New Collector Tips- How Did you start?

[Cellplanman]

Im sure there are others like me out... so few questions (either thinking out loud... or really loud so the forum can hear :P)

NES/SNES related:

what type of games should I be collecting? Should I try and collect full sets? (ie: Tengen), should I get whatever I can get my hands on for under 5$? Should I buy any "good deals" as in value (ie: buy a game for 5$ if you see it selling for 15$ on ebay), try and collect semi-rare stuff first (C- - A+) (and what is semi rare? is C- semi rare? or C+ or...?)

Just getting opinions
What do you guys think?


As of right now, im thinking of buying anything that is C and up on the rarity scale to build up some kind of decent collection (for less than 10$?)


edit: also on a side note, how do i get coins? (INSERT COIN)



edit: Edited title, as I think im more interested in how did you guys start? And what would be my building blocks (which sets would be an accomplishment to complete, and wont take me years to complete it)

[Superman]

This question comes up quite a bit. If you searched the forums you probably would have found something, but to get you started:

You should collect what you like.

Just think about your goals in collecting. Do you want to have just a few games you can play or do you want to have a massive collection to look at?

Also, what is your financial situation? Are you on a limited budget, or are you extremely wealthy and are just looking to spend your money on something? This will determine how you should go about looking for games.

I hope I have given you some ideas, but really, only you can determine what you want to collect.

[smork]

You get coins the more you post.

I agree with Superman, just collect what you like. Personally, I like small complete sets (64DD, VB, Vectrex and the like) and series sets (such as all the Megaten games). If you like Tetris and all the variants, get that. If you like unloved/obscure stuff, go for that.

[aboblyndsae]

Just get whatever you like and don't buy something JUST because it's rare. I started out with Treasure and Squaresoft games, then Tengen NES games, and am now mostly focused on good or strange games regardless of the console. It's never been about rarity for me, although I was lucky enough to get some games that later became very rare/in demand.

NES is a satisfying system to collect for because most of the obscenely expensive games are ones you'd never want to play. If you don't care about boxes and instructions, there are a TON of NES games you can get on EBay for less than the cost of shipping.

I'm also of the opinion that keeping sealed copies of games that other people want to play and aren't easily able to be emulated makes you a horrible person, but then I've never gotten any satisfaction from sealed boxes sitting on my shelf. Every game I have ever bought has been opened and played, or will be shortly.

[Xander]

I'm always horrified to read post like that.

There is no best way to collect. Do it the way you want to. You are a gamer too right? Then collect the game you want to play.

[Cellplanman]

i feel almost like a pacrat... I read a few opinoins in other threads, but for me personally I start w/ Squaresoft for PS1.

then i found myself buying a bunch of NES/SNES games. then I saw myself going on http://www.rarityguide.com/snes_view.php fpr SNES and NES and "collecting" anything that has a 25% rarity adn getting a little excited when i find something 40-70% rare.

Was wondering about the price that I should be paying.. most games that are 40%-70% rare I shouldnt pay more than 10$ and anything above 70% nothing more than 20?

As a collector... u want to get every game eventually lol... or @ least every game in a set. What NES sets are out there I guess should be a better question. Or which sets are the easiest to complete (rare/value)

[SegaAges]

The easiest NES set to complete is one that I did, and that is the Mario Bros. games:
Mario Bros
Super Mario Bros
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt
Super Mario Bros 2
Super Mario Bros 3

There may be a couple others, but that is probably going to be one of the easiest sets you could ever do

[Cornelius]

I depart from the 'collect what you want' mentality that is the usual advice given in a thread like this. This is mainly because I rarely purchase from eBay or GameStop or really anywhere that has a selection to choose from. Instead, I shop at thrifts and on CL, where the deals can be great, but you never really have much in the way of choice. So, I end up buying almost everything that is a good deal. One result is that my collection is much broader than I would necessarily choose for it to be since I'm also somewhat of a packrat. The other main result is that after selling dupes or stuff that I really don't feel like keeping I've actually made money in this hobby, and can therefore occasionally splurge on something.

It is very difficult to price things based on Rarity. There are R8s that go for peanuts, and R3s that go for $60. That also reminds me... this site uses a rarity ranking from 1-10. You can get to the rarity guide by clicking the banner at the top of the page, and then 'Online Rarity Guide' in the left column.

[Cornelius]

The easiest NES set to complete is one that I did, and that is the Mario Bros. games:
Mario Bros
Super Mario Bros
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt
Super Mario Bros 2
Super Mario Bros 3

There may be a couple others, but that is probably going to be one of the easiest sets you could ever do

Don't forget SMB/DH/WCTM!!

And you could make it an NES Mario set, and add:
Dr. Mario
Mario is Missing
Mario's Time Machine

And then you could add games that Mario appears in which off the top of my head would include Yoshi and Yoshi's Cookie.

[Cellplanman]

I depart from the 'collect what you want' mentality that is the usual advice given in a thread like this. This is mainly because I rarely purchase from eBay or GameStop or really anywhere that has a selection to choose from. Instead, I shop at thrifts and on CL, where the deals can be great, but you never really have much in the way of choice. So, I end up buying almost everything that is a good deal. One result is that my collection is much broader than I would necessarily choose for it to be since I'm also somewhat of a packrat. The other main result is that after selling dupes or stuff that I really don't feel like keeping I've actually made money in this hobby, and can therefore occasionally splurge on something.

It is very difficult to price things based on Rarity. There are R8s that go for peanuts, and R3s that go for $60. That also reminds me... this site uses a rarity ranking from 1-10. You can get to the rarity guide by clicking the banner at the top of the page, and then 'Online Rarity Guide' in the left column.

Awsome. no one has given direct instructions like that as to how to get that list lol.

The R8's will go up in value in the future I would assume? Also is there a trading forum on here? (i cant find one).


edited title

[megasdkirby]

I used to buy whatever I would find. But then I decided to go for specific consoles and concentrate with that.

I started with the Master System and the Atari 7800. I am almost done with both, though it seems I will finish the Atari 7800 first. US releases for both.

After that, I want to concentrate on PAL/UK SMS games, but ONLY those that were not released stateside. There are a few exceptions, like Captain Silver and the Sega Card games released as carts in the UK, but otherwise I get those not released in the US.

After that? Don't know really. I have little interest in this generation's games. I will most surely stop collecting for a very, VERY long time after I finish those sets.

[swlovinist]

People collect for different reasons, collecting what you

A. Like
B. What you can afford
C. For Fun and Enjoyment

is some sound advice. Collecting rares on a budget is great, but focusing on the value of the item can sometimes be subjective. I have been seriously collecting for about 15 years, and I have seen many collectors come and go getting wrapped up into the value of things. Collect for fun, Collect what with money that you can 100 percent loose, and most of all...enjoy doing it. Everyone starts somewhere and everyone has a different story on their collections and how they started. Mine is a pertty simple:

After selling off my sega stuff due to feeling totally hosed by them(se DP advance lore for more on that), I gave a friend $50 bucks and told him to find me something cool at a flea mart that was about 400 miles away(San Jose Flea Mart)

He came back with a box of 7800 boxed games and a boxed system

6500+ games later, I havent looked back.

[Cellplanman]

People collect for different reasons, collecting what you

A. Like
B. What you can afford
C. For Fun and Enjoyment

is some sound advice. Collecting rares on a budget is great, but focusing on the value of the item can sometimes be subjective. I have been seriously collecting for about 15 years, and I have seen many collectors come and go getting wrapped up into the value of things. Collect for fun, Collect what with money that you can 100 percent loose, and most of all...enjoy doing it. Everyone starts somewhere and everyone has a different story on their collections and how they started. Mine is a pertty simple:

After selling off my sega stuff due to feeling totally hosed by them(se DP advance lore for more on that), I gave a friend $50 bucks and told him to find me something cool at a flea mart that was about 400 miles away(San Jose Flea Mart)

He came back with a box of 7800 boxed games and a boxed system

6500+ games later, I havent looked back.

lol well done with the 6500+games for 50$

I guess im really reallly bad @ writing english...sigh

I do RPG PS1 and a bit of PS2 right now. I have that "diablo mentality" "omg its rare and i get excited". "omg i can sell it later at a profit/trade to finish my Aldurs set"

Just thinking what sets are out there. Is there a rarity scale of the sets themselves? or a list of the sets so I can check them out?

[Press_Start]

Here's what I do make a list of all games you want. Sort by system/genre/rarity whatever. Then set for yourself a list of priorities how to go about collecting.

For me, I'm a big Turbo-grafx fan with the heart of a diehard RPG fan that like to play old video games. Naturally, the priority list goes like this:

Turbo-grafx
PS1/SS/PS2/PSP RPG
RPG for other systems.
SNES
Gameboy
(etc.)

Of course the list can change over as nothing is set in stone and preference will change over time. Its always nice to have a method to our "madness" Just remember to have fun along the way. ;)

[MachineGex]

Here's what I do make a list of all games you want. Sort by system/genre/rarity whatever. Then set for yourself a list of priorities how to go about collecting.

I do the list thing as well. I research each system and find reviews of games that sound interesting and add those to my list. I try to avoid adding games that I will never play.
If you make you want list too big, you run a good chance of getting burned out on collecting. I "try" to keep my list to games that I will really enjoy playing. Remember, this should be run, don't make it too much work or you will get burnt out.

For collecting NES games, I have used Stanley J. Stepanic's(found at NESWorld) list as a reference. This list has been a huge help. I have found tons of great games based on his reviews. His reviews are spot-on. Plus, it has PAL games as well. Some of my favorite games are PAL-only games.

[neist]

I know this has been hashed out to death, but as everyone said, just collect what you like. I can only give my own experiences as an example, but when I first got back into console games after losing years to MMOs, I just started hitting Wikipedia/Gamefaqs/Mobygames. If you see a game that sounds interesting, look up a youtube video of it. Most games have youtube videos, even obscure ones. If you're interested in a specific genre, look for websites that are dedicated to that genre. When you find a game you like, look at who developed it try to find some other games that they made. I would have never discovered my love for Takumi shooters if I didn't do this.

Though everyone stated more or less 'collect what you like', the first step is ultimately finding what your looking for in games. After hundreds of hours of mindless reading, I can read about a game or watch a video of it and instantly tell you if I'd enjoy the gameplay.

[eskobar]

I agree with Superman, just collect what you like. Personally, I like small complete sets (64DD, VB, Vectrex and the like).

Some people just start collecting because they want to have a collection of something :help:

But if you like videogames, you should define your tastes and go for a complete set of a series or collect by genre; the important thing is that you have fun with it and that you do not spend all your money on it, you know; there are priorities in life.

If you do not have a clue and want to sense the feel of an achievement, start with Virtual Boy, this system is one of the hottest video game related collectibles. The U.S. releases are very few and you can get almost everyone at fair price :D



I started as a videogame player and later cared about collecting, the most important thing for me was to play new and different games ... and now the most important thing has become collecting because i do not have time to play anymore ... only a couple of game per year.

[coreys429]

I collect crap. I enjoy playing the games that no one liked or no one plays. I bought the Guy Game for this reason played it. No boobies for me from that game. Not worth it. Though I try as much crap as I can because sometimes I find a winner. Still looking for it.
:deadhorse: Enjoy the items you collect. If you don't, don't do it.

[jcalder8]

How did I start?

My dad owned an Intellivision when I was born and I've been gaming ever since. My collecting came when I finished school and I started to have disposable income.

I collect by what I find and series that I enjoy. If I find Bubble Bobble 2 I'm not going to pass over it because I'm currently collecting Dragon Warrior stuff.

[mrmark0673]

Don't forget SMB/DH/WCTM!!

And you could make it an NES Mario set, and add:
Dr. Mario
Mario is Missing
Mario's Time Machine

And then you could add games that Mario appears in which off the top of my head would include Yoshi and Yoshi's Cookie.

If you're going to count those 3, what about:

Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
Mario Bros. Arcade Classics Series
Wrecking Crew

As well as countless other games where Mario appears but is not the lead character (the ref in Punch-out!!! for example).

You should really collect for whatever you want, but if you wanted suggestions on how to start a large NES collection while spending as little money as possible, I could offer some advice.

If you are just starting, try to buy large lots on EBay (at least 20 carts) and do your best to spend as close to $2 a cart as possible. Once you get to around 400 carts, you're going to start having trouble getting more than 1 or 2 carts that you don't already have from lots on EBay. You can sell off or trade doubles, or you can hop on the forums with a WTB thread to continue filling those gaps.

Don't worry about expensive carts until later, unless you want a really fun game that just so happens to be expensive (Little Samson comes to mind). There are a ton of great games to be had for super cheap before you have to worry about that.

Whatever you decide, good luck on meeting whatever goals you set for yourself!

[Steven]

Agreed with many points here. Collect what you find is (or might be) fun (to play), what you can afford, and I also say, don't try to buy TOO much in a short time span. Spread it out so you can really take a little time to enjoy playing the games you're acquiring.

Also, have goals/some sort of direction. Knowing what you want is almost as important as getting it. It's easy to burn out if you lack direction.

Just do what works best for you, since only you know yourself.

[cyberfluxor]

You get coins the more you post.

Shhhhhh. ^^;

[2Dskillz]

First I create a list of what are the milestone games for each console always trying for those. I want to be able to pull out any console and show what it offered to gaming. This is followed by anything unusual or unique that I stumble across while reading the web or chatting with other gamers.

[Joe West]

the best money maker in nes.......mega man 1 thru 6.......you can always make money on them......

[murdoc rose]

like most collecting hobbies there's no start finish line that makes everyone happy. collect what you like as in if you like rarer games for modern systems like the snes then go for it. If that's the set you want to work on work on it. Also if you like most people you will stumble on things you want maybe not even games, like a yoshi doll, pac man record, store display, arcade, by then u'll be collecting pinball machines too so get what you can get and get what you like. Go out and hunt and have fun, I recommend doing some research if ur just starting out and one of the easiest ways to do that is to get the dp books. There really the best guides published imo and probably everyones on here. Also are you saying ur just new to the idea of collecting or a casual gamer that wants to collect or what details would help. When I started collecting I had like 400 games so I already sort of new some of the basics. Be warned collecting can be very addictive and if not controlled dangerous unless you know how to stack boxes right :D have fun

[WhatsMyUsername]

I would say collect the games you like first, and then collect other things, once you get more into it you can collect more games that you don't necessarily really like or are not sure about.

[darkslime]

Well, it depends on where you buy games.

If you're looking for cheap games, buy whatever you don't have or is resellable, sell the dups, then buy more. This is basically how I collect.

If you have disposable income go to ebay.com and buy whatever you like.

[TheRealist50]

I started by collecting Sega first. NES slowly creeped up, then the N64, then PS1...ect...now I'm collecting for everything.

Genesis - Collect everything
PS1 - Collect what interests me and any RPG (regardless if it interests me or not)
SNES - only what I like that I can't pick up on the Genesis
Atari - whatever I can get for less then 2 dollars loose.
and so on...

So you see, I'm not tied down to 1 way, each console has its own way of collecting.

pick a starting point and start there, but trust me you will veer off into other consoles without even realizing it.

[Cellplanman]

like most collecting hobbies there's no start finish line that makes everyone happy. collect what you like as in if you like rarer games for modern systems like the snes then go for it. If that's the set you want to work on work on it. Also if you like most people you will stumble on things you want maybe not even games, like a yoshi doll, pac man record, store display, arcade, by then u'll be collecting pinball machines too so get what you can get and get what you like. Go out and hunt and have fun, I recommend doing some research if ur just starting out and one of the easiest ways to do that is to get the dp books. There really the best guides published imo and probably everyones on here. Also are you saying ur just new to the idea of collecting or a casual gamer that wants to collect or what details would help. When I started collecting I had like 400 games so I already sort of new some of the basics. Be warned collecting can be very addictive and if not controlled dangerous unless you know how to stack boxes right :D have fun

lol im starting to notice how dangerous it can be. i noticed myself wanted to buy anything with a 20% rarity + for a max of 5$.... it can add up.

I already collect RPG PS1 games... just starting to branch off into NES/SNES games.... just unsure of what milestones i can hit... gotta create some goals to accomplish

[darkslime]

Don't pay a lot of money for games just based on how rare they are.
I mean, FFVII goes for a shit ton of money, but it's extremely common, whereas Dual Hearts, which is one of the rarest USA released games for the PS2, goes for about $10.

[Iron Draggon]

I started with the one game that I wanted the most and worked my way up from there... so I began with Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis... then I built up my Genesis collection by adding sets of games... all the games in a certain genre, all the games in a certain series, all the games by a certain developer... then I did the same thing all over again with the SNES... then the Sega CD, 32X, 3DO, Saturn, Playstation, Jaguar, Jaguar CD, Dreamcast, Game Gear, Virtual Boy, Game Boy Advance, and the PC... the Lynx is next

also, once I started collecting for multiple systems, I avoided buying games that I already owned for other systems, for the most part... so since I was mostly into Sega systems, I bought Sega games that I already had for other Sega systems, but I didn't do the same for any other systems... this was mostly because Sega had a bad habit of releasing the same games for all of their systems, and little else though... otherwise I wouldn't have spent so much money on incremental upgrades of games that I already owned... I would've just picked the best version of each game and only bought that one

so if you're hoping to collect for more than one system someday, you might wanna keep that in mind... unless you're going for fullsets of every game for every system, there's no point in buying the same games over and over again... so when you're faced with deciding which version of which game to get, just get the best version available, or get the one for your preferred system... this makes it alot easier to focus on getting lots of different games

as for rarities, it's prolly best not to worry about them at first... just get all the games you can that you can afford, and save all the rare stuff for later... that way you might be able to trade some of your common games for rare ones, and get the games you traded off again later... you also might wanna get duplicates of games you already have, if you can get them for cheap, so you can use those to trade for games you don't have... some people here have amassed huge collections using that method... they just buy everything they find, and use duplicates to trade for what they want, or to convert to cash for what they want... I don't do that myself, but it does make sense

[Haoie]

I started collecting because I was bored and needed a new hobby.

Thankfully I didn't try to go for an extremely old or obscure system, or have demanding requirements.

My only requirement for getting a game is that it might be something I'll like or at least tolerate.

[kainemaxwell]

Collect what you like and for systems you enjoy. If besides anything current era you have any of your older systems, then you already have a good start! For me I have little collections going in with everything else I occasionally collect for (Activision A2600 carts, Tengen, Dragon Warrior, etc). Thankfully Tengen is almost done save for a few missing manuals.

I still have all my old systems considering I've always been a gamer: starting with the Atari 2600 up to my most modern system, the PS2. Still have those 2 along with my NES, SNES, N64 and Sega CDX (given to me by a friend, now a collector's item). I really took the jump into collecting thanks to the DP Survivor game here a few years back when I got a Dreamcast. Went from there. :)

[Daria]

lol im starting to notice how dangerous it can be. i noticed myself wanted to buy anything with a 20% rarity + for a max of 5$.... it can add up.

I already collect RPG PS1 games... just starting to branch off into NES/SNES games.... just unsure of what milestones i can hit... gotta create some goals to accomplish

My current RPG goal is 500. I'm at 452, and with a husband, new house, and no budget it's slow going.

I've always loved RPGs, had a few for the NES and Genesis, but when I hit the PSX generation my games made the turn from "owning a bunch of games" to a "collection". Now I constantly seek out new RPGs for every system. It requires a little research, which I enjoy and is more importantly free. And I have a ton of great games to play during the financial dry spells.

I was so excited last week when I realized they made two D&D RPGs for the intellevision. That's my favorite part, getting one-off games for a new system. My drive for the hunt has nothing to do with value, (any more than having no extra spending cash forces you to shop cheap, I'll pick up any RPG I'm missing for >=$15 when I see it) I don't buy games looking for an investment. And I'm also not disapointed when the games I do buy for a good price drop in value (Persona 2, Rhapsody, Disgaea) because I never intend to resell.

[Astrosmash]

Don't forget SMB/DH/WCTM!!

And you could make it an NES Mario set, and add:
Dr. Mario
Mario is Missing
Mario's Time Machine

And then you could add games that Mario appears in which off the top of my head would include Yoshi and Yoshi's Cookie.

Off the top of my head there's also the Donkey Kong games, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (and the Mr. Dream version), NES Open Tournament Golf... I'm sure there's more guest/cameo appearances too.

Oh, and don't forget Nintendo World Championships. :)

[Dark_Sol]

The bigger your collection - the longer the penis. Well and if you don't have a penis...well..

[Cellplanman]

The bigger your collection - the longer the penis. Well and if you don't have a penis...well..

lol....

[We Are Ninja]

Collect what you like and for systems you enjoy. If besides anything current era you have any of your older systems, then you already have a good start!

QFT. That's exactly how I got started; I started buying and trading games for my [beloved] PS2. I hated wanting to play a game only to realize that I didn't have it anymore, so I started keeping them. Then I began replacing titles I had traded previously.

Then I remembered I still had my PS1 and realized that I had a bit of a collection going on...

[bunnybum]

QFT. That's exactly how I got started; I started buying and trading games for my [beloved] PS2. I hated wanting to play a game only to realize that I didn't have it anymore, so I started keeping them. Then I began replacing titles I had traded previously.

Then I remembered I still had my PS1 and realized that I had a bit of a collection going on...

That is so like how I started collecting. Back in the Amiga days I traded a lot of games with friends from school only to find myself wanting to play one of the games I traded. Now one of my main collecting goals is to find every single Amiga game I had when I was a kid, which is no easy task since most people apparently just forgot about the system when PCs started arriving in everyone's homes here. If I have been "lucky" to find boxes of Amiga disks at thrift stores only to realise that they were full of pirated games :angry: But hey, those are great for watching the old cracktros LOL
So, basically, set goals for your collection and keep your mind on a couple of milestones (mine being Monkey Island 2, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, and Beneath a Steel Sky). However, if you come across a good deal somewhere, don't be afraid to pick it up. I have "discovered" many a good game I've never played before just by picking something up because it looked like a good deal.

[RASK1904]

I did the same thing with PS2 games. Then the thing shit the bed so I desided I wanted something old school. So I bought a Nes. Started buying games and realized they were expensive. So when I'd see one Cheap that I had bought for alot I'd pick it up knowing I could sell/trade it. Then it spread like wildfire. I realized that not only Nes games were worth money and fun. So I got a genesis. Then a Snes. Then a 64. The an Atari 2600. The a Master System. Then a PS1. Then a Dreamcast. Then sold the Atari, Genesis and Master System. Then bought a Genisis. It's realy a love hate relationship with sega. Lately I've been realy focusing on Nes. My goal is every US released game. I find so much good stuff, about a year ago I started selling on Ebay. Not bad. It's a long fun road, good luck and have fun!!!

Thanx RASK1904:rockets: