Game store moral dilemma

Reserved for classic gaming discussions.
User avatar
ptdebate
Posts: 1072
Joined: April 7th, 2015, 8:39 pm

Game store moral dilemma

Postby ptdebate » March 13th, 2019, 11:12 am

I was at a retro game store in Portland yesterday and while my girlfriend and I were browsing, a woman entered with three boxes of games and consoles to trade in. The friendly staff assisted her in unloading her wares onto the countertop.

What I saw made me speechless - stacks and stacks of factory sealed, mint-condition Game Boy Color games. Sealed copies of Dragon Warrior I&II and Dragon Warrior III, packaging I had not seen for almost 20 years. The boxes are smaller than I remember.

I was weighing whether or not I should say something to this woman. Plead her to stop. Show her the eBay listings. I wondered why she was doing this.

What I saw next pushed me over the edge - the Saturn box.

Balanced on top of the Sega Saturn she carefully lifted out onto the counter were three games: Panzer Dragoon, Panzer Dragoon Zwei, and...Panzer Dragoon Saga. This lady was about to trade in Panzer Dragoon Saga to a used game shop. Complete, although not sealed, and in near-perfect condition.

Needless to say, I had to tell her. She was thankful that I let her know about the item's true value, and indicated that she would list it on eBay. But now I feel guilty for not saying anything about the Game Boy games, which would have collectively fetched thousands. I had to think about the shopkeeper too, who was about to make his week's profit out of one transaction. Ultimately, it felt like an acceptable compromise, and everyone was happy in the end. I bought a couple Wii U games out of a sense of obligation to the shop owner.

CharlieR
Posts: 429
Joined: April 23rd, 2016, 8:04 am

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby CharlieR » March 13th, 2019, 4:23 pm

Good for you for telling her about the Saturn games. I know you wanted to tell her about the game boy ones, but maybe she got good money for them from the shop, and the shopkeeper might make a nice profit from them. So, it all works out, she's happy that she could make a fortune from the Saturn games on ebay, the shopkeeper is happy for acquiring the game boy games, and I bet you're happy for at least letting her know about the Saturn games.

My only question is, couldn't that have led to an altercation with you, the woman, and the shopkeeper? Was the shopkeeper mad that you took business away from him?

User avatar
ptdebate
Posts: 1072
Joined: April 7th, 2015, 8:39 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby ptdebate » March 13th, 2019, 6:25 pm

CharlieR wrote:Good for you for telling her about the Saturn games. I know you wanted to tell her about the game boy ones, but maybe she got good money for them from the shop, and the shopkeeper might make a nice profit from them. So, it all works out, she's happy that she could make a fortune from the Saturn games on ebay, the shopkeeper is happy for acquiring the game boy games, and I bet you're happy for at least letting her know about the Saturn games.

My only question is, couldn't that have led to an altercation with you, the woman, and the shopkeeper? Was the shopkeeper mad that you took business away from him?


Thanks for making me feel better!

Actually, the shopkeeper was SUPER cool about it and when I apologized even said "I'd have done the same thing to be honest." I think there was some silent acknowledgement that I wasn't going to say anything about the rest of the games. Like you said, he benefits, she benefits, and everyone feels like they got a good deal.

If anyone is in the Portland area, I highly recommend checking this place out. It's called Video Game Wizards - they have a few locations in the area. It's not a huge place, but the friendly and welcoming service make it stand out.

User avatar
VideoGameCritic
Site Admin
Posts: 18102
Joined: April 1st, 2015, 7:23 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby VideoGameCritic » March 13th, 2019, 7:02 pm

PT - I tip my hat to you! At first I thought you might get into a bidding war with the shopkeeper!

User avatar
Retro STrife
Posts: 2531
Joined: August 3rd, 2015, 7:40 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby Retro STrife » March 13th, 2019, 7:23 pm

Yeah, props to you pt. Not sure I could have done the same, though I'd definitely want to. I think I'd probably do some eavesdropping... see what the shopkeeper is offering her and go from there. If he's totally ripping her off, I'd want to step in... whereas I might be able to let it go if he was lowballing her a little but still being decent enough.

By the way, did you start wondering the back story to why she was there? Obviously these games didn't originally belong to her, since she had no apparent knowledge of their value. Sure, some casual gamers might have a few unknown rarities in their game stacks... but not Panzer Dragoon Saga and tons of sealed games.. those came from a collector that knows their stuff. So I'd be wondering afterward where it originated, like... Did she get them in a storage unit auction? Inherit them from a deceased family member? Steal them? Ex-boyfriend didn't pick up his gaming crap quick enough and she wants it gone? So many possibilities.

snakeboy
Posts: 308
Joined: April 30th, 2015, 3:40 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby snakeboy » March 14th, 2019, 5:18 pm

ptdebate wrote:Actually, the shopkeeper was SUPER cool about it and when I apologized even said "I'd have done the same thing to be honest."


When he said this, did he clench his teeth really hard, and could you see a large vein in his forehead begin to pulsate?

User avatar
VideoGameCritic
Site Admin
Posts: 18102
Joined: April 1st, 2015, 7:23 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby VideoGameCritic » March 14th, 2019, 7:54 pm

I would just like to congratulate all involved for not mugging her in the parking lot.

User avatar
ptdebate
Posts: 1072
Joined: April 7th, 2015, 8:39 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby ptdebate » March 14th, 2019, 9:33 pm

snakeboy wrote:
ptdebate wrote:Actually, the shopkeeper was SUPER cool about it and when I apologized even said "I'd have done the same thing to be honest."


When he said this, did he clench his teeth really hard, and could you see a large vein in his forehead begin to pulsate?


Haha! No, he seemed genuinely cool about it. I was actually surprised by how nice these people were. That's why I have to give the shop my endorsement.

Retro STrife wrote:By the way, did you start wondering the back story to why she was there? Obviously these games didn't originally belong to her, since she had no apparent knowledge of their value. Sure, some casual gamers might have a few unknown rarities in their game stacks... but not Panzer Dragoon Saga and tons of sealed games.. those came from a collector that knows their stuff. So I'd be wondering afterward where it originated, like... Did she get them in a storage unit auction? Inherit them from a deceased family member? Steal them? Ex-boyfriend didn't pick up his gaming crap quick enough and she wants it gone? So many possibilities.


Oh yeah! That's a key element missing from my story actually. The woman was selling off her deceased husband's collection. Kind of a sad story, but at least the proceeds will help with her expenses.

VideoGameCritic wrote:PT - I tip my hat to you! At first I thought you might get into a bidding war with the shopkeeper!


I REALLY want to play Saga and have been eyeing it for years but just can't bring myself to drop that kind of cash :/.

User avatar
Retro STrife
Posts: 2531
Joined: August 3rd, 2015, 7:40 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby Retro STrife » March 15th, 2019, 9:45 am

ptdebate wrote:Oh yeah! That's a key element missing from my story actually. The woman was selling off her deceased husband's collection. Kind of a sad story, but at least the proceeds will help with her expenses.


Ah, thanks for adding that detail. I imagine he died too young too, which makes it even sadder. It makes you wonder about our own collections when we're gone.. being sold off is fine, but I hope mine doesn't go pawn shop style like this.


ptdebate wrote:I REALLY want to play Saga and have been eyeing it for years but just can't bring myself to drop that kind of cash :/.


Buy, play, and resell. :D

It's only a 20 hour game, and mostly linear (i.e., not much side-questing to do), so it's manageable to finish quickly. You could have it in and out within a month. I actually prefer PDS over any of the Final Fantasy RPGs - it's my favorite RPG that I've ever played.

User avatar
ptdebate
Posts: 1072
Joined: April 7th, 2015, 8:39 pm

Re: Game store moral dilemma

Postby ptdebate » March 17th, 2019, 3:23 pm

Retro STrife wrote:Buy, play, and resell. :D

It's only a 20 hour game, and mostly linear (i.e., not much side-questing to do), so it's manageable to finish quickly. You could have it in and out within a month. I actually prefer PDS over any of the Final Fantasy RPGs - it's my favorite RPG that I've ever played.


Anyone wanna let me borrow a Saturn? Lol.


Return to “Classic Gaming”