PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

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Jon1
Posts: 378
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby Jon1 » February 4th, 2012, 7:34 pm

I was thinking about getting the first 3 Crash Bandicoot games for the PS1. I had played them a long time ago, and wanted to get back into it. I figured I could get each one for a couple dollars each. Boy was I wrong. They're going for like $15 each, which is a joke. These are cd's we're talking about and they only made like a zillion of each game. And then I look and see that a lot of Playstation games are going for that much. That's ridiculous. Shouldn't games like that be like $5 at the most?

a1
Posts: 3032
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby a1 » February 4th, 2012, 9:44 pm

Well, eBay isn't generally where I look for games lately. I'd try amazon.

However, yes they are cds, but that shouldn't matter for their value. The price of used cds is low because you can easily download them on the internet and put the songs on an mp3 player. Playstation games are on cds, but you can't as easily download them to play them (you can but I'd rather not get into that discussion). 

The value of old games is purely based on how much people want them. Crash 3 is a popular game so it goes for more. Other, less popular games are probably in the $5 range.

Chaz1
Posts: 81
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby Chaz1 » February 5th, 2012, 12:31 am

Im lucky enough to live in an area with several used game stores. Replay, BuyBacks, Allied Record Exchange, etc. Usually I can find popular titles like Crash Bandicoot for reasonable prices at one store or another. Talking about $5-10 a piece with obviously no shipping costs. If you have any stores that sell used copies around you I highly recommend checking them out.

Guy

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby Guy » February 5th, 2012, 12:35 am

If you want games like new you are going to pay more! You may find the Crash Bandicoot games for $2.00 that are in poor condition.


PSX1
Posts: 388
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby PSX1 » February 5th, 2012, 2:19 am

Based on my observations of buying, selling, and collecting video games for the past decade or so, I believe that video game generation generally hit their peak collecting demand about 15 years after their original popularity dies.  Around the 10 year mark the games slowly increase in value, and then they gradually decrease around the 20 year mark.

Why?  The video game collecting market is fueled by multiple things-- but none is bigger than nostalgia.  If you love video games, chances are you started at a young age; perhaps 10-15 years old being the most common age bracket where the life-long passion is "born".  Now, years later, that former 10-15 year old kid is a 25-30 year old gamer... and not only does he have a lot more cash now, but he also has a longing to relive the fond memories from his childhood.  So he re-buys the old consoles of his youth and starts buying both the games he loved as a kid, and the good games that he never got the chance to play.  By the time the person is 35-40 years old, that nostalgic longing begins to fade and the person has less and less interest in collecting.  

That is why 10 years ago many Atari 2600 games cost more than they do now... the Atari generation has gotten old and stopped collecting, so demand is down.  Even demand for NES games has decreased in recent years (still high, but on the downturn).  Right now, the 16-bit and 32/64-bit generations are the big areas of increasing demand.  Again, why?  Because the 20-35 year olds that grew up in that generation are building that demand (heck, just look at the discussions on these boards, and you'll see that that is the most popular era right now).  So PS1 games are getting more expensive and will continue to until they peak in a few years.  ....And just think-- 15 years from now it'll be the Wii, 360, and PS3 that have the most interest for future collectors (i.e., today's 10-15 year olds).

Sure, a lot of this is generalization (yes, there are still some 40 year olds collecting for the 2600; yes, some people collect a bijillion systems, even ones before their time; yes, some people become hardcore gamers as young as 5 or as old as 25; and yes, Stadium Events for the NES will increase in value for all eternity), but IMO what I've described above is the general trend for the cycle of demand for game collecting.


soporj1
Posts: 556
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby soporj1 » February 5th, 2012, 10:25 pm

[QUOTE=a]Well, eBay isn't generally where I look for games lately. I'd try amazon.
[/QUOTE]

That goes for everything, not just games. eBay is worthless these days.

Jake

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby Jake » February 6th, 2012, 1:49 am

[QUOTE=PSX]Based on my observations of buying, selling, and collecting video games for the past decade or so, I believe that video game generation generally hit their peak collecting demand about 15 years after their original popularity dies.  Around the 10 year mark the games slowly increase in value, and then they gradually decrease around the 20 year mark.

That is why 10 years ago many Atari 2600 games cost more than they do now... the Atari generation has gotten old and stopped collecting, so demand is down. 
[/QUOTE]

It might not be all stopped, but rather "finished" collecting...

Demand I think is going up for Atari 2600. Less games listed and prices are higher.
I bought many uncommon 2600 games on eBay 10 years ago for $3.50 to $5...
Now a game like Plaque Attack usually starts at around $10, and I payed much less... years ago.

I got an Atari 5200, for $15 dollars in Dec 2006. I don't seem them go cheap that way now, on eBay anyway.



PSX1
Posts: 388
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby PSX1 » February 6th, 2012, 4:52 am

[QUOTE=Jake]
It might not be all stopped, but rather "finished" collecting...

Demand I think is going up for Atari 2600. Less games listed and prices are higher.
I bought many uncommon 2600 games on eBay 10 years ago for $3.50 to $5...
Now a game like Plaque Attack usually starts at around $10, and I payed much less... years ago.

I got an Atari 5200, for $15 dollars in Dec 2006. I don't seem them go cheap that way now, on eBay anyway.
[/QUOTE]

I agree that Atari games might be more expensive now than they were 10 years ago, but I personally don't think it's due to demand.  I think it's primarily two things:

1.  The price of everything has gone up a lot in the past 10 years.  I feel like even a loaf of bread has gone up $1, so I'd bet that the going rate for everything on eBay has too.

2.  Due to increased ebay fees and with the advent of the Buy It Now option, sellers have learned how to "force" people to overpay for common games.  Basically the only people selling common games on ebay are high-volume sellers.  That's because most regular collectors aren't going to waste their effort on selling games worth only $2-$10.  The $3 profit isn't worth the hassle.  So the high-volume sellers can "create" the going rate for the game.  Most of them seem to overprice their games, and then try to attract buyers with the instant gratification of a Buy It Now price.  So people pay more, (a) because all the sellers are overpricing games so they don't have a choice, and (b) they convince themselves that the extra cost is worth it with Buy It Now to avoid a bidding war.  IMO if you want to see if demand is truly increasing, don't look at very cheap games--look at games about $15 and up--because that is the price point when regular people will start listing games, and then they are more likely to sell for a more accurate "market value".

I think that games in the 16/32/64 bit eras have increased in price moreso than pre-NES era games, so that's why I personally attribute that to an actual increase in demand, while I attribute increases in Atari games to the two points above.  But that's just my take.

txsizzler1
Posts: 207
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby txsizzler1 » February 6th, 2012, 12:29 pm

Check Craigslist. You can usually find "bundles" of games or games with systems, and you can get a good deal. I commonly find PS2 setups around here that come with anywhere from 15-30 games, a system, and controllers for $50-$100. Do the math. It can break down to less than 5 bucks per item.

 

 

Ian


Guy

PS1 Games way too expensive on Ebay

Postby Guy » February 7th, 2012, 11:55 am

[QUOTE=txsizzler]

Check Craigslist. You can usually find "bundles" of games or games with systems, and you can get a good deal. I commonly find PS2 setups around here that come with anywhere from 15-30 games, a system, and controllers for $50-$100. Do the math. It can break down to less than 5 bucks per item.

 

 

Ian

[/QUOTE]If I do the math, you will see that John needs to buy a Atari Jaguar! lol


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