Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pretty sure he had maybe 1/3 of my current post count
Just saying, it is untested territory -- for all we know I could change my avatar or change my username and cause the database to explode!
Only one way to find out! Change your name
I can assure you that changing either would have no negative impact lol. (nor would banning him, save for how quiet it might get)
Go home Doug, you're ruining our fun
I have to make sure people know I know how websites work, otherwise the ad in my sig becomes pointless! (shameless plug - I am looking for freelance work at the moment)
I personally don't get it and don't care. If you're into high end collectibles, condition is key.
Oh look, my no name Black Label Zelda graded higher than the Joe Shmo collection copy...call the press.
Collections may have been valuable as a form of authenticity before grading, but that is what grading now confirms, making the lineage all but irrelevant.
Pretty much. But hey, maybe you live in Indiana and so maybe getting a copy that came from your neck of woods is cool to you. Maybe. Most people won't care.
The only way I would care about it being a certain someones collection, is if it was the maker of the series or games. Then id want a picture of me getting it with that person. Then id be like look at my castlevania from the koji collection
...this is my first post on here. I have collected comics for several years now and now turning my hand to gaming. ...as the title says I am looking for Black Box Nes matt/glossy sticker games.
...this is my first post on here. I have collected comics for several years now and now turning my hand to gaming. ...as the title says I am looking for Black Box Nes matt/glossy sticker games.
So it begins...
Plus side, all the comic guys know about is black box games. It's kinda cute actually.
Now is the time for us all with more varied knowledge to invest in the things we know they'll be looking for next.
Pretty much. But hey, maybe you live in Indiana and so maybe getting a copy that came from your neck of woods is cool to you. Maybe. Most people won't care.
I already snagged a game (well, two when the red Blades of Steel variant was too well priced to pass up) from the only Indiana collection I care about.
That changes my opinion on Wata 100%. Love the dudes behind it, but now they're trying to justify stupid nonsense is over the line. Dains collection has no more significance in preservation than the millions of roms dumped by the folks of the internet. Hell, the Nolans have done way more for preservation than this collection.
Some great discussion in here. I'm not surprised to see varying opinions on this topic, as even internally at Wata we have different stances that arise through debate. Which I think is great! The parallels have been drawn before between comics, but pedigrees and noting collections in certification is not unique to comics. In fact, Coins were the first matured hobby to use pedigrees, and the way they are defined and applied in certification are vastly different from how they are treated in comics. What's appropriate for video games and the future of this hobby is certainly up for debate (as this thread exemplifies); however, Wata has a method to our madness and we even have our own definitions of "Pedigree" versus "Collection," for example. I want to shed a little light on our position and keep the discussion going to hear all your thoughts, given some new (hopefully) information.
To add to the blog post and address some of the points in this topic:
1) We at Wata do not benefit from assigning landmark status to a collection and noting it on our label. If, at our discretion we decide to do so, we are doing so because we believe part of our duty is to accurately preserve history. I bolded "at our discretion" because this means that the decisions are technically subjective and may be up for debate. However, much discussion and thought goes into each decision and as objective a view as possible is taken from the perspective of asking whether or not the collections' provenance is something that should be preserved and noted. Most of the factors that go into this are summarized in the blog post.
2) Noting significant collections, whether they fit your definition of "pedigree" or not, are not unique to any one collectible. Whether it's the Nic Cage collection in comics or the Wayne Gretzky collection in cards, these collections are noted for their significance due to who owned them. Many people want a book from Nic Cage's collection simply because it used to be his. Whether this deserves a premium or not is a completely unrelated point, and is addressed below. Is Dain a celebrity? No. However, some collectors may want something from the long-time veteran who changed many of our lives -- if it weren't for Dain, I may not even be collecting the way I am today. Again, maybe we at Wata are biased, but the same principles apply as to why CGC and PSA, respectively, gave those collections landmark status. There is consensus that if Shigeru Miyamoto had a game collection he wanted to certify, we would certainly note that. But where does one draw the line? Again, this is a topic with many gray areas, and where we draw the line would be determined on a case-by-case basis.
3) The question of whether or not Dain's collection is significant enough to be noted is certainly the largest point of contention here. Wata determined that Dain's contributions to the hobby and the collection he amassed, while not all amazing pieces, had some of the most significant NES titles in it (including but not limited to the only known sealed copy of Mega Man 1 Dr. Wright, Chubby Cherub sealed, many sealed Black Box titles, extremely high-grade NES sealed library, one-off or unique foreign titles, etc). And for those of you who may not recall or be aware, Dain is responsible for elevating NES collecting to where it is today, which is the forefront of video game collecting. Seeing his collection in its entirety is undeniably one of the top NES sets that will ever be amassed as far as breadth and condition. More importantly, regarding his ownership, there are many collectors who voiced both privately and publicly (see the GoCollect announcement threads) that they would love to own a piece of Dain's collection, no matter how significant the item is. Outside of NA does this desire to own something from The Carolina Collection apply? Maybe, maybe not. But one thing is for certain, and that's that whether you agree or not, none of us would even be here and having this discourse if it weren't for Dain.
4) Should people pay more for "The Carolina Collection?" Who cares? We certainly don't. The designation is simply there for the sake of tracking the known and proven provenance of what Wata determined was a significant enough collection/owner to note on the label. If people want to pay more -- OR LESS -- that is their prerogative. If people want to auction these items off and market them as being from this collection to create more hype and buzz, that is also their prerogative. Whether we at Wata agree with those decisions or not is completely irrelevant, just as it is irrelevant whether someone actually pays more or not at the end of the day for that item.
Collections like Dain's came to be as a function of time and dedication. It's going to be very hard to find collections like these that are both intact, sent in for certification, and possess qualities that will qualify it as a landmark collection or a collection with Pedigree. As more collections are uncovered, discovered, and/or preserved, we'll post them on our blog as "Named Collections," which can include Pedigrees like the Indiana Collection, or significant collections like The Carolina Collection.
Some great discussion in here. I'm not surprised to see varying opinions on this topic, as even internally at Wata we have different stances that arise through debate. Which I think is great! The parallels have been drawn before between comics, but pedigrees and noting collections in certification is not unique to comics. In fact, Coins were the first matured hobby to use pedigrees, and the way they are defined and applied in certification are vastly different from how they are treated in comics. What's appropriate for video games and the future of this hobby is certainly up for debate (as this thread exemplifies); however, Wata has a method to our madness and we even have our own definitions of "Pedigree" versus "Collection," for example. I want to shed a little light on our position and keep the discussion going to hear all your thoughts, given some new (hopefully) information.
First, we have written a clarifying post on our blog. Please read this first to hear our high-level stance on the topic. https://www.watagames.com/learn/b...
To add to the blog post and address some of the points in this topic:
1) We at Wata do not benefit from assigning landmark status to a collection and noting it on our label. If, at our discretion we decide to do so, we are doing so because we believe part of our duty is to accurately preserve history. I bolded "at our discretion" because this means that the decisions are technically subjective and may be up for debate. However, much discussion and thought goes into each decision and as objective a view as possible is taken from the perspective of asking whether or not the collections' provenance is something that should be preserved and noted. Most of the factors that go into this are summarized in the blog post.
2) Noting significant collections, whether they fit your definition of "pedigree" or not, are not unique to any one collectible. Whether it's the Nic Cage collection in comics or the Wayne Gretzky collection in cards, these collections are noted for their significance due to who owned them. Many people want a book from Nic Cage's collection simply because it used to be his. Whether this deserves a premium or not is a completely unrelated point, and is addressed below. Is Dain a celebrity? No. However, some collectors may want something from the long-time veteran who changed many of our lives -- if it weren't for Dain, I may not even be collecting the way I am today. Again, maybe we at Wata are biased, but the same principles apply as to why CGC and PSA, respectively, gave those collections landmark status. There is consensus that if Shigeru Miyamoto had a game collection he wanted to certify, we would certainly note that. But where does one draw the line? Again, this is a topic with many gray areas, and where we draw the line would be determined on a case-by-case basis.
3) The question of whether or not Dain's collection is significant enough to be noted is certainly the largest point of contention here. Wata determined that Dain's contributions to the hobby and the collection he amassed, while not all amazing pieces, had some of the most significant NES titles in it (including but not limited to the only known sealed copy of Mega Man 1 Dr. Wright, Chubby Cherub sealed, many sealed Black Box titles, extremely high-grade NES sealed library, one-off or unique foreign titles, etc). And for those of you who may not recall or be aware, Dain is responsible for elevating NES collecting to where it is today, which is the forefront of video game collecting. Seeing his collection in its entirety is undeniably one of the top NES sets that will ever be amassed as far as breadth and condition. More importantly, regarding his ownership, there are many collectors who voiced both privately and publicly (see the GoCollect announcement threads) that they would love to own a piece of Dain's collection, no matter how significant the item is. Outside of NA does this desire to own something from The Carolina Collection apply? Maybe, maybe not. But one thing is for certain, and that's that whether you agree or not, none of us would even be here and having this discourse if it weren't for Dain.
4) Should people pay more for "The Carolina Collection?" Who cares? We certainly don't. The designation is simply there for the sake of tracking the known and proven provenance of what Wata determined was a significant enough collection/owner to note on the label. If people want to pay more -- OR LESS -- that is their prerogative. If people want to auction these items off and market them as being from this collection to create more hype and buzz, that is also their prerogative. Whether we at Wata agree with those decisions or not is completely irrelevant, just as it is irrelevant whether someone actually pays more or not at the end of the day for that item.
Collections like Dain's came to be as a function of time and dedication. It's going to be very hard to find collections like these that are both intact, sent in for certification, and possess qualities that will qualify it as a landmark collection or a collection with Pedigree. As more collections are uncovered, discovered, and/or preserved, we'll post them on our blog as "Named Collections," which can include Pedigrees like the Indiana Collection, or significant collections like The Carolina Collection.
I honestly think people hate the name "Carolina Collection" more than anything. I imagine most people don't have a problem with a notation that an item is from Dain's collection. Worth more/less whatever, all that is subjective for the reasons you listed. The flaw in your explanation is why is it called "Carolina", why does it get to take precedence over not only one but two entire states? Nothing about "Carolina Collection" calls out Dain or NA, who cares where he lives? Is Nic Cage's stuff called the "Hollywood Collection" or the "California Collection"? Is Gretzky's stuff called "The North America Collection" because he played in Canada and the US?
I reckon there would be far fewer people holding their noses if Dain's stuff would have been given a more appropriate name designation.
4) Should people pay more for "The Carolina Collection?" Who cares? We certainly don't.
With Dain a member of the advisory board you'd have to assume, at the very LEAST, the optics aren't great.
You've got a guy on the advisory board having one of only 2 currently named collections (I could be mistaken, there may be more) just prior to/during/immediately after selling said collection. It gives the image that things aren't kosher.
Same has been said with Jim Halperin's involvement. When a member of the advisory board is also co-founder of an auction site (Heritage) who greatly benefits from WATA, collections, pedigrees, etc., and the accompanying fees that Heritage can accumulate from inflated sales, again, it simply looks rotten.
I'm all for making money off the hobby, I've personally benefitted from the spike in classic games and have never been shy about making a dollar selling games. It's the lack of transparency that's almost insulting. Squeezing currently ignorant comic collectors turned game profiteers is a-ok in my book, but it's the spin here that just feels like we're being viewed as dumber than we are.
I really like most of the guys involved in WATA, so not a personal attack. I wish them all the best in their business. The pedigree and collection piece is nonsense though. A game from Dain's collection is no more important than any other game.
Hell, a handful of them were literally created in my basement...
Comments
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pretty sure he had maybe 1/3 of my current post count
Just saying, it is untested territory -- for all we know I could change my avatar or change my username and cause the database to explode!
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Guess he decided to come crawling back because every other community can't stand him either.
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pretty sure he had maybe 1/3 of my current post count
Just saying, it is untested territory -- for all we know I could change my avatar or change my username and cause the database to explode!
Only one way to find out! Change your name
Originally posted by: dra600n
Only one way to find out! Change your name
Some things aren't worth the risk!
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pretty sure he had maybe 1/3 of my current post count
Just saying, it is untested territory -- for all we know I could change my avatar or change my username and cause the database to explode!
Only one way to find out! Change your name
I can assure you that changing either would have no negative impact lol. (nor would banning him, save for how quiet it might get)
Originally posted by: dra600n
Only one way to find out! Change your name
Some things aren't worth the risk!
Just call it the Great Carolina Crash of 2019
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pretty sure he had maybe 1/3 of my current post count
Just saying, it is untested territory -- for all we know I could change my avatar or change my username and cause the database to explode!
Only one way to find out! Change your name
I can assure you that changing either would have no negative impact lol. (nor would banning him, save for how quiet it might get)
Go home Doug, you're ruining our fun
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Tanooki is unbanned though...
Only in the most technical sense. Guessing he wouldn't be able to log back on.
Pedigree isnt the same as providence, as far as I know.
Provenance.
Your collection having providence would REALLY be something special.
(I mean, some of these collections are "good"... but I doubt God cares much about them one way or another )
You are 2 for 2 today. 3 for 3 is a temp ban
Pretty sure the forum would break if I was banned, just from the overload of posts that have my avatar next to them
I dunno, it absorbed Tanooki pretty well.
Pretty sure he had maybe 1/3 of my current post count
Just saying, it is untested territory -- for all we know I could change my avatar or change my username and cause the database to explode!
Only one way to find out! Change your name
I can assure you that changing either would have no negative impact lol. (nor would banning him, save for how quiet it might get)
Go home Doug, you're ruining our fun
I have to make sure people know I know how websites work, otherwise the ad in my sig becomes pointless! (shameless plug - I am looking for freelance work at the moment)
My inbox!
What's wrong with your inbox?
My inbox!
What's wrong with your inbox?
He probably has quote notifications turned on and it's getting pounded.
My inbox!
What's wrong with your inbox?
He probably has quote notifications turned on and it's getting pounded.
Oh no! (I know! > )
My inbox!
What's wrong with your inbox?
He probably has quote notifications turned on and it's getting pounded.
Oh no! (I know! > )
Sqoon is getting quite the workout today.
I will lock this thread, take my ball and go home.
Where's the fun in that?
Oh look, my no name Black Label Zelda graded higher than the Joe Shmo collection copy...call the press.
Collections may have been valuable as a form of authenticity before grading, but that is what grading now confirms, making the lineage all but irrelevant.
Nobody is coming to my birthday!
Did somebody mention BIRTHDAYs?
A top collection is built on trust. Honest acquisitions (no con artistry), stored to maintain excellent condition.
...this is my first post on here. I have collected comics for several years now and now turning my hand to gaming. ...as the title says I am looking for Black Box Nes matt/glossy sticker games.
So it begins...
...this is my first post on here. I have collected comics for several years now and now turning my hand to gaming. ...as the title says I am looking for Black Box Nes matt/glossy sticker games.
So it begins...
Plus side, all the comic guys know about is black box games. It's kinda cute actually.
Now is the time for us all with more varied knowledge to invest in the things we know they'll be looking for next.
Look on the bright side!
Pretty much. But hey, maybe you live in Indiana and so maybe getting a copy that came from your neck of woods is cool to you. Maybe. Most people won't care.
I already snagged a game (well, two when the red Blades of Steel variant was too well priced to pass up) from the only Indiana collection I care about.
(Pretty sure Jobber was from Indiana?)
So The Carolina Collection is certainly not a pedigree. I did not see this posted or knew it posted on Watas site on July 1st
https://www.watagames.com/learn/blog/post/the-carolina-colle...
That changes my opinion on Wata 100%. Love the dudes behind it, but now they're trying to justify stupid nonsense is over the line. Dains collection has no more significance in preservation than the millions of roms dumped by the folks of the internet. Hell, the Nolans have done way more for preservation than this collection.
My dude.
Some great discussion in here. I'm not surprised to see varying opinions on this topic, as even internally at Wata we have different stances that arise through debate. Which I think is great! The parallels have been drawn before between comics, but pedigrees and noting collections in certification is not unique to comics. In fact, Coins were the first matured hobby to use pedigrees, and the way they are defined and applied in certification are vastly different from how they are treated in comics. What's appropriate for video games and the future of this hobby is certainly up for debate (as this thread exemplifies); however, Wata has a method to our madness and we even have our own definitions of "Pedigree" versus "Collection," for example. I want to shed a little light on our position and keep the discussion going to hear all your thoughts, given some new (hopefully) information.
First, we have written a clarifying post on our blog. Please read this first to hear our high-level stance on the topic. https://www.watagames.com/learn/blog/post/named-collections-pedigrees-and-collections/
To add to the blog post and address some of the points in this topic:
1) We at Wata do not benefit from assigning landmark status to a collection and noting it on our label. If, at our discretion we decide to do so, we are doing so because we believe part of our duty is to accurately preserve history. I bolded "at our discretion" because this means that the decisions are technically subjective and may be up for debate. However, much discussion and thought goes into each decision and as objective a view as possible is taken from the perspective of asking whether or not the collections' provenance is something that should be preserved and noted. Most of the factors that go into this are summarized in the blog post.
2) Noting significant collections, whether they fit your definition of "pedigree" or not, are not unique to any one collectible. Whether it's the Nic Cage collection in comics or the Wayne Gretzky collection in cards, these collections are noted for their significance due to who owned them. Many people want a book from Nic Cage's collection simply because it used to be his. Whether this deserves a premium or not is a completely unrelated point, and is addressed below. Is Dain a celebrity? No. However, some collectors may want something from the long-time veteran who changed many of our lives -- if it weren't for Dain, I may not even be collecting the way I am today. Again, maybe we at Wata are biased, but the same principles apply as to why CGC and PSA, respectively, gave those collections landmark status. There is consensus that if Shigeru Miyamoto had a game collection he wanted to certify, we would certainly note that. But where does one draw the line? Again, this is a topic with many gray areas, and where we draw the line would be determined on a case-by-case basis.
3) The question of whether or not Dain's collection is significant enough to be noted is certainly the largest point of contention here. Wata determined that Dain's contributions to the hobby and the collection he amassed, while not all amazing pieces, had some of the most significant NES titles in it (including but not limited to the only known sealed copy of Mega Man 1 Dr. Wright, Chubby Cherub sealed, many sealed Black Box titles, extremely high-grade NES sealed library, one-off or unique foreign titles, etc). And for those of you who may not recall or be aware, Dain is responsible for elevating NES collecting to where it is today, which is the forefront of video game collecting. Seeing his collection in its entirety is undeniably one of the top NES sets that will ever be amassed as far as breadth and condition. More importantly, regarding his ownership, there are many collectors who voiced both privately and publicly (see the GoCollect announcement threads) that they would love to own a piece of Dain's collection, no matter how significant the item is. Outside of NA does this desire to own something from The Carolina Collection apply? Maybe, maybe not. But one thing is for certain, and that's that whether you agree or not, none of us would even be here and having this discourse if it weren't for Dain.
4) Should people pay more for "The Carolina Collection?" Who cares? We certainly don't. The designation is simply there for the sake of tracking the known and proven provenance of what Wata determined was a significant enough collection/owner to note on the label. If people want to pay more -- OR LESS -- that is their prerogative. If people want to auction these items off and market them as being from this collection to create more hype and buzz, that is also their prerogative. Whether we at Wata agree with those decisions or not is completely irrelevant, just as it is irrelevant whether someone actually pays more or not at the end of the day for that item.
Collections like Dain's came to be as a function of time and dedication. It's going to be very hard to find collections like these that are both intact, sent in for certification, and possess qualities that will qualify it as a landmark collection or a collection with Pedigree. As more collections are uncovered, discovered, and/or preserved, we'll post them on our blog as "Named Collections," which can include Pedigrees like the Indiana Collection, or significant collections like The Carolina Collection.
Hi Everyone,
Some great discussion in here. I'm not surprised to see varying opinions on this topic, as even internally at Wata we have different stances that arise through debate. Which I think is great! The parallels have been drawn before between comics, but pedigrees and noting collections in certification is not unique to comics. In fact, Coins were the first matured hobby to use pedigrees, and the way they are defined and applied in certification are vastly different from how they are treated in comics. What's appropriate for video games and the future of this hobby is certainly up for debate (as this thread exemplifies); however, Wata has a method to our madness and we even have our own definitions of "Pedigree" versus "Collection," for example. I want to shed a little light on our position and keep the discussion going to hear all your thoughts, given some new (hopefully) information.
First, we have written a clarifying post on our blog. Please read this first to hear our high-level stance on the topic. https://www.watagames.com/learn/b...
To add to the blog post and address some of the points in this topic:
1) We at Wata do not benefit from assigning landmark status to a collection and noting it on our label. If, at our discretion we decide to do so, we are doing so because we believe part of our duty is to accurately preserve history. I bolded "at our discretion" because this means that the decisions are technically subjective and may be up for debate. However, much discussion and thought goes into each decision and as objective a view as possible is taken from the perspective of asking whether or not the collections' provenance is something that should be preserved and noted. Most of the factors that go into this are summarized in the blog post.
2) Noting significant collections, whether they fit your definition of "pedigree" or not, are not unique to any one collectible. Whether it's the Nic Cage collection in comics or the Wayne Gretzky collection in cards, these collections are noted for their significance due to who owned them. Many people want a book from Nic Cage's collection simply because it used to be his. Whether this deserves a premium or not is a completely unrelated point, and is addressed below. Is Dain a celebrity? No. However, some collectors may want something from the long-time veteran who changed many of our lives -- if it weren't for Dain, I may not even be collecting the way I am today. Again, maybe we at Wata are biased, but the same principles apply as to why CGC and PSA, respectively, gave those collections landmark status. There is consensus that if Shigeru Miyamoto had a game collection he wanted to certify, we would certainly note that. But where does one draw the line? Again, this is a topic with many gray areas, and where we draw the line would be determined on a case-by-case basis.
3) The question of whether or not Dain's collection is significant enough to be noted is certainly the largest point of contention here. Wata determined that Dain's contributions to the hobby and the collection he amassed, while not all amazing pieces, had some of the most significant NES titles in it (including but not limited to the only known sealed copy of Mega Man 1 Dr. Wright, Chubby Cherub sealed, many sealed Black Box titles, extremely high-grade NES sealed library, one-off or unique foreign titles, etc). And for those of you who may not recall or be aware, Dain is responsible for elevating NES collecting to where it is today, which is the forefront of video game collecting. Seeing his collection in its entirety is undeniably one of the top NES sets that will ever be amassed as far as breadth and condition. More importantly, regarding his ownership, there are many collectors who voiced both privately and publicly (see the GoCollect announcement threads) that they would love to own a piece of Dain's collection, no matter how significant the item is. Outside of NA does this desire to own something from The Carolina Collection apply? Maybe, maybe not. But one thing is for certain, and that's that whether you agree or not, none of us would even be here and having this discourse if it weren't for Dain.
4) Should people pay more for "The Carolina Collection?" Who cares? We certainly don't. The designation is simply there for the sake of tracking the known and proven provenance of what Wata determined was a significant enough collection/owner to note on the label. If people want to pay more -- OR LESS -- that is their prerogative. If people want to auction these items off and market them as being from this collection to create more hype and buzz, that is also their prerogative. Whether we at Wata agree with those decisions or not is completely irrelevant, just as it is irrelevant whether someone actually pays more or not at the end of the day for that item.
Collections like Dain's came to be as a function of time and dedication. It's going to be very hard to find collections like these that are both intact, sent in for certification, and possess qualities that will qualify it as a landmark collection or a collection with Pedigree. As more collections are uncovered, discovered, and/or preserved, we'll post them on our blog as "Named Collections," which can include Pedigrees like the Indiana Collection, or significant collections like The Carolina Collection.
I honestly think people hate the name "Carolina Collection" more than anything. I imagine most people don't have a problem with a notation that an item is from Dain's collection. Worth more/less whatever, all that is subjective for the reasons you listed. The flaw in your explanation is why is it called "Carolina", why does it get to take precedence over not only one but two entire states? Nothing about "Carolina Collection" calls out Dain or NA, who cares where he lives? Is Nic Cage's stuff called the "Hollywood Collection" or the "California Collection"? Is Gretzky's stuff called "The North America Collection" because he played in Canada and the US?
I reckon there would be far fewer people holding their noses if Dain's stuff would have been given a more appropriate name designation.
4) Should people pay more for "The Carolina Collection?" Who cares? We certainly don't.
With Dain a member of the advisory board you'd have to assume, at the very LEAST, the optics aren't great.
You've got a guy on the advisory board having one of only 2 currently named collections (I could be mistaken, there may be more) just prior to/during/immediately after selling said collection. It gives the image that things aren't kosher.
Same has been said with Jim Halperin's involvement. When a member of the advisory board is also co-founder of an auction site (Heritage) who greatly benefits from WATA, collections, pedigrees, etc., and the accompanying fees that Heritage can accumulate from inflated sales, again, it simply looks rotten.
I'm all for making money off the hobby, I've personally benefitted from the spike in classic games and have never been shy about making a dollar selling games. It's the lack of transparency that's almost insulting. Squeezing currently ignorant comic collectors turned game profiteers is a-ok in my book, but it's the spin here that just feels like we're being viewed as dumber than we are.
I really like most of the guys involved in WATA, so not a personal attack. I wish them all the best in their business. The pedigree and collection piece is nonsense though. A game from Dain's collection is no more important than any other game.
Hell, a handful of them were literally created in my basement...