Super Nintendo Chalmers

Did I do good?

A few other games had these generic taglines and quotes on their posters, Banjo-Kazooie was another title. Probably to hype up the blockbuster angle. In the early stages of the internet, digital age we were unlucky/luck enough to be drip fed information through various print mediums, which eventually made releases all the more exciting considering we weren't across all the details. Imo. Definitely a bygone era!

I remember a frenzy of excitement and anticipation about OoT here in Australia. All the medieval TV ads, snippets with sneak peaks of "Zelda 64" in the old Nintendo Magazine System editions months before release. Lots of hype regarding the jump from 2D to 3D, like with Super Mario 64. big lines at the kiosks with people wanting to play it. Truly a blockbuster title from a bygone era and a title I enjoy visiting once a year. Like reconnecting with an old friend, you feel comfortable and at ease I love the leaps and bounds BOTW and TOTK have made, but would eventually love a return to a more linear Zelda game like OoT down the line. Here's my Australian OoT Promo poster which was displayed in stores upon release. This is a very early version, later versions have the release date featured.

For me it's about the journey and not the destination, the process of collecting is fluid, flexible and subject to change. I'm in it for the long haul, nearly 20 years and counting, collecting and enjoying retro games is a part of my fibre and identity so I don't think I'll ever have a finish line to be honest. However there have been times where I've held off on buying things and taken a small hiatus, especially when I bought my first home a few years ago pre covid. Once upon a time I did have an N64 full set and, plus some smaller console sets (no more than 10-15 total in a set) but interests and focuses change, I'm pretty content with my collection after a bit of realigning, now I've got all my childhood, personal favourites across SNES, GB, PS1, N64, GC which I originally built on in my first 8 or so years of collecting. After "trimming the fat" I'm focusing more on Donkey Kong stuff and any neat promo and merch pre Wii which catches my eye and that I have room for that will compliment what I have.

Yeah it's an urban myth, especially coming from Reddit where many people on the gaming subs wouldn't know their arse from their elbow. Would've made perfect sense to have a golden cart. though!

Tough to pick just one, my top two would be: - Australian Zelda Ocarina of Time 3DS promo box with Robin Williams and his daughter Zelda on it: Australian Donkey Kong 64 counter top standee:

They aren't really a duo I gravitate to often and I watch their videos here and there. For all their significant knowledge and experience, Pat comes off as pretentious and condescending at times. Ian doesn't seem to be too bad but it was pretty funny, plus slightly off putting to see them both quite dismissive and jealous when they covered Last Gamer's collection in an ep a few years ago. Nearly 10 mins of sour grapes. God forbid a little old Aussie from the arse end of the world could have more experience and a bigger collection than him. This is pretty funny... To be fair you could nit pick any criticisms of notable collectors who have a presence on these various platforms.

Some video game promo posters pre-Gamecube (Donkey Kong Country, Mario Kart 64, Ocarina of Time, Pokemon G/S/C, Diddy Kong Racing) I own can be hard to put a price on, as these types of items can be legitimately scarce due to many being disposed of and as a result come with little to no public sold history. The phrase "it's only worth what someone is willing to pay" is especially relevant with those types of items. You can extend that to certain pieces of video game merch, employee and distributor clothing, standees and retail signage, subscription prizes and to a lesser extent cabinets and kiosks.

Pre-story mode Last Gamer is informative and interesting for the most part. Covers console, arcades and the industry from an Australian lens. At one point a few years ago he held the Guinness World Record for the World Largest Video Game Collection.

All things considered they're not too dissimilar to any other sort of other online and/or bricks and mortar reseller, they just happen to have some sort of legacy brand having been around for many years. Attempt to draw in less savvy, casual buyers by marketing themselves as a premier retailer and the go to place to buy things. High prices with an on point, targeted social media and marketing game to further their reach towards potential casual consumers. Lots of stock to satisfy said demand. For online, very broad, intentiontally vague condition scale cos they either can't or won't advertise condtion properly, so can be a mixed bag and said target audience don't know any better. Occasionally has uncommon things for a reasonable price but I doubt they get consistent business from people who do their homework and know their stuff. The resident nitwits on the r/gamecollecting sub that are clued up about DKOldies and how they operate speaks volumes

Generally the posters, promo and signage items from that era aren't as sought after or valuable yet. They haven't quite hit that point in the cycle of being old or scarce enough to warrant more attention and the big money that comes with that. Whereas anything that is first party and/or notable/popular and not shovelware pre Gamecube, PS2 and Xbox does. Still though, around 40-50 a piece depending on the type, franchise, condition and size of the item would be a reasonable, rough ballpark figure.

There is certainly room for improvement as far as WATA is concerned. Will wait and see but I doubt there will be any major impacts as a result of this "action". For one, referencing KJ and that journo as being convincing, along with reaching out to the nimrods on that sub reddit speaks voulmes about the stance. In saying that I do think KJ raised some okay talking points regarding the market and hobby, but there are also points which are formed via assumptions, guesswork, ignorance and misinformation. So utlising that particular content as a key plank doesn't sound reassuring. The peanut gallery who make up the bulk of that sub reddit are going to be sorely disappointed if the expectation on their end is that WATA is abolished and the arse falls out the new/sealed/graded market as a result. More transparancy and accountability when it comes to particular grading services? Sure, that's a good thing. Regardless, interesting to see how it plays out and if anything comes of it.

One of my faves would be this Super Mario World game chair: This was sold here in Australia in retail stores around the game's release.The chairs sold in Australia had plain black wheels, compared to others overseas which had coloured wheels.

Social media is pot luck when it comes to quality, informative content and basic respect regarding the scene. There are some decent Facebook groups out there, but its quantity over quality. The groups which are more specialist and focused which are active and ran well tend to be alright, like that Video Game Kiosk and Display group. I agree that some of the new/sealed/graded/high end groups are highly transactional and business focused, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing, for the most part and people seem to be respectful, informative and things don't really veer off track. The ones which attract the catch all 'collectors' and are on the casual side can be incredibly toxic. Groups that attract people who struggle to comprehend different levels of the hobby, people spending money on things they either don't like or are ambivalent to. Too much spam, low quality activity for people to keep up with and curb. The bad eggs outnumber the good eggs, people talk shit for the sake of talking rather than actually providng solid advice and reasoned opinions. Same goes for Reddit, some of those subs like r/gamecollecting are one big, ignorant echo chamber. People haven't gotten dumber, they've gotten louder, with more platforms to spread their BS! I find Instagram the lesser of the three evils, its a lot more wholesome, people are generally more welcoming, respectful and you can have a lot more customisation and control with your experiences. I guess as a user you have to wade through the human filth and dig to find what you're looking for. Occasionally those places will have some good content, but Nintendo Age/VGS definitely had/has that informative. organic, grass roots feel compared to the other options out there. Same with the old Retro MMGN, N64 Forever forum. Sucks how the forum/message board format has been usurped by social media but thems the breaks, VGS seems to be doing ok though.

Imo collecting became noticably mainstream at the turn of the last decade, say between 2011-2012. That was when there seemed to be a shift in the line of thinking among people regarding the collectability, value, demand and nostalgia towards retro stuff. You had different types of people entering the scene and becoming more aware of retro gaming and wanting to get involved. That was also around the time you could see prices of items increase. Before then the hobby seemed to be more niche. Also ties into the rise of social media, Youtube,etc around that time with more coverage and knowledge of various parts of the hobby being expanded upon via these platforms. Been collecting since about 2005/2006 when I got my first job as a teen and had some disposable income to play with, but have always been a gamer since I was a youngster and continue to game where I can.