CIB VGA graded games
So.... I posted some pics of some mint (and I mean MINT cib's - totally unused, same as sealed with no wrap) on the other thread but I know you CIB collectors will say the hobby is about to end......... so I figured the death of the hobby was worth a separate thread at least 
this ninja kid, the 85+ bubble bobble, and this athletic world are all (horrors) opened and then graded. This is a sample letter confirming eligibility for the qualified grade (in vga's words has to be "complete, original, and unused)." Discuss
Comments
Anyone know if VGA will grade unused PAL games under these criteria?
Nice pics, thanks for sharing.
Anyone know if VGA will grade unused PAL games under these criteria?
Let me put it this way I'd be surprised if they didn't
Is there something about the seal that distinguishes it from sealed games? I have a feeling a lot of people will not be happy about this!
Also you can just kind of use your eyeballs I guess. Look at the BB2's above. They look identical BUT you can just see that one is in a cello wrap and the other isn't
Speaking of which, I can totally see Ray availing himself of this service for his gorgeous BB collection. This kind of thing is perfect for that use.
Personally, I think NES games are a bargain right now compared to other hobbies, and if the hobby starts to appreciate, well the high tide lifts all boats. Even now people just getting in like to find things "in the wild" or as cheap BIN's, and this service doesn't affect those purchases one bit.
Plus, if there's a way to "lock in" a great cheap find you made of a perfect condition game, and make MORE money by putting it through the service, then it can be more profitable at entry level. Also, It just adds another tier for people to choose in terms of their collection.
Sorry, just condensing a lot of the 100's of posts already made on the topic. Also, here are some kittens.
Now they won't ever know if you swap things in and out though, right?
I really don't like this idea,i think it is a cash cow for VGA,and i can see this hurting the hobby.All of a sudden that CIB BB2 went from $400 to $800 just because it was graded,and u are going to see all of these major resellers doing this,which is going to make it almost unobtainable for the average collector to get a nice copy of a rare/semi rare game because they will all be graded with huge price tags.This is just my opinion and it is just a cash cow for VGA.
See that's your opinion of the value of a game based on its current value. Sure, paying $800 for a game you could get for $400 is more. But the loose game is only $100, why do you want to pay $400? Because of value-added cardboard and paper?
Moreover if the market sets the value of a graded 85+ BB2 CIB at $800, you can cash out at any time. You're not losing the money on the plastic capsule and grading service, it's an investment.
Finally, if you don't want it, exercise your right to simply not buy it and get non-graded copies. The whole point to grading is that graded games are worth more, so buy non-graded games. Just because the service exists doesn't mean everyone's going to run out and do it. Probably fewer than 1% of all extant copies of a given game will ever be graded.
To me, the only REAL problem doesn't lie with people who don't like the service - it's with people who LIKE it and invest in the plastic capsule, then are stuck having lost money if the service fails somehow. That's why VGA/AFA is a safe bet, they've been around a while and are doing this the right way.
I really don't like this idea,i think it is a cash cow for VGA,and i can see this hurting the hobby.All of a sudden that CIB BB2 went from $400 to $800 just because it was graded,and u are going to see all of these major resellers doing this,which is going to make it almost unobtainable for the average collector to get a nice copy of a rare/semi rare game because they will all be graded with huge price tags.This is just my opinion and it is just a cash cow for VGA.
See that's your opinion of the value of a game based on its current value. Sure, paying $800 for a game you could get for $400 is more. But the loose game is only $100, why do you want to pay $400? Because of value-added cardboard and paper?
Moreover if the market sets the value of a graded 85+ BB2 CIB at $800, you can cash out at any time. You're not losing the money on the plastic capsule and grading service, it's an investment.
Finally, if you don't want it, exercise your right to simply not buy it and get non-graded copies. The whole point to grading is that graded games are worth more, so buy non-graded games. Just because the service exists doesn't mean everyone's going to run out and do it. Probably fewer than 1% of all extant copies of a given game will ever be graded.
To me, the only REAL problem doesn't lie with people who don't like the service - it's with people who LIKE it and invest in the plastic capsule, then are stuck having lost money if the service fails somehow. That's why VGA/AFA is a safe bet, they've been around a while and are doing this the right way.
When you say it that way, to me it seems like a real investment too. It's also a safe and non-risky. What I mean is that if you buy the game VGA'd, you know what you're getting, and it has a set price in the market when they begin to sell. However, you can buy a non-VGA'd copy and it will be much riskier: you could get a higher graded copy for less even though you don't know until you grade it, or you could've paid the same price as a VGA 85+ (let's say) and get it as just an 85 instead of the 90 you were hoping for. You know what you're getting when it's graded, and that's why it's good as a basis to start prices and values off of.
Anyway, there's not much unused CIB games around compared to used ones.
OK this thread needs some outrage... paging NGD
I am not even going to read this thread anymore.....Everyone knows how retarded I think this is, so I will just leave it at that....... I knew sealed would lead to CIB, and I know graded CIB will lead to no good. That is all.
~~NGD
Just as a side note, many CIB collectors actually play their games (yeah, even Firehouse Rescue), so for them having the game enclosed in a case isn't an alternative unless they have a spare loose copy.
Anyway, there's not much unused CIB games around compared to used ones.
That's what the PowerPak is for
Just as a side note, many CIB collectors actually play their games (yeah, even Firehouse Rescue), so for them having the game enclosed in a case isn't an alternative unless they have a spare loose copy.
Anyway, there's not much unused CIB games around compared to used ones.
You're very right, I think the majority of CIB collectors wouldn't get their games graded for this reason. But I think people who care about condition, on their mintiest copies, would not be in-and-out of the boxes to play them all the time for risk of damaging the box. For those people, the option is there to "take the plunge" and encapsulate.
I personally don't own any games that I would think are grade-quality, but I do know some collectors who do and really care a lot about it.
There's also the aspect of turning a game into its own display. For the price they charge compared to, say, buying an acrylic case from a sports or frame shop, I think it's very affordable. Esp for odd-shaped games. So if you don't think having an impartial pair of eyes evaluating your game's condition is worth paying for, consider that.
Just as a side note, many CIB collectors actually play their games (yeah, even Firehouse Rescue), so for them having the game enclosed in a case isn't an alternative unless they have a spare loose copy.
Anyway, there's not much unused CIB games around compared to used ones.
I can only speak for myself, but on games this nice (remember that AFAIK only MINT/unused games are eligible) who would even play them.
I bought that FFF AW from nikki and I never even opened it. Neither did he. We both didn't want to disturb it because it didn't look like it had ever been opened, the small circular seal had probably just given out. VGA didn't think it had been opened before either, but obviously its now been opened once for a contents check.
OK this thread needs some outrage... paging NGD
I am not even going to read this thread anymore.....Everyone knows how retarded I think this is, so I will just leave it at that....... I knew sealed would lead to CIB, and I know graded CIB will lead to no good. That is all.
~~NGD
No fire and brimstone?
I really don't like this idea,i think it is a cash cow for VGA,and i can see this hurting the hobby.All of a sudden that CIB BB2 went from $400 to $800 just because it was graded,and u are going to see all of these major resellers doing this,which is going to make it almost unobtainable for the average collector to get a nice copy of a rare/semi rare game because they will all be graded with huge price tags.This is just my opinion and it is just a cash cow for VGA.
From my perspective as a seller. Most CIB bb2's yeah would be 3 or 4 hun or whatever. Personally I would have never let this copy go before or after grading for less than 800 (in fact I quoted that exact figure to a couple people before it was graded). Mike Hastings and I traded this copy back and forth several times at prices between 400 and 500 back when "normal" cib's were 200-250. Nothing's really changed other than its hopefully now easier to demonstrate to a potential buyer just what a truly mint game they would be getting.