The Video Game Critic

Got any pokemon cards?  Beanie babies?  Hummel figurines?  Baseball cards?  Thomas Kinkade art?  Collectors Barbies? Benny Goodman records?  Andy Warhol cookie jar? Death of Superman comics?  Those and a $1 will get you a cup of coffee at the 7-11.

Do you consider video games as collectibles?  Do you think your collection has value?   Has there ever been a collector's boom and bust for video games? 

I know some of us are collectors who want old games complete in box, others collect but don't care about condition or completeness, others are ex-collectors who have sold their older systems, while others still just play the game and move on to the next, staying in the here and now as they go.  

I know we've talked Earthbound cartridge and Chrono Trigger, or maybe Flinstones Surprise at Dinosaur Peak, as expensive and rare.  Will these ultra valuable cartridges have value next year, or the year after that?  How about your Donkey Kong GBA SPDK rare handheld?  Does anyone still care about rare retro consoles or handhelds?  For instance, old pong consoles are $20 on ebay all the time.

Playing via emulation is so easy that anyone who wants a taste of the retro games can get them, and conveniently and with better visual quality than the original hardware.   Many gamers have no interest in old games anyway.

Do you think your collection's value is just smoke in the wind?  Have you ever bought something hoping it goes up in value?   If you have something of value, when is the best time to sell it? 

Interesting topic.... I love having a collection and I don't feel like the market is going to crash anytime soon. I think some of the prices are inflated but then again I feel like more and more people are in fact racing to buy older systems. Not for the value but because they want to relive their childhood. Games are unique in that you interact with them and they degrade quickly if not taken care of. Also, as more and more people grow interested in buying for older games the market has expanded. A lot of that has to do with the publicity older games get through youtube, dedicated retro game sites, and the ease of buying older games (if you have the cash). I know a lot of people say emulation will eventually drive away the retro game market but that has proven to not be the case (and I don't think it ever will) as I think it actually spurs sales of a lot of older games/consoles. There is something to be said about playing games on the original hardware and while many don't care, there is a large enough group that does that it has driven up the prices of games as well. I feel that, that market will only increase over time as more people are introduced into the older classics.

Even if the game market crashes I'm not selling my collection and I could care less if all my games suddenly weren't worth what I paid for them. I think many game collectors would probably feel some what similar to that as it is all about having the games, not really the value. The value doesn't change the fact that only a small print run of games like Snatcher or Panzer Dragoon Saga exist and I'm one of the lucky few to have the game.

I don't see the value dropping (or completely crashing) though. Who knows, I could be wrong. If the market crashes that will be a great time to buy more retro games so it's a win either way.

I'm thinking about selling. I have so many games that I honestly don't think I'll ever play again. Also retro gaming is hot with all the middle-aged folks with jobs spending their paychecks. In 20 years will these middle-aged folks approaching senior-status still care about old video games? I doubt the younger generation will care much as they didn't grow up with it. Nostalgia factor only works for those that grew up with it.

I sold my Dreamcast two years ago & can't say I regret it. There wasn't much on it that I wanted to play. Virtua Tennis & that's about it. I wanted to buy a few games, but the ones I was interested in were big big money like Street Fighter. As much as I'd like to play Street Fighter on the Dreamcast it just wasn't worth how much I would have to pay. That tends to be a common theme I have problems with across all my old systems. The games like Mario that I'd like to buy and play just aren't worth how much they cost. Sure I'd like me some Mario, but I wouldn't play it as much to make it worth the price.   

As great as the internet is its ruined garage sales, pawn shops & junk stores. Part of the enjoyment is a great find & that just doesn't happen anymore. Paying a fixed price on Ebay just isn't as much fun.