. No big deal.
@gcunit I think that with the Wii U especially tho, all the ports to the Switch has probably diminished the value of that system. I think the 3ds games might have some collector value because I don't think many will end up being rereleased.
These days I tend to buy a game, complete it, then sell it and buy another ( unless of course it’s a digital purchase ).
Since moving near the beach gaming has taken a backseat for me and is now just a small part of my life as opposed to a major part.
I still love my Switch but have no desire to build a games collection again. I had virtually every console over the years and literally all the top games but made the decision to sell it all.....do I regret it?sometimes, for a split second, yes, but in reality, in the big scheme of things, no.
@Bosh_Factory Ah, a fellow Amiga fan and owner. Haven't encountered too many on here, strangely enough. I've also got three of them in my collection: an A500 with a kickstart switch (for kickstart 1.3 and 2.04, aka A500+ compatibility), an A1200 with built-in hard drive, and a CD32 with an SX32 module, also with a hard drive. And an absolute truckload of games. Mostly copied, though. Or as disk files on CDs, which can be loaded into the CD32's memory.
@Gs69 oh no, I do have a 2tb hdd in one of my ps4s and 2tb externals hooked up to both but I don't have all the games installed at once.
The worst decision I ever made was selling my collection of Game And Watch Handhelds of which I had about 10 and my Special Edition Of Lunar The Silver Star,Luna Eternal Blue,Popful Mail and Vay.I was young and short of cash at the time and thought the deal was a good deal...it really wasnt..
These days if I buy a game Special Edition or not I keep it.
Years ago, I sold a copy of Dynastic Hero for the TG-16 SuperCD/TurboDuo on eBay to a guy in Spain for about $900. (The media itself was mint but the UPC code on the CD sleeve was cut out for a rebate.)
I honestly don't regret it because it was going to someone who obviously wanted it more than I did.
At the end of 2016 I sold mostly all I the things I owned (except couple of guitars, tv, surround sound and a hacked wii). I used a couple hundred on going out and gifts for family and the rest I gave to charities. I think my entire playstation 1 library including rarities was worth about 300, ps3 and all games around 150 and the Nintendo collection (gc games and accessories, new 3ds with games and wii games) was like 180 or so. I actually had some CDs that were super rare and had limited pressings and the bands blew up from when I bought them so they netted about 220. I was physicla media free!
So, it was a decent amount but it still came to under a grand, but I made some happiness with it.
Since then I've gathered a collection of ps2, ps3, wii, wii u and Switch games again. My ps1 library I never replaced, well on psp but not in a way I should mention, anyway
I sold my old modded ps2 (with 20 or so naughty burned dvds... No, not those kind of naughty dvds) for £50 the other day to some kid who wanted to play an American Persona 3 copy, before that no one wanted it at all, so like you say, it depends who wants is who will pay.
I have only off loaded games three times in my life. Once when I was 7 I sold my NES, power glove and 10 games. I still regret that. The second time I got rid of the power rangers video game after Thuy Trang died (RIP, Trini forever!) and the last time when I traded in spider man 2 to help pay for the Legend of Zelda DS Lite. While I keep my games in great condition I don't consider myself a collector in the strictest sense. I want to play my games not try to leverage them as an asset.
You're right, my collection is worth more to me than I would be able to sell it for.
That's why I long since stopped selling games. I almost always regret selling a game. It's just that sometimes it takes months or years for me to realize it.
I've been kicking myself for years for selling the Gamecube Fire Emblem game back in the day! I didn't even sell it because I was finished, I sold it in a stupid fit of teenage annoyance at not being able to beat the last chapter without someone dying. I was so stupid!
"The banks of physical media we’ve built up over the years will invariably end up in landfill when our descendants see no value in them"
So much truth I this article and statement! Whilst the collector in us all is encouraged by seeing the seeming appreciation in the price of some old games, the fact is that these prices depend on the finding the person to whom that title is worth that lofty figure. Almost all these material things ultimately pass out of importance with time. I gather Elvis memorabilia is starting to fetch less on the open market as inevitably the fans who grew up with him age and sadly die. This reduces the number of people collecting and frankly releases collections back to the market. I'm sure the same will be true of beloved physical video games.
That said, I learned a little hard lesson in digital media recently - my New 3DS XL defied Nintendo's attempts to fix it, and the replacement returned to me with no way to restore the numerous saved games, including Majora's Mask and The Minish Cap poised close to completion! Hurrah then for the Samus Returns cartridge which allowed me to step back to where I had been.
Enjoy your collections folks, but ultimately memories mean more. 😀
Are you sure that $670 figure for your PAL Gamecube collection is accurate? PAL GC games in the UK sell for much higher than NTSC games do in the US (when currency converted). I don’t know what games you have but if you have the big hitters like Paper Mario, Fire Emblem, Chibi Robo and Twilight Princess, that could be £300 with those 4 games alone. Obviously you’d need to deduct eBay and PayPal fees, but still.
Anyway, I’ve always said when I’m old I’ll either give everything I have to my children, or if they’d rather have the cash, spend my retirement slowly selling everything for the best prices to give to them. Hopefully by that point I’d have played them all!
It seems like physical goods of almost any kind are losing value. I’m not sure that the younger generations see much value in goods, but rather go for experiences. I’m buying quite a few Switch games, but rarely at full price, and always because I just want to have a library to play. I doubt many of them will be worth more than I paid for them new.
How they are value depends on type of games they are and are they collector value or not. Just because one thinks Physical are loosing value isn't the market value. Take BoTW that by itself still the same price range even 3+ yrs going. Some games hold their value longer then others. Physical games hold their value over Digital games if you want to really talk about Game Value.
My games collection is sentimental to me. The original cartridges/consoles I had growing up hold a ton of memories. Some of them have save files that haven't been touched in ages, they're like moments frozen in time. The only reason I would sell any of them now is if I literally had to, for financial reasons. I made the mistake of selling a bunch of my GameCube games years ago, and over the course of 6-7 years, I ended up buying back 90% of them lol.
However, I generally stopped acquiring retro games recently because of the skyrocketing prices. I only got games I was/am interested in, but it was still just too expensive. Also, the mini classic consoles are ridiculously convenient for me. I love the NES and SNES, but haven't touched either original console in years because I just use my NES and SNES minis all the time. I get people's critiques of them, but I'm a big fan of them, and I wish N64+GameCube would get the mini console treatment.
You can sell your old games on ebay no problem. The issue is they're all a bunch of moochers and are out to rip you off!
Not sure but I think my most valuable game is my SNES X ZONE PAL version, I've been offered silly amounts for that game (compared to how good I feel the game is)..
I've been offered a $100 each for Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, just the carts, but I immediately declined.
I don’t quite have the time to sort through and research them all, but I’ve still got pretty much everything I’ve ever acquired game-wise. I started in the SNES era but I did get the later edition NES and a few older games for it. From there I added a Genesis (with CD and 32x), Gameboy, Saturn, two Virtual Boys, PlayStation, N64, PS2, Dreamcast, Xbox, GameCube, Gameboy Advance (original and sp), DS lite, PSP, PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, Wii U (Wind Waker edition and Mario Maker edition), PS4, Xbox One, 3DS, and a Switch. Along with those, a decent amount of games for each, despite missing some popular genres like sports games and FPS and RPG titles. Can’t help be a little curious how much all that could sell for.
Problem is, I’ve never been the type to want to dispose of things I collect, even if I know quite well I’m unlikely to actually use them. Time moves on, and it gets pretty hard to imagine feeling the need to plug a copy of Mario World into my old SNES, especially since it’s right there on the Switch, anyway.
I’m certain I wouldn’t get a fortune for all I’ve got. Not much is mint but everything is still in the full boxes and cases. Finding anyone who would want it all is unlikely, and selling it off piecemeal would be too much fuss. Lucky for me I have no intention to let of it go just now, but I also don’t have a lot of storage space anymore.
I sold most of my collection when I was in college (1998 - 2002) and I have regretted it ever since. I have bought back copies of almost everything I once had, but it's not the same as being the original owner. Fortunately, my childhood NES, SNES, and several games escaped my misguided decision, as they were stored at my mother's house. I now keep them all proudly displayed in my home, alongside my collection of games and consoles dating from 1983 to 2020.
I would prefer not to sell my collection, but of course if I have to because of life changes or whatever, I'm prepared to do that. I'd just be a bit sad about it.
I've looked through my games to find the closest I'd be willing to part with and it's pretty hard, I attach to stuff really easily. It would probably be Spider-Man 3(Wii). It just hurts to think that I got it for more than $50 and selling it now would get me like $5, at best.
I once traded FFVI Advance for FFIII (DS) and it's not that I regret it, but just find more value in it being a GBA game, you know? I could play it on the TV, unlike a DS game. Uh, It's also flippin' FFVI.
But I don't see the point of selling something valuable just for a couple of bucks. Same applies to my yugioh cards, each card is like a physical memory even if I haven't dueled someone in 6 years.
I'm not even sure what my most valuable game is, probably ALttP? Star Fox? Yoshi's Island? TTYD? Melee? SNES Monopoly?
But 20 years from now? 30? No telling the worth of some. I have traded a game or sold a game is quite a while. Will randomly even purchase a game i know will run limited (Owlboy latest. PS4 Physical) and then purchased digital to play. Sitting in plastic. So is PS4 Secret of Mana😕 heres hopin lolol
is there any way to estimate how much in $, not feelings, your collection worth?
Nothing can replace the original games sorry. There are no remakes or kids emus etc out there that play just like the originals. If I'm going to play it I will choose the original over any newer remake or rerelease always
There are several angles to view this from:
1) Lots of games get remastered or remade, and keeping them on current platforms obviously extends their longevity. It also makes the older versions (more) expendable. Case in point: the slew of Wii and Wii U releases for Switch, including Mario Kart 8, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, and Xenoblade Chronicles, for starters. And the more of the games you can get/play on a newer console, the less attractive keeping the old one becomes; sometimes a single game or two might prevent you (or me, speaking from a personal standpoint) from selling off an entire console and its library that you own.
2) That said, backwards compatibility is a HUGE factor. I HATE paying for another iteration of the same game I paid full price last generation for (especially digital copies) just to be able to enjoy it on my current console. Nintendo has hands down been the worst console maker about this practice, with everything from the Virtual Console being tied to a single console. Frankly, Microsoft nailed it when they announced full BC with all past and future Xbox generations (though it remains to be seen whether their catalog of older titles will ever grow again since it stalled last year in anticipation of Xbox One X). Knowing you can move on to newer hardware without leaving your old games behind is a big deal.
3) Digital can be a great way to prolong the life of countless games, but it definitely has its caveats. Since publishers have "redefined" games as a "service" instead of the PRODUCTS we all paid legal, real money to own, end user rights have pretty much evaporated. Eventually the PlayStation 3 Store (and the 100-plus games I purchased on it) will be shut down, and my digital collection will then exist only as long as my system doesn't croak.
Digital has also devastated the brick-and-mortar retail gaming market (just ask former employees of the many store chains that have either closed stores, filed bankruptcy, or folded completely). It was deliberately designed to do so in order to eliminate the secondary (used) games market. That $10 trade-in at GameStop that they turn around and resell for $40? The console makers and publishers don't see a penny of that. Ditto with eBay, yard sales, etc.. So gamers are going from being royally shafted by one questionable business practice to another even more control-obsessed, gouge-you-for-every-penny-they-can-after-the-point-of-sale one.
Oh, and the "best" part? They can pull the servers anytime they please, killing all the time and money you've spent in one fell swoop. Because by their definition, you don't own anything; you're paying for a "service". Translation: that's also called taking away your basic rights as a consumer (again, please consider the points made above; these corporations do NOT care a whit about you as a gamer or consumer and they never have). But I digress.
The way things are heading, holding onto physical copies of games will become a moot point aside from the current and older console generations anyway. The end goal of videogame publishers and console makers is all-digital, preferably via subscription models. If you don't want that there's only one way to possibly stop it: vote with your wallet. Personally I can live with digital provided I OWN the games I buy and every effort is made to maintain access to them; the day everything goes to subscription I'm out, full stop.
I still have my Commodore 64 (Which came out in 1981, and which still works to this day), and I still have over 200+ Floppy Disks to go with it too. Roughly ~50+ or so are "master" disks, and the other ~150+ disks are double-sided disks, with anywhere from 5 to 10 game on each side, so, roughly 10 to 20 games total, on each disk. So, tons of game for that system. I also still have my original Atari 5200, NES, Gameboy, Genesis, SNES, N64, Dreamcast, Gamecube, Playstation 1, 2, etc.etc, all of the way up to the Switch. Pretty much every system. Including those Tiger Electronic games, Game & Watches, and other such "handheld" games. With tons of games for all systems (except the Tiger Electronic, etc, as they each only have 1 game each). I also have a bunch of PC games too. Not just the Commodore 64 games, but games from the 90s, 2000s and 2010s, as well. Also, I vastly prefer physical games in my collection, so the overwhelming portion of my collection is physical releases. I have tons and tons of games.
I also miss Funcoland here. They used to have monthly newspapers with the "current" value of each game (or at least, their going rate for each title). I missed getting those. I would pick up a bunch, hand them out to friends at school, and I'd highlight all of the games that I owned and added up how much each one was worth, and added the total for each system, and for all total. I missed doing that. I don't know how accurate those numbers were back then, but, I had fun adding them all up, and seeing the difference between prices of certain games on the same system.
Tho, now a days, I have a lot more games than I did then. I've invested a lot of money (and time), into video games. So I'd be interested into seeing how much my collection is worth today. That said, there's no way I'd part with my collection, for any price. I have a lot of stuff, which a lot of the older stuff is boxed up and stored away, so that when I get a proper 'game room', I can fully deck it out with all of my stuff. Looking forward to setting that up one day. In the meantime, I don't know how much my collection is worth, tho I'd be interested in finding out one day. But I have no plans on selling, or getting rid, of anything.
It's something I've been thinking about, selling my NES and SNES collection, especially with the NES and SNES Mini out and other games, like the Castlevania and Contra series, on Switch. NES is about 35 games, all boxed, and mostly in excellent condition except for Hyper Soccer that I lent to a friend and came back all creased. Plus the original NES in working condition, an third controller (the bonue version), and the NES Advantage joystick.
The SNES would be over 40 games, all excellent condition, and includes all 3 Top Gear games, both ISS games, all Street Fighter games, plus most of the classics. Only Mario Kart is without a box. Add to that is a multitap, 5 controllers, original PAL console and a US SNES with Australian power adaptor (several of the games like Star Fox, Super SF2 and Aliens 3 are US versions).
A few years ago, I flippantly said $10,000 to a friend for the lot, and he thought about it for a minute. Then I thought that might be a bargain. I feel the heat on retro games has stalled, and even decreased a little. I'd probably do research first before selling.
Oh, and I have a few boxed games from Japan I bought as souvenirs, notably ISS Winning 11 and Fighting 11, Mario Kart and Star Fox. None are for sale. Also, every issue of Hyper Magazine since issue 1 in 1994 thereabouts. I might have missed the boat to sell them for a big price.
@Sir_Samus I've been trying to track down a copy of N64 magazine but I cannot for the life of me remember what issue it was. I once had a picture I drew published in an issue and it netted me some lovely gear but my copy has long since disappeared. I'd love to track down the issue number so I can look to buy it again to show my kids that their old dads picture made it in to a magazine. Its stumped me for years 😒
Wish I hadnt traded my gameboy micro, metroid fusion and zero mission for a small discount on my first DS. To replace that stuff would be rather pricey.
As a kid, I'd always sell the old generation to fund the new one. My NES and SNES collections sold at family garage sales (before eBay) for a few hundred dollars each, but there was nothing rare. I started saving my collections after that and had a decent N64 and Gamecube collection that would follow me around as I moved.
However, about 7 years ago, I became sort of a minimalist, looked at these collections and realized I wasn't playing or enjoying them, they were just there. I decided to clear them out, got a good amount selling each one individually as they were well taken care of. I hope that most went into hands of people that would play and enjoy them, rather than sit in a box. I sold off all my collections, not just games, and I don't have any regrets. I don't need the physical game to reminisce about playing it as a kid, plus most of the games I enjoyed became playable on the newer generations anyway. I'm am much happier not having so much stuff
My most valuable games are CLAY FIGHTER 63 1/3 SCULPTORS CUT, CONKER'S BAD FUR DAY, STEEL BATTALION, EARTHWORM JIM SPECIAL EDITION, and SNATCHER. And, no, I would not sell them. ; )
Well the sentimental value means I’ll never sell my video game collection (and been building it since the original NES..), my collection does have some real value with some rare games like one of the rarest SNES games: Super Starfox Weekend (my mom bought it from Nintendo Power).
I hardly have a collection, nor do I have a particularly good story, but there is a story nonetheless? I grew up with a mother who was in charge of all spending decisions in the family, and who firmly believed that video games were "not for girls". There were many "not for girls" things on the list, but video games stung particularly, because I distinctly remember staring at all the colourful cartriges displayed in a local bazaar, and they all said "1000 games in 1", that sounded amazing! Yeah, I didn't know better. Games weren't nearly as popular in my country as they were in the US at the time, and in my neighbourhood we would mostly own demo discs from magazines. Someone who had a full, legitimate copy of The Sims was a valuable friend to have. Oh and piracy was rampant, everyone did that, my dad personally taught me how to. I secretly played the likes of GTA:SA and Medal of Honor with my cousin when the adults weren't looking; On my own PC I was only allowed Disney tie-ins, management sims like Zoo Tycoon and Sim City, or colourful platformers like Rayman or Croc. No Mario for me! Nintendo barely had a presence in my country, I'd heard of Gameboy but I didn't know anyone who owned one. Generally I never had any console, any handheld, until 2018 when I bought a Switch for art commission money.
I wasn't much of a gamer until Dragon Age Origins happened (years after its premiere) and changed my life. But, I still lived with my parents, and after getting yelled at for "wasting my time" on a 2 hours long episode of Life is Strange, and a stern talking to after I was caught shooting an alien in Mass Effect, I figured I needed to stay more on the downlow.
Right now my physical collection consists of five beautiful, giant, 100+ hours Switch games I love with all my heart, and one Pokemon Sword that Stockholm'd me for 85 hours until I completed the dex. I try to only buy games physical when I know they're going to be important to me, and so far I'm content. Meanwhile, my mom went from "it's not for you" to "I worry you spend too much time on it", a sentiment she'd also expressed about reading, acting and art throughout my life, and now I can play the Switch right in her face when I visit on weekends, without a single comment. So yay, happy endings!
@Kidfunkadelic83 I’ll have a look for you. What did you draw and what name was it under? Would be cool to show off to your kids.
It was a picture of yoshi with his tongue sticking out. It would either be Tom Warren or Thomas warren. For some reason I cant help thinking that Mortal kombat was on the front cover somewhere but that could be completely wrong. I really appreciate your time to do that for me and yes it would be amazing to show my kids that their old dads name is in a magazine, especially as they also love games. Thanks man 👌👍
My most prized gaming possession is my Mario Cement Factory - Game & Watch, being my first ever game.
After that my ZX Spectrum Games. Then everything Nintendo from SNES up to Wii, started going digital after that. I kept a lot of the boxes and instructions too.
I think as you get older sentiment for physical things definitely decreases and you realise that there are far more important things in life.
In reality, look hard enough and any game can be replaced if you have the cash.
Great article, truth be told I could never part with my collection. Nothing beats the feeling of a good hard cartridge in the hand.
@Kidfunkadelic83 No worries, I’ll look tonight after work 👍
@Sir_Samus Dont hold me to the whole Mortal kombat thing but I do really appreciate you going out of your way to help me out 👌👍
Well, it doesn't really matter since I don't collect video games/memorabilia with the intent of selling them someday. Having something to show my kids is far more valuable to me.
I've been a collector for years, long before it was fashionable, since maybe 1988ish. In my younger days, I was involved with like-minded collector groups and we traded things back and forth. But over time, I've come to regret things I've gotten rid of. In terms of video games, stuff like my original GameBoy; Atari Lynx II; a fully decked out Atari Jag with JagCD. I think video game collecting goes hand-n-hand with retro computers, and some of my stuff were Atari Falcon030; DEC VAXen and PDP-11s and other stuff of that ilk.
Of course, sometimes pragmatism needs to prevail, and especially with the larger stuff, there was simply no more room. Stuff I have now will probably remain, but are easily obtained, like Atari 2600 or VIC-20 and other Commodore stuff...
Growing old and seeing your favorite platforms die (or seeing your favorite musicians literally die; or actors; or whatever)...
It’s a very tricky one I would say I have upto 500 games none really worth much money but in a way I would rather give a game or two rather than sell them. But I feel I have to keep them. Controversially I have binned the packaging for all my 3ds Xbox and PS4 Wii games to save space. The memories that games create do live in the mind and when I die I guess my family would bin them anyway x x x x x I guess everything in this world u have to just let go of in a way x x x x if all was said and done and everything went up in flames I would just go buy a 2ds or something and download sor2 outrun and ocarina and I would be very happy x x x x x
You don't really understand the value of your collection until you lose almost all of it in a devastating house fire.
Bounty Bob Strikes Back for the Atari 5200. It was mail order only so I assume very little copies were made. I bought it for $37 and I recently saw it on eBay, complete for over $1500.00!! According to an Apple store app I’m using, and in entering all my games that i own I’m around the 75k area and yet to enter my Xbox 360, PS2 and PS3 collections for a final total. AND The app does NOT have availability to enter PS4, Xbox one and Nintendo Switch games just yet and those 3 consoles combined my count is around 1200 games. But yea would be VERY VERY difficult to fine a serious buyer to clean me out in one shot. The alternative would be to sell each console with its games one at a time If I ever needed to unload them for $$. Otherwise I’m leaving the whole thing for the kids to sell. Problem with that idea is, they don’t including my wife, have a full understanding of what I have here in dollar value. 😊
@dartmonkey Nice read thanks.
I don't know when my games stuff ever turned into an actual collection, and if you just buy things that turn into lots of things did I actually'collect it'. But as I now have 10 large boxes overflowing with gaming 'stuff' I guess it is a collection now, although all of the games were bought to play. My collection benefited from me being an anal child which means I have some in very good condition including games, consoles, and anything officially released by nintendo or the pokemon company.
But from all the things I have the most liked is a First4figures statue of the Skull Kid which I bought from the Nintendo World store in New York for about $100, it's now worth far far more than that. Most valuable but most want to keep!!!!! I may use my collection to fund a special family trip to Japan so I can buy some more things.
I sold a few games a couple of years ago to buy an ipad - n64, gb, gba, gc and wii. Probably got an average of about 20 gbp per game, some more some less. Kind of felt bad but most of them had just been in the loft for years.
Think the most valuable one is my us snes copy of final fantasy 3 (now ff6) - even with the box and manual being quite tatty its a reasonable amount. But not enough to make me part with it, even though that is also just sitting in the loft! Guess the nostalgia is just too strong with that one...
About $20,000. I have my collection insured even. I have a lot of rare games, mostly for PS1. Some rare Saturn games, my copy of Haunting Ground for PS2 alone is $200. I'm not the type to collect weird and obscure rare stuff like a N64 DD or a prototype testing console like a rare odd NES or anything like that, but it's mostly games and a few rare systems. I try to buy all my systems boxed if I can and will shell out extra cash for that. Game collecting is my main hobby and I'm blessed I have a career that can support that easily. I have everything cataloged and PriceCharting.com is the best way to determine what your collection is worth, at least for consoles, first-party hardware, and games.
I have 590 gamecube games I spent around €25000 on them over 7 years, I also bought a lot of add ons like a broadband adaptor , gameboy player, wireless controllers , bongo drums etc. That was about another €5000. I also had gameboy advance I had about 1000 games for it which cost about €20000 over 7 years . I don't think I'd ever sell them. I also have a lot of other stuff I don't think I'd sell like my zx spectrum games I have nearly 5000 of them. You can buy cassettes very cheap. But +2 games are very dear about €200, if you can find someone selling them. So no I'd never sell my games ...
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