What are my NES games really worth? HELP!

[Hobie-wan]

*price stuff*

Protip: The person that offered $100 is very likely not just some person looking to acquire the games for themselves.

Do you know that for a fact?

I did specifically use the words 'very likely' based off my experiences with random people buying and selling games on Craigslist and the flea markets here. I did not claim it was fact. I wish things weren't going up too, but it appears my lamp is broken.

[pierrot]

Or are you being sarcastic?

Sorry to break it to you:

It's good for the seller so he isn't one of those assholes who mark up the price just because the game is "rare". [...]

You make a lot of good points.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amartya_Sen

[aaron]

It's good for the seller so he isn't one of those assholes who mark up the price just because the game is "rare". It's a game...it holds no value other then what gamers put on it. It is otherwise worthless. So if some gamer says it's a rare game, that jacks the price up. Do you know how many "rare" games I have seen? Too many. Just because someone thinks it's rare, doesn't mean it is. Same with price, just because someone thinks it's worth a lot doesn't mean it is.

By pricing games to where only real serious collectors can afford to have them, we stick it to the collectors who are just starting out, who might not have 100 bucks to blow on a single game. Or has everyone forgotten that some people no longer have jobs and thus no money?

It's just an endless cycle. Jerkass seller A looks up a price of a game and lists his game at the top price, seller B sees that and goes to jack his price up because he doesn't want to be ripped off. And so on and so forth, when the original game back when it was in the bargain bin cost maybe 5 bucks?

Supply and demand, I get it. These games are no longer being made which does give them value but not the value everyone thinks. I have watched games in the last few years just jump up and up and up. Look at Earthbound. No game is worth 400 bucks.

Besides that...if this was being sold on ebay or if the OP had a lot of games he was going to be selling soon, he might want to make a good name for himself in being reasonable and keeping the price down. That would make any buyer happy, and more willing to come back and buy from him again.

NOPE.

edited for clarity.

[Hatta]

The sentiment is admirable, but there's really nothing to be gained from underselling. It's one thing if it's someone you know, like here on Racketboy, and you know they're getting a good home. Some random guy on CL though? It's really not dickish to make a reasonable counter offer.

Another point worth making is that keeping prices high benefits collectors by making their collections more valuable. I may have to liquidate some of my collection in the not to distant future, and I could certainly use the money. Also, the higher the value of these items, the more likely they are to be saved. I'm sure a lot of Atari 2600 carts ended up in the dump when they were a dime a dozen.

Should collecting be a rich man's game? I don't really see why not. When it comes down to it, it's owning things simply to own them. For those who just love playing games, emulators or flash carts are fine options. Unless you're a super hardcore shmup player for whom anything other than the original hardware is insufficient because of incredibly tight timing issues, that is.

I love how a simple price query here can lead to a very interesting discussion on the ethics of flipping games. That's why I like this place.

[oxymoron]

It's good for the seller so he isn't one of those assholes who mark up the price just because the game is "rare". It's a game...it holds no value other then what gamers put on it. It is otherwise worthless. So if some gamer says it's a rare game, that jacks the price up. Do you know how many "rare" games I have seen? Too many. Just because someone thinks it's rare, doesn't mean it is. Same with price, just because someone thinks it's worth a lot doesn't mean it is.

Marking up is one thing and asking fmv is another.

[Bing147]

How is selling Chubby Cherub complete (and a dozen others) at less than half their value a good deal for the seller? That is one of the rarer boxes for NES and has solid / consistent value. Take it out and sell the others for $100, sure, I guess. Otherwise, really poor advice.

It's good for the seller so he isn't one of those assholes who mark up the price just because the game is "rare". It's a game...it holds no value other then what gamers put on it. It is otherwise worthless. So if some gamer says it's a rare game, that jacks the price up. Do you know how many "rare" games I have seen? Too many. Just because someone thinks it's rare, doesn't mean it is. Same with price, just because someone thinks it's worth a lot doesn't mean it is.

By pricing games to where only real serious collectors can afford to have them, we stick it to the collectors who are just starting out, who might not have 100 bucks to blow on a single game. Or has everyone forgotten that some people no longer have jobs and thus no money?

It's just an endless cycle. Jerkass seller A looks up a price of a game and lists his game at the top price, seller B sees that and goes to jack his price up because he doesn't want to be ripped off. And so on and so forth, when the original game back when it was in the bargain bin cost maybe 5 bucks?

Supply and demand, I get it. These games are no longer being made which does give them value but not the value everyone thinks. I have watched games in the last few years just jump up and up and up. Look at Earthbound. No game is worth 400 bucks.

Besides that...if this was being sold on ebay or if the OP had a lot of games he was going to be selling soon, he might want to make a good name for himself in being reasonable and keeping the price down. That would make any buyer happy, and more willing to come back and buy from him again.

Rarity is an opinion, value isn't.

Anything is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. Period. If people are willing to pay that, then that's what it is worth. It isn't greedy to want to sell what you have for their value, its smart.

To the OP, $100.00 is very low. I'd probably be willing to sell the lot without Chubby Cherub for that on Craigslist, no shipping, no fees. But definitely keep that one out being boxed. Or offer to include it for $175 or so.

[Luke]

Rarity is an opinion, value isn't.

You have that completely backwards.

Value is perceived and is based on one's own opinion. I value my copy of NHL 2002 at at least $20.00, as if my copy broke, I'd be willing to spend $20.00 for a replacement.

Rarity isn't an opinion, it is a mathematical fact. "Only 100 copies were made" isn't an opinion, it is a statement of fact.

[AppleQueso]

Rarity isn't an opinion, it is a mathematical fact. "Only 100 copies were made" isn't an opinion, it is a statement of fact.

What exactly constitutes the threshold for what should or should not be considered "rare" anyway?

[Luke]

What exactly constitutes the threshold for what should or should not be considered "rare" anyway?

By comparison of the average of a similar manufactured product.

That or roast beef at around 120 degrees constitutes as rare.

[AppleQueso]

What exactly constitutes the threshold for what should or should not be considered "rare" anyway?

By comparison of the average of a similar manufactured product.

But what if we don't have access to the number of copies of game X that were manufactured? What if distribution was uneven? What about accounting for individual copies that may have been lost or damaged?

I can buy that "rarity" can be determined by mathematical means, but the issue is in the fact that we don't actually have all the variables to accurately determine that.