Going to start a new set to collect. Need some suggestions
Hey guys,
I know this gets asked a lot, but I am torn on what set to complete next. I was considering Gamecube, or Saturn. I have 217 Cube games with many of the big hitters. Now I only have around 20 Saturn games, but I have all 3 Panzer games, all but one of the Working design games (MKR), Guardean Heroes, and a some other ok games. I will do both at some point, but not sure where I want to go with it. A small part of me says go for a loose GB set as well. Anyway shoot me some ideas.
Thanks guys,
Mason
I know this gets asked a lot, but I am torn on what set to complete next. I was considering Gamecube, or Saturn. I have 217 Cube games with many of the big hitters. Now I only have around 20 Saturn games, but I have all 3 Panzer games, all but one of the Working design games (MKR), Guardean Heroes, and a some other ok games. I will do both at some point, but not sure where I want to go with it. A small part of me says go for a loose GB set as well. Anyway shoot me some ideas.
Thanks guys,
Mason
Comments
I would go saturn over GCN myself, I was never a huge fan of the cube and from an investment standpoint, I feel saturn will be more valuable in the long run.
I'd vote for loose GB! Great set to get after, but otherwise I'd suggest casually hitting the GC set while focusing on the Saturn full set as a main priority.
Sorry, I just saw this. Yeah, I've been working on a loose GB set for over a year (including all label variants) I'm about 62-3% complete and it's been fun. I highly recommend it.
GBC
Famicom
Atari 2600
Dreamcast
Not too difficult, but still some challenge. Except Atari 2600, the last 5-6 you can count on not ever having, but the rest is fun
Pick up a few GameCube games here and there and eventual you'll end up with a set.
GameCube. I need the competition.
I always do the US set, but I pick up my favorite imports. Part of me says if I do the saturn set, I could get all my favorites complete and the bulk of the common shit as disc only. I have never done that for a set; but considering the case size and fragility if I was ever to do it for a set the Saturn should be the one I do it for.
The problem with Saturn, unless you're collecting loose ones, you will be seeing a ton of ones with completely damaged\destroyed cases. That plastic got really brittle on some of the cases, and the hinges snap off with ease.
This is exactly half of the reason of why I'm getting out of the Saturn game. I'm only keeping the lesser priced titles that are actually fun to play.
I have a couple of quality titles in great shape, however, after doing research, you REALLY need to be a preservationist to keep this stuff. Be super-careful openning your games, don't play the more expensive ones and be sure to keep the foam inserts in the cases so the manuals don't buckle. Also, supposedly you have to maintain good humidity to avoid disc rot because, for some reason, SEGA CD/Saturn games really are super-cheap CD media and many examples of Saturn games have rotted pits, which you can see when you hold the game up to the light.
I'm not going to say that people shouldn't collect Saturn games or that they shouldn't enjoy playing their collection. However, just know that Saturn games frail. Be sure to factor in that you will want to make extra-effort to preserve your collection for a long time.
Also, supposedly you have to maintain good humidity to avoid disc rot because, for some reason, SEGA CD/Saturn games really are super-cheap CD media and many examples of Saturn games have rotted pits, which you can see when you hold the game up to the light.
I've been one talking about disc rot for years, most people think I'm crazy. I've seen it most on old CDs with a silver top, I really wonder if the top layer is thinner or more prone to scratches. Once it gets air in there, the clear part of the CD will "grow", I've seen ones where a quarter or more of the CD were clear.
Also, supposedly you have to maintain good humidity to avoid disc rot because, for some reason, SEGA CD/Saturn games really are super-cheap CD media and many examples of Saturn games have rotted pits, which you can see when you hold the game up to the light.
I've been one talking about disc rot for years, most people think I'm crazy. I've seen it most on old CDs with a silver top, I really wonder if the top layer is thinner or more prone to scratches. Once it gets air in there, the clear part of the CD will "grow", I've seen ones where a quarter or more of the CD were clear.
Yeah, I agree from an "educated guess" perspective. I think the printed layer on top of most other games assists in stablizing the metallic layer. From my observation most Saturn games are not printed on top of the discs but certainly some are (MKR, for example.) Anyway, even those seem to have a thinner layer than other games. When you hold them up to a light, you can still see through many of them. I think this is because the metallic layer is thinner than most other CD-games.
As some have mentioned, with Saturn games, you have to be weary of those damn covers easily breaking/cracks and discs are likely to have more scratches/damage than GameCube games. Personally, I enjoy collecting the Saturn more because it has that added challenge!
Game Boy is fun, cheap, loose carts are easy to find, and they don't take up any room. The games are also usually pretty short and easy to play. Saturn games might be harder to find in the future if you're picking one to attack first. Gamecube, meh
Slightly off topic, how many GB carts would one need to have a complete set?
I vote to go GameCube simply because you have a hell of a head start with 200+ titles already.
Game Boy is fun, cheap, loose carts are easy to find, and they don't take up any room. The games are also usually pretty short and easy to play. Saturn games might be harder to find in the future if you're picking one to attack first. Gamecube, meh
Slightly off topic, how many GB carts would one need to have a complete set?
I think the number is 510 in the US if you don't pay attention to variants. I've not compiled a master variant list but with variants it's closet to 580. If you want to include the PAL exclusive titles, that probably adds an addtional 10-15, estimated.
I vote to go GameCube simply because you have a hell of a head start with 200+ titles already.
Game Boy is fun, cheap, loose carts are easy to find, and they don't take up any room. The games are also usually pretty short and easy to play. Saturn games might be harder to find in the future if you're picking one to attack first. Gamecube, meh
Slightly off topic, how many GB carts would one need to have a complete set?
I think the number is 510 in the US if you don't pay attention to variants. I've not compiled a master variant list but with variants it's closet to 580. If you want to include the PAL exclusive titles, that probably adds an addtional 10-15, estimated.
Wow, that's actually less than I would of thought! Maybe I'm mentally grouping the GBC games with it which I know probably doubles or triples the totals. What would you say are like the top 10 hardest North American carts to come by?
Wow, that's actually less than I would of thought! Maybe I'm mentally grouping the GBC games with it which I know probably doubles or triples the totals. What would you say are like the top 10 hardest North American carts to come by?
That's a tough one. The "rarest" one is supposedly Amazing Tater and Spud's Adventure. However, in my experience, these games aren't hard to find at all. They are just the top-dollar games because they were lesser sold titles at the time of their release, however a lot of people have recently taken interest in collecting ATLUS games. Interesting enough, Amazing Tater is a sequel to Kwirk, which is probably on of the most common titles not made by Nintendo.
But, if I had to make a short list of titles that have been hardest for me to find, especially in good condition, I'd say:
Wayne's World
Captain America
Kid Dracula
Buster Bros (Kind of uncommon, but man, it was tough finding one in mint shape.)
F1 Pole Position - This one is super east to find as the UKV variant. The US version has a half/black label. Many people sell this one not knowing that it's possibly the rarest licensed title.
Wisdom Tree's NIV Bible - Yeah, this is an unlicensed title but it doesn't come around often. I don't own this and I'm not sure I'll try to get it. I stick with official stuff, but it's likely more rare than F1 Pole-Position.
Hannah Barbara games by Taito - The problem with these games isn't that they are hard to find, it's just hard to verify them through eBay photos. I think this was a problem with many Taito games, even for the NES.
Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Rev-03) - I stumbled upon this revision and I had no clue it existed. As Rev-03, it's the fourth variant of the game. The third rev is a semi-rare version that was packed in with the original GB from Target. I've asked around. So far, no one knows where this fourth version came from. My copy is a little worn on the label, which is usually a no-no for me. I've not seen many other copies after scouring eBay and the couple other copies I've found have been in even poorer condition, which makes sense since most people LOVED this game and wore it out. Still, if you find a Rev-3, it's a hidden gem in the since that you can get if for under $20 and it really is kind of rare.
In variant land, it's probably a different story. I'm sure some of the uncommon games have rare variants with that stupid Game Boy logo down the left side or something.
Cool Ball, Ninja Taro, Titus the Fox, Jimmy Connors Tennis, Zool, Toxic Crusaders, Accolade Centipede, and two Wisdom Tree bibles are some more kind of tough ones. A halfway rare box is rarer than the rarest carts though, which is nice is you only want carts.
In variant land, it's probably a different story. I'm sure some of the uncommon games have rare variants with that stupid Game Boy logo down the left side or something.
Yeah, I mean, I started collecting wanting a good goal, so I chose a GB set since I loved the system as a kid and there are many reasonably priced game. However, I'll say this is a tad bit misleading. Many of these games are actually kind of rare, it's just that no ones looking for them. That means that price might end up being "whatever you're willing to pay" because it might take a month or two for one to show up on eBay and, if the seller asks $40 for it, you have to ask, do you keep looking or do you shell out $40 because one's not sold in 4 months and the one before that was 2 months earlier.
Variants, though, are where it gets fun. Take for instance STAR WARS. Not a great game, but it's rather common. The first version has different art on the label, which I like better. Sales on eBay tend to be at about a 10-to-1 ratio IIRC to the Rev-1 version. This makes it rare, but since most don't really pay attention to rares, you can get it for about the same price. As mentioned, the same is true for each revision to Link's Awakening. In that case, each version is a bit more rare than the last. Even still the Rev-3 is worth as much as the first version, usually, so you can get a pretty rare game for $15-20 if you're lucky.
Last, the worst "Revision" you'll attempt to get is the Felix the Cat. Felix is semi-rare, which is bad enough, but having to hunt down Rev-1 and fork out another $60-75! Oof! I was lucky. I got mine in a lot deal, and paid a reasonable price on the other.
Last, there are even other revisions that I'm not even sure exist. For instance, do a search for Space Invaders. You will find loads of DMG-SP-USA-1 and DMG-SP-USA-2. Seeing the revision numbers would lend one to believe that a standard DMG-SP-USA exists. Well, it's kind of my "grail". I don't believe this thing exists and if it does, it should have a level of mythical-ness as Stadium Events (all though not worth as much.) My theory is that they intended to release that game a standard GB game but right at the last minute, they updated the game to work with the Super Game Boy, but that also meant they had to update the label.
I have no clue if any first-versions exist and, if they do, I imagine they never made it past first manufacturing review, so there are probably only a small handful in existence. That's completely speculative, though. About every month or two I look at every single eBay listing, looking for a first version. I've never seen or heard of one.