Best (cheap!) ways to start a collection

[Viraneth]

I have a very small collection of classic games, mostly some PSone, N64, and Dreamcast. I want to build up my collection, but unfortunately, I am quite on the lower middle class spectrum of the economy.

What are some cheap ways to make my collection grow?

Also, I'm looking for certain items, if you come across them at a low price, let me know:
R.O.B.
Powerglove
SNES
NES
Genesis
Black Dreamcast (in box/sealed if possible)
Original Elder Scrolls PC games (in box, once again, if possible)
System Shock 2
(Others will come when I think of them :3)

Also, anywhere I can get cheap crappy games? I need cash for trade-ins to get myself some N64 carts and new games.

Thanks, gracias, and dankutz!

[Cornelius]

garage sales and craigslist. Flea markets if you are near one. You have to know some general prices/value. And if you are really on a budget, save your money and make big purchases. If you watch CL long enough, sooner or later you'll find someone selling a large collection. You may have to have a couple hundred bucks on hand, but that's the easiest way to get great deals.

[nestlekwik]

garage sales and craigslist. Flea markets if you are near one. You have to know some general prices/value. And if you are really on a budget, save your money and make big purchases. If you watch CL long enough, sooner or later you'll find someone selling a large collection. You may have to have a couple hundred bucks on hand, but that's the easiest way to get great deals.

Seconded. The easiest ways I've found to come across the greatest deals are garage sales, flea markets and buying bulk games.

[Poofta!]

i assume youre young and unemployed? itll be hard since these days this seems to be a very mainstream hobby. try not to blow your cash on "crappy" and "cheap" games. no one cares if you have 100 games in your collection, people care if you have 100 ps1 RPGs in your collection (or equally in demand/quality stuff).

collect what you have passion for, not just because its popular. your collection is your own, and should have more sentimental value to yourself than monetary value to most others.

start small and specific: just judging from your list there, you have a mish mash of [largely] unrelated things. choose a focus (again, something of value to yourself personally) and research it and look for deals/items. that rob will do you no good if youre just gonna put it to gather dust on the shelf and not even explore (and undertand) its history and games. (fyi, a sealed black DC will prob net over 200$ a price which is largely inflated and can get you a lot more bang in terms of rare and quality games). Choose a platform/genre/generation/theme and stick largely to it.

expect to spend serious cash going into collecting old DOS/PC games. loose games are close to free, complete games usually go for at least 10 times that amount (a loose ultima 6 is barely 10 bucks before shipping, a truly CIB will hit 70-90).

always always always remember: quality over quantity. consider this when buying all those tempting $1 genesis sports games or all those .50 cent loose atari carts. as your age, budget and collection grow (and storage space decreases)... all of a sudden a MIB Lunar for ps1 or CIB Fallout for pc mean a hell of a lot more to you than that powerglove or stack of loose common genny/nes games.

collect practically: if you want every sonic platformer so you can play any of them on a whim, it may make more sense to get all the sonic games on gamecube (the most complete collection) than each cart/disk for their original systems.

good luck. dont try to jump too far too quick. it may dishearten you due to your financial constraints or make you feel overwhelmed by the shear amount of what is out there. make lists, go over them several times, and ultimately decide: do i want this in my library?

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

Two words which have been said already in this thread:

Garage Sales

[darkhades]

I'll say it again.......Garage Sales

[coreys429]

Thrift Stores: Trust me if they don't know what they have...you can come across some unusual stuff.

[Alfador]

I've never had ANY luck with garage sales. Thrift stores and craigslist on the other hand.. :rocker:

[DigitalSpace]

Thrift Stores

Seconded. And don't give up if you don't find anything in your first few visits, or don't find anything you want for a short time - after all, there could be something nice on that next visit.

[DefaultGen]

.....

[Viraneth]

garage sales and craigslist. Flea markets if you are near one. You have to know some general prices/value. And if you are really on a budget, save your money and make big purchases. If you watch CL long enough, sooner or later you'll find someone selling a large collection. You may have to have a couple hundred bucks on hand, but that's the easiest way to get great deals.

The only flea market here is the flea market (a outdoor mall of sorts for ripoff gucchi) and the flea in opa locka (where every thing is fake/illegal/dangerous) like a counterfit copy of XIII </3


Poofta!, I just like to own games. Good games, classic games, I just love games. Every game I buy gets played. If I don't have the system I track it down.

Right now, first and foremost, I want to track down items related to the games and stuff I really care about. Anything Bethesda Softworks or ID software. The powerglove is because I think it's the second biggest mistake related to nintendo (matel made it) and, quite frankly I wanna wear it around.
R.O.B. is an interesting concept to me. I want to be able to use it, examine it, see everything about it. It's, just something I like. So that is whay I wanna track it down.

And I love rare stuff. The black dreamcast is first on my list.

I check ebay often. I found two mint dreamcast games for very very cheap and was very very pleased :D

Thrift stores are hard to find here, in the miami -sweat- ;;^^

[Viraneth]

Though, right now, I think I do want to focus on the generation before last. PSone is what I have most of, and I would really like to get my hands on some rare rpgs and dreamcast games. N64 games are pretty easy to come by, due to how long it lasted. Dreamcast, other than Japanese titles (Play-Asia ftw), the good ones (Sega GT, JSR, etc) are hard to come by in good condition. I'm lucky I got my Maken X at gamestop years ago and I'm even happier that when I ordered Sega GT and Sega Rally 2 on ebay, they came in almost new condition.

Ebay can be awesome. Or suck ass. Either one.

[Press_Start]

Are you unemployed? If so, then ignore what's below and get a steady income before starting any collection.

With raising gas prices, start with thrift stores, flea markets, and garage sales within walking distance. Squandering half your cash on gas each drive isn't economically smart.

If you got zilch so far, then craigslist is the place. Got many rare finds including 23 TG-16 games with Splatterhouse, Valis 2, and Y's 3, for $65. Ebay is a good place to get many common NES, SNES, and Genesis games, but when it comes to rare finds for a low price, you're better off looking somewhere else.

Its good practice to come up with a budget plan to prevent you from overspending. For me, I try not to spend more than $100 a month on video games, and if I did, I take out of next month's video cash.

[ScourDX]

For starter, I would go with Craiglists. You can get a lot of good deals. I did pick up Elder Scroll 1 & 2 for $10 couple of months ago. Thrifty store and Garage sales can be a hit and miss. If you are patience enough, good things do come up.

[josekortez]

Just start to look for games everywhere. It will soon become an obsession.

Trust me...

[kewlrabbit]

I (what is it now? 10th?) garage sales. If you do go, you want to go early for the best deals, always ask for a lower price, and the most important thing is to ask if they have any older games if they don't have any out. It's not uncommon for them to bring out some old system, and give you some crazy deal on it, like a snes for $2.

[Press_Start]

I (what is it now? 10th?) garage sales. If you do go, you want to go early for the best deals, always ask for a lower price, and the most important thing is to ask if they have any older games if they don't have any out. It's not uncommon for them to bring out some old system, and give you some crazy deal on it, like a snes for $2.

Wish I could say the same thing for my area. Been to 20 garage sale and what I got out of it were Nintendo Power magazines and Dragonball Z for the Game Boy Color. :( :(:(

[thetoxicone]

I am a big fan of clearance hunting, K-mart, Sears, Target, and Shopko have all added great titles for cheap to my collection and also have gotten me some games besides those when I have the chance to pick up extras and either sell or trade them.

[Viraneth]

Garage sales I try to find. For some unfathomable reason, it's difficult as hell. Once I went to a wal-mart that was closing down, and in a clearance bin of video games there were three, in box, virtual boy games (though the boxes were crushed through years of being in storage). I thought nothing of them back then, when I was 11. Looking back, I wish I bought them. XD
This weekend I'll search craigslist for sutff in my area. I'd do it sooner but I have a script to work on. Damn you artistic pursuits! D:

[carlcarlson]

This may not work for you because it requires you to have a decent amount of money on hand. In the end you won't be losing any money, but it will be gone for a bit.

Buy in lots and sell what you don't want. This is how I have built my entire collection of over 1000 games. You say you like rpgs? Well I've got almost every rpg for both the ps1 and ps2, and I got them all this way. It takes patience but it's not that hard as long as you aren't set in a tunnel vision where you are just looking for one specific thing.

Example: You want Final Fantasy VII. Search for it using the "title and description" option on ebay. Look for lots that include a system (preferably a ps2 as they sell for more). Then, just do the math. Add up what everything sells for seperately. Once you have your total subtract the value of VII from that and you have your price. Make sure to factor shipping into that. So you buy a lot for $100 that includes FFVII, then you sell everything but FFVII for $100. Voila, free game. I've done it hundreds of times and have always managed to get what I wanted for "free".

[Vroomfunkel]

Buy in lots and sell what you don't want.

This. My collection, before I sold it, cost me essentially nothing because it was entirely funded by selling things I didn't need. You don't even need loads of money to start this - just lots of discipline. You have to keep all the money that you receive from sales separate from your main spending/expenses account.

Buy lots with games you want in, but that you can sell the extras to cover the cost of buying the lot (or more, if possible!). You don't need loads of money to start with, but it does help to have a reasonable float to kick off otherwise it's a very slow process building up at first since you have to wait to get everything, then sort it, sell and post out all the extras before you've got the money back again to get something else - but once you're rolling, it just gets easier from there on!

[nestlekwik]

This. My collection, before I sold it, cost me essentially nothing because it was entirely funded by selling things I didn't need. You don't even need loads of money to start this - just lots of discipline. You have to keep all the money that you receive from sales separate from your main spending/expenses account.

Buy lots with games you want in, but that you can sell the extras to cover the cost of buying the lot (or more, if possible!). You don't need loads of money to start with, but it does help to have a reasonable float to kick off otherwise it's a very slow process building up at first since you have to wait to get everything, then sort it, sell and post out all the extras before you've got the money back again to get something else - but once you're rolling, it just gets easier from there on!

This is exactly how my friend organized his arcade business - buying, fixing if necessary and selling for profit or trading for items he wanted. He pretty much lives off of eBay profit and arcade revenues. If it works for big arcade machines, it will work for consoles too. Essentially, with the aforementioned discipline, it works for anything. Hell, if someone online can make a series of trades starting with a paper clip and end up with his own house, I'm sure you can nab a few games you want.

[PH5]

I was in much the same position as you when I decided to start collecting. I was lucky in that the hobby was less crowded at the time, so I was able to pick up 2600 and NES carts at the local thrift store for 50 cents a piece all day long. I still find them to be one of the best places to look, but good carts are much more scarce now. I have never had much luck at garage sales, mainly because it requires a lot of driving for me (I live in a rural area) to hit a lot of them, and gas prices lately don't make it worthwhile.

I do have a couple of suggestions for you to try out that nobody has mentioned yet. You may want to give some local pawn shops a try. I have found some fair deals at the better ones. A lot of the time they are just looking to clear out the older consoles to make room for newer stuff, and you can get some good prices. Same goes for consignment stores. They tend to gradually reduce the price on items over time. One of the places I go to has the prices clearly marked and the date on which they will hit that price. That makes it easy to know when to stop by and pick something up for a good deal.

The last thing you really need to do is get to know your local fellow collectors. Some of the best stuff and best deals I've gotten are that way. I know many of us tend to have multiple copies of the more common games, so they can help you build your collection quickly, sometimes for free.

Good luck

[guitargary75]

garage sales and craigslist. Flea markets if you are near one. You have to know some general prices/value. And if you are really on a budget, save your money and make big purchases. If you watch CL long enough, sooner or later you'll find someone selling a large collection. You may have to have a couple hundred bucks on hand, but that's the easiest way to get great deals.

Agree.

[Pantechnicon]

@Poofta: Your 1st post in this thread is some of the most solid advice I've seen for a new collector yet. Nicely done.

Now, for the benefit of all sides on this emerging garage sales vs. thrifts vs. flea markets debate, I represent Pantechnicon's Septurnal Theory of Old Game Distribution:

1. Garage sales and flea markets are the best bets on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
2. What is not sold at garage sales on weekends is taken to the thrifts late on Saturdays and Sundays.
3. Allow one day (Monday) for the new inventory to be sorted, priced and put on the sales floor, ergo:
4. Thrift stores are the best bets on Tuesdays and Wednesdays...sometimes Thursdays.
5. Thursdays and Fridays are when the flea dealers clean out the detritus from the thrifts for sale at the fleas on the upcoming weekend.
6. Garage sales begin again on Friday and the whole cycle repeats itself at step one.

[blissfulnoise]

This. My collection, before I sold it, cost me essentially nothing because it was entirely funded by selling things I didn't need. You don't even need loads of money to start this - just lots of discipline. You have to keep all the money that you receive from sales separate from your main spending/expenses account.

Buy lots with games you want in, but that you can sell the extras to cover the cost of buying the lot (or more, if possible!). You don't need loads of money to start with, but it does help to have a reasonable float to kick off otherwise it's a very slow process building up at first since you have to wait to get everything, then sort it, sell and post out all the extras before you've got the money back again to get something else - but once you're rolling, it just gets easier from there on!

If you don't want to be subjected to the randomness that comes from Flea Markets and Thrift Stores, this is 100% the way to go. And, frankly, the only reasonable way to complete a collection on a specific console. My Sega CD collection wouldn't exist without buying through lots.

I got Web of Fire for a good price that way, I got Radical Rex/Keio Flying Squadron for a reasonable price that way, 90% of my rare Master System Games came that way.

All that said, stay away from the "find at a cheap price" sort of requests around here. You're not the first to try it, and you certainly won't be the last. There are some (few) folks out there who can be generous and offer things at decent prices, but if you're already admitting to not having much money, just putting a wish list out there and hoping someone will sell you stuff at drastically low prices (or for free) won't accomplish anything. Put what you're willing to pay for it (a reasonable amount) in the Buying/Selling thread and go from there.

Fortunately, all and all, video games are pretty damn cheap. Most "rare" stuff can be had for less than what it originally cost at retail.

Just take it slow, I went from about 200 games to 4000+ games over the course of about 3-4 years (though I don't really "collect" anymore).

[Viraneth]

There;s a guy at my local game store who collects, I'll talk to him. I made some great finds on craiglist for both classic stuff, and for consoles that I can buy for parts and refurbishing (which is also something I want to do). I'm going to ask him about some places, and keep searching the net for bulk deals.

[FrakAttack]

Welcome to cheap ass collecting! Best ultra cheap shops I've found are church thrift stores that have no clue what VG stuff's worth. Pawn shops used to be a good source, but they've gotten wise (online price checking) in recent years, though some run by old fogeys are still cluelessly cheap. Best pawns are the ones that focus on guns and jewelry, as they try to dump games and DVDs as quickly as possible.

Yard sales are great for deals but very sporadic, meaning you'll have to visit a lot of them and that costs gas money. If you're near something like the annual US 127 Yard Sale you'll find more stuff with less ground to cover.

Best advice I can give is to never be ashamed to everyone you know about your video game hobby. You'd be amazed at how many folks will just give you boxes of old stuff for free.

[Viraneth]

Yeah. There is a yearly yard sale at a nearby bank, and I got a internet card for $2 (normally $40, have yet to sell it) and a few xbox games (all of which I got for about $3).