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Where Do You Get The Games?

Posted by timothy on from the gotta-get-games dept.

rafemonkey writes: "After nearly ten years, sysadmining has finally broken me. It's not the computers or the long hours, it's the freakin' users ... But, that's beside the point. In looking for an escape route, I settled on the idea of opening a used/classic video game shop. I'm fairly comfortable with busines plans, taxes and all the "mechanical" things, but the big question is: How do you get your inventory to start? Are there places you can get a bulk order of atari 5200 carts? Are there suppliers in japan who will wholesale you the really cool stuff? Or do I have to spend the next six months at conventions and lurking on eBay? TIA!"

2 of 133 comments (clear)

  1. Only Diehards won't use Mame and Nesticle by Bonker · · Score: 5

    The problem with owning and operating a classic-gaming shop is not going to be getting the games, I think, but competing with some of the very, very good game emulators out there.

    For example, I own an old Nintendo (Famicom) machine that I have kept in working order since childhood. Despite that fact, I play any Nintendo games I want to on Nesticle. Mario 3? Despite the fact that the Mario All-stars SNES (Supa Famicom) cartridge sits *on* my desk, I will load up SNES9x and play it, Zelda 3, Mario-Kart and all the other really great SNES games with my keyboard.

    Older games, especially arcade boxes, have fallen into a kind of legal swamp because they're not really public domain but are treated that way anyway. They're even more easy to come by. Dozens, if not hundreds of really good Mame Rom sites exist on the net right now. They're very rarely shut down, SFAIK. YOu can get even more on Usenet, IRC, and Hotline. Build-Your-Own upright Mame box instructions have been posted to /. in the past.

    Atari 2600-5200, NEC, and various other emulators are floating around out there. Considering the average speed and power of modern computers, they run the emulators easily while MP3's download in the background.

    If you're going to sell Classic Games, I reccomend that you cater to collectors and arcades, people who are interested in *having* rather than *playing*. Otherwise, you're going to have a very hard time.

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  2. Hmmm... by Aggrazel · · Score: 5

    I hear there's a place in New Mexico that has a horde of Atari games.

    Of course... you'd have to bring a shovel....