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Post by mpanayiotakis on Aug 27, 2011 15:07:30 GMT 2
Nice to see you in here Todd, welcome! Most of the stories of how most collectors started their hobby are similar to yours. You had a lot of game&watch games when you were little, I had only one (a donkey kong jr new wide screen) and a lot of other - inferior quality and cheap - ones. It would be an interesting task hunting them, maybe they are in a storage area or something! Anyway, on to your questions:
1) Batteries should be left out of the game if it's not used often, this is true for today's electonic toys as well.
2) Battery covers aren't really fragile - they don't break easily. You have to really try..
3) Describing a boxed item with the C-quality system is very difficult. No item is C10. Most very near mint items are usually described C9 and above but each seller has it's own grading system. There are too many variables to take in consideration so it's impossible to create an absolute grading system.
4) There's no good Ebay sellers list and there's good reason: before you face a problem with someone, he's supposed to be a good seller.. The best thing you can do is check his feedback thoroughly and if in doubt ask a lot of questions..
Michael
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Post by mistere on Aug 27, 2011 19:42:01 GMT 2
Thanks, Michael! And thanks for answering my questions.
I suppose I did have alot of G&W games -- although I'm pretty sure a bunch of the ones I remember playing were from playground trading with other kids in my school.
I appreciate you comments about grading the boxes. But I am wondering, do you have your own personal rule about what to pay for a boxed item you judge to be in, say C-3 to C-6 condition, vs. what you would pay for C-7 and above?
I can understand MIB/NIB stuff going for higher prices, but is everything else under C-9 just lumped together? Perhaps the recession has flatened out prices?
I guess I'm trying to avoid the beginner collector mistake of paying too much! ;D
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Post by mpanayiotakis on Aug 30, 2011 0:37:53 GMT 2
Well, imho you chose the wrong time to start collecting.. Prices atm have reached a 7-year high and you have to spend a bit even for mediocre items! When I started collecting, mediocre items were dirt cheap. Mint items were always expensive but nowadays resellers have made the task of buying anything in near mint condition pretty impossible. I suggest you visit Patrick's ebay game&watch auctions database which can be found here: www.gameandwatch.ch/ to get an idea of current prices although most cheap items in these lists are items that aren't available internationally or in rather bad condition with various parts missing. Before you start buying stuff, take a look at my FAQ (you can find the link on the top of the page) and monitor Ebay auctions for at least a couple of months.. Anyway, regarding your question about buying g&w, I don't really care about the comments in an auction, I pay attention to the photos. People tend to exaggerate when describing items and they usually leave the bad stuff out. So, when I see something worth getting, I compare the price to current market value for an item in such condition, decide whether or not I want to pay this amount and if yes I place a bid on it. That's the quick answer. The long answer involves stuff like how badly I need something, what compromises I'm willing to do etc. Michael
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Post by mistere on Aug 30, 2011 4:06:25 GMT 2
Thanks for the advice, Michael! Your FAQ is very helpful, BTW. I'm not familiar with Patricks site, but it looks like a good one to join. I was afraid you might say I'm begining at the wrong time. Prices do seem high, especially on common games I see for sale every week at auction along with a half-dozen overpriced BINs. (BIN prices drive me nuts in general.) If I understand your post correctly, you are blaming the higher prices on MIB games on speculators? (They do seem to ruin many collectible hobbies.) If speculators are involved, that also usually signals the presence of a bubble. I don't want to step on anyones toes here...perhaps there are collectors on this board who only enjoy the buying/selling aspect of the hobby (much like with comics, trading cards, etc.)? Well, I'm just looking forward to recapturing some glory days with a little, "pocket-size" video game. I know, I could pick them up far more cheaply if I skipped the box...but...I like boxes. They're cool! I don't expect to make a windfall buying these games, quite the opposite, in fact. I'd consider myself lucky if I made back half of what I paid. So, Micheal, you're an old hand at this. Do you have all 60 games? Do you upgrade? Purge? Is there a Holy Grail of G&Ws that you're on the hunt for?
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Post by mpanayiotakis on Aug 30, 2011 22:29:38 GMT 2
Well I had a full 60/60 near mint/mint collection at some point but I decided to sell most of the games. I constantly regret this but I managed to pay off some of my credit cards this way.. I try to get all 60 games in loose form these days but current prices have made the task very difficult! I've got about 35 games now, including a lot of sealed carded and blisterpack games, an almost perfect boxed super mario special, a boxed white spitball sparky and a couple of other boxed games.
Collectors often buy and sell stuff only to complete their collections but there are people who are in it only to make money. They buy everything rare they can get their hands on and they immediately sell them at twice (or more) the price. As you can understand, these people have created a "bubble" as you said and prices for rare items have gone up a lot lately! This drives prices of the more common games up as well since most sellers who know very little about the games just assume that this kind of games are rare and expensive.
Atm I don't care about spending too much money so I patiently wait for the next bargain..
Michael
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Post by gmcoulton on Oct 17, 2011 1:51:03 GMT 2
Hi there, I am new in here! started my collection last week It came about when i went through an old box and came across Donkey Kong and Fire panic. Both were in full working order with few scratches and battery clip all in tact (though DK had the closing clip broken) I remember back in the day I had about 9 of these things. Anyways, this discovery reignighted the fun and passion I had as a kid so I decided to search ebay for some more. I too may have jumped in the deep end as I have just laid out $650AUD for: 1) Donkey kong 2) Donkey Kong 2 3) Oil Panic 4) Bomb Sweeper All are boxed with all manuals and going off the "C scale" I would say they are all around the C-7 to C-9 with bomb sweeper being brand new in box still with the plastic face protector still attached and original batteries. I have no idea if I paid too much (any advice would be great) but thinking about it now, I dont really care. I have set myself a goal to try track down and buy all of the Nintendo Game watches. I would like to buy them all near mint and boxed with manuals, but after reading many posts in here, that seems like a near impossible task which I may not be able to fund I will do my very best though... Graham
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AnTiheLT
Full Member
Full loose collection owner
Posts: 119
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Post by AnTiheLT on Oct 17, 2011 9:44:39 GMT 2
PM send
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Post by mpanayiotakis on Oct 17, 2011 18:40:35 GMT 2
Welcome to the forum Graham and well done! As an old collector I'd like to offer a bit of advice if I may.. Don't spend too much on the games because the urge to sell them in the future will be great. Most old collectors who used to have complete near mint/mint collections have sold most of their possessions (including me, I've kept about 35 loose games and a couple carded/blisterpack ones only). It's a pity to see these collections go so I hope you won't go down that path! More on the collections area of this forum!
Anyway, which games are you planning to get? Good luck on your project nonetheless!!
Michael
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Post by gmcoulton on Oct 18, 2011 1:06:17 GMT 2
Hi Michael, Thanks for the welcome and advice. In a perfect world I would like to collect all of the games complete in Box but i feel that this is going to be a very hard task. So at this stage I think I am going to start off slow and collect games in each series. I am starting to collect the multi screen games first, once I have all of them I will see which ones appeal to me next. Its more of a hobby at this stage rather than an investment and I am not planning on making money out of it as I can see that it is going to be a very expensive hobby Graham
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Post by andycole on Oct 18, 2011 17:54:43 GMT 2
It's good advice that Mike has given. The more you spend, the more likely it will be that you will re-sell your collection at a later date.
But even if you get the crappiest games there are, by the time you get to 60, that's still a fair chunk of money sitting there in your cupboard/display cabinet, and the temptation to sell usually gets you in the end.
It sounds all doom and gloom, but the actual collecting process can be a lot of fun as long as you don't get silly with the prices, and take your time. That's the best advice I can give. Take your time. The building of the collection is the best part, and once you have reached your goal, it's a bit of an anti-climax, and you'll wonder what next.
Keep an eye out for bargains and only buy the games that are underpriced and you'll benefit in 2 ways: 1. You'll save money and 2. it will take longer and be more satisfying.
Andy
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Post by gmcoulton on Oct 18, 2011 23:26:55 GMT 2
Really appreciate the advice.
Can I ask how do you guys get prices and know whether something is a bargin?
Graham
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Post by mpanayiotakis on Oct 23, 2011 21:45:57 GMT 2
Graham you can check Patrick's game&watch auction database: www.gameandwatch.ch . It's a very useful tool because you can see end prices for a great number of game&watch auctions. This should give you an idea on what to expect to pay (on average) for each item. There are always bargains and expensive items of course and at the end what you'll have to pay depends on the standards you've set for the condition of games/boxes/etc. Michael
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Post by matsor27 on Jan 30, 2012 14:08:48 GMT 2
Ok, now I am definitely back in the scene. After browsing/searching for G&W listings on ebay last weekend I can't hold back anymore. I have the same feeling again when I started in 2004 and decided to get me some games! And it feels good I must say. Seeing a lot a repro boxes is putting me off a bit, so I will need help so that I won't buy fake boxes... Maybe getting loose games is better, not sure yet. I do want a full boxed set of silver series to start with!
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Post by flemishdog on Apr 30, 2012 8:33:24 GMT 2
Hey I'm Rhys and I guess I've started collecting, got a Bombsweeper and waiting for a Mario Bros in the mail. I don't have any want/need to get all 60 but I do want ones I find fun. Ones i'd like to get are Mario Cement Factory and Oil Panic.
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Post by segagamer99 on Nov 6, 2012 3:34:01 GMT 2
Hey everyone, I just started collecting game & watches, and Donkey Kong Jr. is my first one! I am trying to just get all 60 unboxed, just the game. It will take several or dozens of years, but it should be a lot of fun. I am excited to get to know everyone here at the forums! -Luke
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