Finally, a 5 year search ends. My final SNES item acquired; one of the rarest around!

[Steven]

Man, I've been collecting CIB SNES games since 2007. I've only seen this game "3 Ninjas Kick Back" CIB on eBay like twice... maybe 3x in the past five years. (I searched just about everyday, too). In case you didn't know, the box and manual for this title is infamous for its extremely high rarity level. It's definitely up there in the top 5, maybe top 3 hardest to find SNES boxes/manuals list. Late last year I won the manual (mint). I snatched it up quick, knowing I was halfway there. (Sometimes it's just easier, and cheaper, to piece a CIB one by one). Now I just needed the box....

Found a seller who was offering the box for an insane price, but I managed to bring him down to a more "reasonable" price. He agreed and the box arrived yesterday :D

As for the game itself, I beat it last year and actually find it to be somewhat underrated. Not a gem by ANY stretch of the imagination, but quite fun and certainly playable. It's a little challenging, which also makes it rewarding when you finally beat the game. Two bosses took me down to my final health box. Game's music is right out of the movie. Kinda catchy...

I especially like the back of the box. Nice design. Love the big pic of the final boss upper right hand corner. The manual has some nice colorful descriptions. All this plus the fact that I actually like the game... added more fuel to the fire to buy the box and complete the 3 Ninjas saga, as well as my SNES collection.

Time for some pics!

http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o139/SFCGamer/3nkbmanny003.jpg

http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o139/SFCGamer/3NinCIB.jpg

http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o139/SFCGamer/3NinBack.jpg
Actually not a bad little game. YMMV, but I certainly enjoyed it

[jonebone]

Congrats, I've always wanted this one CIB as well, but not willing to pay the market price on it. I remember when Wrldstrman won his copy around $150 at open auction maybe 2 years ago at this point? He said he sniped around $1,000 and people told him he was crazy. Then this game just took off quickly, and it hardly ever appears...

[BetaWolf47]

Congrats on getting your final item. I'd just like to find Mega Man X2, X3, and Final Fight 3 loose in the wild...

[8bitgamer]

Congrats--great accomplishment!

[Parodius Duh!]

wow, no idea this was rare, my cousin has a boxed (might have manual) copy in his collection that I could probably get off of him!!!! @_@



Congrats on your accomplishment! thats very cool! and thanks for the info!!!!!

[VideoGameRescue]

I had no idea how rare that manual is and I'll keep an eye open for it now =]

[old_skoolin_jim]

Congrats on getting your final item. I'd just like to find Mega Man X2, X3, and Final Fight 3 loose in the wild...

Is MMX2 reallty that hard to come across? I remember the video store(s) in my hometown all had 2 copies, and I've come across it at used game shops and flea markets a couple of times... Maybe I just lived in an X2-centric part of the world?
I got my copy (which I recently sold for over $40) for all of $6.99 with box, from one of said video stores back in 1999. :D

Congrats to OP on his score!

[Rickstilwell1]

How long did it take you to find the box and manual for Mr. Nutz? I've never seen it; not even once and I looked all last year for it never to be found. I ended up settling for a CIB PAL copy because of this.

[Steven]

Congrats, I've always wanted this one CIB as well, but not willing to pay the market price on it. I remember when Wrldstrman won his copy around $150 at open auction maybe 2 years ago at this point? He said he sniped around $1,000 and people told him he was crazy. Then this game just took off quickly, and it hardly ever appears...

Yeah, I remember trying to snipe that auction with a max bid of like $100. I was a bit shocked at the time when it ended at $154. After that, pricing for 3NKB CIB soared through the roof. A mint complete copy would probably garner 1K in the open market currently.



Congrats on getting your final item. I'd just like to find Mega Man X2, X3, and Final Fight 3 loose in the wild...

Good luck. I lucked out finding MMX2 at a Game Crazy back in early 2006 before Game Crazy went down the toilet (they literally did like two months after I purchased MMX2). Still one of my favorite finds in the wild :)

http://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1010115/IMG_0153.JPG

http://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1010115/IMG_0088.JPG

http://www.rvgfanatic.com/mediac/400_0/media/DIR_1010115/IMG_0089.JPG

I was so surprised to see MMX2 mint lying there in their glass case. When Tony rang me up, he looked long and hard at the game, saying, "Huh... this one is 10 bucks. Must be one of the harder to find SNES games..." Not surprisingly, the next time I visited, their SNES selection suddenly became crap (any remotely decent game was gone)



wow, no idea this was rare, my cousin has a boxed (might have manual) copy in his collection that I could probably get off of him!!!! @_@

Nice! If the box is in good condition, you could easily get $400 for it. Probably $500+... put it on eBay at 99 cents and watch it shoot up



How long did it take you to find the box and manual for Mr. Nutz? I've never seen it; not even once and I looked all last year for it never to be found. I ended up settling for a CIB PAL copy because of this.

I lucked out with this one. Got the manual in a massive manual lot eBay win circa 2006.
Then, in 2010, I saw Mr. Nutz game with mint box for $29 BIN. Needless to say, I quickly jumped all over that.
I haven't seen many Mr. Nutz manuals/boxes over the years. It is one of the harder ones to find as well. Though nowhere near 3NKB rarity or cost.

[Griking]

I wasn't aware that this was rare or valuable either.

I purchased a lot of about 100-200 SNES boxes and manuals a few years ago and it turns out that I have this.

Perhaps its time to look through that box and see what else I have.

[sloan]

To the OP: Now that you have finished your SNES collection, where do you go from here? To Disneyworld? I have always wondered what collectors do when they finish a collection. Go out to Hooters and buy drinks all around? To me, it would take the thrill out to finally complete a collection. Thankfully, I have so many left to complete.

[Ryudo]

I just want a CIB Hagane on SNES. Yeah will never happen

[Rickstilwell1]

When a collector finishes a collection, a flashback of an episode of Doug occurs. Mr. Bone flips the chalkboard and says "now you can do the other side! hahahahahahaha!" And then you just start collecting imports for that system.

[o.pwuaioc]

Yeah, but is the game any good?

jk.

Awesome find; I personally could never pay that much for a box and manual of an SNES game, but man, it must feel good to finally have it!

[Steven]

To the OP: Now that you have finished your SNES collection, where do you go from here? To Disneyworld? I have always wondered what collectors do when they finish a collection. Go out to Hooters and buy drinks all around? To me, it would take the thrill out to finally complete a collection. Thankfully, I have so many left to complete.

Well, I plan to do what I've been doing the last six-plus years... continuing to play through my SNES library game by game. I still have a TON to go through, so that will keep me busy for years to come. Another goal is to get a 2-player 3NKB game going. I gotta try it with a friend... especially since it was the last item I needed to finish my collection it's only appropriate that I toast this feat by playing the actual game with a friend. I liked it 1-player and managed to beat it after quite a few tries, so I'm sure I'd enjoy it a bit more in 2 player mode and all the benefits that come with having an extra hand.



When a collector finishes a collection, a flashback of an episode of Doug occurs. Mr. Bone flips the chalkboard and says "now you can do the other side! hahahahahahaha!" And then you just start collecting imports for that system.

You, sir, get bonus brownie points for pulling a Doug reference ;)
I always loved that cartoon. It was the cartoon version of The Wonder Years.

edit: Griking, if so, I know a couple guys who would probably pay an arm and leg for it. Put it on eBay and watch it jump like crazy

[8-bit-dreams]

wow. Congrats sir! would definitely want to take a peek at your complete snes collection sometime. that is a fortune indeed

[PROTOTYPE]

Sorry, but this is bogus. Its not complete if it didn't come all together at one time. So, start over. ha. ha. just kidding. I know what it is to finally get that game you waiting on, its a great feeling.

[Captain Burrito]

Man, I've been collecting CIB SNES games since 2007. I've only seen this game "3 Ninjas Kick Back" CIB on eBay like twice... maybe 3x in the past five years. (I searched just about everyday, too).



Did you manually search everyday or did you have saved searches set up to email you? Woulda saved alot of work. But grats.

[MachineGex]

Congrats on your collection! The SNES is a great system, you should have fun with this collection for several decades!

[tom]

Complete US-only releases, right?

[M.Buster2184]

Congrats on getting your final item. I'd just like to find Mega Man X2, X3, and Final Fight 3 loose in the wild...


Congrats on finally getting the complete game, definitely needed patience. I have a hard time finding Mega Man 7.

[Balloon Fight]

I've been looking for this box and manual for 9 years now, literally. Unfortunately the max I'll pay is $150, so it's gonna take a while to get one i guess. :( Great grab Steven, I know your pain on this one! Congrats on the full set as well.

[Steven]

Complete US-only releases, right?

Nope... I was never intrigued by having a full set. I have no interest in Barbie Vacation. I simply wanted all the games that interested me enough to want to play (someday). As it turns out, it's a little over 400 US games.



I've been looking for this box and manual for 9 years now, literally. Unfortunately the max I'll pay is $150, so it's gonna take a while to get one i guess. :( Great grab Steven, I know your pain on this one! Congrats on the full set as well.

9 years wow. Yeah, it's hard to find, and when it does pop up, too many people are bidding in the $400+ range for it to end at anything close to 150. Good luck. Who knows, you might bump into it at a flea market.

[Parodius Duh!]

I find it interesting that certain boxes are rarer than most. Why did kids save certain boxes and not others? Im also assuming most CIB copies came from adult gamers collections at that time......and I also know Gamestop tossed most boxes that came in with games because they were thought to not retain any value, I remember selling them CIB stuff and complaining because its "worth the same" as cart only.

[StealthLurker]

Didn't realize this was a tough one either. Congrats! I know how it feels to finally catch your white whale. Got one more on my personal list myself (cib Yanchamaru pt.1)

During the tail end of my SFC collecting years ago, I started picking up quite a few CIB SNES games (mostly exclusives). I remember picking up 3 Ninjas and fortunately it wasn't too tough. Almost passed on it. Don't recall what I paid, but it didn't give me any notable sticker shock.


.

[Griking]

I don't mean to sidetrack this conversation but just of of curiosity, are there other SNES game boxes and/or manuals that are equally insanely difficult to find?

[Gameguy]

Why is this game worth so much complete when other complete games like Ren and Stimpy Fire Dogs or Bebe's Kids are worth so little? 3 Ninjas isn't supposed to be that good of a game either, going by the description in the DP guide.

[Steven]

I don't mean to sidetrack this conversation but just of of curiosity, are there other SNES game boxes and/or manuals that are equally insanely difficult to find?

Not sidetracking at all. I don't mind extending the conversation to talk about other HTF SNES game boxes/manuals. Well, few are as HTF as 3 Ninjas. That one is just in a class all its own.

Aero Fighters, Mr. Nutz, Zero Kamikaze, Super Turrican 2, Wild Guns, Hagane, Pocky & Rocky 2, Oscar, Incantation and International Superstar Soccer Deluxe marks some of the harder to find boxes/manuals.

I sold a CIB Incantation (box was in ROUGH shape) for $200. Insane, right? I know. But like I said, 3 Ninjas is tougher to find than all those games I listed.



Why is this game worth so much complete when other complete games like Ren and Stimpy Fire Dogs or Bebe's Kids are worth so little? 3 Ninjas isn't supposed to be that good of a game either, going by the description in the DP guide.

No one is looking to get 3NKB for the game itself. It's all about the box and manual, which, as the months go on, more and more mystique is being built. I know a guy who bidded 1K on a CIB to assure he would win it. There are so few CIB copies popping up that whenever it does, you have a lot of collectors ready to drop a nice coin on it. People have seen the manual/box on eBay like maybe 5x in the last 8-9 years... it's just one of those things that people became more and more hungry to own as they see how rare it truly is.

[Steven]

Didn't realize this was a tough one either. Congrats! I know how it feels to finally catch your white whale. Got one more on my personal list myself (cib Yanchamaru pt.1)

During the tail end of my SFC collecting years ago, I started picking up quite a few CIB SNES games (mostly exclusives). I remember picking up 3 Ninjas and fortunately it wasn't too tough. Almost passed on it. Don't recall what I paid, but it didn't give me any notable sticker shock.


Nice! Did you get it online or in real life? Not through eBay, right?
If you ever decide to sell it, you can probably get around 1K for it!

And yes, white whale is a great way to put it. Good luck on your last one!

[StealthLurker]

Nice! Did you get it online or in real life? Not through eBay, right?
If you ever decide to sell it, you can probably get around 1K for it!

And yes, white whale is a great way to put it. Good luck on your last one!


I'm pretty sure I got it through Craigslist. Funny thing is that I was more interested in the CIB Legend, Power Rangers Fighting Edition and Pirates of Darkwater that came in the bundle (there were 5 or so other games but I don't recall what they were). Best part was the whole lot was only $40. The whole time I was scouring local sources for SNES games and sometimes Ebay I kept thinking... "wow domestic collecting is vastly cheaper than imports". I guess it really depends on your luck, but it definitely is possible to save a big chunk of dough with domestics. Sure there are expensive anomalies here and there, but you can amass a pretty respectable, quality collection on a shoe string budget. I know it all seems like common sense, but I've been exclusively in the import game so long I forgot what it's like to collect domestics.

Nevertheless, it sure is surprising at times whats rare and whats not. Right now I can't believe I'm having so much trouble finding a CIB Japanese Kid Niki part 1.

.