Bit Lounger Kickstarter SNES 10 Cart holders

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2033311797/bitlounger-16bitsn



Just curious what you guys think about this kind of product? It's already been funded, but to me it seems very unnecessary as it's not large enough to readily support a larger collection, or protective enough to put your really pricey games in it worry-free. I just find it a hard sell when there are literally infinite amounts of ways to store carts with all the storage options out there nowadays.



They say they're going to do more systems down the line, and the only system I can really see benefiting from this kind of storage (even slightly) would be the n64 due to lack of end labels...... (if they were all standing up and had a little space between them you could at least see the covers of the games in theory).
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Comments

  • $25 seems a bit steep as well. If these went inside a storage container that you pull out that would feel more retro and at least seem like it's worth $25.
  • Interested to see how this does. I was just working a design on a GB oriented version of this for a class to get 3D printed. Seems like a useful idea at least.... but maybe a little pricey, yeah.
  • It's alright. Everyone displays/stores their collection differently, so I can see how some people may like these.
  • Definitely not for me, but I can see how someone might find this useful for a smaller collection. It's already "backed," so best of luck to them.
  • Overpriced for what it is. For people who only collect their favorite games, I can see it working for them...but I mean...I think if you had any kind of real collection it would be cheaper to go UGCs or even plastic bins from Big Lots lol...
  • Just my opinion, but the shots make it look like the games are stored in a Styrofoam block. lol
  • There are better designs you can print yourself for cheaper.
  • To each their own, but this looks like one of the most pointless things anyone could have. But it got funded pretty quick, so I guess such a thing was in demand for some.
  • Hard Pass.



    Good luck to the creator though.
  • Originally posted by: introless



    To each their own, but this looks like one of the most pointless things anyone could have. But it got funded pretty quick, so I guess such a thing was in demand for some.



    Sadly there are too many people out there that buy things on impulse because they are vintage game related. I have several things like this from garage sales, they get so much dirt and grime in them that I just throw them in a box in my attic.

     
  • I like the idea and can appreciate the design, but $25 per unit to store 10 SNES carts right next to one another? NOPE. That pricing is nuts. I understand that depending on how they're getting the units manufactured, there will be some up front costs to get things going (creating molds for injection molding, etc.), but C'MON. Their goal of $500 was met by the sale of 20 "early bird" units; the regular price looks like it's going to be $29 each, which is even crazier. Shipping is apparently free, so if you take off $5 for basic shipping costs (just a guess), you're still looking at $20-24 each. I can still easily find these for $10-20 all day long at my local game stores, flea markets, etc., which makes this appear even more nuts. Here's hoping these guys quickly figure out how to drop their cost and price per unit, otherwise I think this thing will just end up being a quick blip on everybody's radar before disappearing forever.
  • It would be cooler if they were interlocking and cheaper.
  • Hey guys!



    I'm part of the BitLounger team and we're all huge retro game enthusiasts. Great feedback on here, and great discussion. It's definitely a niche product, and not for every collector (we're not here to compete with plastic bins from Big Lots  ). Our main goal is just to provide collectors/enthusiasts down to folks that just have a handful of carts they'd like to store nicely an option with an emphasis on great build quality and styling (funny enough, we prototyped with styrofoam & 3D printing, so you hit the nail on the head, lol). Just like with most products, you have low-end options and high-end options. This aside, what would be something you would look for in a storage option? We're all ears and want to create quality non-crap products gamers can use.



    With all that being said, we're working on other things that blow this out of the water  



    PS: I'll let the team know their photography sucks  



    -BL
  • Not only are there plenty of bigger, better organizers still around from the system's heyday, there are cheap 3D-printable designs freely available. That price is not even remotely appropriate for collectors who will need many of these for even a modest collection. The design doesn't bring anything novel and actually seems to take a step backwards from other designs. It isn't made to fit with/without a dust cover and there is no reason to have a full separation wall. That's wasted material, more surface contact for scratches, and a less-dense design.



    Even if it were cheaper, this would be made for the "I got an an old SNES and a few of my favorite games from my childhood" crowd, NOT the collector crowd with hundreds of games (the ones who MOST need a place to store them). At that price a collector would probably choose to spend the money on original boxes instead! Even if they weren't going to buy original boxes, they'd buy Universal Game Cases for under $1 each. Get it under $1 a game for 30+ games and then you might have a viable product. Even then, I have several 24 cart organizers that are WAY cheaper.
  • $25? Lol, just no.
  • yeah not for 25 dollars each.



    it would be nice if it was like a staircase, and you could see the label on each game, so you could use it as a display for rare carts or your favourite carts or whatever
  • Originally posted by: acidjaguar



    Interested to see how this does. I was just working a design on a GB oriented version of this for a class to get 3D printed. Seems like a useful idea at least.... but maybe a little pricey, yeah.

    Pelican made a rack for GB games that was stackable with other racks. It definitely had room for improvement, so you might want to take a look at one.

     
  • When you have over 200 super nintendo games this is not for you, it looks ok i guess but i am not the target buyer here.
  • Originally posted by: zredgemz



    When you have over 200 super nintendo games this is not for you, it looks ok i guess but i am not the target buyer here.

    Exactly, except that you can extrapolate from this that it's not really for ANYONE. If you have 25 SNES games are you really going to spend $75+ on these (I assume that there is shipping involved)?! What about someone with 8 games spending $25+? They probably could have bought three more SNES games with that! It just doesn't seem appropriate at ANY scale. Who is the target buyer?



    I mean, I thought the cost per game of BitBox was a little steep but you get a lot more with that including a document holder, insert window, and full protection. It's already surprising to me that there is a market for BitBox at the high cost per cart it commands, but expecting this rack thing to prove marketable at a similar cost per cartridge honestly seems like an even bigger stretch.
  • Originally posted by: CZroe

     
    Originally posted by: zredgemz



    When you have over 200 super nintendo games this is not for you, it looks ok i guess but i am not the target buyer here.

    Exactly, except that you can extrapolate from this that it's not really for ANYONE. If you have 25 SNES games are you really going to spend $75+ on these (I assume that there is shipping involved)?! What about someone with 8 games spending $25+? They probably could have bought three more SNES games with that! It just doesn't seem appropriate at ANY scale. Who is the target buyer?



    I mean, I thought the cost per game of BitBox was a little steep but you get a lot more with that including a document holder, insert window, and full protection. It's already surprising to me that there is a market for BitBox at the high cost per cart it commands, but expecting this rack thing to prove marketable at a similar cost per cartridge honestly seems like an even bigger stretch.

    When it comes to what you could buy with that money i could bring up tons of things, why buy a full set of repros when a flashcart will save you a ton of money? People spend money on what they feel like and sometimes i do facepalm but it is not my choice to make.



     
  • That's racist. No PAL cart can sit in that.



    Seriously, good luck to them.
  • Originally posted by: CZroe

     
    Originally posted by: zredgemz



    When you have over 200 super nintendo games this is not for you, it looks ok i guess but i am not the target buyer here.

    Exactly, except that you can extrapolate from this that it's not really for ANYONE. If you have 25 SNES games are you really going to spend $75+ on these (I assume that there is shipping involved)?! What about someone with 8 games spending $25+? They probably could have bought three more SNES games with that! It just doesn't seem appropriate at ANY scale. Who is the target buyer?



    I mean, I thought the cost per game of BitBox was a little steep but you get a lot more with that including a document holder, insert window, and full protection. It's already surprising to me that there is a market for BitBox at the high cost per cart it commands, but expecting this rack thing to prove marketable at a similar cost per cartridge honestly seems like an even bigger stretch.

    That is part of what pushed me from BitBox to CGC.  Best bang for your buck.



    I could see this as an option for a certain segment of collectors.  Lots of people in the reddit collecting community only have a handful of games, but are super proud of their Earthbounds and Chrono Triggers and what-not.  Obviously NA in general is not really much of a target audience for this thing because this is a more hardcore group.  But for a casual collector, one of those could probably be your end-all solution
  • This is all great commentary!

    You are all spot on when it comes to target market, this is most likely not intended for someone who has 200 games and is happy with plastic universal game cases. That being said, that certainly isn't everyone either. We wanted something we were proud to display that wasn't made of thin plastic. Why we landed at our current price point was after being really disappointed with the 3D printed trays we personally ordered for $20+shipping from a company that made them. Like ours, it held 10 games but was extraordinarily flimsy and felt cheap. Looking for something with better build and styling we figured hey, we can produce a product that's significantly stronger, made of better material and doesn't feel cheap and sell it for roughly what they do (or at least price matching for early backers). No harm, no foul. We didn't agree with our "competitions" price point, which is why we stepped in to provide a better product. We didn't come to outrage gamers  

    -BL
  • Originally posted by: DarkTone

    That's racist. No PAL cart can sit in that.



    Seriously, good luck to them.



    sure they would. Just like a pal cart fits in a us super Nintendo
  • Originally posted by: mritchy



    This is all great commentary!

    You are all spot on when it comes to target market, this is most likely not intended for someone who has 200 games and is happy with plastic universal game cases. That being said, that certainly isn't everyone either. We wanted something we were proud to display that wasn't made of thin plastic. Why we landed at our current price point was after being really disappointed with the 3D printed trays we personally ordered for $20+shipping from a company that made them. Like ours, it held 10 games but was extraordinarily flimsy and felt cheap. Looking for something with better build and styling we figured hey, we can produce a product that's significantly stronger, made of better material and doesn't feel cheap and sell it for roughly what they do (or at least price matching for early backers). No harm, no foul. We didn't agree with our "competitions" price point, which is why we stepped in to provide a better product. We didn't come to outrage gamers  

    -BL



    If you ever make affordable muti color snes dust covers i will be willing to jump if the price was right, i hope all the best for you.

     
  • Much appreciated! What price point would you be looking for, and which colors would you desire most?

    -BL
  • If you can hit about 2 bucks a cover or cheaper would be good, you could do something like a grab bag of colors when you order a set amount. No color preference just dust covers that feel like the real thing( good plastic).
  • Rock on! I'll pass that along!
  • How about a game rack that does something even full system organizers suck at? Add controller storage with cord management and I'd strongly consider it!
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