Selling Game Collection

[melancholy]

EDIT: I split my selling posts off the Dreamcast Thread.

Honestly, some day I just need to get SD adapters for all my old systems. Just sell off my game collection to fund SD card adapters for all my old systems. I have at least one rare game for each system that would fund the cost of each adapter (sell Earthbound for SD2SNES, sell Ikaruga for Dreamcast SD adapter, etc). I should just do it and get rid of all this physical media. It’s just sitting around collecting dust just on the off chance I may one day break it out for a few hours and play it.

Biggest problem is that I don’t know how to go about it. I’m scared to sell expensive stuff like that on Ebay because I don’t want to get ripped off by someone. I’ve sold stuff on Amazon before, but I have over a thousand games to unload. It’d be a full time job to list and sell it all. Plus my attachment to the idea that I have a bunch of rare shit always makes me back out whenever I get serious about selling it.

I just need to do it, though. Especially the discs, since they are prone to break down with age. What good is having rare Dreamcast games if they go bad?

[Calavera]

I also saw one for the Saturn to but it is in pre order and they are not taking any more. Funny thing, I still have almost all the US Dreamcast games.

Saturn would be the main system I'd want a flashcart type solution for. The Dreamcast one would have been awesome 10+ years ago but now if I feel like playing a DC game I just emulate it. Saturn emulation still isn't very good and I've got 1 or 2 old Saturns laying around with bad CD-drives. I'd love to load up a SD card with Saturn games and be able to play them on the original system. I'd probably even buy a lightgun for some Virtua Cop. The Saturn one probably won't be $60 though. Probably $150+ which isn't worth it for me. $60 is around the max I'd want to pay for something like this.


Mel about selling your games I'd say sell them while the prices are still high. People say the prices will never crash but I'm not so sure about that. I think as the people who grew up with those games keep getting older and older their interest will decrease more and more leading to many with big collections selling them off thus making prices come way down. Too bad we don't live a bit closer to each other, I'm not very busy I'd gladly spend a few days taking pictures and listing your games for you. You say you're hesitant to sell them and I understand that. I was the same way when I sold some of my old systems but I thought of it like this, I can still play any of those games at anytime on an emulator. In your case you'll be using a flashcart instead of an emulator which is even better. Would you rather have several $1000 dollars and have all your games available in one convenient flash cart for each system. Or would you rather keep the games and have to dedicate an entire room just for storing all the media. I know it is a hard decision to decide to sell your collection after all is said and done and you have all your systems set up with flash solutions I don't think you'll miss it much.

[ian]

I’m still waiting for my Dreamcasts GD ROM to die..

Probably the only thing to never fail on any of my Sega consoles.

When it does die, I will get a cheap knockoff GDEMU.

Because FUCK paying 10 million dollars and waiting 5 years for a real one..

[pixel]

I also saw one for the Saturn to but it is in pre order and they are not taking any more. Funny thing, I still have almost all the US Dreamcast games.

Mel about selling your games I'd say sell them while the prices are still high. People say the prices will never crash but I'm not so sure about that. I think as the people who grew up with those games keep getting older and older their interest will decrease more and more leading to many with big collections selling them off thus making prices come way down. Too bad we don't live a bit closer to each other, I'm not very busy I'd gladly spend a few days taking pictures and listing your games for you. You say you're hesitant to sell them and I understand that. I was the same way when I sold some of my old systems but I thought of it like this, I can still play any of those games at anytime on an emulator. In your case you'll be using a flashcart instead of an emulator which is even better. Would you rather have several $1000 dollars and have all your games available in one convenient flash cart for each system. Or would you rather keep the games and have to dedicate an entire room just for storing all the media. I know it is a hard decision to decide to sell your collection after all is said and done and you have all your systems set up with flash solutions I don't think you'll miss it much.

My two cents: Keep any games that have sentimental value.

For me, I wish I still had my copies of Sonic 1 and 2 just because they were a big part of my childhood. I lent a dozen or so Genesis carts and a model 2 system to a girl in college. I haven't seen her in 13 years, I doubt I'll ever get those back. But it stings a lot less now that I have the reproduction controllers that came with the Genesis Mini.

And as someone surrounded by folks obsessed with collecting things, there's always going to be a floor for the value of collectibles. I don't think prices will go as low as @Calavera believes, but it'll get harder to find people willing to spend hundreds on original games. The prices might stay the same but there'll be fewer people interested in classic gaming.

It's tough to sell off collectibles, but at least physical media isn't a necessity anymore. Having the original games is a status symbol now rather than the only way to play old games.

[Calavera]

I'm less sentimental about stuff now than I used to be. Several years ago I sold my SNES and games I had as a kid. I thought about the sentimental value then thought, ya know I never play it anymore. When I do want to play a SNES game even one I own I load it up on an emulator because it is easier. What is the point of keeping it if it is going to be in a closet or out in the garage 99 percent of the time. With that being said I still have my Genesis and games from when I was a kid. I don't plan on getting rid of it but that mainly because the prices aren't high enough. If it became worth $200 I say sold and forget about being sentimental. I can understand wanting to keep a few games if they are really sentimental. When I sold off some old PC games I kept Mafia because it is probably my favorite game. Again though it isn't worth much. It it was worth $100 I'd probably part with.

I'm kind of just rambling on but I guess my advice is balance between being sentimental and the price of an item. If you are really sentimental about a game that is only worth $10 or so then keep it. But if you are sentimental about a game that is $100s then really think about it. You are sentimental about the memories not the physical media itself. I loved Skies of Arcadia and have some great memories of that game. I sold the physical copy years ago though. If I still had it my love for the game and the memories I have wouldn't be any greater. Plus I can still load it up on an emulator and play it anytime I want and it looks much better on an emulator than the original console. If I still owned it I'd never play it, I'd still prefer to play the Gamecube version since it has more content.

Bah I don't know what my advice is I keep going back and forth. Ok my final advice is, follow your heart my child!

[melancholy]

I think I'm going to assess how I play a game and determine if it's worth keeping. For instance, I'll be mostly liberal in getting rid of SNES games because a SD2SNES would work for most of the collection. I'd only keep games I play regularly (like Donkey Kong Country) or are hard to emulate (like Mario RPG). A system like the Saturn I'll likely keep everything since there's no good alternative to playing them on real hardware. But the PSOne collection? Sell it all. If I'm playing PSOne games, it's likely a digital version being played on my PSTV or PS3. I cannot think of a time or place where I would benefit having the original disc.

Now I just have to figure out the best way to move them. In the past I've thrown everything on Amazon to sell. I guess I'll buy some shipping supplies in bulk and start making listings on there.

[pixel]

I'm kind of just rambling on but I guess my advice is balance between being sentimental and the price of an item. If you are really sentimental about a game that is only worth $10 or so then keep it. But if you are sentimental about a game that is $100s then really think about it. You are sentimental about the memories not the physical media itself.

That's a great point. I've got family members that think keeping everything is the only way you'll remember your best memories. Seeing their attics crammed full of stuff that is rotting away is a good antidote for the need to collect everything. That, and watching an episode of Hoarders.

The biggest thing for me in the past has been using the "right" controller that matches the system. But there are converters and tons of reproduction controllers that function better than the original hardware, so it's absolutely immaterial at this point.

The other big hurdle? Upscaling original hardware to modern TVs. It looks great when you've got an OSSC or Framemeister or CRT monitor, but that all requires space/money/time that I don't have or don't want to give. A sub budget-tier PC can run highly accurate Retroarch cores with run-ahead and CPU/GPU sync on top, making the games play better than original hardware. FPGAs will only get cheaper and more capable, too.

[melancholy]

I draw the line at hardware. I don't care I have 3 PSX I will never use. It doesn't bother me that my two Wii's are nearly useless with Dolphin and a Wii U. I will not get rid of any consoles. Nor will I ditch my 32" CRT.

[pixel]

Nor will I ditch my 32" CRT.

I wish I had kept mine, would've come in handy these days

[melancholy]

I split this off the Dreamcast Thread since it's now completely off topic.

[melancholy]

I started looking at my collection, and I now have even more reason to sell simply because I have rare games I completely forgot I had. Like Vib Ribbon, Xenogears, and Skies of Arcadia for both Dreamcast and Gamecube (I remembered having the Gamecube one, but I forgot I even owned it for Dreamcast).

[ian]

I draw the line at hardware. I don't care I have 3 PSX I will never use. It doesn't bother me that my two Wii's are nearly useless with Dolphin and a Wii U. I will not get rid of any consoles. Nor will I ditch my 32" CRT.

You bring up a good point...
I'll ditch console hardware in an instant. In fact, aside from my DC, I have, and do, many, MANY times
but a few years ago something came up... When CRT's die, so do light gun games.

No matter what emulation you use, or systems we have to replicate it, nothing, and I mean NOTHING can top the accuracy or feel of a CRT light gun game.
Sure the Wii and PS move tried, and so did the PSVR, and so did the PC with a mouse. They simply CANNOT replicate a CRT light gun game. It just can't be done, sorry.
Light gun games with sensors sucked fucking balls, not even fucking NAMCO could make the guncon 3 compete with the guncon 2... If NAMCO can't make a good lightgun post CRT, you know a format is FUCKED.

When the last CRT on earth dies... Say goodbye to Time Crisis, Point Blank, Virtua cop and house of the dead forever.
I still have a variety of CRT's hanging around.. refresh rates on a $200 monitor from 2002 shit all over rates from a $1000 monitor from 2015...

As for selling games... don't get too attached to them. No one can take your memories, or childhood.

As for the dreamcast, I'm waiting for mine to pay for itself ($500AUD) and you better believe it's going... if I can't get $500 from it.. I'll keep hanging onto it.

I've sold most of my game collection so far (and used most of the funds on more games) so if anyone needs any tips, I am here (Made a profit on EVERY Nintendo system I've ever had lmao)

[ian]

As an aside. I still have my 17" viewsonic monitor from my 2004 PC build. It cost me $175 at a time when LCD's half as good cost 4-5 times more..
In terms of screen size, resolution, colour accuracy, power usage, weight, etc. etc.. It gets it's ass kicked. But put it next to even the best monitors and TV's of the modern day and start pushing the speed limits, and it can hold up.

It really is a shame that the hipsters and youtubers who don't actually know a single thing about either CRT's or LCD's started banging on about CRT's and especially PVM's
Now a screen that was worth $20 is $200+

As long as we don't let them know that an actual computer monitor from 1996 will be better than an any TV ever made, we should be right...
(keep it under your hat )

[pixel]

I draw the line at hardware. I don't care I have 3 PSX I will never use. It doesn't bother me that my two Wii's are nearly useless with Dolphin and a Wii U. I will not get rid of any consoles. Nor will I ditch my 32" CRT.

but a few years ago something came up... When CRT's die, so do light gun games.

Light gun games are the one thing I really miss. The NES Zapper was one of the reasons my parents bought a system, and we even sprang for a GunCon for the PS1. I wish someone would create a way to replace the photon gun with updated hardware to work with infrared strips. There's stuff like the LightGunVerter, but it isn't a fully baked solution.

[Calavera]

Nor will I ditch my 32" CRT.

I wish I had kept mine, would've come in handy these days

I think I have 3 or 4 32" CRTs

[OrangeRibbon]

@melancholy

Do you have any Working Designs or TG16 stuff?

[melancholy]

No TG16 stuff, but a few Working Design games.

• Vay (Sega CD) disc only

• Lunar Silver Star (Sega CD) complete with jewel case

• Lunar Silver Star (PSX) discs only

• Silhouette Mirage (PSX) Sharpie writing on the disc, would be complete but someone ripped the manual out and just left the front cover

• Alundra (PSX) disc only, was a former rental so there’s rentals stickers all over it

• Alundra 2 (PSX) disc only (I’m aware it’s not actually a WD title)

• Silpheed (PS2) disc only

Sadly, my Working Designs collection is one of my roughest ones. Finding good condition copies of those games in the wild is really hard.

[OrangeRibbon]

No TG16 stuff, but a few Working Design games.

• Vay (Sega CD) disc only

• Lunar Silver Star (Sega CD) complete with jewel case

• Lunar Silver Star (PSX) discs only

• Silhouette Mirage (PSX) Sharpie writing on the disc, would be complete but someone ripped the manual out and just left the front cover

• Alundra (PSX) disc only, was a former rental so there’s rentals stickers all over it

• Alundra 2 (PSX) disc only (I’m aware it’s not actually a WD title)

• Silpheed (PS2) disc only

Sadly, my Working Designs collection is one of my roughest ones. Finding good condition copies of those games in the wild is really hard.

Funny enough I have a Lunar 2 case, but I am missing the last disc.

how much for lunar for the sega cd.

[melancholy]

Well it trends for $110 on EBay. We’ll say 15% selling fee, that would be $93.50. So $90 shipped? That’d probably be fair.

[Calavera]

Did you ever end up selling off the majority of your collection?