The worst prices I've EVER SEEN. (with pictures)

[Buapo]

Hey, guys. So I've recently gotten back into the classic game collecting, and I've been scouring my local shops for some finds. Still plenty of great stuff out there, but I came across some of the most ridiculous prices at a store called "Buybacks."

It started off with a copy of Apocalypse Now for $119.99. Then, digging around, we found more stupid high prices. Today, the cake has finally been taken.

Golf for $169.99:

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb191/Buapo/P1010063.jpg

And, the coup de grâce, Super Mario Bros. for... $438.99.

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb191/Buapo/P1010064.jpg

I asked the employees if this was a joke, and they assured me it was not... they also said they hear it several times a day. I did some digging and figured it out.

Buybacks is heavily connected to Amazon.com for selling things. At their retail store, they sell things for a higher price. But online, they're cheaper.

But, where do they get $169.99 from?

http://tinyurl.com/33bprrp

As you can see, there are two under the "new" listing. One for $199.99 and one for $249.99. For some reason, they're using these outrageous collector prices (which are brand new, sealed items) to set the price at their store.

Now, check this out.

http://tinyurl.com/3agw22o

See, Super Mario Bros. for $515.00 and $549.95. This is where they got that stupid $438.99 pricetag. Here's the secret. They've taken the lower "new" prices, and come down exactly 15%. Golf is $199.99 - 15% = roughly $169.99. Super Mario Bros. is $515 - 15% = roughly $438.99.

So, it seems that this magic 15% discount is what the geniuses have come up with, over at Buybacks. But, the plot thickens. I said they sell everything cheaper online, right? The question is, what do they sell Golf and Super Mario Bros. for online? Well, here's your answer.

Golf is $0.50. - http://tinyurl.com/39y57bl

I looked up Super Mario Bros. earlier today, and it was around $4-something. They have since removed it (wonder why?)

So why the heck would they price Golf at $170 in the retail store, but only $0.50 online? The logic just isn't there, yet... there it is.

[HappehLemons]

I'm at a loss of words.

Also sometimes amazon had duplicate game links (like in the case of golf) You happen to be victim of that. Here's the more popular golf selling hub which is most likely where they got their price. I knew something was wrong with that link when I only saw 1 copy of golf being sold (maybe the game would be worth that price if there's only 1 being sold :p).

http://www.amazon.com/Golf-nintendo-entertainment-system/dp/B000E7KSN8/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1287469688&sr=1-1

[Gamingking]

Thats outrageous.

[Rickstilwell1]

Because some people are computerized robots and don't have brains, all they can calculate is mathematics and equations, but not logic.

[Gameguy]

What's the trade in value for those games? Even if they're just $50 each it would still be worth it to trade in as many copies as possible.

This thread also reminds me of the other thread discussing classic game stores. I can imagine some people saying the higher pricing is justified as they have an overhead to take care of, complaining of higher costs hurts the hobby for everyone as there will be fewer game stores. LOL

[Buapo]

Here's the more popular golf selling hub which is most likely where they got their price.

The link I posted - http://tinyurl.com/33bprrp was to the main hub page. The page where there is only one copy of Golf being sold is the actual Buybacks storefront - it's showing they only have one copy of Golf. That was this page: http://tinyurl.com/39y57bl

In other words, if you were to order Golf from that page where it's $0.50, you would receive the Golf cart with the $169.99 price tag on it.


What's the trade in value for those games? Even if they're just $50 each it would still be worth it to trade in as many copies as possible.

I asked about trading in games, and they said the MAXIMUM trade value for ANY classic game is ONE DOLLAR. In many cases, they'll give you less. Totally ludicrous! (they've gone to PLAID!)

[tom]

Haha, Mario Bros for $515.00 and $549.95, now that is the joke of the century, next to Stadium Events, you Americans are funny.

[HappehLemons]

The link I posted - http://tinyurl.com/33bprrp was to the main hub page. The page where there is only one copy of Golf being sold is the actual Buybacks storefront - it's showing they only have one copy of Golf. That was this page: http://tinyurl.com/39y57bl

In other words, if you were to order Golf from that page where it's $0.50, you would receive the Golf cart with the $169.99 price tag on it.



I asked about trading in games, and they said the MAXIMUM trade value for ANY classic game is ONE DOLLAR. In many cases, they'll give you less. Totally ludicrous! (they've gone to PLAID!)


Ohh, whoops. To many links in your post for my mind to handle I suppose :p

[badinsults]

Don't worry, there will be deep discounts when this person who obviously has no business sense goes out of business.

[Buapo]

The funny thing is, sometimes the prices are reasonable. I paid $1.99 for Millipede. You can see that Pro Wrestling is $1.99 as well. Zelda II for $6.99 is a heck of a lot better than the $10-20 nonsense I've been seeing lately. But this random sky-high pricing is just laughable.

From what I can see, Buybacks does just fine as they sell mainly DVDs/Blu-Rays. At a different Buybacks, I saw Super Castlevania IV with an $80.99 price tag on it - so these stupid prices have to be coming from higher up somewhere.

[schnuth]

There is a Buybacks here that has had some crazy prices on classic games, but nothing quite like that. Amazing!

[RASK1904]

games 1$. stickers 0.0001$. free word of mouth that Buybacks buys and sells retro videogames, priceless.

Bad publicity is good publicity

Here ya go:
Buybacks, Buybacks, Buybacks, Buybacks....

[Buapo]

They still only pay a maximum of $1 for any games that are traded in. I feel bad for people that really think that's their only option. Then again, that's how I end up snagging games for a good deal.

[ryborg]

Hahaha, that is awesome. I've never heard of Buybacks before. Is it a regional thing?

[Steve W]

I've got a factory sealed copy of Golf. I wonder how much they'd give me for that one?

[Lanzo]

We have a few buybacks around here and yeah, most of the time there prices are just bogus, on games that is. At one point they actually had a Super Mario 64 cart priced at $100, and rumor has it that they actually sold it. The cart is not there anymore so who knows. I did buy a complete copy of streets of rage 3 for like $30 one time. I also saw a turtles IV snes cart for $37 (which is high). I stick to buybacks mostly for dvd's and blu rays.

[DuckTalesNES]

http://www.yourbuybacks.com/

The best part, from the FAQ (at http://www.yourbuybacks.com/faq.html )

"Q: How do you determine your sales prices and buy back offers?
A: Our state of the art computer system searches a variety of internet sources to determine the real-time value of everything we see, so that you always get what your items are worth when you sell, and never pay more than they are when you buy!"

[Buapo]

I've got a factory sealed copy of Golf. I wonder how much they'd give me for that one?

One dollar. Maybe.


At one point they actually had a Super Mario 64 cart priced at $100, and rumor has it that they actually sold it. The cart is not there anymore so who knows.

They most likely DID sell it, but through Amazon. For a reasonable price. They probably sold it for like $10 or something.


The best part, from the FAQ:

"Q: How do you determine your sales prices and buy back offers?
A: Our state of the art computer system searches a variety of internet sources to determine the real-time value of everything we see, so that you always get what your items are worth when you sell, and never pay more than they are when you buy!"

And... you just made my day. That's hysterical!

[Nebagram]

I like the fact that underneath SMB they have Zelda 2- not the cheapest of games- for $7. :)

[kainemaxwell]

No words can describe this.

[BetaWolf47]

Man, I thought that the people who bought Mario games for $2.99, then sold them for $14.99 were evil. This crap takes the cake.

[joshnickerson]

You should've knocked over a magazine rack on the way out.

[Kitsune Sniper]

Man, I thought that the people who bought Mario games for $2.99, then sold them for $14.99 were evil. This crap takes the cake.

*twirls mustache* BWA HA HA HA HA HA!

*runs off*

[buzz_n64]

Hey, they offer a coupon! http://www.yourbuybacks.com/images/coupon_0161010_thumb_copy.jpg :D It's a deal!

[gum_drops]

I asked about trading in games, and they said the MAXIMUM trade value for ANY classic game is ONE DOLLAR. In many cases, they'll give you less. Totally ludicrous! (they've gone to PLAID!)

What foolishness, I wouldn't bother shopping in that store again.

[c0ldb33r]

they'd need a coupon for like ... $400 off!

[Buapo]

Hmm, that coupon actually ain't half bad!

[eatenbygrues]

I have some Buybacks in my area as well (they used to be called Planet Replay) and their prices vary from awesome to insane.

I bought a copy of Silent Hill for the PS1 (black label complete) for around $12. I came in two weeks later and they had another copy listed at $180. It took me a while to convince the clerk that I had in fact purchased said game for only $12 from that same exact location and he finally pulled it from the shelves.

Another great find was Bioshock 2 (360) for $30 the week it came out. I kind of suspect they got it mixed up with the first game.

Overall I have run into way more good deals in there than I have total insanity, but it does happen.

[diskoboy]

This store is located where???

I happen to have 2 copies of NES Golf. One is boxed with manual! If they wanna give me $200, they can gladly take it off my hands! :) LOL

[Seaquest]

:o GOSH! I almost passed out when I saw the price on golf! That's crazy!

[Buapo]

I went ahead and submitted the Super Mario Bros. picture to Failblog... feel free to give it a high rating. You don't even have to sign in or anything, you just click on the little cheeseburgers.

http://cheezburger.com/View/4078472704

"Reasonable pricing fail"

[armonigann]

You should've knocked over a magazine rack on the way out.

ROFL...I thinkin' the same!

[Flashback2012]

There's a couple of Buybacks stores around here. I rarely go in them as I can find a lot of the same items at GS or other places for the same or lower prices. I've gotten a few deals there, I found a complete Dual Hearts on PS2 for $20 there quite a while back.

One particular memory of that place stands out to me whenever I hear their name. There was a guy who came into my GS quite a bit when I worked there who had a copy of FF7 and he ended up trading it in to the local Buybacks. I think they gave him $15 for it. He came back like a week later, saw they had it priced at like $75 or something and went ballistic. I feel his pain for sure, but at the same time the guy didn't do his research about the game and it's worth. It's not like he wasn't internet-savvy, he was. I guess he was just too lazy. :shameful:

[Buapo]

He should have just looked up completed eBay auctions or something. Would have taken less than five minutes.

Doesn't he know that when you trade stuff in, you only get a small fraction of the item's value? He wouldn't even have to go on the Internet to figure that out.

Anymore, if I really don't want something (like a game, DVD, or music CD) I'll just give it away to a friend who will enjoy it, instead of selling it to one of those places for a few dollars.

[philinchio]

Yeesh...and I thought the video game prices at my local Value Village were high. I'd hate to see the amount Buybacks would price Stadium Events. I'll bet it'd probably be over $10K.

[rimsky82]

As probably already assumed, the high prices are obviously based on condition. I can understand spending a few hundred dollars on a mint, factory-sealed copy of Mario or Zelda. Obviously, shown via the pictures, this is not the case. Trying to sell a used, dirty cart at a collector price is absurd.

I've never been to a Buybacks, but I have purchased from them through Amazon many times. The only problems I've had with them is receiving a Zelda II cart that was gray instead of gold, and the same with OoT. I also received a snes SimCity from them in terrible condition when all of their auctions state condition as "very good".

I have two local stores that sell some retro games. Neither take condition into account, nor do they even bother to clean the carts before putting them on the shelves. The prices are okay, and I don't mind cleaning them myself. But if they're caked in dirt, give me a discount for crying out loud.

It'd be nice to have a store that takes their retro games more seriously.

[Baloo]

You should've knocked over a magazine rack on the way out.

I Lol'd.

Now those are definitely some AWFUL prices, the worst I've heard of. However, the worst I've seen are:

Kolibri (CIB, but beat up) - $130
Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet (Cart Only) - $30
Golgo 13 Top Secret Episode (Cart Only) - $30
Taboo: The Sixth Sense (Cart Only) - $30

The latter 3 were all from one store (Now out of business). Their prices sucked almost all of the time. As for the first price, I saw it in a video game store located in a flea market. They had some rare stuff but the prices were REALLY out of wack. They also had Shining Force III priced at $130. And I saw someone buy it for that price.