Wata Games, comic dude money, and collecting as an investment
Seems to me that that $50K $100K Mario sale changed this hobby. Maybe forever. With that sale Wata Games and game collecting at large became legitimized in the public mind. I know this hobby has always had big ticket items, we've had big sales, and we've had grading services before. But Mario's face and a 6 figure price tag creates a new kind of relatablity.
Or hell, maybe it wasn't that sale. Maybe it was something else. But I hear we have comic collectors throwing their wallets into our ring. I hear sealed prices are trending upwards. I hear that big time collectors are more agressively persuing sealed games. I hear business is pretty good over at Wata.
Looking at these trends independently they don't mean much. Collectively though, do they mean more?
Or hell, maybe it wasn't that sale. Maybe it was something else. But I hear we have comic collectors throwing their wallets into our ring. I hear sealed prices are trending upwards. I hear that big time collectors are more agressively persuing sealed games. I hear business is pretty good over at Wata.
Looking at these trends independently they don't mean much. Collectively though, do they mean more?
Comments
I feel like there is a thread every day talking about this. :-)
Dude, this is 2012 all over again lol.
Means more blood and new/renewed interest in the hobby, I suppose
Attic, this is all long overdue imo. Retro games, especially sealed, we’re destined to end up legit high-end collectibles. Now it’s finally happening, and expect it to grow as the big name collectors and sellers starting showing stuff around amongst themselves and conventions around the world.
This “investment area” that seems to be trending in vintage games is mostly focused on sealed NES, from what I can tell. That is a niche group and many of us (myself included) are priced out of that.
I collect because I love gaming and have an appreciation for older games - their history and lore. Physical media is awesome. If the value of my collection was cut in half tomorrow or tripled in market value, it wouldn’t make a difference to me. But I don’t knock people who feel differently.
To each their own I suppose. I think there are far safer and more lucrative investment areas than vintage video games, but different folks different strokes.
This “investment area” that seems to be trending in vintage games is mostly focused on sealed NES, from what I can tell. That is a niche group and many of us (myself included) are priced out of that.
I collect because I love gaming and have an appreciation for older games - their history and lore. Physical media is awesome. If the value of my collection was cut in half tomorrow or tripled in market value, it wouldn’t make a difference to me. But I don’t knock people who feel differently.
Well said. I'm not going to bother buying a sealed Mario Bros. for $50K because I think its a "good investment". I'm going to buy one loose like a savage and play it because I love gaming and also the history. That's not to say if I found a sealed Mario Bros. I wouldn't take advantage and sell it, because I would. Nothing sadder to me than a sealed game to be honest, they are meant to be played!
Plenty of room for both, peeps. Do what makes you most happy .
Also, for what it's worth the Mario sale was $100k and 6 figure price tag, heh. But back in 2017 there was the $30k (ish?) sealed Mario hangtab sale on eBay and jaws dropped at that one. I guess point being big sales have always happened in the hobby (big relative to what other stuff is worth at the time). Only thing changing here is the pool of collectors and the marketability of the sale, outside of your generic yahoo / cnn stadium events articles we've had over the years.
Holy crap that's right!
Oh nice, we're not only hitting the market/bubble issue here, but are gonna kill two birds with one stone and add in the "true gamer"/"games were meant to be played" versus "asshole collector/investor" debate!
Plenty of room for both, peeps. Do what makes you most happy .
I'm not trying to start a class war here!
Really, I agree with you. I think the people who are buying these sealed games have other things they could afford to collect/invest in. I think some of them may have as much love and nostalgia for these games as the rest of us. It's not necessarily passion that seperates us from them--it's wallets.
attakid - there was some video game OA sold for considerably more than the 100k mario in the early part of the year too.
See the 42k nwc thread.
Oh nice, we're not only hitting the market/bubble issue here, but are gonna kill two birds with one stone and add in the "true gamer"/"games were meant to be played" versus "asshole collector/investor" debate!
Plenty of room for both, peeps. Do what makes you most happy .
I'm not trying to start a class war here!
Really, I agree with you. I think the people who are buying these sealed games have other things they could afford to collect/invest in. I think some of them may have as much love and nostalgia for these games as the rest of us. It's not necessarily passion that seperates us from them--it's wallets.
I know, I’m just joshing you around lol
I actually think seeing these threads is a sign the hobby is thriving, so I’m all for it!
anyone here follow gary V? he's been on a nostalgic kick as of late which is making collecting (baseball, comics, games) even more mainstream and drawing in folks who generally spend disposable income in other ways.
No idea who he is, but youtubers and that seem to have more influence on the lower and middle ends of the market. I've never seen higher end comics or games really influenced by what one single guy is posting. Group discussions can have an effect but not one dude's channel, not when it comes to high end.
anyone here follow gary V? he's been on a nostalgic kick as of late which is making collecting (baseball, comics, games) even more mainstream and drawing in folks who generally spend disposable income in other ways.
No idea who he is, but youtubers and that seem to have more influence on the lower and middle ends of the market. I've never seen higher end comics or games really influenced by what one single guy is posting. Group discussions can have an effect but not one dude's channel, not when it comes to high end.
https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com
edit: i HATE that links have an ellipsis after them- it always looks like a sarcastic eye roll...
Since Mario 100K was mentioned I have to express that holding it made me very moist. Maybe that's what having rare stuff does to some people...............And by moist I mean excited.
That is an expensive booth
I guess it had to happen sooner or later... I've finally been here long enough to start seeing the threads recycle! Time for me to graduate from NA University! Where's my tassel at?!
Since Mario 100K was mentioned I have to express that holding it made me very moist. Maybe that's what having rare stuff does to some people...............And by moist I mean excited.
This is why WATA needs armed security. If I saw you doing this at TMG, I’d tackle you like the Office Linebacker.
Tapes are meant to played!
Yes. Although they could read about what it's like to play so they will know why people like it.
Extra hardcore gamer points for such comments as:
"Let that bitch breathe"
"Bet that pisses those douche collectors off"
"You are doing gods work, brother"
disclaimer 2: Also, I'm only factoring the only console that really matters in life....NES. SNES kinda matters, but only because I grew up with it. N64 is trash tho...sorry, not sorry.
It's an illusion.
The hobby is currently fractured, and is splitting into two separate hobbies all together. On one hand we have the top x% of items that will keep going up for decades to come, and on the other hand we have the bottom 95+% of stuff that has LONG AGO, already peaked in price.
We're down significantly in the loose department of games. Most of which peaked in 2016-2017. Even titles that have many things going for them, Rare + Fun + AAA franchise behind them.
NES is dying down. The above chart is just for rare stuff....but what about common stuff? Well, throw up a chart with Marios, Zeldas, Mega Mans, Contra, Castlevania, Double Dragon, Battletoads, Ninja Gaiden, etc. and it's all the same as well.
We've peaked as a hobby for NES, I suspect the same rings true for SNES as well.
Comic guys are late to the game, but they'll bring new life (money) into the hobby and maybe momentarily bring up EVERYTHING again, only for the hype to die down and they'll exchange the maybe few thousand of sealed items (Not unique titles, they'll probably only ever care for 200-300 of those!!! just individual items). They'll keep echanging between a small group of collectors hands, and the hobby will splinter off into its own scene.
I just hope it drops the prices of loose games.
Already happened, and it will continue to drop after this hype dies.
The "Current Prices" I listed mostly have little ticks up in the past month, so the percentages actually would have been even lower if not for the new money bringing out all the "FOMO" or panic buyers.