What is, generally speaking, more valuable: Atari 2600 games or NES games?

[treismac]

I'm curious to know what system's games on average are more valuable on the market? Using a baseball card analogy, let us assume that you round up twenty or so "common" NES games and twenty or so "common" 2600 games. What would fetch more? If you wanna include "rarer" games into the equation, that is fine as well.

I have a pretty good idea about the market of NES games because it has been the primary focus of my retro video game collecting for some time. The 2600, on the other hand, I am clueless about, seeing as I have only purchased two 2600 games in my entire life- my collection of 150+ games was given to me by my dad (100+) and my friend (50+). I've gone to http://videogames.pricecharting.com and discovered that I have a handful of valuable games, but it seems to me that on average NES games are worth more. Am I off, right on, or am I comparing apples to oranges?

Thanks!

[VertigoProcess]

Well I believe there are a lot more 2600 games then there are nes games so that would also increase the amount of 2600 commons... and im not 100% on this but the high tear of 2600 games is more valuable as well. The most expensive 2600 game sold was for like 32k while I believe the highest nes game sold was no higher then 20k. And going along that line of thought I also believe there is a higher number of 2600 titles out there that are valued in the thousands...

[treismac]

Well I believe there are a lot more 2600 games then there are nes games so that would also increase the amount of 2600 commons... and im not 100% on this but the high tear of 2600 games is more valuable as well. The most expensive 2600 game sold was for like 32k while I believe the highest nes game sold was no higher then 20k. And going along that line of thought I also believe there is a higher number of 2600 titles out there that are valued in the thousands...

The site could be way off, but here are the top 5 priciest 2600 games according to videogames.pricecharting.com:

Air Raid $3575.00
Star Wars Ewok Adventure Prototype $1680.55
Mangia $1500.00
Lochjaw $999.99
Berenstain Bears $599.99

Compare to the top 5 NES games:

Nintendo Campus Challenge 1991 $20100.00
Nintendo World Championship Gold $18000.00
Nintendo World Championship $11500.00
Family Fun Fitness Stadium Events $2125.00
Peek-a-Boo Poker $1399.99

According to this, the most valuable NES games are worth more than the most valuable 2600 games. Of course, I have no idea what these are actually going for on eBay, which pretty much sets the standard as far as I can tell. What 2600 game sold for 32k, by the way?

I am more interested in the "average" 2600 and NES game's price than the upper tier games. Honestly, I'd like to hear from someone who has expertise in buying (and, selling) games for both systems. While I am no expert, I have bought enough NES games off eBay, online, craigslist, flea markets, garage sales, vintage stores, etc. to feel like I have a decent feel for that market. I want someone with knowledge in collecting (and selling) both systems to weigh in. Of course, beggars can't be choosers, so I appreciate your input, VP, regardless of how many 2600 or NES games you've bought (or sold)! ;)

[jonebone]

NES... I'll let everyone else give their explanations as to why.

[Rickstilwell1]

The site could be way off, but here are the top 5 priciest 2600 games according to videogames.pricecharting.com:

Air Raid $3575.00
Star Wars Ewok Adventure Prototype $1680.55
Mangia $1500.00
Lochjaw $999.99
Berenstain Bears $599.99

Compare to the top 5 NES games:

Nintendo Campus Challenge 1991 $20100.00
Nintendo World Championship Gold $18000.00
Nintendo World Championship $11500.00
Family Fun Fitness Stadium Events $2125.00
Peek-a-Boo Poker $1399.99

According to this, the most valuable NES games are worth more than the most valuable 2600 games. Of course, I have no idea what these are actually going for on eBay, which pretty much sets the standard as far as I can tell. What 2600 game sold for 32k, by the way?

I am more interested in the "average" 2600 and NES game's price than the upper tier games. Honestly, I'd like to hear from someone who has expertise in buying (and, selling) games for both systems. While I am no expert, I have bought enough NES games off eBay, online, craigslist, flea markets, garage sales, vintage stores, etc. to feel like I have a decent feel for that market. I want someone with knowledge in collecting (and selling) both systems to weigh in. Of course, beggars can't be choosers, so I appreciate your input, VP, regardless of how many 2600 or NES games you've bought (or sold)! ;)

That was Air Raid. And wasn't it a boxed copy? Another thing to consider is that you have to determine whether these values are for complete boxed copies or loose copies. Sometimes the only thing that is rare is the box. Kirby games on SNES run around the $20-$30 value but complete they run around $70-$100. Big diffference in value all because of the box. You can get PAL stadium events cartridges cheap, but US complete in box ones are a goldmine.

[VertigoProcess]

The site could be way off, but here are the top 5 priciest 2600 games according to videogames.pricecharting.com:

Air Raid $3575.00
Star Wars Ewok Adventure Prototype$1680.55
Mangia $1500.00
Lochjaw $999.99
Berenstain Bears $599.99

Compare to the top 5 NES games:

Nintendo Campus Challenge 1991 $20100.00
Nintendo World Championship Gold$18000.00
Nintendo World Championship $11500.00
Family Fun Fitness Stadium Events$2125.00
Peek-a-Boo Poker $1399.99

According to this, the most valuable NES games are worth more than the most valuable 2600 games. Of course, I have no idea what these are actually going for on eBay, which pretty much sets the standard as far as I can tell. What 2600 game sold for 32k, by the way?

I am more interested in the "average" 2600 and NES game's price than the upper tier games. Honestly, I'd like to hear from someone who has expertise in buying (and, selling) games for both systems. While I am no expert, I have bought enough NES games off eBay, online, craigslist, flea markets, garage sales, vintage stores, etc. to feel like I have a decent feel for that market. I want someone with knowledge in collecting (and selling) both systems to weigh in. Of course, beggars can't be choosers, so I appreciate your input, VP, regardless of how many 2600 or NES games you've bought (or sold)! ;)

I was more getting at the fact that the high tear of nes games are mostly special events carts. But I failed to mention that at all for some reason... but yeah I am not expert in buying games, Im a mostly a hardware collector after all

[tom]

Hasn't this be done to death?

Air Raid boxed for VCS sold for 32K to Wonder007
the NES Stadium Events was going to sell for 40+, but it didn't in the end.

total games on VCS: ~530
NES: ~700

Many NES and VCS games can be had on ebay US for $1 or less, cib of course it's a different story.
Actually, I can see more cheap NES carts on ebay than VCS games.

videogames.pricecharting.com is way wrong, I mean Swordquest Airworld, a game which doesn't exist, sold for $5? Sure....
And they dont even include Birthday Mania, Red Sea Crossing, Atari 16 in 1, PictureMate, SongMate, Gamma-Attack etc...those games were all officially released.

[treismac]

NES... I'll let everyone else give their explanations as to why.

Hehe... I hear you, I hear you.

Let me set forth a theory in the hopes that someone will see the flaws in it, and give us a better one. Seeing as supply and demand dictates market price, I figure that there isn't much demand for too many 2600 games because of how little "fun" a great deal of them actually are to play. Aside from a few outstanding games, most 2600 games are varying degrees of "meh." That is my personal opinion, but I believe that it is representative of a sizable enough chunk of the retro gaming demographic to assert it. NES games, even the weaker titles, are generally more playable and have more depth and thus more replay value than the lion's share of 2600 games that are largely forgettable. Of course, the NES had tons of dross, but it was more playable dross.

Another aspect of demand that has an impact on the market is that there are probably (really unsure about this) more collectors of NES games than the 2600. I am guessing this by what I see on forums, fan pages, youtube videos, and ebay. I'm speculating that the number of people collecting NES to Atari 2600 are perhaps 10 to 1. Seeing as more people give a damn about the NES as a whole, all of the games are elevated in their value as a result.

I'm not going to bother quantifying the monetary value gap between the two system's games. I suppose if I was hard pressed to pull a number out of my arse, I'd say that there is roughly a $3-5 difference between the average NES game and the average 2600 game. Once again, I just throw this "theory" out there so someone less clueless than me will correct it.

So there are some of my thoughts on the matter.

[treismac]

videogames.pricecharting.com is way wrong, I mean Swordquest Airworld, a game which doesn't exist, sold for $5? Sure....
And they dont even include Birthday Mania, Red Sea Crossing, Atari 16 in 1, PictureMate, SongMate, Gamma-Attack etc...those games were all officially released.

Thanks for pointing that out, tom. Are these hiccups in their guide or do you think that it is all around rubbish?

[tom]

Hehe... I hear you, I hear you.

Let me set forth a theory in the hopes that someone will see the flaws in it, and give us a better one. Seeing as supply and demand dictates market price, I figure that there isn't much demand for too many 2600 games because of how little "fun" a great deal of them actually are to play. Aside from a few outstanding games, most 2600 games are varying degrees of "meh." That is my personal opinion, but I believe that it is representative of a sizable enough chunk of the retro gaming demographic to assert it. NES games, even the weaker titles, are generally more playable and have more depth and thus more replay value than the lion's share of 2600 games that are largely forgettable. Of course, the NES had tons of dross, but it was more playable dross.



I was talking to a NES player some years ago. He said he loved the NES games, mainly being Mario, Duck Hunt, Zelda, Metroid, Castlevania plus a little more. The ones he owned. He said his mother always rented NES games from Blockbusters, they were inserted into the NES, with 5 minutes of gameplay deciding they were 'meh' only to be put back on the kitchen table to be returned the next day, and back we went to playing Mario, Zelda etc....

[tom]

Thanks for pointing that out, tom. Are these hiccups in their guide or do you think that it is all around rubbish?

I see some more VCS games on that list which don't exist, I can't be bothered to go through all their lists, probably the same there.

Ah, just seen Gamma-Attack on their list, obviously they are looking at the repro sometimes sold on ebay.

[Bojay1997]

I'm curious to know what system's games on average are more valuable on the market? Using a baseball card analogy, let us assume that you round up twenty or so "common" NES games and twenty or so "common" 2600 games. What would fetch more? If you wanna include "rarer" games into the equation, that is fine as well.

I have a pretty good idea about the market of NES games because it has been the primary focus of my retro video game collecting for some time. The 2600, on the other hand, I am clueless about, seeing as I have only purchased two 2600 games in my entire life- my collection of 150+ games was given to me by my dad (100+) and my friend (50+). I've gone to http://videogames.pricecharting.com and discovered that I have a handful of valuable games, but it seems to me that on average NES games are worth more. Am I off, right on, or am I comparing apples to oranges?

Thanks!

It all depends on the game and the condition. Given your example of common vs. common, I think if you walk into a thrift, they will probably price NES games at $5 while I still see 2600 stuff at $1, but to most collectors who collect both, I don't think there is much difference in the value of the two. NES sealed and mint stuff seems much more valuable right now, but as has been discussed many times here and elsewhere, it may have a lot to do with the relative age of the collectors involved and the fact that the NES generation is hitting their pre-marriage/family earning peak so they have lots of disposable income to overspend on stuff.

[Cornelius]

In my experience with regaurd to the common vs. common comparison NES wins hands down. There are lots of good common NES games like SMB2/3, Contra, Castlevania, Tetris, etc, that are worth selling on their own on eBay. For the VCS, well, even good games (Pitfall, Donkey Kong, Combat) don't usually go for enough to justify selling on their own. Mario Bros. is about the only that comes to mind that is common and worth a bit on its own. Maybe I'm inadvertently cherry picking because I have less experience with VCS games, but that's how I'd call it based on my overall experience with both.

[treismac]

I was talking to a NES player some years ago. He said he loved the NES games, mainly being Mario, Duck Hunt, Zelda, Metroid, Castlevania plus a little more. The ones he owned. He said his mother always rented NES games from Blockbusters, they were inserted into the NES, with 5 minutes of gameplay deciding they were 'meh' only to be put back on the kitchen table to be returned the next day, and back we went to playing Mario, Zelda etc....

NES certainly has 'meh,' but it is more playable 'meh' than the 2600 with more depth. With that said, my 2600 collection was received rather than thoughtfully compiled like my NES collection. Perhaps if my 2600 collection that I received was comprised of hand-picked games by a "retro" collector, who had the benefit of the internet, hindsight, and emulation, my 2600 collection would be as kick ass as my NES collection.

[BlastProcessing402]

The range of valuable to worthless 2600 games and the range of valuable to worthless NES games is both going to be a very wide range and there's going to be much more difference there than there's going to be between the average 2600 game and the average NES game.

[Atarileaf]

I think the NES brings in the bigger dollars for the top end of games. Interesting when I look at the list above that the top 3 rarest and most valuable NES games are games specifically made for "events" or contests and not commercial releases.

[sixxgunner81]

List 50 NES games and 50 Atari games on eBay - each being of the same "value."

See which ones sell faster :)

[treismac]

List 50 NES games and 50 Atari games on eBay - each being of the same "value."

See which ones sell faster :)

I'm wagering the NES ones.

[Zing]

This seems like a trick question. Even NES commons are worth at least double the good 2600 commons.

[jb143]

I know of at least 2 used games stores in the area that have a deal of Atari 2600 games $1 each or 11 for $10. These include most of the common well known and well loved games. Sure, there are a few rare/valuable games not part of that deal but probably 99% are only a buck. The only NES games listed at that price are aweful games or SMB/DuckHunt. The rest of the common NES games are all over the place from $3 to $15 generally speaking.

[tom]

Here's the US ebay auction NES games $1 or even less or approx $2 - 3

http://www.ebay.com/sch/Games-/139973/i.html?Platform=Nintendo%2520NES&_trkparms=65%253A15%257C66%253A2%257C39%253A1&rt=nc&_dmd=1&_dmpt=Video_Games_Games&_ipg=200&_sc=1&_sop=15&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14.l1514&_vc=1

Here's the Atari VCS section on ebay US:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/Games-/139973/i.html?LH_BIN=1&_pppn=v3&_dmd=1&_dmpt=Video_Games_Games&_fln=1&_ipg=200&_sc=1&_sop=15&_ssov=1&_trksid=p3286.c0.m1539&_vc=1&Platform=Atari%25202600

Basically the same, lots of carts only for $1 or less, or $2 - 3.

Of course there's plenty more cheap NES carts on ebay than VCS, due to the amount of NES carts in the USA, so in the end there's also more dearer NES carts on ebay than VCSs.

[Buyatari]

If you found a random batch of atari and a random batch with the same number of NES the NES will bring more money and be easier to sell. Of course you could get lucky and hit a really expensive Atari game but generally speaking NES will trump 2600. There are some really expensive Atari games but man you will never find those. They are very rare. Lots of common or semi common NES have a decent value and this is not so for Atari.

[BydoEmpire]

Around here, I see 2600 (and other pre-crash stuff) being blown out for $1 pretty frequently - even mildly rare titles; whereas NES games are usually $3 and up, mostly $5 and up. I'm seeing that - on average - NES games are bringing in more. That said, I see a lot fewer 2600 games out there than I used to, so there just aren't as many around.

[The 1 2 P]

In my area the 2600 has a very small, almost non-existant market. But the Nes is so popular that people are sometimes willing to pay insane prices for commons. This isn't really a fair comparison. You'd have to pick another popular system with many indemand games. In terms of this thread you could take half of the Nes games ever made and they'd still be more valuable than the entire 2600 library.