CIB grading vs Qualified grading

[GPX | 1,369]

With the increasing popularity of WATA and CIB grading, I’m curious to know if this will set off a chain reaction of other niche markets of collecting. More specifically, will this trigger more interest in those games which qualify under the label of “Qualified” under VGA grading subgroup?

For those not in the know, a “Qualified” game means a game that is brand new (with unused contents) but either:

- has its original factory seal broken, or

- box is opened but contents remain unused.

The key distinction between a CIB game vs Qualified game, is that contents are used vs unused, respectively. Also, a CIB game may have some missing contents eg. pamphlets/maps/posters, whereas a “Qualified” game technically comes with ALL original contents that came with factory productions.

TLDR - anyone with newfound love for the “Qualified”?

[Domuhnator | 31]

Qualified = CIB Imo. I would still buy a qualified game but only if the price is about where the CIB price should be.

[GPX | 1,369]

18 hours ago, Domuhnator said:

Qualified = CIB Imo. I would still buy a qualified game but only if the price is about where the CIB price should be.

Qualified = BNIB (Brand New in Box, opened)

I see Qualified as the love child of a CIB and a sealed game. It’s an in-between.

[jonebone | 1,307]

No, I wasn't a fan of Qualified grading then and still don't care for it now.  Though I will admit that Qualified grading prices have seemed to do quite well over the last year with the rise in popularity of Wata CIB grading.  

[DefaultGen | 5,397]

There's nothing wrong with CIB games, so I certainly won't pay a graded premium for a very nice CIB game masquerading as brand new. But I mean for mint CIB price, sure.

[GPX | 1,369]

On 12/31/2019 at 2:45 AM, jonebone said:

No, I wasn't a fan of Qualified grading then and still don't care for it now.  Though I will admit that Qualified grading prices have seemed to do quite well over the last year with the rise in popularity of Wata CIB grading.  

I think Qualified games will have different meaning (or value) depending on which part of the world you’re from. By that, I mean in some countries (eg. Australia), a lot of the games here did not come with factory seals eg. SNES/N64.

So it’s much more common to see “Qualified” grading over here in Oz, compared with the standard VGA rating. Accordingly, they are priced under the normal VGA rating but typically are sold at a higher price than a mint CIB. The examples that I’ve noticed:

-  “Qualified” Zelda Ocarina Oz* vs MIB Zelda Ocarina Oz = 4:1

- “Qualified” Conkers BFD Oz* vs MIB Conkers BFD Oz = 5:1

*(referencing Q85+)

————

@jonebone, have you noticed a significant price increase of Q games (particularly gold grades) relative to the MIB? Curious to know what the ratio is like for the US counterparts.

[MinusWorlds | 193]

Qualified was great in theory and bad in practice. VGA f’d up bad with those. I’ve gone into detail a bunch of times on it but VGA screwed the pooch.

For example I have two games that are actual Q’s. Pretty high-end too. One of them was opened the one and only time at VGA . But, then you have others like the Castlevania I posted on another thread that was clearly opened, having the wrong inserts and manual. That is inexcusable.

People do pay a premium and I would have loved it if VGA would have handled it properly as I think the market would be much bigger for them if they had. I love the concept but don’t pay more than I would for a CIB Wata counterpart. 

[GPX | 1,369]

On 1/1/2020 at 1:21 PM, MinusWorlds said:

Qualified was great in theory and bad in practice. VGA f’d up bad with those. I’ve gone into detail a bunch of times on it but VGA screwed the pooch.

For example I have two games that are actual Q’s. Pretty high-end too. One of them was opened the one and only time at VGA . But, then you have others like the Castlevania I posted on another thread that was clearly opened, having the wrong inserts and manual. That is inexcusable.

People do pay a premium and I would have loved it if VGA would have handled it properly as I think the market would be much bigger for them if they had. I love the concept but don’t pay more than I would for a CIB Wata counterpart. 

What you highlighted were 2 examples that possibly went wrong. You need to weigh them all up with what also went right. This should be the main focus on any grading services - the relative pros versus the relative cons. Bearing in mind also that VGA probably has made other errors in their standard (non-Qualified) grading and WATA isn’t error-less in what they do in the past couple of years too. 

From my end, I am a witness of some positives with the Qualified scale. 2 examples being that I sent off 2 games on separate occasions, thinking they were legit new (but opened), having bought them as old retail stock. They were both rejected because:

- one had a slightly used cart with very minor wear to the label

- one had missing consumer pamphlets

Whilst it initially annoyed me that the games were rejected, it made me feel more reassured that the Qualified ratings does help to rule out the majority of the mint CIBs masquerading as brand new.

[oops | 85]

ive always liked qualified

[Franmotard | 79]

On 1/2/2020 at 6:06 AM, GPX said:

What you highlighted were 2 examples that possibly went wrong. You need to weigh them all up with what also went right. This should be the main focus on any grading services - the relative pros versus the relative cons. Bearing in mind also that VGA probably has made other errors in their standard (non-Qualified) grading and WATA isn’t error-less in what they do in the past couple of years too. 

From my end, I am a witness of some positives with the Qualified scale. 2 examples being that I sent off 2 games on separate occasions, thinking they were legit new (but opened), having bought them as old retail stock. They were both rejected because:

- one had a slightly used cart with very minor wear to the label

- one had missing consumer pamphlets

Whilst it initially annoyed me that the games were rejected, it made me feel more reassured that the Qualified ratings does help to rule out the majority of the mint CIBs masquerading as brand new.

Hi! Im taking this back up as i am considering using this qualified service. What happened in your case? did you have to pay for the grading service in full?

[inasuma | 1,203]

The only reason reason I can understand grading a qualified game is to preserve a particularly rare title, or one that is simply unavailable sealed. Like CIB matte sticker mario or that big box earthbound on SNES. 

Otherwise, grading a sealed game makes perfect sense. You never planned to open it anyway, so why not add another couple layers of plastic?

[Gulag Joe | 582]

Not into qualified. Correct me if I'm wrong, but if I want to buy one and want to know exactly what's inside that box, is there a way to find that out or do I have to hope the seller maybe paid extra to have VGA scribble the contents onto a piece of torn notebook paper?

[Franmotard | 79]

43 minutes ago, inasuma said:

The only reason reason I can understand grading a qualified game is to preserve a particularly rare title, or one that is simply unavailable sealed. Like CIB matte sticker mario or that big box earthbound on SNES. 

Otherwise, grading a sealed game makes perfect sense. You never planned to open it anyway, so why not add another couple layers of plastic?

That’s particularly the case. These are the games I was thinking about. 
the Japanese game boy games were not sold with a plastic seal, they were just closed. Unfortunately mine are already opened but I think they are 100% completed that’s why I was asking if they could be sent to VGA and graded as qualified ( because I assume Wata does not grade these?) 

The thing is, if they only grade games that were never used, I don’t know if these would apply, as I think they have been used lightly 

[inasuma | 1,203]

10 hours ago, iLikePssys said:

That’s particularly the case. These are the games I was thinking about. 
the Japanese game boy games were not sold with a plastic seal, they were just closed. Unfortunately mine are already opened but I think they are 100% completed that’s why I was asking if they could be sent to VGA and graded as qualified ( because I assume Wata does not grade these?) 

The thing is, if they only grade games that were never used, I don’t know if these would apply, as I think they have been used lightly 

In this case I wouldn’t submit them. VGA will inspect the contents for signs of being used (eg scuffing from inserting and removing the cartridges). Kind of a bummer but yeah. 

[GPX | 1,369]

On 3/30/2022 at 3:02 AM, iLikePssys said:

Hi! Im taking this back up as i am considering using this qualified service. What happened in your case? did you have to pay for the grading service in full?

I can’t really remember everything as it was around 6 years ago when I first tried out the service. Although there was no grade, they sent it back in an acrylic case and noted down in paper where the used part(s) were. There is a high chance they took my money in full.

Qualified grading is only for those games that are genuinely new and not used. A lot of people downplay the “Qualified” label, but as a collector of CIB/mint/sealed, I do appreciate the difference between a used mint game as opposed to a mint new/unused game. 

[GPX | 1,369]

On 3/30/2022 at 5:15 AM, Gulag Joe said:

Not into qualified. Correct me if I'm wrong, but if I want to buy one and want to know exactly what's inside that box, is there a way to find that out or do I have to hope the seller maybe paid extra to have VGA scribble the contents onto a piece of torn notebook paper?

If seller pays an extra small fee, they get an official VGA paper stating what contents lie within the box. It’s mainly important for the variant collectors. Most other collectors are buying it simply that it’s “brand new and opened” and assume all original contents are there. No different if you buy a WATA CIB, you’re buying it to assume there is a manual and a game included.

[Gulag Joe | 582]

1 hour ago, GPX said:

If seller pays an extra small fee, they get an official VGA paper stating what contents lie within the box. It’s mainly important for the variant collectors. Most other collectors are buying it simply that it’s “brand new and opened” and assume all original contents are there. No different if you buy a WATA CIB, you’re buying it to assume there is a manual and a game included.

I like what Wata does with their matrix. If I sell a Wata game, another person can use the data from the case to find all the contents of the box, including the baggie. I'm not sure if VGA offers the same assurability.

 

The baggie is the most important part of the CIB. If you don't have it, the game is unpure.

Edited March 30, 2022 by Gulag Joe

[GPX | 1,369]

6 hours ago, Gulag Joe said:

I like what Wata does with their matrix. If I sell a Wata game, another person can use the data from the case to find all the contents of the box, including the baggie. I'm not sure if VGA offers the same assurability.

 

The baggie is the most important part of the CIB. If you don't have it, the game is unpure.

All VGA games that grade “Qualified” should come with box, cart, manual and original consumer pamphlets/posters (whatever is applicable). All contents inside should appear mint unused. The key issue is that of appearance - genuinely looks unused.

If VGA rejects a game to grade as Qualified, then these are the likely scenarios for the internal contents:

- some parts show signs of use

- missing some internal parts that should be included with the game in original factory state

[AnimalHouse | 117]

On 12/27/2019 at 11:23 AM, GPX said:

For those not in the know, a “Qualified” game means a game that is brand new (with unused contents) but either:

- has its original factory seal broken, or

- box is opened but contents remain unused.

 

So VGA's Qualified could mean either of Wata's Seal:NS and CIB. Interesting!