Getting into Importing - some questions

[FoxNtd]

I've been reading this forum for a while since I've discovered it and I have some questions I know many of you could answer that I'll probably have trouble finding/searching for.

A quick background: most of my stuff is retro and I'm a fan. As I grow closer to finding the things I want to find, I get more irritated about some great titles I know about but were never released in NA. Naturally I want to lean towards importing. Currently I've been fortunate enough to pick up a few Mega Drive games from a local trade shop and I've modified the cart slot on my Genesis to allow these cartridges. (Ok, some might frown that I cut the casing on my console but in the end I feel totally comfortable with this and I'm quite happy I can take full advantage of the console's potential without importing an actual Mega Drive. Why have two of the same hardware for no reason? Aesthetics? Or collector's value. Heh. )

One other minor background detail is that I'm partially literate in Japanese; I know a little of the language. I can understand trivial things, I know my kana, I know a handful of grade-school level kanji. I presume many of you play imports with virtually no literacy/understanding and still enjoy everything anyway so I'm not worried at all. I have some exposure already to Japanese games and I must say, they sure do use a significant amount of English primarily in the 8-bit gen.

Anyway, next thing I want to do is snag a few key Super Famicom carts (CIB if the price is nice for me) and I already know how to handle this since the "mod" for the SNES is a piece of cake to get SFC carts to fit. Same idea with the Genesis/Mega Drive, except this is much easier to feel content with since the plastic tabs that get removed are not visible from the exterior anyway. No need to get an actual Super Famicom unit at this time.

Now as for the Famicom, it raises a handful of questions. I was fortunate to find a copy of Gyromite/Robot Gyro that has the 60/72 pin adapter inside and the Famicom board attached. But I'm not sure I want to play around with opening up carts and doing part swaps all the time and trying to be careful with insertion into my top-loader model NES. (I also am not a fan of cutting the Gyromite shell for the purposes of leaving behind the adapter exposed.) I am very much fond of the idea of importing a Famicom unit, mainly because I want to get the FDS too.

First I don't know if I should bother with the first model Famicom or just go with the revision which is very similar to the American top-loader NES. As far as I know, the FDS can attach to either version of the console. If in the end it simply doesn't matter and comes down to a matter of preference, I'd rather get the first model. (However, I noticed it may in fact matter. Looking things up, I found the first one has two controllers hard-wired to the unit and controller two lacks select/start buttons with a volume wheel and microphone instead.) I don't know the pros/cons of going with the first Famicom over the newer one regarding the controllers...

Next is the power supply (AC adapter.) I read that Japan has 100 volts and we use 110 here in NA. Can I safely use the Japanese AC adapter, or do I need a converter to fit our outlets? Or, even further yet, would I need a converter that has a transformer to compensate for the voltage difference? I've never traveled internationally and had never run into the need to deal with foreign electronics, so I'm up in the air on this one.

So model/controllers and power supply leave me with my FDS question: should I be concerned about the unit failing? I hear that the disk system was known for having a drive belt failing rendering the unit unable to read diskettes. The repair procedure may be complex and, worse yet, the part might be difficult to replace..? I'm curious if any FDS owners can tell me if this is a grave concern and regardless, how feasible is it going to be to perform the repair if the situation arises? (Is it common to load the thing with batteries or is it easy to get an AC adapter for it instead?)

It'll be some time before I make the move to bring a Famicom over and get some carts for it. SFC is a cinch so I'll be focusing on finding what I'm looking for in that department first, so I have plenty of time to learn what I need to know about the whole Famicom scene. I came across japangamestock.com thanks to some thread I was reading lately and that vendor is lovely. I've found numerous posts of happy customers and they have a great inventory. I also heard about risingstuff.com on here, but I found they didn't have a single thing of the half-dozen items I tried to look up, which was disappointing. There are other vendors for imports listed here so I might look around some more, but japangamestock has what I feel are pretty good prices and such.

I got more digging to do as surely many, if not all, of these subjects have been discussed at some point or another but if anyone would like to offer advice on any of my areas of question (even vendor recommendations), I'd appreciate it. Once I've got everything sorted out and I have a plan, I'd have to figure out what to get from where and when, but hey that's the fun part.

[mobiusclimber]

Here's answers to your questions as well as some thoughts on the other things you've said:

1) Regarding the Mega Drive, later games have a lockout chip so trying to play them on a Genesis won't work. Also, a much better idea than cutting the cart slot on your Genny is to get and use a Game Genie. Not only will extent up past the cart slot, thus allowing you to play MD games on a Genny, but there is a list of codes for many of the later games that will bypass their lockout. However, there aren't codes for ALL of them, and since you either need to be really good at programming codes for the Genie or have a ROM of the game (to look thru it's coding in order to find the code for the lockout chip), many people just say screw it and get a Mega Drive. Also, I believe the only Genesis that works with a Mega CD attachment is the first one. There are other ways around wanting to play Mega CD games than importing a Mega CD, but... we're collectors over here! We like having lots of consoles. Some of us even collect all the different revisions of consoles (like the three Genesis models, for instance).

2) Which version of the Famicom to get is probably one of the biggest decisions an import gamer has to make (if you're not planning on getting 'em all like they were Pokemans or something). The original Famicom has an iconic design, yet no AV. The problem there is that our TVs signals go to different stations than the ones in Japan. Meaning, they set the TV to channel one or two, but here it would be somewhere in the 90s. Does your TV go up to 90? If not, that's a problem. You could, of course, buy an AV modded Famicom or do the mod yourself. In some ways, I think that's the best decision out there, but there are others that work well depending on what you want. The second iteration of the Famicom is basically exactly like our top-loader NES, right down to the detachable dogbone controllers. The problems I have w/ this set-up is that a) it looks like a top-loader so it's just not as cool looking, and b) no microphone. I got this set-up first only to find out about the lack of a microphone. The other thing to consider is that it's probably the most expensive set-up (if you don't decide you HAVE to have an orange Twin Fami, that is). The other option is to by a Twin Famicom. This has a Famicom and FDS built right in together in one machine. It comes in a few different colors. The red one has the built in microphone, the black one doesn't. But I think the black one is the one that has extra controller cord inside the console (so many people open the console up, unroll the extra cord, and then they have longer controller cords, which EVERYONE who tries to play ANY iteration of the Famicom complains about). There's also the aforementioned orange Twin Fami, which is just like the red one I think but a different color. And extremely expensive in comparison, due to it being the rare one. Finally a word of caution: don't use a NES power supply on a Famicom. Actually don't use a NES power supply on anything else. It doesn't have a voltage regulator inside of it. The NES has the regulator instead, which is backwards from everything else.

3) You can safely use a Japanese power supply in North America so long as you're not living in a very old house w/ ancient wiring. If you are, get a step-down converter.

4) Yes the FDS has a plastic belt that eventually corrodes. I'd suggest buying a working FDS (or Twin Fami) from risingstuff.com since you'll be assured that the belt is in proper working order when you buy it (so long as you don't purchase a clearly-marked "junk" console). When the belt DOES inevitably fail, tho, it's a pretty simple and easy process to replace it. And lots of places sell the belt. As for loading it w/ batteries, you can do that, but depending on who you buy the FDS from, it should come w/ a power supply.

5) japangamestock.com does NOT have reasonable prices on 99.9% of their stock. I would recommend buying from them only if you are familiar w/ the price of Japanese games, b/c the 0.1% of their stock that IS reasonable is actually a really good deal. Please trust me, the games are cheaper on Ebay even than they are on jgs. Again, I wholeheartedly recommend risingstuff.com if you're looking for specific stuff and you have no patience. Their prices are the fairest I've ever seen in an online shop. Ever. People in Japan may bitch about it, but if you lived in Japan you wouldn't be looking online for Japanese games. If you have some patience, tho, Ebay can be a great source for import games. Don't buy BINs tho unless you know the price is a good one. (hit-japan sometimes has great prices, but digging thru his millions of auctions to find good ones can be a real pain, as a for instance.) There are plenty of sellers on Ebay that start auctions out at a penny. Just snipe those auctions (w/ a sniping program) and you can get an expensive game for cheap. Be aware of the shipping costs tho. Most places totally gouge you on that. Find out beforehand what their combined shipping policy is and, if possible, how much each tier is going to be (this many games shipped Airmail, EMS, etc).

6) About risingstuff's selection: They are a fairly new site and can't stock everything ever made. Join the forums and post in their "requests" thread. Alex is more than happy to find out if they can get something that you're looking for, how much it'll cost and when they can get it if you still want it. Just out of curiousity, what is it you're looking for?

[FoxNtd]

Thanks for your reply mobiusclimber!

1) Regarding the Mega Drive, later games have a lockout chip so trying to play them on a Genesis won't work.

I only have three Mega Drive carts and all work perfectly. I got these because they were available and I doubt I'd come across Mega Drive games laying around in a trade shop again so I picked them up. I can't imagine really going after other Mega Drive games except for Zero Wing (I thought it was a great shooter, funny intro aside.) Guess I'll have to look things up before trying to seek out Mega Drive games due to this lockout chip you mentioned. If I just get an actual Mega Drive, will all the Genesis carts work? I know they'll fit because the cart is smaller and narrower, but is it entirely compatible? I was under the impression the hardware inside is essentially the same between the two.

Maybe I'll think about getting the Mega Drive at some point together with Mega CD. Sega CD is tough to find anyway, I wouldn't care if I never had the American version at all.

2) Which version of the Famicom to get is probably one of the biggest decisions an import gamer has to make (if you're not planning on getting 'em all like they were Pokemans or something). The original Famicom has an iconic design, yet no AV. The problem there is that our TVs signals go to different stations than the ones in Japan. Meaning, they set the TV to channel one or two, but here it would be somewhere in the 90s. Does your TV go up to 90? [...] Finally a word of caution: don't use a NES power supply on a Famicom. Actually don't use a NES power supply on anything else. It doesn't have a voltage regulator inside of it. The NES has the regulator instead, which is backwards from everything else.

3) You can safely use a Japanese power supply in North America so long as you're not living in a very old house w/ ancient wiring. If you are, get a step-down converter.

Heh, I never meant to try to use my NES AC adapter with anything else, so no worries there. And it's nice to know I can use the Japanese plug here; no ancient wiring here! I want to note that when I was young I remember TVs going up to 125 and I always wondered why so many channels were unused by the cable providers. So yes my TV certainly goes that high and I'd have to check newer TVs to see if they still do. I thought Famicom uses channel 76 or something? It's in the 90s? Hmm. Either way, it's a non-issue. My current NES (both models) output to RF so I'm not concerned about the lack of RCA A/V output. I'm used to it already!

Given what I know up to this point, it seems I am still leaning toward the original model. I anticipate the hardwired controller's cord length and I don't mind. I can always distance the console further from the screen to compensate. Plus to have the original Famicom, that in itself is special. I was born in '85 so Famicom/NES is like my iconic beginning for me. (I did dabble in Atari 2600/7800 in the past, and I did enjoy them, but never owned one. I will always love Joust. )

4) Yes the FDS has a plastic belt that eventually corrodes. I'd suggest buying a working FDS (or Twin Fami) from risingstuff.com since you'll be assured that the belt is in proper working order when you buy it (so long as you don't purchase a clearly-marked "junk" console). When the belt DOES inevitably fail, tho, it's a pretty simple and easy process to replace it. And lots of places sell the belt. As for loading it w/ batteries, you can do that, but depending on who you buy the FDS from, it should come w/ a power supply.

Cool; do the import vendors offer these belts? I haven't looked just yet for parts.

5) japangamestock.com does NOT have reasonable prices on 99.9% of their stock. I would recommend buying from them only if you are familiar w/ the price of Japanese games, b/c the 0.1% of their stock that IS reasonable is actually a really good deal. Please trust me, the games are cheaper on Ebay even than they are on jgs. Again, I wholeheartedly recommend risingstuff.com if you're looking for specific stuff and you have no patience. Their prices are the fairest I've ever seen in an online shop. Ever. People in Japan may bitch about it, but if you lived in Japan you wouldn't be looking online for Japanese games.

And this is why I didn't jump on anything just because it was there. Some of the prices were good (like if the cart is cheaper than the American SNES counterpart!) But I agree some were high, primarily the CIB items. I wish I lived in Japan, that'd make everything easier. I think... Currently I ordered Tenchi Souzou for SFC from ebay and the shipping was just $4, the game was $24 I think. As far as I can tell that's right about where that game is worth. It's a loose cart, by the way. I'll tread jgs with caution keeping potential price differentials in mind.

6) About risingstuff's selection: They are a fairly new site and can't stock everything ever made. Join the forums and post in their "requests" thread. Alex is more than happy to find out if they can get something that you're looking for, how much it'll cost and when they can get it if you still want it. Just out of curiousity, what is it you're looking for?

Hmm, I will have to look around a bit more on risingstuff then. Who is Alex, the owner? I haven't seen their forums, when I get a chance I'll have to check it out.

The current list of items I have in mind isn't anything extravagant I would say. To give you an idea, here are a few, and I bet they might be common titles, and I'm sure that just by glancing at these titles would make many think, "Oh, how typical." But, this is my starting point:

Famicom
FF1+2 (Feb '94 compilation cartridge)
FF3
Gradius II (why this never came to NA is beyond me)

FDS
SMB2
Zeruda no Densetsu 1+2 (I have their American counterparts but the novelty appeals to me very much)

Super Famicom
FF4, 5, 6
Tenchi Souzou (already ordered this)
Rockman & Forte
Seiken Densetsu 3
Star Ocean
Zelda 3 (if I can get it at a good price, I honestly wouldn't mind replacing the SNES counterpart. Novelty to me, again.)

There is just something about the classic FF series that makes me want to complete it entirely in the Japanese releases instead of mixing them up with the unmatching number scheme of the two we did get for SNES here.

Most of these are entries of series that we have over here in USA but have missing games. Star Ocean we have but the very first one on SFC never came here. Rockman & Forte did appear for GBA but I'd much rather keep Rockman on the console and have the full view of the screen. (I hear the GBA screen limitation has some problems since the game was not designed for a handheld.)

SD3 is again an entry in a series that just didn't come here. Beats me why they just skip around when it comes to bringing stuff over here.

If I recall I mentioned that I'd like to get a handful of the SFC picks of mine before I venture into the Famicom/FDS area. When I reach the point that I get a hold of the aforementioned titles then maybe I can try to look around and discover entirely original titles I just don't know about because they never brought them to NA. I'd have to literally research other FC/FDS/SFC exclusives and look them up and get a feel for what they are and see what interests me. I'm sure there are many others that those clowns never released in our region, taking away fun experiences we'd otherwise have.

[mobiusclimber]

Yeah I actually kinda wish I could get an AV modded Famicom since I love the iconic look of the original Fami. But none of the three tvs I have at home will work w/ Japanese RF.

Most import vendors do sell those belts. I know RS.com stocks them at least, and I see them on Ebay all the time. They're cheap too.

I think you can get Tenchi Souza for $25 cib... again, I'd ask at RS.com. Alex is one of the owners (the other is Sensei, aka Vink aka Kevin).

That's actually a good starting list. Here's what I'd pay for this stuff:

Famicom
FF1+2 (Feb '94 compilation cartridge) - $15 cib
FF3 - $15~20 cib
Gradius II (why this never came to NA is beyond me) - no idea

FDS
SMB2 - $15 or so, RS.com has this in stock
Zeruda no Densetsu 1+2 - $15~20 each, RS has these in stock too

Super Famicom
FF4, 5, 6 - around $9 each, I've gotten 5 from RS a couple times, these are CIB prices
Tenchi Souzou (already ordered this) - already commented on
Rockman & Forte - no idea, actually
Seiken Densetsu 3 - $25 or so, I think. again, I got this from RS in the past. That's also CIB
Star Ocean - I don't remember what I paid for this, but I think it was less than SD3
Zelda 3 - no idea

I'd also suggest these games:

Famicom: Mother, Sweet Home, Moon Crystal, Kid Dracula, Splatterhouse
FDS: Castlevania (for the sweet FM synth, which is also why you should get the Zeldas), Kalin no Tsuguru, Bio Miracle Uppa, Esper Dream... there's some good shmups too but I'm not into shmups, so I can't recommend.
SFC: Bahamut Lagoon ($9), Tales of Phantasia ($15), Ys V ($16), Violinist no Hamelin ($30)

[aclbandit]

Only trouble with modded original Famicoms to have AV: you gotta make sure it's done right. I did my own with a guide I found somewhere, and while it was TOTALLY EPIC, I later discovered that (for some inexplicable reason) I couldn't get the FM sound channel from the FDS, which made my mod completely USESLESS. You know how boring Otocky is without your ball making beep noises?

I took the mod out and hooked it in via RF after that, and haven't bothered to upgrade it properly again. Maybe one of these days I'll look at modding it in a way that nets meproper sound.

Just telling you to ask specifically about that if you go that route, since whatever guide I used might be the guide someone else would use too.

[FoxNtd]

Most import vendors do sell those belts. I know RS.com stocks them at least, and I see them on Ebay all the time. They're cheap too.

I think you can get Tenchi Souza for $25 cib... again, I'd ask at RS.com. Alex is one of the owners (the other is Sensei, aka Vink aka Kevin).

Oh wow! Almost the same exact price but CIB? Man, if I can find it.. then perhaps I'll (ironically) sell my loose cart after getting it CIB. At least I have a small case that will safely store the loose cart. Best way to describe it is a translucent white case the dimensions of an NES cart. I can even fit SNES carts sleeved in there so I am sure a narrower SFC cart will sit there comfortably as well. But this is nothing compared to getting it CIB.

Good to know that replacement belts are accessible. If the day comes I have an FDS that has a belt failure, there is no need to mourn.

That's actually a good starting list. Here's what I'd pay for this stuff:

Famicom
FF1+2 (Feb '94 compilation cartridge) - $15 cib
FF3 - $15~20 cib
Gradius II (why this never came to NA is beyond me) - no idea

FDS
SMB2 - $15 or so, RS.com has this in stock
Zeruda no Densetsu 1+2 - $15~20 each, RS has these in stock too

Super Famicom
FF4, 5, 6 - around $9 each, I've gotten 5 from RS a couple times, these are CIB prices
Tenchi Souzou (already ordered this) - already commented on
Rockman & Forte - no idea, actually
Seiken Densetsu 3 - $25 or so, I think. again, I got this from RS in the past. That's also CIB
Star Ocean - I don't remember what I paid for this, but I think it was less than SD3
Zelda 3 - no idea

Dude, these prices make me drool, hahaha. I'd probably be getting these things en masse if they are truly this inexpensive CIB! You were not joking when you said JGS's prices were out of whack. This comparison is beyond effective. I saw two of the SFC FFs on JGS for about $9 but they were loose, not CIB. I couldn't even get the SNES version loose for that low.

I'd also suggest these games:

Famicom: Mother, Sweet Home, Moon Crystal, Kid Dracula, Splatterhouse
FDS: Castlevania (for the sweet FM synth, which is also why you should get the Zeldas), Kalin no Tsuguru, Bio Miracle Uppa, Esper Dream... there's some good shmups too but I'm not into shmups, so I can't recommend.
SFC: Bahamut Lagoon ($9), Tales of Phantasia ($15), Ys V ($16), Violinist no Hamelin ($30)

I know Mother 3 (or is it Mother 2?) a.k.a. Earthbound in USA. A very odd game but a very pleasant appeal to it. I did try it once and thought it was quite unusual but still fun to play. The collector who sold me a few rare gems for SNES offered it to me at $70 loose and I had to decline because it isn't worth that much to me, even if it tends to move around at a high price like that. I've never gotten to see Mother for Famicom so I'm curious how that one is.

Heard of Splatterhouse, but not familiar with it. I may have seen someone playing it on an emulator once. If it was the same game you are referring to then I must say it seems to offer a bit of a challenge. The player was having a struggle with it.

Just got the NES trilogy of Castlevania completed and also got SCV IV for SNES too. Not sure if I want the Famicom editions but I ought to check it out to hear how the audio track differs as you have noted. No clue on the others, will have to look them up individually.

I recognize the Tales game for SFC, a shame it didn't make it here. That leaves me scratching my head as to why that is. Ys sounds familiar but no recollection of what it is... I will definitely be returning to the recommendation list as my starting list nears completion.

Does RS offer the actual console units? I'm having trouble finding if they offer actual Famicoms and FDS units at all. So far the only thing I found is a defective Twin Fami listed...

Only trouble with modded original Famicoms to have AV: you gotta make sure it's done right. I did my own with a guide I found somewhere, and while it was TOTALLY EPIC, I later discovered that (for some inexplicable reason) I couldn't get the FM sound channel from the FDS, which made my mod completely USESLESS. You know how boring Otocky is without your ball making beep noises?

Thanks for the insight.. I have little to no interest at this point to consider trying to mod it in this regard. I'm perfectly comfortable with using the stock RF output the console is equipped with, although it is interesting you found a limitation... Is there a reason why it is so desirable to affix A/V output support to the Famicom? Is this for convenience really, or do you get any kind of quality benefit out of it? I never really noticed if it mattered when consoles offered either output, specifically these two forms; I know other types of outputs can make a small difference...

Can someone tell me how/when the microphone on Famicom's controller two is implemented? If it was not part of the revised model, then perhaps it was never used much and is not all that important? The only thing I have ever heard of that uses that mic is a reference to Pol's Voice in Zeruda no Densetsu where the manual states "they do not like noise" or something of this nature. I also heard this statement was translated and put into the American manual for the game, even though NES never had controllers with mics.

I'll take a look at RS this weekend more closely, learn where they are from and what they have, and look into this request system the owners provide. That's very, very cool to say the least. Thanks guys.

[mobiusclimber]

RS has started to phase out selling consoles, tho I think they're planning on getting more cart-based systems in soon. They were having trouble w/ disc-based systems getting messed up in the mail (tho I've gotten several from them w/ no problem). I think they just pretty much sold out over Christmas and haven't gotten any more in.

I actually like the original Mother better than the sequel. In fact, I'm not really a fan of the sequel at all.

[FoxNtd]

RS has started to phase out selling consoles, tho I think they're planning on getting more cart-based systems in soon. They were having trouble w/ disc-based systems getting messed up in the mail (tho I've gotten several from them w/ no problem). I think they just pretty much sold out over Christmas and haven't gotten any more in.

I actually like the original Mother better than the sequel. In fact, I'm not really a fan of the sequel at all.

Figures that they bring over the game that's in the shadow of the other in a series.

So JGS has both Famicom and FDS in the low $40's a piece; still need to look around to see how much they go for in other places. The site did not make it explicitly clear whether or not the units come with the AC adapter.

I found a 10-page request thread on RS' forum and by the look of it, Alex swings by there often, so I suppose I can sign up over there and post a little list, eh? I wonder if maybe I can just contact them directly, like via email, since in essence it doesn't make too much sense to post an order request publicly. I think that thread is a bit more logical for inventory requests in general as suggestions to the vendor as to what might be good to have in stock.

I saw you on that forum too, mobiusclimber. You are everywhere, man.

[mobiusclimber]

Yeah I don't post to a whole lot of forums, and half the ones I do post to are just for buying/trading, but there's a couple were I really like the people and the feel of the forums so I hang around. RS is definitely one of em.

I think Alex prefers posts on the forums b/c he needs to keep all the requests together or he'll forget someone's. Also they used to do personal requests but too many people were asking for stuff and then not paying, so this IS an inventory request rather than "I want x, y and z." If that makes sense.

I'd say $40 apiece for those systems is pretty good, especially if they come w/ the ac adapters. What I'd do is buy them, but put on their that you want an email if they aren't complete. (I think it's jgs that does that.) Or you can try directly emailing, but you might not get a reply that way.

... No I'm thinking of gamebaz.com. *smacks forehead* Disregard that, I su-- *cough*

Anywayz, about Mother/Earthbound, most people seem to prefer the sequel. The reason I like the first game is that it's a lot less goofy (which is what other people like about it) and the graphics suit the platform. There are some small changes too, but I can't think of them offhand besides the no-random-battles thing in the sequel (if I overpower something, I can understand it, but some times I want the extra piddly experience and don't want to have to run after something to get it.

[FoxNtd]

I think Alex prefers posts on the forums b/c he needs to keep all the requests together or he'll forget someone's. Also they used to do personal requests but too many people were asking for stuff and then not paying, so this IS an inventory request rather than "I want x, y and z." If that makes sense.

I'd say $40 apiece for those systems is pretty good, especially if they come w/ the ac adapters. What I'd do is buy them, but put on their that you want an email if they aren't complete. (I think it's jgs that does that.) Or you can try directly emailing, but you might not get a reply that way.

... No I'm thinking of gamebaz.com. *smacks forehead* Disregard that, I su-- *cough*

Actually, yes, it does make sense. Thankfully I'm not asking for anything far-fetched so I'm optimistic about the results.

I just went to gamebaz to have a look. Yeah... those prices scare me. $110+ for Famicom? And I looked up the 6 Rockman carts for Famicom. Even JGS had more competitive offerings. But hey, the more stores the better.

I just have to stop reading the DP forums here and go to RS, but that's proving to become more difficult as I read more.

[Ed Oscuro]

If you're interested in FDS games (I really am not, despite having a handful of them; I'd rather suffer with emulation here), the best choice is probably a Sharp Twin Famicom. I still like my A/V Famicom because you can plug in the controllers you like and the output is very good.

Always try to get cheaper prices for games when possible. If something seems expensive, see if you can't find it cheaper elsewhere. Folks here at DP occasionally offer games for good prices; ditto some other community Forums; Yahoo! Auctions Japan proxy bidding seems a bit troublesome to me, but that also may be worth it (if you're not wound tight about the lack of communication and the possible language barrier).

[FoxNtd]

If you're interested in FDS games (I really am not, despite having a handful of them; I'd rather suffer with emulation here), the best choice is probably a Sharp Twin Famicom. I still like my A/V Famicom because you can plug in the controllers you like and the output is very good.

Functionally, I agree with you. I've never gotten a 3rd party console in place of the official one and I don't think I want to start, either. I anticipate any limitations the model 1 Famicom has and I'm ok with it. The value of having it to me outweighs the minor inconveniences and the lack of meaningful value the 3rd party units have.

If had a model 1 Famicom/FDS in my room, it'd be the coolest thing I ever did/bought, until of course the day comes I visit Japan. That would trump anything.

Speaking of controller swapping, I take it the controller on the Famicom is reliable enough to work for a very... very long time. All my NES controllers are exceptional to me and I never once opened them up for a deep cleaning of any sort. I suppose it's not a big deal to open up the one Famicom has for cleaning, if necessary? Theoretically if the controller breaks and cannot be repaired, what can be done? There is no such thing as a spare/replacement? -- I'd have to replace the Famicom altogether? ...Good thing I take care of my stuff. Every device for every platform of mine is still operating well.

Edit: I just did some looking around real quick on ebay -- there is a seller known as hit-japan, top rated seller; I'll probably look into it but this vendor probably has a big inventory and transaction history.. I searched for 5 or 6 different SFC titles and this one keeps coming up with the best price every time, and everything is CIB. Very cool. Anyone have a word on this?

[mobiusclimber]

I mentioned him in one of the big walls of text up there. He's pretty good, sometimes his prices beat RS, sometimes theirs beat his. One thing is if you are picky on condition, you need to really look at what you're buying. (Granted, RS you can't even SEE what you're getting, but I've almost never had a problem ordering stuff from them and having it be in nice condition, and I've heard people who are picky letting them know ahead of time so that what they get is collector condition.) W/ hit-japan occassionally the good prices are b/c something is missing or not in the best condition. If it doesn't matter too much to you tho you can get some really good deals. He's probably the best when it comes to fixed price finding exactly what you want. There's another guy on there I buy from all the time (yamatoku, but try not to outbid me, dammit!) who does actual auctions. He used to be awesome, and still can be sometimes, but lately people have found out and are overbidding on everything. I can't seem to get anything off him anymore. He was the guy I got serial experiments lain for $50 from tho. Another guy is paleth. His BINs tend to be too high, usually, but you can get some good stuff from his auctions. But both paleth and yamatoku are catch as catch can, meaning it's like that Forest Gump movie, you never know what you're going to get. Might be a box of chocolates or it might be Lyndon Johnson looking at your ass. Who knows?

[FoxNtd]

If it doesn't matter too much to you tho you can get some really good deals. He's probably the best when it comes to fixed price finding exactly what you want.

If there is something rather insignificant keeping the item from being "near mint", I don't mind. When used things are tough to come by, I am more lenient. But it most certainly has to be above "acceptable" condition. It has to be... "pretty damn good." Haha.

Also, I found out something on RS. Enjoy your $0.50 man. Haha.

[mobiusclimber]

If there is something rather insignificant keeping the item from being "near mint", I don't mind. When used things are tough to come by, I am more lenient. But it most certainly has to be above "acceptable" condition. It has to be... "pretty damn good." Haha.

Also, I found out something on RS. Enjoy your $0.50 man. Haha.

Just make sure to check out the pix and you'll be fine. I've got a few things that were missing manual or had a beat up box, but hit-japan usually notes this in the auction. I think they might use a rating scale for condition too, I don't remember.

And yeah, it's not a secret or anything that RS gives out discounts for spamming the link. They're a small place and need to drum up business through word-of-mouth. I've placed at least six orders with them, ranging from $50 to over $200. I wouldn't keep buying from them if they sucked. Besides, after I got my first order from them in the mail, I started telling everyone to go check them out. The only difference is now I get a discount for doing it. =p

[FoxNtd]

Just make sure to check out the pix and you'll be fine. I've got a few things that were missing manual or had a beat up box, but hit-japan usually notes this in the auction. I think they might use a rating scale for condition too, I don't remember.

Confirmed. I was just checking out some titles for prices and availability since hit-japan has an awesome inventory and a lot of what I was looking around for is quite ideal. When I looked up Star Ocean, he listed it twice and one has a $3 discount due to a slightly worse condition box. He also uses a condition scale, you are right about that as well.

The guy lists Seiken Densetsu 2, CIB, for $8! And I own this already for SNES, and I know how much it easily goes for. I'm actually considering selling it, I don't need to have two... It's a tough call for me. Like CT, finding Secret of Mana took a while, especially for the price I got it for. It almost feels wrong to give it up. I feel proud to have found the damn thing for SNES after looking for so long. Heh.

And yeah, it's not a secret or anything that RS gives out discounts for spamming the link. They're a small place and need to drum up business through word-of-mouth.

It's not just the satisfaction of order completion that is appealing, it's the interactivity and service the administrators offer via the forums. You can go there and share requests with other importers and literally curve the short-term path for them by saying exactly what some people are looking for. I cannot really think of another industry that supports such a model. For both ends of the chain it is simply awesome. Sure it does take some effort on the vendor's end to keep this up but the result is rewarding for both parties.

I can't even guess how many items you have found via this mechanism provided by RS. The benefit I just described above is surely something you've been enjoying for quite some time.

[mobiusclimber]

Definitely. There are several games in stock at RS that are there specifically b/c I requested them (Little Princess, for instance). It's quite handy when I'm looking for something that doesn't usually show up on Ebay, in particular, or when Ebay sellers have it at crazy prices. Like Simple Series games. I won't pay more than $15 for any of them (if they're PS2 or lower that is), but some sellers on Ebay have them at $30+. RS got in several of the ones I was looking for at the right prices too. I could probably go on and on about it, but yeah. Just tell them what you're looking for and either how much you want to pay or what for them to tell you how much it's going to be and then decide if you want to pay that or not. Very convenient.

I wouldn't get rid of Secret of Mana, but then I don't read/speak/understand Japanese. If you can read it in Japanese, then... I dunno. But me, I collect NA releases and imports that never got an NA release. I'll only get and play a Japanese game that came out in NA if there is censored content. I actually haven't done that yet beyond playing D2 in Japanese. And I'm not sure the content in that got censored or not.