Do you remember when you jumped on your first Goomba or stumbled upon a cave where an old man offers you a sword? Whether you've had these experiences or not I'm sure at one point in your childhood years you got to experience one of the greatest gaming systems of all time The Nintendo Entertainment system (NES). From its release in 1985 children all over the world got to experience home gaming like it should be with great games like Duck Hunt, Mario Bros., Zelda and many more memorable titles.
30 years later we are still playing and collecting these great titles and holding on to our early years, still wondering why these games were so hard, but that's another story.
So why are we still playing these same games even with today's smooth graphics and greater HD systems in our grasps? One simple answer; They're "retro". The word retro meaning old and classic.
These games changed our childhood, and we like to hold onto those memories by playing them. NES, Super Nintendo (SNES), Nintendo 64 (N64), Gamecube, Playstation, Atari, Sega these are all staples when it comes to retro gaming and systems everyone can enjoy.
Now obviously its not as easy as going on down to Walmart and purchasing these great titles and systems; it takes a little work to find these, unless you horded them away since you were little.
I started mine with a Super Nintendo and six games. Unfortunately we have to rely on other methods to collect these games which is getting harder and harder to find some of them.
Now whether you are looking for a new system to play or building on a collection you already have, over several articles, I'm going to give you tips on how to start a Retro Collecting. How to find all those great titles you remember playing, and how to maintain a collection and have a focus on what system to collect or many.
Now no matter if you're after just a couple games or a whole collection the best advice is don't rush, take your time. Rushing in and trying to buy them all at once is foolish and will cost you a small fortune. And it takes them fun out of searching for them and getting the best deals.
Here are some examples of places to look:
1. Pawnshops, Retro Specialty stores.
Some places sell and
specialize in retro games and systems, toys and such, but be careful as these
guys may have everything you want but you'll also pay a mint to own it.
These guys are buyers themselves and have done the hard work for you to find them. Nowadays this seems like the
obvious choice as its getting harder to find games. So if you're just looking for
a few games to grab quick this is the choice for you.
Now a good thing about
these places is they usually have all the rare titles but you will pay for
them.
What makes a title rare? We'll get into that later.
2. Yard Sales, Auctions, Flea markets
Now this is all by luck
nowadays. Yardsaling used to be the best way to find old games no one wanted any
more and they were cheap. But still surprisingly you can find rare titles
and sometimes boxes full of games.
If you come across a box of games and or
systems offer to buy everything. You'll usually get a better deal and if there is
stuff you don't want you can always resell it to buy stuff you do want.
Plus if
you sit and pick through others may see what your looking at and try to snatch it up, so don't take that
chance. Most times people don't know what they have and you can get it for next
to nothing.
For example I stumbled upon a yard sale this summer and after finding
little that day I came across some Playstation games. They were labeled at $2 a
piece i saw a pile and offered $11 for all. They accepted and I went home with my haul. In
the pile I noticed one game that I thought was rare: the "Misadventures of Tron Bonne" Megaman title. I looked it up to my surprise it was worth $150-$200
not including the other titles I got. I made alot of money.
I do collect but
if there's a title I'm not so into I'll sell it to pay for more games. This is also essential to collecting. Most times you may just
waste the day and find nothing but if you dont look you'll never know.
3. Online
You can find just about
everything and anything around the world on the internet these days. It seems
like the ideal way. But I try to avoid it as I find prices are usually all over
the place no one knows what stuff is worth. Which could be good or bad.
You may
over pay and there are shipping costs and the waiting game. That's why I enjoy
finding games places instead of just placing an order online.
Kijiji
This site can be your
best friend. I use this site to buy and sell all the time as it's local people
just collecting like you and they mostly just want to get rid of stuff. I've found many
deals on here, and it can help you build up your collection.
The best part? Prices are
always negotiable. Bonus!
In the next article I will let
you in on some tips on how to choose a focus for your collection, what makes a
title rare and common, and how not to get overwhelmed with the collection as it
can happen easily.
Thanks for reading, until next time gamers!
By: Chris Bingham