The Stupidity of Earthbound

[j_factor]

I could never find a CIB Great Waldo Search for SNES till I checked half.com . For some reason that site always has more copies of that game than anywhere else... bah most people probably prefer to get that game on Sega Genesis instead.

I think most people would prefer not to get that game. :p

[Emperor Megas]

bah most people probably prefer to get that game on Sega Genesis instead.I'd imagine most wouldn't want that game at all. :|

[MyTurnToPlay]

Seems I'm not the only one frustrated by all the Earthbound ebay pricks. But to be honest, I gave up Crapbound several weeks ago. Too many retards on ebay huggin this game's nuts, and I can't be f*cked to deal with them.

I'll be investing in a Super Everdrive at some point, so that'll take care of all this nonsense. Although, I still don't understand why an rpg about a couple of kids d*cking around is so popular. Don't get me wrong though, if I ever come across a cheap copy, expect to see me post it on ebay for an insane price...hahah. Gotta love all the retards that overpay for crap.

[MarioMania]

If I found 3 CIB's..hell I would sell it in a heartbeat

[Edmond Dantes]

What the heck is a Super Everdrive?

You think Earthbound is crap? Eh, your loss.

[Icarus Moonsight]

It's a flashcart for SNES
krikzz.com and stoneagegamer.com

[understatement]

Seems I'm not the only one frustrated by all the Earthbound ebay pricks. But to be honest, I gave up Crapbound several weeks ago. Too many retards on ebay huggin this game's nuts, and I can't be f*cked to deal with them.

I'll be investing in a Super Everdrive at some point, so that'll take care of all this nonsense. Although, I still don't understand why an rpg about a couple of kids d*cking around is so popular. Don't get me wrong though, if I ever come across a cheap copy, expect to see me post it on ebay for an insane price...hahah. Gotta love all the retards that overpay for crap.


So you won’t buy a collectable game for the price it currently goes for ($80) but you will buy a Super Everdrive that‘s $50 more ($130) than the game in question just to emulate it on a SNES when you could emulate it on your PC for free. Talk about overpaying for crap.

[boatofcar]

So you won’t buy a collectable game for the price it currently goes for ($80) but you will buy a Super Everdrive that‘s $50 more ($130) than the game in question just to emulate it on a SNES when you could emulate it on your PC for free. Talk about overpaying for crap.

Don't feed the troll.

[theclaw]

Maybe I'm just old and stupid. I can't see what kind of **** would not agrue Earthbound loose carts overpriced. I can understand CIB, but English cart-only is not that much harder to find than Japanese to warrant this degree of price difference.

We're not talking Saturn games like Mega Man X3, Keio 2, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Magic Knight Rayearth, Deep Fear, etc, where Japan had blatantly larger numbers of copies available.

[Kyle15]

Seems I'm not the only one frustrated by all the Earthbound ebay pricks. But to be honest, I gave up Crapbound several weeks ago. Too many retards on ebay huggin this game's nuts, and I can't be f*cked to deal with them.

What about the Little Samson nard-huggers? Hm? Oh, that's right.....

[Rickstilwell1]

So you won’t buy a collectable game for the price it currently goes for ($80) but you will buy a Super Everdrive that‘s $50 more ($130) than the game in question just to emulate it on a SNES when you could emulate it on your PC for free. Talk about overpaying for crap.

Because it is not emulation, it is running the rom on the actual hardware. That means with most games it runs 100% flawlessly while in crappy PC emulators you deal with slowdown and scrolling issues. Big difference there. Playing off a flash cart is just like playing off the real cartridge. Why else do you think I am selling off all my cart-only games? It's pointless to keep them around just to play them when I am only sentimental about a few hundred complete in boxed games.

[understatement]

Maybe I'm just old and stupid. I can't see what kind of **** would not agrue Earthbound loose carts overpriced. I can understand CIB, but English cart-only is not that much harder to find than Japanese to warrant this degree of price difference.

We're not talking Saturn games like Mega Man X3, Keio 2, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Magic Knight Rayearth, Deep Fear, etc, where Japan had blatantly larger numbers of copies available.

Well, Japan got a rerelease of it about 10 years ago for the GBA. So there are blatantly larger numbers of copies available in Japan in one form or another.


Because it is not emulation, it is running the rom on the actual hardware. That means with most games it runs 100% flawlessly while in crappy PC emulators you deal with slowdown and scrolling issues. Big difference there. Playing off a flash cart is just like playing off the real cartridge. Why else do you think I am selling off all my cart-only games? It's pointless to keep them around just to play them when I am only sentimental about a few hundred complete in boxed games.

I’m not going to argue, for one I don’t know, I don’t use emulators anymore for more than backing up my saves (but they didn't seem all that bad for 16bit games) and two it wasn’t my point to say he should emulate on the PC.

[Icarus Moonsight]

If I may, main point I got was: Owning a cart and playing the game is not necessarily a package deal.

[Rickstilwell1]

If I may, main point I got was: Owning a cart and playing the game is not necessarily a package deal.

Right. I was saying people who are only buying it to play it don't necessarily have to get all worked up about it. The less people who care, the more the price will eventually go down. The reason it's so high right now is because everybody is like ohh I gotta play this game. Take out the casual gamers who only want it to play it from the equation by offering them a device like that and all of a sudden the demand for the collectible original goes down.

Think about it, this website would have many more members posting if there were really enough true collectors out there to drive up the price. People are just buying it to play it because it's not on the Wii VC, and they probably never would have heard of it if Nintendo hadn't openly talked about there being such a game they can't re-release.

[Edmond Dantes]

Ugh.

So I won a copy with the strategy guide, but now the seller is trying to gyp me.

Here's what happened: I sent a message informing him I needed 3-5 days for the money to completely transfer into my Paypal account.

Today he sent me this message:

"I know you said you will pay in 3-5 days but someone gave us a better offer for this item at 170. So I think were going to sell it to him instead, sorry for the inconvenience. If you want to offer us something over 170 then it can be yours "

I'm sending him a response right now telling him that if he does that, he's getting negative feedback and I may even report him. To be honest since he's being a douche I may decide not to buy the game from him and leave him negative feedback anyway. What do you guys think?

[Baloo]

Ugh.

So I won a copy with the strategy guide, but now the seller is trying to gyp me.

Here's what happened: I sent a message informing him I needed 3-5 days for the money to completely transfer into my Paypal account.

Today he sent me this message:

"I know you said you will pay in 3-5 days but someone gave us a better offer for this item at 170. So I think were going to sell it to him instead, sorry for the inconvenience. If you want to offer us something over 170 then it can be yours "

I'm sending him a response right now telling him that if he does that, he's getting negative feedback and I may even report him. To be honest since he's being a douche I may decide not to buy the game from him and leave him negative feedback anyway. What do you guys think?

That seller's an asshole, I'd report him and neg him for behavior like that. Tell him you'll do both if he doesn't sell you the game.

[Edmond Dantes]

Is there any page on eBay I can show him to scare him into submission?

[Icarus Moonsight]

Right. I was saying people who are only buying it to play it don't necessarily have to get all worked up about it. The less people who care, the more the price will eventually go down. The reason it's so high right now is because everybody is like ohh I gotta play this game. Take out the casual gamers who only want it to play it from the equation by offering them a device like that and all of a sudden the demand for the collectible original goes down.

Think about it, this website would have many more members posting if there were really enough true collectors out there to drive up the price. People are just buying it to play it because it's not on the Wii VC, and they probably never would have heard of it if Nintendo hadn't openly talked about there being such a game they can't re-release.

Two problems, awareness of DP and flashcarts for anything other than a DS is a fractionally tiny demographic.

[Edmond Dantes]

I was gonna PM the guy and try to scare him into selling me the game, but unfortunately eBay's policy page is labyrinthine and I can't find the part which outright says "you can't charge more for an item after the auction is won, nor can you sell it to someone other than the auction winner." It doesn't help that I'm on dial-up and everything is so freaking slow. Can anybody help me? I would really appreciate it!

[Icarus Moonsight]

You don't need a doc for that, that's simply common sense. Though, he can claim a lost item. Have the message he sent ready to counter and enforce your neg.

[understatement]

http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/policies.html#completing

"Completing the sale"


If your item sells successfully, complete the sale by contacting your buyer, accepting payment, and shipping the item.
Examples of actions that are not allowed on eBay:

Bidding on your own item or having family members, roommates, or employees bid on your item (this is called shill bidding). Read about our shill bidding policy.

Interfering with another member's transaction. For information and examples, see our transaction interference policy. Accepting payment and sending an item that is significantly different from the item described in the item listing. For more details, read our seller performance standards.

Refusing to accept a buyer's PayPal payment using a credit card when the seller included the PayPal logo in the listing. For more info, see the PayPal payments policy.

Charging buyers an additional fee for their use of ordinary forms of payment including acceptance of checks, money orders, electronic transfers or credit cards. For policy and examples, read our payment surcharges policy.

When something goes wrong, including problems with a buyer, there are options available to you (find out more about resolving selling problems).

[Edmond Dantes]

Okay, as it happened I was able to make payment today. I used an eBay coupon to lower the price so I wouldn't have to wait for the transfer to finish.

So I sent him a message saying he can't price-hike me, and referring to the page Understatement linked. Then I sent him the exact amount that the auction actually agreed on (none of this price-hiking nonsense!)

If I don't have a game and strategy guide in two weeks, or if something turns out to be wrong with them on arrival, then this guy's ass gets reported.

[Jorpho]

Here's what happened: I sent a message informing him I needed 3-5 days for the money to completely transfer into my Paypal account.Um... If for some reason you're dead set against linking a credit card to your Paypal account, why don't you start transferring the money before you think about making a purchase like that?

If you're short on cash, shouldn't you be saving it up instead of spending it on expensive games that you could (as has been established) really emulate just as well without difficulty?

[Zing]

Maybe I'm just old and stupid. I can't see what kind of **** would not agrue Earthbound loose carts overpriced. I can understand CIB, but English cart-only is not that much harder to find than Japanese to warrant this degree of price difference.

Are you suggesting that the raw numerical demand for the English release of the game is equal or lower than the Japanese release?

One thing to keep in mind is that the game was never released in the PAL regions. I suspect that any gamers from those areas would choose the English version over Japanese. The United States alone has double the population of Japan. After factoring in Canada, Britain, and other English-literate European countries, the demand of the English version could be exponentially higher. Earthbound may currently be undervalued.

[Tupin]

It is pretty funny that MOTHER 2 is worth basically nothing compared to EarthBound.

Hopefully it will get re-released at some point...

[theclaw]

Are you suggesting that the raw numerical demand for the English release of the game is equal or lower than the Japanese release?

One thing to keep in mind is that the game was never released in the PAL regions. I suspect that any gamers from those areas would choose the English version over Japanese. The United States alone has double the population of Japan. After factoring in Canada, Britain, and other English-literate European countries, the demand of the English version could be exponentially higher. Earthbound may currently be undervalued.

In that sense sure. Except I was talking about availability rather than demand. The number of copies circulating is what makes me so skeptical.

[Icarus Moonsight]

No demand and high supply makes Seller Jack a poor boy.

[link1110]

Well, Japan got a rerelease of it about 10 years ago for the GBA. So there are blatantly larger numbers of copies available in Japan in one form or another.

I got the GBA version new a few months ago for $30 (and yes, I can read it.) :P

[Edmond Dantes]

Good news. Luckily, the seller I talked to wasn't a crook... just an idiot. He honestly didn't know the rules, and when explained he was quite amicable. He even upgraded me to one-day shipping.

So, I am now the happy owner of Earthbound + strategy guide (water-damaged, but complete--it even has the scratch n' sniff cards) once again!

All I need now is the box and I will be one happy camper!

[MarioMania]

Didn't Earthbound freeze at the end of the game on a SNES emulator??

[Edmond Dantes]

I've read that it does, but I've never played it emulated.

[ishashobar]

I think it only freezes if the games anti-piracy is enabled. The thing also made the game near impossible if activated. I'm pretty sure most modern emulators have coded around this though.

[Nes]

DigitPress lists the item as an R5 which I find kind of surprising for a first party release; especially one I see for sale all the live long day.

[Famidrive-16]

I think it only freezes if the games anti-piracy is enabled. The thing also made the game near impossible if activated. I'm pretty sure most modern emulators have coded around this though.

From what I understand (haven't read up on emulation happenings in a while) the more-circulated ROM dumps of this game fixed the anti-piracy features so they don't occur on emulators unless you mess around in the coding. It's more likely to occur if you play an actual bootleg cart of the game.

For anyone that doesn't know, more info about the game's piracy tricks are here:
http://starmen.net/mother2/gameinfo/antipiracy/

[xelement5x]

From what I understand (haven't read up on emulation happenings in a while) the more-circulated ROM dumps of this game fixed the anti-piracy features so they don't occur on emulators unless you mess around in the coding. It's more likely to occur if you play an actual bootleg cart of the game.

For anyone that doesn't know, more info about the game's piracy tricks are here:
http://starmen.net/mother2/gameinfo/antipiracy/

So does this mean that it's basically impossible to make a repro of Earthbound if you wanted to play it without paying over $100?

[Informationator]

I'm an admin over on the reddit gamecollecting community and our members LOVE Earthbound.

...I don't think most of them are under any misconception that it's rare, however. Acknowledging supply and demand and subsequently giving into it vs. mindlessly overpaying are two completely different things.

People like it becuase it's fun, it's quirky, it's memorable, and perhaps because owning it is somewhat of a status symbol. Is it worth $120? Yes, because that's what people are willing to pay for it. ...in the same way that a crappy Madden game is worth 99¢.

...$120 and 99¢ are not the original MSRPs of either of those games. The only real standard I can think to compare modern day prices to is original MSRP, and I don't see anyone arguing that SNES Madden games should cost $30-50.

At the end of the day, games are worth whatever people are paying for them, and if they keep being sold on eBay for $120, then the people have spoken; it's currently worth $120.

Most collectors are cheapskates (hey, I'm a deal-hunter myself), and I see the whole complaining-about-earthbound thing as the unfullfilled desire of a collector to get a "deal", seeing the wide disparity between what most SNES games cost and what Earthbound currently costs.

[SNESAustin]

I will never forget finding Earthbound for 40 dollars three years ago at my local Game Xchange. when I bought it the manager asked me if I wanted the guide for an extra 25!!!

What a deal!!!

Still, I feel for people who have not secured their copy of this wonderful game. If you can find it reasonably priced, also get the guide. It is full of wonderful tidbits of information, and acts as a tourists guide to the places you will visit in the game.

You will not regret it!!!

[SNESAustin]

I will never forget finding my copy of Earthbound for 40 dollars at my local Game Xchange. After the manager sold me the game, she informed me that she also had a guide for it, and would include it in the sale for 25 dollars! It waas one of my first games after my SNES rebirth.

What a Deal!!!

I feel for people who have not located a copy of this wonderful game. If you can find one at a reasonable price, you should get the NP Players guide as well. It almost acts a a tourist pamphlet of the areas you will visit in the game

[MyTurnToPlay]

LOVE Earthbound.

...I don't think most of them are under any misconception that it's rare, however. Acknowledging supply and demand and subsequently giving into it vs. mindlessly overpaying are two completely different things.

People like it becuase it's fun, it's quirky, it's memorable, and perhaps because owning it is somewhat of a status symbol. Is it worth $120? Yes, because that's what people are willing to pay for it. ...in the same way that a crappy Madden game is worth 99¢.

...$120 and 99¢ are not the original MSRPs of either of those games. The only real standard I can think to compare modern day prices to is original MSRP, and I don't see anyone arguing that SNES Madden games should cost $30-50.

At the end of the day, games are worth whatever people are paying for them, and if they keep being sold on eBay for $120, then the people have spoken; it's currently worth $120.



No disrespect, but your post is absolutely retarded.

Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon. Where are you getting this nonsense from?!? Stupid people determine prices, smart people suffer the consequences of their stupidity. You have a hyped up mediocre game called Earthbound jacked up in price because gullible idiot pricks keep purchasing it at stupid prices. Look at all the "buy it now"s on ebay. There's multiple copies of this game and yet I have to $120 to buy this piece of crap? No. I say No to that. And if your community members would wise up, they wouldn't pay anything over $40 for it.

And what's even more retarded is that you have all these youtube channels reviewing and praising the game like Zeus himself made it. It only adds fuel to moronic hype surrounding this game.

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, anyone who paid over $40 for cart alone is idiot.

thank you.

[JSoup]

When eBay was new, my families old store sold off a copy of Earthbound for however much it was going for at the time. The cartridge was slightly damaged, having a few scuffs here and there. A month later, a guy comes in to try to trade in a copy of Earthbound. We made the exchange, he left, and then noticed...that it was the same copy we sold on eBay a month before hand.

This exact scenario happened five more times, in a row I might add, before that same cartridge never returned.

Collectors are a strange breed of people (and I say that with a large amount of love in my voice).


Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon. Where are you getting this nonsense from?!? Stupid people determine prices, smart people suffer the consequences of their stupidity.

First you say people don't determine the price, then admit that people do. :shameful:

[jonebone]

No disrespect, but your post is absolutely retarded.

Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon. Where are you getting this nonsense from?!? Stupid people determine prices, smart people suffer the consequences of their stupidity. You have a hyped up mediocre game called Earthbound jacked up in price because gullible idiot pricks keep purchasing it at stupid prices. Look at all the "buy it now"s on ebay. There's multiple copies of this game and yet I have to $120 to buy this piece of crap? No. I say No to that. And if your community members would wise up, they wouldn't pay anything over $40 for it.

And what's even more retarded is that you have all these youtube channels reviewing and praising the game like Zeus himself made it. It only adds fuel to moronic hype surrounding this game.

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, anyone who paid over $40 for cart alone is idiot.

thank you.

So if a person pays $50 for it and sells it for $120, they are an idiot? Man if idiots can make money like that, then what does that make yourself? You're trolling too hard by the way, get a life, or get a book and read up on simple supply and demand economics. Knowledge is power, stupid rants like that just make yourself look jealous and uneducated.

[SeverThe7th]

MyTurnToPlay, you cannot obtain the game you desire to aquire for a cheap price, yet you wish to drive up the price of other copies or obtain one and milk every drop of cash from one. This is called being a hypocrite. Learn.

Life, I believe, has a way of showing us our hyprocritical tendencies so that we may extricate them from our being. Effectively, you are just becoming aggrivated at your own nature if the conditions of your existence played out differently. I have been there and done that. The best thing you can do for yourself is recognize the contradictory nature of your intentions. This has far more value than any materialistic endeavour. If you do end up obtaining one for cheap why not sell it for cheap or a reasonable price instead of taking advantage of the hysterical attitudes of others. Who knows, others may follow suit.

One man may be smarter or more reasonable than another man or maybe two men. But he is not so than an entire community of beings. If he believes so, than he is blinded by arrogance or some other malignant abnormality within his being.

If you choose to ignore peoples messages to you, you are doing yourself a disservice.

Thank you.

Edit: Oh, and two last departing words. Majority rule. As cruel as that my seem, thems the breakz, deal with it.

[Icarus Moonsight]

Wow, your menses are really irregular.

[Informationator]

Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon. Where are you getting this nonsense from?!?

Something something capitalism.

[understatement]

No disrespect, but your post is absolutely retarded.

Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon. Where are you getting this nonsense from?!? Stupid people determine prices, smart people suffer the consequences of their stupidity. You have a hyped up mediocre game called Earthbound jacked up in price because gullible idiot pricks keep purchasing it at stupid prices. Look at all the "buy it now"s on ebay. There's multiple copies of this game and yet I have to $120 to buy this piece of crap? No. I say No to that. And if your community members would wise up, they wouldn't pay anything over $40 for it.

And what's even more retarded is that you have all these youtube channels reviewing and praising the game like Zeus himself made it. It only adds fuel to moronic hype surrounding this game.

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, anyone who paid over $40 for cart alone is idiot.

thank you.


As much as I want to call you an idiot for outright denying supply and demand.

I do like the logic, I mean who wouldn’t?

With this hair brained logic Stadium Events would only be $40, CIB would be what like $60?

Hell, Nintendo World Championships carts where given away so they would be free right? Well, maybe give the person what Nintendo paid to make the cart what like $5 that’s fair right?

[Gameguy]

DigitPress lists the item as an R5 which I find kind of surprising for a first party release; especially one I see for sale all the live long day.
The guide must have been changed recently, it used to be rated lower than that along with a lower price.

[Informationator]

The guide must have been changed recently, it used to be rated lower than that along with a lower price.
R5? I wonder what spurred the change. I think the original rating of R2 is more appropriate. ...maybe R3, but not R5. It is all over the place.

[old_skoolin_jim]

Isn't Earthbound the only popular SNES game left that is not on another console?

Example you have Secret of Mana, Harvest Moon, and Breath of Fire 2 on the Virtual Console. Other titles as well.

Chrono Trigger found its way to the PS1 and DS and Virtual console soon.

Mega Man X games are on the X collection.

This.
More ways to play = less valuable originals.
See: every other game that's been re-released at least once on a newer system.
*Edit*Fun Fact: I got my loose copy for $5 at a flea market in 2007. :)

[BlastProcessing402]

Something something capitalism.

something something basic economics something supply demand something something

[Edmond Dantes]

I'm sorry, but in my opinion, anyone who paid over $40 for cart alone is idiot.

I payed something like $140 for the cart and strategy guide. Since that's not the cart alone, am I an idiot or not?

I'm happy either way :)

[RP2A03]

I declare that this thread is made of butter and is worth 2k monies.



Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon. Where are you getting this nonsense from?!?

Once again, this is how free markets work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_IYuBnjSZo

[Icarus Moonsight]

Def def def def def def def def def def
http://i700.photobucket.com/albums/ww1/elkrisp/Wrestling/dx_03.gif

[JSoup]

Def def def def def def def def def def
http://i700.photobucket.com/albums/ww1/elkrisp/Wrestling/dx_03.gif

That image synced up with the music I'm listening to in a way that was so specific I was startled for a moment. 0_0

[Gameguy]

R5? I wonder what spurred the change. I think the original rating of R2 is more appropriate. ...maybe R3, but not R5. It is all over the place.
Maybe an R4 would be more appropriate, I do see lots for sale but that's mostly online. I hardly see copies of the game anywhere else, even in game stores to be marked up over $100. I see the Final Fantasies, Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, and other RPGs turn up in game stores but not Earthbound. Earthbound does seem to turn up more often than other R5s though, how many people seem to find copies of Earthbound in the finds thread compared to Dracula X for the SNES or Snatcher.


Why does everyone accept the "people determine prices" bullcrap like it's canon.
He has a point, it makes more sense to determine prices by using a random number generator. Total randomness is more fun.

[BlastProcessing402]

That image synced up with the music I'm listening to in a way that was so specific I was startled for a moment. 0_0

http://i.imgur.com/8YhTs.gif

[Griking]

It's important to keep in mind that ebay prices don't reflect actual value. Neither do the prices on the amazon marketplace, for that matter. It does, however reflect what people ate willing to pay.

Isn't what someone is willing to pay pretty much the definition of value? And I find eBay prices to be the standard. Every thrift store, pawn shop, antique shop, individually owned game shop, etc.. I've seen bases their prices on eBay. Casual customers walking into these shops may not be willing to pay these prices but the only reason that a shop owner would be willing to sell a game like Earthbound for less than $100 is because they're either the rare dealer that either don't know how much it will sell for on eBay or they do know but just want the quick cash. Lets be honest, when you go to a tag sale and find a game that you believe to be rare one of the first things that most people will do when they get home (if they didin't already do it from their phone while on the road) is to check to see what it's going for on eBay.

[Icarus Moonsight]

http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z230/Acidic_Pain/Photo_00002.jpg

[j_factor]

Marx's labor theory of value, which is actually influential far beyond communism, doesn't apply to used goods. Just saying. :p