The Great South Florida Thread

[JustRob]

Ok....time again for one of these asinine threads. But, I really wanna know. Those of us in South Florida know how ridiculously shitty it is to find stuff in the wild. All 4 of us.

Share your hunting grounds, share your finds. There's not much to find down here, but we can help each other out. Let's use this thread as a report card of the stops we all know.

I'll start...

Game Stores:
I only know of one independent store in North Miami Beach. It's right across the street from the old 163rd st Mall. Ironically, there's a Game/Moviestop on the opposite side of the street. I went in there a couple of weeks ago and they were mostly ps1 era games and newer. Nothing on the shelves to indicate any kind of classic stock. The prices were somewhat decent and they have an AWESOME trade-in policy. Buy a game new from them, trade it in within 90 days in newish condition, and they'll give you 90% of new trade in value towards anything in the store.

Thrifts:
There are plenty of these. Not many that are decent.
Let's see, there's the thrift mall in Hialeah, just east of Le Jeune. There are like 5 or 6 stores in that one strip mall. Never found anything decent there but ya never know.

In North Miami, right on the intersection of 125th St/6th Ave/Dixie Hwy there are three thrifts all sharing the intersection. One is a goodwill with mostly crap game-wise. The other two are small independent church-run type stores. Not too good. I'd avoid them unless you are *really* in need of that thrift fix.

My favorite spot, while unfortunately being a Goodwill, is in North Miami Beach at the Skylake Mall, Miami Gardens Drive and 18th Ave. This is where I do my usual shopping. Damn good selection of books and records. I'll usually find something video game related here. They'll have random carts from all generations on one of the book shelves next to the 4000 VHS tapes they've built up. This is also where I found the CiB Mint 32x I just sold on ebay.

Then we have Thrift Row in Hallandale. Just west of I-95 on Hallandale Beach Blvd we have a few decent sized stops. Think Thrift/The Jewish Recycling Center are good places to search for typical thrift items, but kinda sparse on games. Occasionally they'll have some carts in the book/records area but more usually just some bagged boxed PC games on the toy hooks. A couple of blocks away we have the Douglas Gardens Thrift Center. I personally like this place for random old electronics. I've seen full setups of old 8/16 bit computer systems and such. They'll every once in awhile have something decent console wise but it's hit and miss. Further down the street we have a HUGE AtoZ liquidators place. This warehouse is PACKED full of old crap. You *never* know what you'll find there. Their hours suck, but if you can make it when they're open, they're usually pretty good for something interesting.


So...that's a start. Anyone care to add to this list?

[DreamTR]

Miami game hunting has sucked since:

Swap Shop in Ft. Lauderdale guy left

New Focus (import games and probably THE first used video game store in the city closed down) (67th and Bird)

Microplay shut down on 117th and 72nd

GameStop bought Babbage's.

The "Exchange" shut down on 107th across from FIU.

There is one place in North Miami I found that has a lot of classic games next to a sub shop, but I am not sure if it is still there. Most of the games pretty pretty dirty, and the CD games were scratched up.

Miami doesn't have ANY good used CD/Video Game places, and there is a freaking 35,000 student university on one end, and a private one in Coral Gables on the other.

[JustRob]

The one next to the sub shop in North Miami, do you remember what it was called or where? I can check it out and report here about it.

And I agree about the areas around FIU and UM. Something like 400,000 college student population just for Dade County and not a single decent place for used games.

[exit]

There's a huge Goodwill out by I think Davie, I was going to swing by there today, but I can't exactly remember where it is. The thrift stores down Hollywood Blvd. (across from the defunct millennium mall) don't have much at all. The Goodwill had a Mario/Duck Hunt cart and a N64 game and the other had 2 Dreamcasts, a Genesis and some really old sports tv game thing.

I was going to hit up a few of the pawn shops, but I didn't feel up to it.

[DreamTR]

Nah, I forgot what the one next to the sub shop was called. I want to say it was on Dixie Hwy, and I know there is a decrepid Goodwill nearby, but really, no one should have to go to thrift stores to look for classic games.

[Daria]

Huh and I figured Miami hunting would be more interesting than West Palm. Every couple of months I go down to Tate's Comics in Lauderhill, nothing gaming related except the odd action figure. They have loads of nice stuff in that department, but there's a GameStop/EB on the otherside of University Drive that always has something worth picking up. Their store is much cleaner than the usual GS, and they keep manuals behind the counter with the game discs. Example I found Wild Arms Alter Code F there just other Saturday, which I've been scouting for awhile now.

As posted in another thread there's a new classic gaming store in the Wellington Green Mall called CGX. Everything from Atari to Ps3.

Thrifting is always hit or miss. The Lake Worth Flea market is very swap-shopish now with the cowboy boots, jeans, and crappy electronics. But last time I was there I found a vendor selling SNES games for $4 a piece. Not a great price but he had 3 copies of Yoshi's Island in addition to the obligatory sports titles.

Goodwill blows. There's a nice Pawn around the corner from me on Military Trail and Forest Hill that has Saturn games though. Nothing fantastic but I haven't checked in awhile.

[JustRob]

So, who's going hunting this weekend and what are you hoping to find?

I intend to hit the hallandale strip, the Skylake Goodwill and maybe the Hialeah thrift mall if I can get down there. If I get a chance, I may try to hit the swap shop sunday.

At this point, with such low numbers in my collection left, I am just out there to see what I can find. If it's something interesting for other systems, I'll pick it up. If you have an immediate want list, let me know what's on it and I'll keep my eye open for you.

[exit]

Well I just got back from a hunt and came up empty. What really grinds my gears is the pawnshop that had Suikoden II, fucking wants $84 for it because "that's what it goes for on e-bay." Now I've heard about these kinds of things before, but Jesus fucking Christ, just sell it on e-bay asshole.

The most I saw were a few loose DC games, scratched up to hell, a DC Web disc and a copy of Madden 94 for Genesis. The Hollywood area is completely dry, maybe I just pick the exact wrong times to go searching.

[DreamTR]

Actually $84 for Suikoden II sounds pretty good! =)

Stores (I know it's a pawn shop) are going to charge more than eBay for the opporunity for you to get it immediately. I found one of those in an EB Games just last year hanging around when they were putting the new stores all over the LA area. Boy did I clean out the PSX titles from these places then.....

Here's a suggestion:

Yahoo Yellow Pages

Type in Video Games

Go Nuts. Some of those places are mom and pop stores.

[Daria]

Well I just got back from a hunt and came up empty. What really grinds my gears is the pawnshop that had Suikoden II, fucking wants $84 for it because "that's what it goes for on e-bay." Now I've heard about these kinds of things before, but Jesus fucking Christ, just sell it on e-bay asshole.

If it was complete I'd pay that gladly. Beats $120 on ebay.

[JustRob]

So, anything interesting found this weekend? I picked up a few things, well, things I had previously bought but didn't take possession of until this weekend. I'll be taking pictures and posting them up as soon as I get home tonight.

[mailman187666]

I live in MA but I went to Cocoa Beach and Daytona this past week. I went into a few pawn shops and a flea marlet and found

mint Silent Hill non GH- $5
PS1 Samurai Shodown 3 - $5
PS2 World of Outlaws: Sprint Cars - $15
Sega Saturn Bug Too - $10
Sega CD Lords of Thunder - $10
Sega CD Heart of the Alien - $10

and a couple semi common atari2600 games

[Barbarianoutkast85]

I was in Miami about fix or six months ago visiting a friend. He took me to a pawn shop with a massive amount of Genesis, NES, SNES games. He even had a decent selection of Saturn and Dreamcast games, I couldnt tell you the name or location though. Since I am not familiar with the area at all and it was the first time I was down there. I will email my friend though and ask him what the name and address of the pawn shop was.

[exit]

That would be great, I'm not too familiar with Miami, but if it's around the way I'd love to hit it up.

[jetset516]

Wow, maybe I should start hanging out here more. I'm a barfly over at Atari Age, mostly because...well just because and to devote time to another board is probablly not a good idea. I mostly lurk the marketplace and 99% of my posts are "PM sent", and "YGPM"
BUT, I live in hollywood and it's true, South Florida SUCKS for classic gaming. I've been to just about every placed named in this thread.
The American Thrift on Hollywood blvd has had some Atari stuff, but WAY overpriced...the Goodwill next door I've only ever seen 2 instr manuals, Outlaw and Combat.
forget Salvation Army, particularly the one on University and Johnson. I work right by there, and they have zip, nada, nothing. they seem to be selling one of 2 things; used clothing and high end trinkets. No electronics period.
The swap shopis your best bet, but only in the garage sale section. I picked up a (somewhat) working Lynx with Paperboy 2 wks ago for $3 bucks. The screen is garbled and pretty much not worth playing, so I gave away the Paperboy to a bud at AA and the Lynx is now collecting dust. Still, it was exciting for about 10 minutes that I made a "find".
Dont bother with the putz who had the little store. He's the eppitomal rip off. First time I saw his booth it caught my eye b/c he had an NES Final Fantasy. He wanted $30 bucks, and at the time boxed w/instr they were at most $20-$25 on ebay. I told him that and he got enraged. He showed me this piece of torn cardboard with illegible writing, something about "NES joemac $27.00", and "super mario2 $40" and such...says thats what these carts go for on Ebay at which point I thanked him for selling his games for so cheap in the 99 degree florida heat when he could be getting twice that from the air conditioned comfort of his home.
I dont know why, he seemed to not like that and told me to F! off.
Anyways, if there ever is a garage sale drive or swap meet I'd like to tag along. Although I can just picture a bunch of us actually stumbling on a find at one of the places and fistfighting over it !

[Penguin]

Haha, if any of you guys are interested I want to plan a road trip to Miami sometime in late September, theres like 6 flea markets over there and I am going to be doing some research on thrift stores and pawn shops, if anyone is interested let me know, just send me a PM with your AIM username or email and I'll keep in touch with ya and we can figure out a day and time this will be.

[JustRob]

Niiiiice. Yeah, that SA on johnson is a complete waste of time.

Only a couple of things to report in all this time.

Friend of mine lives in orlando. Went to goodwill with his wife as he is want to do and found a saturn with all the cabling and two controllers, otherwise bare, for $20. Since they are 100% non-existent down here, I told him to grab it for me. So, I've now got a saturn.

Went to the goodwill in Skylake with my girlfriend, 18th and Miami Gardens Dr. Trying to get her in the hobby as she's a total gamer herself. Found 4 CIB Master System games: World Grand Prix, Teddy Boy(Card game), Hang-On/Safari Hunt, and Ghostbusters. WGP is a 3 in the guide, the others 1s, but these are the first SMS games I've *ever* found in the wild outside of fleas.

Still, nice finds for not really trying.

BTW, penguin, PM Sent.

[jetset516]

Bit of an update...a new Goodwill opened on Taft St. in Hollywood. About 2 weeks ago and I've been checking every other day. No gaming stuff whatsoever. The first day I went there was a Tetris 2 for the SNES, and a SNES controller, each for 2 bucks. I went back 2 days later and someone had bought them (not that either was anything I wanted)
Yet another dry spot.

[JustRob]

Where exactly is Hollywood Thrift? Also, this new one on Taft, what Ave?

[jetset516]

Where exactly is Hollywood Thrift? Also, this new one on Taft, what Ave?

Um....Taft and...68th maybe (I only drive down that road every single day lol you'd think I would know!)
There is a Publix shopping ctr there...I'll dbl check the exact street tomorrow.