Where and how much?

[Jackattack]

Where does everyone find all of their games? I'm not talking crazy rare stuff, but other than ebay what are good places. Yard Sales/Flea Markets/ Thrift Stores/Good Will/Game specialty stores?


Also in looking at the rarity guide, how is the value of the game determined. Is it an average? Possibly some list price some where? Or maybe just someone's/a collective group of opinions?

Why I'm asking is, I like to hunt for games... it's what I find most fun... well besides from playing them, and I might find a game for 30 dollars... lets say secret of mana but the guide says 20. What do I do? Where do I draw the line?

Thanks for any help!

[kentuckyfried]

Something that I always take into consideration when it comes to collecting and buying is the local market.

There are many games that I haven't ever seen though they are supposed to be very common, so I consider them to be rarer, at least to me, (ie virtual boy games are almost non-existent out here, from what I have seen in Vancouver, BC, Canada)

In answer to your question of secret of mana for 30$, that is more than I would be willing to pay, but I know many people who would be happy to pay that much for that particular game (I personally would pay 20$ for that), it goes without saying, (but I'm saying anyways ;), that the value of a game comes down to what a person is willing to pay. I consider the guide to be just that, a guide, and most useful as a tool for laying down groundwork for trading games.

[PapaStu]

People get games everywhere. To add to your list, i'd toss in online sites like ebay, online retailers (there are places devoted to old stuff including ones that sell new copies of old games), friends/family/coworkers and stuff like that. These things really are all over.

To answer your three questions in the Rarity paragraph. Yes, no (it would be pointless to have our guide copy another guide, thus making it useless), Yes.

Well the guide isnt meant as a end all be all of prices. Its meant to be that if you offered someone that for the game it wouldnt be a slap in the face for it. Prices are pulled from all over. General in the wild finds, ebay, Major stores, general demand and more that i'm not thinking of off the top of my head. Yes prices and stuff get argued over and hashed out all the time. We've got a whole forum devoted to the guide HERE (http://www.digitpress.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=5)

In all honesty you draw any line where you feel comfortable. So Guide says 20 but someones selling it for 30. Ask yourself the usual, is it hard to get? Is it a good game? Why would I be buying this? Can I go a few months if I dont get this game right now and possibly get it a few bucks cheaper? Along with anything else you might ask yourself before you toss some moola at it.

[Jackattack]

Maybe I should have asked about places to find games a little differently. If the answer is: those are all good places and if I like to hunt, I should check them all out, fine that sounds great! But realalisticly I only have so much time, lets take about percentages... is there a general rule of thumb for the best places... or does it honestly just depend on the area I live.

thanks again guys!

[Steven]

for pricing just go with what you can afford to... afford. Yess... haha.

But seriously, sometimes it's wise to just pay "the average going rate" to have it now rather than waiting maybe 6 months to save maybe 7 bucks -- woot woot.

other times, it pays to be patient. To me I look at it as a "gutcheck" kind of proposition. I just look at my wallet and think "How badly do I want it, how much cheaper could I get it... should I just get the damn thing now?"

Really hasn't failed me so far... ;)

[boatofcar]

If you want to play the percentages game, ebay wins hands down all the time. You may have to shop around locally for years to find a game you want (rare or not), whereas if you pulll up ebay, you're likely to find it being sold by two or three people.

[Jackattack]

Well maybe I'm a little weird, but one of my favorite aspects is the hunt for the game. I could have gotten Earthbound 5 years ago, the day after I actually wanted it, a trip to ebay would have done the trick... well assuming ebay was up then...I think it was. But instead I waited. Looked around, always asking store clerks for the off chance they had gotten in a copy... It took me 5 years to hunt it down, but I had fun doing it.

I didn't even think of going to some place like good will or a thift store to find these things... are they actually good places?

[chaoticjelly]

Its great to hunt for games.. but what I love to do is buy all the games I can find that I can make money selling on eBay.. then buy the game I want on eBay!

Theres LOADS of sources.. friends/family/casual aquaintances/flea markets/secondhand & thrift stores/high street game shops/indie game shops/car boot & yard sales/local refuse dump (seriously)/eBay (sometimes bargains can be found!)

Many sources as you can see..