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The Holy Grails of Console Collecting
Retrogaming with Racketboy has up a feature looking at some of the 'holy grails' of console collecting. These are titles worthy of long, hard searches through auctions and used game stores ... both for their quality and their rarity. From the article: "16. Star Fox: Super Weekend/Donkey Kong Country Competition Cartridge, Estimated Price (Loose): $200. If there was a big one-two punch in Nintendo's fight against Sega's Genesis, Star Fox and Donkey Kong Country would be it. While the main retail games may not be rare at all, there was a special package that is quite desirable. The Star Fox: Super Weekend and Donkey Kong Country Competition cartridges were used by Blockbuster Video in tournaments held within the store, and never received a true commercial release. The winners of the tournaments would receive prizes such as jackets and sometimes even vacations."
Ah, but the summary says that they're worth searching for because of their, "their quality and their rarity". I honestly can't think of how most of these could be considered "quality". Most of the collectors items for old game systems are the crap that no one wanted to play the first time around. Stuff like Tooth Protectors, Chase the Chuckwagon, boxed "Action Packs" containing Combat and Dodge 'Em, Channel F consoles, Emerson Aracadias, etc. It's all rare, but it's also all junk.
;-)
The truly GREAT stuff are the rarities that are both hard to find and treasures to own. Avalon Hill, for example, made some great games. But their timing was off (video game crash and all that), so no one knew about them. That makes Shuttle Orbiter and Wall Ball a) collectable, b) extremely rare, and c) very expensive. I have a copy of the former, and I treasure it far more than I would an NES competition cartridge.
When it comes to video games, one does have to realize that they're made to be played. As a result, there are only a few affluent collectors willing to pay high prices for ultra-rare garbage. After all, these pieces are not much to look at. (Save for, perhaps, the tourney cart.)
If you want a real collectors item, go grab this unit. It's good looking, functional, pricey, and rare. Now THAT is a collectors item.
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
And all I can say is thank god for re-releases and Xbox emulators for keeping the price on games like Chrono Trigger down. Videogame speculators will always annoy the hell out of me, but I'm happy when games like Chrono Trigger fall in price. The game used to be worth $300-$400 on Ebay until it was re-released on the PSX.