When is it worth getting a game graded?

[kiljo | 5]

I did a search and couldn't really find discussion on this topic (there was some here), but when is a graded copy worth a premium? 

Like if someone was selling a WATA 7.0 of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening for the Switch, no one would pay a premium for that (I hope) cause you could just walk down to GameStop and buy a copy. But would a 9.4 be worth paying a premium of a current game?

If you were buying a CIB Super Metroid, would it be worth paying more for a graded 7.0 versus just a nice ungraded version? Do box/cartridge games have a lower rating to get a premium? (Since it's easy to damage a box, but a lot harder to damage a plastic case?)

And I know a lot of people don't believe in grading games, but from a financial standpoint the grade effects (affects?) the value at some point.

[Gulag Joe | 582]

I grade cib that has a near perfect box and of course all of the supporting elements that might be 8 or higher. For sealed, the seal has to be perfect- no scuffs or breaks. A++ seals are hard to come by. Rarer than 9.8 grades but that’s just my opinion

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

Basically only if you want that particular game to remain in whatever condition it's in in your hands forever.  Most everything else is a gamble unless the game is (actually) particularly rare, sought after, and valuable anyway.

[Code Monkey | 2,006]

1 hour ago, kiljo said:

I did a search and couldn't really find discussion on this topic (there was some here), but when is a graded copy worth a premium? 

Like if someone was selling a WATA 7.0 of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening for the Switch, no one would pay a premium for that (I hope) cause you could just walk down to GameStop and buy a copy. But would a 9.4 be worth paying a premium of a current game?

If you were buying a CIB Super Metroid, would it be worth paying more for a graded 7.0 versus just a nice ungraded version? Do box/cartridge games have a lower rating to get a premium? (Since it's easy to damage a box, but a lot harder to damage a plastic case?)

And I know a lot of people don't believe in grading games, but from a financial standpoint the grade effects (affects?) the value at some point.

I've never understood anyone asking this question, the answer is very simple. Do you want it graded? Then yes. If you don't, then no. There's no more to it than that. Also, grading a game doesn't add any value to it, a game that will grade 9.4 isn't worth any more than a game that already graded 9.4, there's no difference.

The only situation where grading a game is helpful is when you're trying to sell to someone far away and they want to know the game is both legitimate and in good condition. There is no other reason (except bragging rights I guess).

[kiljo | 5]

2 hours ago, Code Monkey said:

Do you want it graded? Then yes. If you don't, then no. There's no more to it than that. Also, grading a game doesn't add any value to it, a game that will grade 9.4 isn't worth any more than a game that already graded 9.4, there's no difference.

I agree with that for a game that is staying in my collection. And I don't think I've got any games currently that I would want to get graded and keep. But I feel like graded games come at a higher cost (or maybe people are just asking for a higher price?) So if I can get WATA to assign a number to a game and that makes it more desirable/valuable to someone else, then that's like the classic win-win. But since I mainly collect to play (and relive childhood memories), I just wanted to get a feel of what kind of grade others think a game needs to be worth a higher price.

[Code Monkey | 2,006]

13 minutes ago, kiljo said:

I agree with that for a game that is staying in my collection. And I don't think I've got any games currently that I would want to get graded and keep. But I feel like graded games come at a higher cost (or maybe people are just asking for a higher price?) So if I can get WATA to assign a number to a game and that makes it more desirable/valuable to someone else, then that's like the classic win-win. But since I mainly collect to play (and relive childhood memories), I just wanted to get a feel of what kind of grade others think a game needs to be worth a higher price.

Except it doesn't.

Having a game in a 9.8 A++ case and removing it from that case doesn't decrease the value. It's still a 9.8 A++ grade whether it's in the case or not so the value doesn't change.

The answer only depends on whether you want it graded, thee's nothing else to it.

[3rdStrongestMole | 430]

15 hours ago, Code Monkey said:

Except it doesn't.

Having a game in a 9.8 A++ case and removing it from that case doesn't decrease the value. It's still a 9.8 A++ grade whether it's in the case or not so the value doesn't change.

The answer only depends on whether you want it graded, thee's nothing else to it.

Sales numbers don't back this up at all. If a sealed game is decidedly in great condition and looks like it will grade A+, 9.6, whatever, people will pay a lot for it. But, if that same game is already graded and stamped with an A+ 9.6, it will sell for markedly more. This is why people buy sealed, grade, and flip. It always helps from a sales standpoint to have a third party give their input on condition,  especially if that third party is recognized. 

Now, if you want to talk legitimacy of grading companies, etc., that's a whole different story. 

[inasuma | 1,203]

I echo many of others' thoughts.

I tend to grade the games I want preserved for as long as possible and in my personal collection. Rare, sentimental, or unique games.

For CIB specifically, I've honestly never tried, but lately I've realized I'll probably never play them physically (because I have ROMs and flash carts for that), so preserving them is likely the path I'll take via grading.

[tidaldreams | 654]

just grade everything

[Gloves | 11,771]

1 hour ago, tidaldreams said:

just grade everything

Grade your dog, grade your wife, grade your shoes!

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

16 minutes ago, Gloves said:

Grade your dog, grade your wife, grade your shoes!

...they gradin' everybody up in here! 

[GPX | 1,369]

On 1/1/2023 at 11:53 AM, Code Monkey said:

Except it doesn't.

Having a game in a 9.8 A++ case and removing it from that case doesn't decrease the value. It's still a 9.8 A++ grade whether it's in the case or not so the value doesn't change.

The answer only depends on whether you want it graded, thee's nothing else to it.

Except having a high graded game does impact on the values. Would you rather:

A. Seller listing ungraded game X "MINT condition! Possible 9.8A++ if WATA graded, or ~ VGA90"

Or

B. X game WATA 9.8A++ 

Which would you trust more, and would it affect your end bid? Personally, it would impact on how I would value a game. But likely for the high-end condition ones.

 

[GPX | 1,369]

9 hours ago, 3rdStrongestMole said:

It always helps from a sales standpoint to have a third party give their input on condition,  especially if that third party is recognized. 

Now, if you want to talk legitimacy of grading companies, etc., that's a whole different story. 

Similar point to the above, it helps sales for high end graded ones. If you grade say, a WATA 6.0 B-, and then try selling it in a market flooded with a ton of ungraded ones, where the common condition is ~ 8.0 A, then you're unlikely to impress any buyer at all with your graded product.

[inasuma | 1,203]

11 minutes ago, GPX said:

Except having a high graded game does impact on the values. Would you rather:

A. Seller listing ungraded game X "MINT condition! Possible 9.8A++ if WATA graded, or ~ VGA90"

Or

B. X game WATA 9.8A++ 

Which would you trust more, and would it affect your end bid? Personally, it would impact on how I would value a game. But likely for the high-end condition ones.

 

for better or worse - this is pretty true. at least in theory. i don't trust anyone's condition estimate unless i really know that person has dead-on estimates. which is like... one person, ever. haha

[a3quit4s | 4,096]

Not a fan of grading. Lots of variables. Would say the main factor is what game is it and then what do you think it would grade for. What’s the market for said game? This maybe the first question I’d ask. Why am I grading this game? What’s my end goal? If it’s to keep for myself does encasing it protect it better on the shelf? If I’m selling it is it worth the hassle of grading based on the potential grade and value? I guess a couple of the biggest factors are; rarity, potential grade, and market. But the real question is why are you grading it. I wouldn’t grade something I was planning on keeping forever. I would grade something that I was planning to sell and it would fetch a much higher value graded. 

[GPX | 1,369]

8 minutes ago, inasuma said:

for better or worse - this is pretty true. at least in theory. i don't trust anyone's condition estimate unless i really know that person has dead-on estimates. which is like... one person, ever. haha

It isn't necessarily just the trust factor in a seller, but from online pics, it's often hard to really tell the differences between 9.4-9.8, or VGA90/VGA95. Third party grading lessens these relative uncertainties. With less uncertainties, the product has a better chance of market confidence and therefore higher offers will likely result.

[Code Monkey | 2,006]

1 hour ago, GPX said:

Except having a high graded game does impact on the values. Would you rather:

A. Seller listing ungraded game X "MINT condition! Possible 9.8A++ if WATA graded, or ~ VGA90"

Or

B. X game WATA 9.8A++ 

Which would you trust more, and would it affect your end bid? Personally, it would impact on how I would value a game. But likely for the high-end condition ones.

 

No, you're confusing "adding value" with "confirming value."

Let's say you have a game that will grade a 9.6 at some point in the future but you haven't graded it yet. It will be harder to sell ungraded but that's because people are unaware if it has 9.2 value, 9.4 value or 9.6 value. The game itself has 9.6 value, it's just that nobody yet knows it. Once it's graded, no value has been ADDED to the game, it has simply been confirmed as 9.6 value which it always had. 

Using your same analogy but going in the opposite direction, if you have a game that is graded 9.6 in the case and you remove it, did it lose value? No, it has been confirmed to be 9.6 so it will always have that value until it's damaged. 

Grading doesn't ADD any value but it can take a game you THINK is a 9.0 and confirm it is actually 9.4 but that doesn't mean value was added. It just means you mistakingly thought it had less value when it did not.

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

11 minutes ago, Code Monkey said:

No, you're confusing "adding value" with "confirming value."

Let's say you have a game that will grade a 9.6 at some point in the future but you haven't graded it yet. It will be harder to sell ungraded but that's because people are unaware if it has 9.2 value, 9.4 value or 9.6 value. The game itself has 9.6 value, it's just that nobody yet knows it. Once it's graded, no value has been ADDED to the game, it has simply been confirmed as 9.6 value which it always had. 

Using your same analogy but going in the opposite direction, if you have a game that is graded 9.6 in the case and you remove it, did it lose value? No, it has been confirmed to be 9.6 so it will always have that value until it's damaged. 

Grading doesn't ADD any value but it can take a game you THINK is a 9.0 and confirm it is actually 9.4 but that doesn't mean value was added. It just means you mistakingly thought it had less value when it did not.

I respectfully disagree with you there.  You're right in separately defining those two aspects, but what you're missing is the fact that confirming value tends to add value simply because buyers don't have to guess and gamble and can be certain that they're getting exactly what they're buying.  You're correct in the idea that adding a plastic coffin doesn't inherently make what's inside more valuable.  However, the confirmation of value that the plastic case provides, as well as the sense of safety and security that the item's condition and value will be maintained because of it can, and often absolutely does add some level of price increase to the item (even if it doesn't enhance the base/inherent value of the entombed item itself).

If I were going to put money into collecting sealed stuff, I would be far, far more comfortable purchasing stuff that had already been confirmed to be at whatever level I specifically wanted the item to be at.  I'd also be far more secure in keeping graded items in my home simply due to how easily the condition of raw items in like condition can be degraded by even the most commonplace of occurrences (box falls over, box falls off the shelf, something falls on the box, someone grabs the box with too strong a grip, etc.).  There's value in security and the peace of mind it brings.  While that itself isn't truly a part of the value of the item itself, when you take a game and seal it up as it's being graded, the lines blur there, with the value of what the grading and the protective cases added by graders bring being combined with that of the graded item.

Do I think that the additional value that a respectable grading company's service brings is worth what the most common graders are charging?  Absolutely not.  However, I can see how the perceived and public value of the item being graded can be enhanced because of them.

[GPX | 1,369]

33 minutes ago, Code Monkey said:

No, you're confusing "adding value" with "confirming value."

Let's say you have a game that will grade a 9.6 at some point in the future but you haven't graded it yet. It will be harder to sell ungraded but that's because people are unaware if it has 9.2 value, 9.4 value or 9.6 value. The game itself has 9.6 value, it's just that nobody yet knows it. Once it's graded, no value has been ADDED to the game, it has simply been confirmed as 9.6 value which it always had. 

Using your same analogy but going in the opposite direction, if you have a game that is graded 9.6 in the case and you remove it, did it lose value? No, it has been confirmed to be 9.6 so it will always have that value until it's damaged. 

Grading doesn't ADD any value but it can take a game you THINK is a 9.0 and confirm it is actually 9.4 but that doesn't mean value was added. It just means you mistakingly thought it had less value when it did not.

I already explained it in the above. It does add value likely only if it's a high-end grade.  Say there are 10 people wanting to buy a game X in 9.6 condition. If it's graded a 9.6, then 10 will be potential buyers. If it's ungraded, then the potential buyers will drop because a few of them may be unsure if that 9.6 might be a 9.2 or 9.4.

In my above example, the condition of the box doesn't change, but the potential buyers will, simply due to it being certified in such condition. 

Edited January 2, 2023 by GPX

[GPX | 1,369]

5 minutes ago, darkchylde28 said:

I respectfully disagree with you there.  You're right in separately defining those two aspects, but what you're missing is the fact that confirming value tends to add value simply because buyers don't have to guess and gamble and can be certain that they're getting exactly what they're buying.  You're correct in the idea that adding a plastic coffin doesn't inherently make what's inside more valuable.  However, the confirmation of value that the plastic case provides, as well as the sense of safety and security that the item's condition and value will be maintained because of it can, and often absolutely does add some level of price increase to the item (even if it doesn't enhance the base/inherent value of the entombed item itself).

If I were going to put money into collecting sealed stuff, I would be far, far more comfortable purchasing stuff that had already been confirmed to be at whatever level I specifically wanted the item to be at.  I'd also be far more secure in keeping graded items in my home simply due to how easily the condition of raw items in like condition can be degraded by even the most commonplace of occurrences (box falls over, box falls off the shelf, something falls on the box, someone grabs the box with too strong a grip, etc.).  There's value in security and the peace of mind it brings.  While that itself isn't truly a part of the value of the item itself, when you take a game and seal it up as it's being graded, the lines blur there, with the value of what the grading and the protective cases added by graders bring being combined with that of the graded item.

Do I think that the additional value that a respectable grading company's service brings is worth what the most common graders are charging?  Absolutely not.  However, I can see how the perceived and public value of the item being graded can be enhanced because of them.

What you described is actually the main point of collecting graded games in the first place - proving authenticity and confirming condition status. You can argue that condition judgement is all arbitrary BS, but at the end of the day, the consumer of whatever market is going to believe more a third party company rather than some random guy on eBay. With more buyer confidence, prices will tend to go up.

[darkchylde28 | 1,546]

Just now, GPX said:

What you described is actually the main point of collecting graded games in the first place - proving authenticity and confirming condition status. You can argue that condition judgement is all arbitrary BS, but at the end of the day, the consumer of whatever market is going to believe more a third party company rather than some random guy on eBay. With more buyer confidence, prices will tend to go up.

Oh, I get that aspect of it, and I always have.  However, I don't at all agree with all the crazily inflated prices that we saw over the past 2-3 years simply because something got graded.  Sure, it was confirmed, but the value for the vast majority of the pieces graded and then flipped during that period were incredibly out of line with their actual values, graded or not.  As you said above, only the truly high end stuff tends to get a total bump in value, and that's simply because common as dirt games (regardless of how rare their super nice seal is) just aren't worth the $150-200 (if not more) that someone has to spend to get it graded and entombed.  That might change as time goes on and the common games that you can still find literal cases of sealed product for become much rarer, but that time isn't now.  Now that that bubble has been deflating for a while, we're finally starting to see the actual value for such pieces, instead of them being fueled by hype, FOMO, and a lot of disposable income that would have been far more wisely invested elsewhere.

All the posts and videos by people who lost a ton of money because of the bubble's deflation are absolutely right to feel as upset as they do, but at the same time, it's really their own fault for not understanding (and refusing to believe) that what they were getting into in the first place and not realizing that it was hype, FOMO, etc., fueling the insanity we all saw, and it was only a matter of time before the bottom dropped out.  Unlike something like gold, or lumber, video games aren't universally valued by everyone, aren't universally useful to everyone, etc., and while their values may continue to increase over time, they shouldn't ever drastically explode beyond what people who actually like video games are willing to spend on them.

[GPX | 1,369]

There are 2 separate equations which I feel gets blurred and misinterpeted:

1. Do third company grading services help to improve sales prices? Yes, absolutely. We've seen plenty evidence of it. 

2. Are graded games justified for being 10-100 times more value in graded form since the WATA/HA association? I call BS.  In fact, I actually called BS on the HA thread long before Karl Jobst entered the conversation. Now that's not to say the market will never ever be 6-7 figures, but the market pre-Covid19 was showing a trend otherwise, and not in this "hurry, you will all be millionaires if you buy graded games!" pitch. Everything has been too force-fed and hyped to the nth dimension.

[Tyree_Cooper | 750]

Never

[Code Monkey | 2,006]

2 hours ago, GPX said:

I already explained it in the above. It does add value likely only if it's a high-end grade.  Say there are 10 people wanting to buy a game X in 9.6 condition. If it's graded a 9.6, then 10 will be potential buyers. If it's ungraded, then the potential buyers will drop because a few of them may be unsure if that 9.6 might be a 9.2 or 9.4.

In my above example, the condition of the box doesn't change, but the potential buyers will, simply due to it being certified in such condition. 

Yes, now you are correctly understanding it. The pool of potential buyers may change but the actual value of the item does not change.

[OptOut | 8,883]

45 minutes ago, Code Monkey said:

Yes, now you are correctly understanding it. The pool of potential buyers may change but the actual value of the item does not change.

Value isn't inherent to an item though, right? The value of an item is determined by various social and market factors, and will change arbitrarily according to these factors.

There is no such thing as a "TRUE" value, the "actual" value of an item is merely the value realised at a given point in time, usually when the item is transacted. The value of any item may alter drastically without ANY substantial change to the item itself.