Getting into retro videogame collecting is tricky nowadays. I’ve seen many games being listed way above their actual value and many sellers passionately telling me: “I know what I’ve got”. However, it’s not impossible. I’ve been collecting for over 10 years now so today we’ll be going over my tips for collecting retro video games, and hopefully, you’ll save yourself some money.
Why are you collecting?
This is a very important question because everyone’s game collection is different. Do you want to collect your old childhood favorites? Would you like to check out a classic franchise using old school hardware? If you’re new to collecting retro games, it’s best to start by only collecting what you want to play. You can get busy with collecting crappy games and building a big collection, but I recommend sticking to the games that you would like to play and build your collection from there.
Many times during the Covid-19 pandemic I’d see friends start collections just to have them and then eventually lose interest and not know what to do with the games that they bought cheap just to have a bigger collection. You want to make sure your money is going towards something you love. Collecting retro video games can get expensive quickly so it’s very important you know you are enjoying it before you dive right in. If you’re not completely sure about collecting retro videogames just yet, then there are plenty of cheaper ways to play older titles, such as releases on newer consoles.
On the flip side, if you are collecting and see these video games as an investment, then you should proceed with caution. Video game prices can fluctuate so it’s not a solid bet that your game will increase in price unless it’s a rare game.
I personally started by collecting older Pokemon games that I knew I would play just as a hobby. After a while, you learn what games you want to play or what games you would love to own and you naturally start collecting as time goes on. I have also fallen into the trap of buying stuff you don’t really want to play just to have it and it always ends with wanting to get rid of it or feeling overwhelmed by the amount of things you have but don’t care about (trust me, when it’s time to move you’ll regret it).
Research, Research, Research
Nowadays all the information you need is at your fingertips. Before you even try to buy a game, you should always check it’s value to ensure you don’t overpay for a specific game. I like to use pricecharting.com. This website gives the average selling price of a game by compiling the recent sales of a game depending on the condition of a game. This has come in handy many times when bartering for a game.
What condition of video games do you want?
The condition of the retro video games you are collecting will play a big part in how much money you are spending. Video games can vary a lot in price based on what they come with. When we talk about condition in terms of video games, it can refer to the condition of the cartridge (such as a messy label or the cartridge itself being in rough shape) or it can refer to the contents that come with the game as well. There are a few different categories we are going to discuss: Loose, Complete, New, and Graded.
Loose refers to the price of just the game itself, whether that be a cartridge or a disk. You’ll tend to find many older games being loose since many of those games came in cardboard boxes and those are much harder to store than the plastic boxes that eventually became the standard. Many portable games that came with plastic boxes (such as the Nintendo DS games) may also be tricky to get boxes due to the nature of portability and many people just storing the games in a case and not in the original box.
Complete games or Complete in box games (Stylized as CIB) are games that come with the box as well as the manual or any other goodies that would’ve come with the game. This doesn’t mean that the game is new, it just means that it comes with everything. Complete games can go for considerably more than loose games, especially if those games originally came in a cardboard box as there are not as many complete box games left from that era of video gaming.
New games are the simplest to explain, they come with everything that complete games do but they are sealed and have never been opened. Before the advent of Grading companies (more on that in a second) this used to be the most expensive category of game collecting. New games will almost always cost more than the loose or complete games and can vary in price. The most expensive new games are generally older; this is due to games rising in price with age as well as most games before the 2000’s using those cardboard boxes mentioned earlier
Graded games are a bit different. Many gamers choose to send their new sealed games to a grading company like CGC where they will assess the quality of your game thoroughly and give the game a grade from 1-10 with a 1 being awful quality and a 10 being of pristine quality. These games are in plastic slabs and cannot be played and only displayed. These games tend to be extremely expensive depending on grade and game rarity and are more of an investment than something you would play.
I personally collect cartridges for games that came in cardboard boxes (Such as NES, SNES and Gameboy games) and complete games for everything else. I’m the kind of person who enjoys a complete set, however there is no right or wrong way to collect retro video games. The beauty of collecting is that your collection is unique to you and your interests. If you want to keep the price stickers on your cartridges or buy a graded game to display it then that’s completely up to you!
Watch out for fakes
As time goes on, fake versions of many popular games flood the market and it can be tough to identify if the game you’re about to spend your hard-earned money on is real or not. The most obvious step is looking at the price. If the copy of earthbound you’re looking at is on sale for $20 then it’s most likely a fake. If a price seems too good to be true, it usually is. This issue is extremely prevalent on sites like eBay so make sure the seller has included plenty of pictures to prove the game is legitimate, and on the flip side, if a listing only has one singular picture of a game you should stay away.
For in person purchases, you could look online and check if fakes for that game are common, and you can also look for telltale signs of a fake online as well. If all of this is a little too much for you, you could also submit a post on Reddits R/gameverifying page. A moderator usually gets back to you relatively soon so this is a viable option to make sure you are getting what you pay for.
Where do you find retro games?
If you want to collect retro video games in a cost effective way, you’re going to have to hunt them down. There are many ways to find Retro games for a good price and I’m going to list my favorites:
Garage Sales
Despite being seasonal, garage sales have been where my best finds are. It may seem tedious to stop at every garage sale you see (trust me it can suck) but it’s all worth it when you find a diamond in the rough. I found a copy of Pokemon Gold and a copy of Pokemon Yellow for $10 each. It’s totally possible to find games in garage sales, you just need to maintain hope and be persistent when it comes to stopping by at garage sales. Even with the advent of the internet, it is still possible to find games at a price below what they normally go for. Many people just don’t want to go through the hassle of looking up what games go for and are simply just trying to clean up their house. I do however think you are more likely to find games from the 2000’s and up for a good price at these garage sales as many people who have older games tend to either know what they have or just assume that their copy of Super Mario Bros is worth $100 simply because it’s old.
Flea Markets
The flea markets I have gone to usually have one or two video game stands and I have found many good finds at these places. In terms of deals, you can usually offer to take two products from these sellers for a discount or even barter if video game cartridge has some damage to it. You may end up paying close to the average price for games at these stands, however the selection here always has the potential to be crazy good. I recommend only purchasing from stands that have a return policy so you know you can take something back just in case. If you plan to purchase video games for a portable system, I recommend taking that system with you to test games out, as an alternative you can ask the seller to run it on one of their systems. If the seller refuses to let you see the game run, then I suggest walking away.
Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist
I have managed to get some good games on online meet up sites like Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist. The best tip I can give you when it comes to these types of methods is verify the game is authentic and negotiate the price beforehand to not waste your time. If it’s a retro video game you really want for your collection and it’s around the standard price then it’s never a bad investment. Always be safe during your meetups!
eBay and other online sites
As mentioned before, make sure you know it’s an authentic copy of the game. If you need more clarification ask for some more pictures of the video game to help authenticate it. eBay tends to be the site where you get the least number of deals due to how tech savvy most eBay sellers are. It’s always a good idea to take a look at auctions and throw a few bids out, you can sometimes get lucky and snipe an auction which is the best way to get a deal on eBay. Big game bundles are also common on eBay, you can sometimes get expensive games for a lot cheaper if they come in a set and it’s always a good way to grow your collection if you are interested in having a big collection. You can also purchase fake versions of extremely expensive games here if you would just like to play it and don’t care about authenticity. It’s always important to stick true to what you like and not listen to the noise of “what you should do” in terms of collecting.
Good tips
Ask about save batteries
Many older games relied on a battery to save data, if the sellers game has a dead battery, then there is room for negotiating. I recommend buying a soldering iron, solder wick, some of the proprietary screw drivers, and some save batteries to replace the batteries yourself. Save batteries for Gameboy, NES, and SNES games are not very hard to replace and it’s a good skill to have if you want to get serious about collecting retro video games. There is a link to a video on how to replace a save battery here. (Note: the batteries might be different depending on the game you have, be sure to check what type of battery you’ll need before buying)
Shell Swapping
If you see a game cartridge with a good label but the back of the shell is in bad shape, you can usually swap the shell with a cheaper game. This may not work for unique video game cartridges like The Legend of Zelda or the Pokémon games; however this is a great strategy to collect retro video games for cheap, it also puts those screwdrivers you got to replace batteries to good use!
Closing thoughts
Collecting retro video games can be a very satisfying experience, but it can also be a very expensive hobby. It’s important to be informed before you buy anything to ensure you’re not overpaying. Of course you’ll never be able to build a collection without paying standard market price for some games, but I hope this guide helped you on your collecting journey.
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Alan is a Hands-on and Driven Digital Marketing Student at Western Michigan University. He is currently working on backtothe8-bits.com as a project for his SEO and Content Marketing class.