Why are many old school RPGs so expensive?

[tom]

Yea exactly, the puzzles were just the icing on the cake, but evidently he ignored everything else that was mentioned.

Better to ignore this than just claiming 2 RPGs on DC, blasphemy.

[Lord Contaminous]

Them Lufia II puzzles were killer! Taito/Natsume really put some thought into that shit.

Now I rewind back to 2000 in the pre-PS2 era, best RPG finds I made in my life:

Breath of Fire II (5 bucks, box book no manual)

Sega CD Snatcher and Shining Force CD both complete (2 bucks a piece)

Lunar: The Silver Star and Vay SCD complete with maps (14 each)

[Xtincthed]

because they're highly sought after. supply and demand. that's it.

supply, demand but don't forget to add "fame"

chrono trigger is far from rare.. it just has "fame" as one of the greatest rpg's of all time, pushing up its price
same goes for earthbound (which is a lot rarer tho)

also i think rpg's hold value very well because you really create a bond with those games and you can replay them no matter how old they are if you're in the right mindset to ignore the graphics

[Aussie2B]

The demand is a result of the fame, so it would be redundant to add a third factor.

[Black_Tiger]

Lets be real, there are like a total of like 2 RPGs on the system(for argument sake, lets say 4 or so RPGs in Japan, that would still make it the system, with the least amount of RPGs), so yea I think that was a bad move.

I guess you haven't heard of El Dorado Gate.

Well someone shouldn't have said, Lufia 2 wasn't innovative/it was standard RPG fare(that has got to be one of the dumbest things I had heard someone say, and really, It's amazing he didn't get linched for that), I'm pretty sure that's what started the mess.

I only played a little bit of Lufia II back in the day, but it sounds like it's only somewhat "innovative" as a SNES cart RPG. If you'd like to see something different in RPGs for the time, check out PC Engine CD games.

Although it could be argued that much of any innovation in a traditional RPG disqualifies it as a straight RPG to many people.




As for the actual thread topic, although the original poster has some misguided ideas about game collecting (Ys III has always been cheap for example), only select RPGs are pricey today.

Which is nice for long-time RPG fans, because up until recent years they always had strong resale value to those who appreciate them. In other words, they were only sold cheap by people who had no clue what they were. Even before the SNES I saw RPG fans selling and buying games at higher than average prices everywhere I went. RPGs had huge replay value and weren't stocked or sold as well as popular genres. So those who loved them understood how difficult they could be to come by and were willing to pay to acquire them.

I gladly hiked across town to buy used RPGs sold in local classifieds instead of paying full price for a game that I could beat in a single rental. Since RPGs took so long to complete once through, the cost of multiple rental fees only made second hand RPGs all the more attractive (especially since I played them repeatedly). They also didn't age as quickly, since cutting edge aesthetics weren't a priority.

It's taken a long time for RPGs to finally come down in price and the select titles that self-proclaimed "collector's" drive up are only inflated for the same reasons as other collectibles that people base the value on by what anything is worth to other people, instead of how valuable something truly is to themselves.

Mainstream crazed fanboys (ie: Snerds) help maintain the mystique of so-called "legendary" titles. Thankfully these types of people turn a blind eye to brands that don't fall within they're loyalties (ie: non-square, non-Nintendo console) and most of the better RPGs out there (ie: PCE and Genesis) range from dirt-cheap to decent-priced. Since SNES cart RPGs in particular are so system-based and story-less, SFC versions are just as playable and can be had for next to nothing. So let the "collectors" have the English versions of RPGs for the same price that you can buy a console and a bunch of better RPGs for.

As long as there are people asking what something is "worth" or referencing "rarity guides" instead of knowing what an item means to them, there will always be a b.s. premium to pay. Just like the stock market where money is generated purely by speculation.





-also the Dreamcast is awesome. Don't bother trying to convince people who think otherwise, because console lovers and haters tend to have opposing rationals as to what makes or breaks a platform.

[Arkhan]

uh, blacktiger, Zoltor got banned already .

[ScourDX]

It is funny in Japan, RPG is dirt cheap. You can picked up rare titles like Tactics Ogre Saturn for $20 or less. These day instead of paying outrageous amount, resorting to import titles from Japan is a viable choice.

[j_factor]

It is funny in Japan, RPG is dirt cheap. You can picked up rare titles like Tactics Ogre Saturn for $20 or less. These day instead of paying outrageous amount, resorting to import titles from Japan is a viable choice.

Yeah, that's cool, if you can read Japanese.

[Zap!]

I've seen a loose Chrono Trigger at a record store near me for about $60 and Ys III for the Turbo Grafx doesn't seem to cheap either these days. Don't get me started on Earthbound...

Here's a factory sealed Ys III for $149. I guess you can get a complete with box for around $50. That's not expensive. I'd say these days, for a classic game to be considered high priced, it has to be at least $400.

[davepesc]

In general, I think RPGs (along with SHMUPS and 2D platformers) stand the test of time better than other genres of games. These types of games aren't driven primarily by graphics like First-person shooters and sports games are.

People still WANT to play Chrono Trigger/Phantasy Star/ys/FFVI. Who out there is dying to play Madden 98, Operation Flashpoint, or Spyro the Dragon (all GotY material when new).

[Aussie2B]

Plenty of people still play Spyro the Dragon, Crash Bandicoot, and all the quality 3D platformers of the 32/64-bit generation. I wouldn't say necessarily that those games were driven by graphics.

[j_factor]

Here's a factory sealed Ys III for $149. I guess you can get a complete with box for around $50. That's not expensive. I'd say these days, for a classic game to be considered high priced, it has to be at least $400.

That is silliest thing I've read all day.

[tom]

In general, I think RPGs (along with SHMUPS and 2D platformers) stand the test of time better than other genres of games. These types of games aren't driven primarily by graphics like First-person shooters and sports games are.

People still WANT to play Chrono Trigger/Phantasy Star/ys/FFVI. Who out there is dying to play Madden 98, Operation Flashpoint, or Spyro the Dragon (all GotY material when new).

Platformers never die, H.E.R.O. rules

[Arkhan]

In general, I think RPGs (along with SHMUPS and 2D platformers) stand the test of time better than other genres of games. These types of games aren't driven primarily by graphics like First-person shooters and sports games are.

People still WANT to play Chrono Trigger/Phantasy Star/ys/FFVI. Who out there is dying to play Madden 98, Operation Flashpoint, or Spyro the Dragon (all GotY material when new).

shit I think everything stands the test of time. If you enjoyed it at one point you should always enjoy it.


video games are like sex!

[kupomogli]

video games are like sex!

Somewhat less you could say.

[Zap!]

That is silliest thing I've read all day.

Honestly, after seeing Stadium Events and Air Raid, a $50 1991 game seems normal to me. Not silly at all.

[Aussie2B]

It's unusual when you consider that the vast majority of classic games can be had for under $10, if not under $5.

[Zap!]

It's unusual when you consider that the vast majority of classic games can be had for under $10, if not under $5.

The common ones do. However, even what's probably the most common Turbo Grafx 16 game, Bonk's Adventure, appears to be going for around $20 CIB. Seems as Turbo games average a bit more. A lot of higher priced games can also be due to desirability. The Ys' series is rated quite favorably.

[mobiusclimber]

I guess I might as well give out a list of cheap but fun RPGs, just to show that for the most part you can get good RPGs for $20 or less:

NES:
Crystalis
Final Fantasy
Dragon Warrior (and DW2, if you can get into it)
Ghost Lion
Destiny of an Emperor
Ultima: Quest of the Avatar (one of the few console ports of Ultima I'd recommend)
Zelda I & II

MASTER SYSTEM:
Phantasy Star
Ys (I wouldn't really recommend this version tho)
Wonder Boy: Dragon's Trap

GENESIS:
Landstalker
Phantasy Star II-IV
Shadowrun
Shining Force (SFII might run you a little more than $20, even cart only)
Beyond Oasis
Wonder Boy: Monster World
(There's a few others, but their quality is debatable)

TG-16/CD:
Neutopia (slightly more than $20 for CIB)
AD&D Order of the Griffon (hucard only, CIB would be more than $20)
Dungeon Explorer
Double Dungeons
Cosmic Fantasy II

SNES:
Final Fantasy II & Mystic Quest (and sometimes III if you get lucky)
Illusion of Gaia
Actraiser (if you want to call it an action/RPG/sim)
Brain Lord
Arcana
Wizardy V
Twisted Tales of Spike McFang
Shadowrun
Legend of Zelda 3
Secret of Evermore
Breath of Fire (and BoF II if you get lucky)
Robotrek

Sega CD:
Vay
Dark Wizard

SATURN:
Dark Savior
Legend of Oasis
Mystaria (or whatever you wanna call it)

That's all just off the top of my head and I'm sure I'm forgetting something. If anyone's interested, I can do the same for PS1/2 and Dreamcast (actually... Dreamcast would be a fairly short list, )

[kupomogli]

That's all just off the top of my head and I'm sure I'm forgetting something. If anyone's interested, I can do the same for PS1/2 and Dreamcast (actually... Dreamcast would be a fairly short list, )

The PS2 list would be really long. A lot of really good PS2 RPGs are less than $20. Evergrace, Forever Kingdom, Wild ARMs 3, Wild ARMs 4, and Suikoden 3 to name a few(although I consider Evergrace and FK to be action/adventure people call them RPG and on sites it's listed as action/RPG.)