SMB3 sells for $156k

[Silent Hill | 276]

4 hours ago, Hammerfestus said:

What’s the difference between a dentist and a sadist?

Newer magazines

[16BitBricks | 59]

16 minutes ago, Silent Hill said:

Newer magazines

You Antidentite b*stard!

[ICrappedMyPants | 302]

Is it wrong that this makes me sad? I don’t personally understand having sealed copies of games other than for hoping they will climb in value or if it was a favorite game or something. 
 

I am more sad at the idea that the collecting hobby is taking something that was intended to be used for play and making it into a display piece. I like the idea of displaying your collection, but I also hope that collectors actually enjoy the games as intended. For me, displaying my collection is more for the nostalgia of walking into a store and buying a game to play. Now, I basically have a store and can sort of recreate the experience and share it with my kids.

[RH | 5,058]

29 minutes ago, ICrappedMyPants said:

Is it wrong that this makes me sad? I don’t personally understand having sealed copies of games other than for hoping they will climb in value or if it was a favorite game or something. 
 

I am more sad at the idea that the collecting hobby is taking something that was intended to be used for play and making it into a display piece. I like the idea of displaying your collection, but I also hope that collectors actually enjoy the games as intended. For me, displaying my collection is more for the nostalgia of walking into a store and buying a game to play. Now, I basically have a store and can sort of recreate the experience and share it with my kids.

Everyone has their own reasons for collecting.  I don't collect a lot of sealed items but I think there are some of us that have a strong since of history, while also an appreciation of preserving it for future generations.  On the one hand, I understand that an opened game can also be viewed from the outside, and in.  It become more than a box, but a box, inserts, packaging and, of course, the game.

However, there's something that feels satisfying from the preservation perspective to have an item in it's most perfect, original state from it's distribution.  All of the games that I own that are sealed, I also own CIB or the cartridge.  I have one to collect, the other to play.  I collect because I like seeing and holding something historical that is as original as it can get.  I also like knowing that whether I sell it, give it or way or my kids one day inherit it, they will be inheriting a piece of history.  Valuable or not, that will have something that's as close to original-perfect as it can be.

I'm not sure if that make sense, but the appreciation transcends beyond the experience of playing the game.  It extends to the experience of first encountering the game.  You can feel it, see it and smell it like it was on the shelf of the store you bought it in as a kid.

[ICrappedMyPants | 302]

@RH

I get the preservation aspect and am totally on board with CIB collecting. I guess I just can’t appreciate keeping it in its original retail state because you don’t even get to see the goods inside.

When you go to a museum to learn about things they usually try to show you as much as possible about the period or pieces they are displaying. That’s an educational way to preserve history. To me, keeping a sealed game for preservation would be like owning a Michelangelo sculpture that is still completely covered by tarps had it been delivered that way. Yeah, it’s preserved, but you miss out on the full experience. 
 

I’m not saying that there is a right way to collect. I’m just saying that for me, this type of collecting makes me sad for the artists’ intended experience of it and for at minimum not seeing all that is inside.

[Khromak | 792]

On one hand I agree with the "it's meant to be played, not kept in shrinkwrap" argument, but I mean honestly in 2020 that doesn't hold much water. If you want to play the game as they designed it, you can get another copy. Most of these games were made in gigantic batches and nobody is unable to experience SMB3 because 100 copies are still sealed. You can get one on Ebay or a local game store without breaking a sweat. Or you can get one of 5 different flash cartridge options, or play it on an emulator...

In my opinion though, having a sealed copy of a game you really treasure is something though. I don't own any sealed NES games, but I would do unspeakable things for a sealed copy of DW3 because I adore that game.

[RH | 5,058]

28 minutes ago, ICrappedMyPants said:

@RH

I get the preservation aspect and am totally on board with CIB collecting. I guess I just can’t appreciate keeping it in its original retail state because you don’t even get to see the goods inside.

When you go to a museum to learn about things they usually try to show you as much as possible about the period or pieces they are displaying. That’s an educational way to preserve history. To me, keeping a sealed game for preservation would be like owning a Michelangelo sculpture that is still completely covered by tarps had it been delivered that way. Yeah, it’s preserved, but you miss out on the full experience. 
 

I’m not saying that there is a right way to collect. I’m just saying that for me, this type of collecting makes me sad for the artists’ intended experience of it and for at minimum not seeing all that is inside.

Let me try to put my perspective differently.  Having a copy of a game in original shrink wrap is having a game in a very real, original state.  However, once it's opened or removed, it can never be that way again.  With something like a video game that when it's packaged is nothing more than a weighted piece of cardboard art, I see why it'd be easy to ask "why wouldn't you open it for the full experience"?  But the converse to that is, to have the full experience, you need to have it sealed.  If you open it (or subsequently every known, sealed copy) you will never, ever have a copy of that game in it's sealed state again.  It can't be undone.

From a preservationist standpoint, there's something to be said about maintaining originality as best as possible.  However, history lovers (whether for video games or actual ancient history) can experience history in different ways.  For instance, it could be fun to go to Colonial Williamsburg and see the reenactors walk around, "living" like people from the 17th and 18th century, walking the streets and operating in the original buildings that the settlers lived and worked in.

However, no one is expecting them to go to the museum, pull out the 30-50 original pieces of equipment used in the day to day lives of the colonists while they reenact life in that setting.  No, if you want to experience history, you have to accept that there will be modern touches to the experience and some of your tools will be "new", but intended to simulate or emulate the original experience.  However, if you want to see the real history, you go to a museum where preservation, at all cost, is key.  That's how I see keeping sealed games.  You are preserving original state, at all costs.  If you want to experience that history, even "period accurate" as best as you can, you can still find NES machines that function and plenty of CRTs.  Hook the two together, and find a cart-only, or CIB copy of that game and play it until your hearts content.

And I'm not correcting you, but I am trying to give you a bit of perspective.  Yes, you are locking something up in shrink wrap and cardboard when what everyone really loves is what's inside.  However, the originality of it can still be appreciated as well, even it if it's never cracked open or played with until the end of time.

[joshdose | 56]

25 minutes ago, Khromak said:

In my opinion though, having a sealed copy of a game you really treasure is something though. I don't own any sealed NES games,

Spoiler

but I would do unspeakable things for a sealed copy of DW3 because I adore that game.

That’s where the magic happens.

 

[ICrappedMyPants | 302]

6 minutes ago, RH said:

Let me try to put my perspective differently.  Having a copy of a game in original shrink wrap is having a game in a very real, original state.  However, once it's opened or removed, it can never be that way again.  With something like a video game that when it's packaged is nothing more than a weighted piece of cardboard art, I see why it'd be easy to ask "why wouldn't you open it for the full experience"?  But the converse to that is, to have the full experience, you need to have it sealed.  If you open it (or subsequently every known, sealed copy) you will never, ever have a copy of that game in it's sealed state again.  It can't be undone.

From a preservationist standpoint, there's something to be said about maintaining originality as best as possible.  However, history lovers (whether for video games or actual ancient history) can experience history in different ways.  For instance, it could be fun to go to Colonial Williamsburg and see the reenactors walk around, "living" like people from the 17th and 18th century, walking the streets and operating in the original buildings that the settlers lived and worked in.

However, no one is expecting them to go to the museum, pull out the 30-50 original pieces of equipment used in the day to day lives of the colonists while they reenact life in that setting.  No, if you want to experience history, you have to accept that there will be modern touches to the experience and some of your tools will be "new", but intended to simulate or emulate the original experience.  However, if you want to see the real history, you go to a museum where preservation, at all cost, is key.  That's how I see keeping sealed games.  You are preserving original state, at all costs.  If you want to experience that history, even "period accurate" as best as you can, you can still find NES machines that function and plenty of CRTs.  Hook the two together, and find a cart-only, or CIB copy of that game and play it until your hearts content.

And I'm not correcting you, but I am trying to give you a bit of perspective.  Yes, you are locking something up in shrink wrap and cardboard when what everyone really loves is what's inside.  However, the originality of it can still be appreciated as well, even it if it's never cracked open or played with until the end of time.

I understand what you are saying and it makes sense. Once you alter these items, you can never fully restore them to their original state. There is definitely a real value to that.

However, it’s hard for me to appreciate that as I come from a religious culture where history is preserved, even if modified with technology to protect it from destruction, to be shared with generations in its fullest glory. Even sometimes, an artifact has been distributed in pieces to allow for encountering some part of it throughout the world. Painstaking restoration will happen from time to time to preserve the ability to experience these things. Based on how I’ve experienced this myself, learned the history of where artifacts have traveled, have been protected, etc for me the human experience of things being experienced, even in their imperfect form have shaped how I value preservation.

We both agree that neither is wrong, and it’s good for you to share some insight into why this kind of collecting has value. It helps someone like me understand the thought process even if I disagree or don’t appreciate it. Thank you.

[RH | 5,058]

@ICrappedMyPants And thanks for sharing your perspective too.  I feel like that has been a positive interchange, even if we see collecting differently.

[Hammerfestus | 3,977]

4 hours ago, Silent Hill said:

Newer magazines

Actually I thought it was a couple of sealed copies of Golf

[GPX | 1,376]

1 hour ago, RH said:

Let me try to put my perspective differently.  Having a copy of a game in original shrink wrap is having a game in a very real, original state.  However, once it's opened or removed, it can never be that way again.  With something like a video game that when it's packaged is nothing more than a weighted piece of cardboard art, I see why it'd be easy to ask "why wouldn't you open it for the full experience"?  But the converse to that is, to have the full experience, you need to have it sealed.  If you open it (or subsequently every known, sealed copy) you will never, ever have a copy of that game in it's sealed state again.  It can't be undone.

From a preservationist standpoint, there's something to be said about maintaining originality as best as possible.  However, history lovers (whether for video games or actual ancient history) can experience history in different ways.  For instance, it could be fun to go to Colonial Williamsburg and see the reenactors walk around, "living" like people from the 17th and 18th century, walking the streets and operating in the original buildings that the settlers lived and worked in.

However, no one is expecting them to go to the museum, pull out the 30-50 original pieces of equipment used in the day to day lives of the colonists while they reenact life in that setting.  No, if you want to experience history, you have to accept that there will be modern touches to the experience and some of your tools will be "new", but intended to simulate or emulate the original experience.  However, if you want to see the real history, you go to a museum where preservation, at all cost, is key.  That's how I see keeping sealed games.  You are preserving original state, at all costs.  If you want to experience that history, even "period accurate" as best as you can, you can still find NES machines that function and plenty of CRTs.  Hook the two together, and find a cart-only, or CIB copy of that game and play it until your hearts content.

And I'm not correcting you, but I am trying to give you a bit of perspective.  Yes, you are locking something up in shrink wrap and cardboard when what everyone really loves is what's inside.  However, the originality of it can still be appreciated as well, even it if it's never cracked open or played with until the end of time.

There are other reasons why sealed collectors are who they are, other than  the preservational aspect:

- display: a mint game with an undamaged seal, any gamer wouldn’t mind a look at?

- challenge: if you have the money, CIB collecting becomes all too easy, but the same can’t be said in finding a meaty sealed collection. Also, if you’ve completed a CIB collection, is it wrong to upgrade further into the realms of sealed collecting?

- nostalgia(shop): if you want to dream about a shop filled with brand spanking games, that made you near-climaxed as a kid, then a sealed collection can help you best to relive that dream.

—————————

Guys that throw crazy money on HA (referring to prices over 6 digits) are more likely a different breed of sealed collectors - quick dump of money and likely will not care one iota for that game other than how much money it’s likely to make them once they resell.

 

[joshdose | 56]

4 minutes ago, GPX said:

There are other reasons why sealed collectors are who they are, other than  the preservational aspect:

- display: a mint game with an undamaged seal, any gamer wouldn’t mind a look at?

- challenge: if you have the money, CIB collecting becomes all too easy, but the same can’t be said in finding a meaty sealed collection. Also, if you’ve completed a CIB collection, is it wrong to upgrade further into the realms of sealed collecting?

- nostalgia(shop): if you want to dream about a shop filled with brand spanking games, that made you near-climaxed as a kid, then a sealed collection can help you best to relive that dream.

—————————

Guys that throw crazy money on HA (referring to prices over 6 digits) are more likely a different breed of sealed collectors - quick dump of money and likely will not care one iota for that game other than how much money it’s likely to make them once they resell.

 

I’m a sealed / graded game collector and I’ve never fully understood what it is I love so much about it. Ever since I first “discovered” the hobby, I immediately understood that it was something unique and not for everyone. It requires a lot of responsibility and a meticulous respect for care. It’s sort of like stamp collecting, but stamps are boring! I bet there are other hobbyists out in the world (collector types) that collect a lot of the same type of thing, and aren’t even consciously aware that they are a collector until they one day acknowledge it, like it’s a surprise even to them. It could be something as simple as “TV Guides”. One day some old guy realizes he has been collecting every issue of TV Guide and it becomes precious to him that he has “a personal collection” of something. He has gone out of his way for years not to throw them away, unaware that he was fulfilling a selfish desire to collect something that brought him some peace and entertainment consistently every month. I bet that same old man might be digging through his pile of TV Guide Magazines and will realize he had a couple in the stack that he never opened. If he appreciates the collection as a whole, then he will appreciate the fact that those two never got opened. He may even have a newfound appreciation for the sealed ones and hold them to a higher standard, as if it’s something to be proud of. “All these years later and I still never opened issue # 398 or 413”. What was going on in my life during those years? Should I get these magazines framed? Should I sell them? Maybe my friends have collected some of these as well. They might even have a few that I am missing!” I need to start keeping these in a safer place!” 
 

I have no idea where I’m going with this so I’m going to stop here. My point is, not everyone will understand it. They just know it gives them some pleasure and makes them feel special or unique and gives them something to do.

[T-Pac | 7,690]

On 11/23/2020 at 3:18 PM, joshdose said:

I found my original Mario plush from the 80’s. How much you think I could fetch for this at Heritage Auctions? 

 

On 11/23/2020 at 4:14 PM, a3quit4s said:

That is the thing of nightmares

 

[austin532 | 467]

If keeping a game sealed makes you happy, then do it. I personally like to open them and share the experience. That makes me happy. Is it destroying the dollar value? Maybe, but the value I get from opening it and having a mint CIB game on my shelf is sometimes worth more IMO.

[Brickman | 4,107]

Some responses here have made me see sealed collecting in a new light. I personally can't see myself going down that route but some responses have now made me realise why others love to do it.

[BriGuy82 | 806]

Thanks Obama.

[YOURTURN | 1,258]

All I can say is that I always "double down" on anything I plan to both own and play. That is pretty much it.

Because for me I never limit my collecting experiences to the "here and now" factor. That is fine for those who can only afford to do this. But for me, what can happen to those non-sealed collectibles is why I collect the way I do. In all cases seeing what can be done as a means of presentation and preservation, with a lot of great examples found in Japan, is why I often lean towards a sealed game collection goal in the end. While supporting options that offer both that and the means of getting that "experience" others might bring up when it comes to CIB, etc. collecting.

But for me, having a fraction of what this Japanese collector owns is one of those narrations I want to build on with my current collection. And since I am importing, I can get the other experiences by either buying digital (for gaming) or physical if I want to include that to my gaming experience. 

Plus, in the spirit of this topic I have found this to be no different than a few major auctions Sotheby's had held. Thankfully I believe that my collection's value is based on my own narrative status, which means me having what I get graded is just another contribution to that long-term goal.

Edited November 25, 2020 by FenrirZero

[Joshua Rogers | 77]

On 11/22/2020 at 9:47 PM, phart010 said:

I’m pretty sure Middle East didn’t have any regional marked distribution for games back then. Saudi Arabia was the booming economy back then, and their electrical grid was 60Hz so importing US versions would have be more convenient than PAL 50Hz versions.

Other gulf countries are 50Hz, but back in NES days they were probably just little desert villages, so probably sourced their import games and systems from Saudi Arabia.

I’m not saying this is the absolute answer, but it’s plausible.

The NES was officially sold in the Middle East. They received the PAL-B "European Version".

 

also HKG Mah Jong remains the rarest licensed retail nes game

Edited November 28, 2020 by Joshua Rogers

[Prime2099 | 176]

On 11/23/2020 at 12:32 PM, RH said:

But this is what get's me with auctions.  There was a guy who was willing, and did pay +$150,000 for it... and there was someone else willing to pay it that bumped the price that high!

So, there are at least two people that valued this game at that much, probably because it was just there and accessible.

Heritage is allowed to bid on items on their website as well, so they likely bid up to that guy's max.