Selling a collection - thoughts?

[monsly]

I’ve just started to value my collection and it has given me some pause for thought about what to do.

 

I do love my game collection - I’ve built it over many years and have so many memories attached to it. Yet, I don’t really get a chance to play retro anymore and part of me thinks that just playing via emulation - while not the same - will allow me to revisit these games.

But I know once I sell, then that’s it - there’s no way I could justify buying some of my games again, given how much the value has jumped.

 

So has anyone ever sold off their collection? If so, is it something you really regret or was it the opposite?

[klargon]

This might be worth a read 

 

[acidbearboy]

Do you need the money and/or the space? If not, why sell up now? You surely have many years of life ahead where you might get loads of time to play retro. Or it all keeps growing in value and you can sell it later. 

[beakbeak]

Will it go up further? What’s the general consensus here? I’m in the same boat. I have tons of retro stuff and a lot of incredibly desirable games. 
the fact that modern TVs don’t even let you play retro games makes me wonder If the retro bubble will burst sooner rather than later.

[chipsgravy]

I don't think the bubble will burst, but much like dinky cars, I think the demand will decrease slowly as those nostalgic for the golden period of gaming also decrease. I just can't see many in their 20s now wanting to buy old games or physical versions of anything really. 

[megamixer]

I have sold most of mine at this point and will keep doing so. Yes, the stuff may increase higher but if I'm only holding it for that reason then it would be more sensible to have the money and invest it into real commodities or tradable assets like precious metals, stocks etc. Another way to look at it is that I already plussed massively on selling what I had versus what I paid for it originally so I'm still reaping the benefits of having sold it.

 

For me, I just no longer wanted to be burdened with so much stuff in general and to own much less in a more minimalist way. As my collection shrunk, so did the stupid concerns over possible theft, loss, damage, keeping stuff protected from the likes of damp, dust etc. It's true when they say, "the more stuff you own, the more it owns you"

 

Also, didn't want to be holding so much stuff that could tank in value and desirability given how volatile the world, society, and the economy is. Yes, these old games may be worth something now but when more and more people can't afford luxuries and £300 Mega CD games anymore, there's no guarantee that values will hold.

 

This is all just my personal viewpoint and not my advice. All I can say is that I don't miss anything I have sold, even though I previously couldn't imagine myself without it. Emulation has also gotten so good that its less of a worry for me thay I will never be able play game X again or whatever.

 

All I WOULD advise is to sincerely ask yourself whether your collection brings genuine happiness and value to your life. A lot of what you will do next will spring from your honest assessment of that question.

[BoggyB]

I had a period of collecting pretty much anything going but ended up getting rid of most of it for space reasons more than anything. If I’d kept hold of it a few years more I’d be quids in but never mind, you can’t predict that sort of thing.
 

I had a bit of a relapse with buying big box pc games for some reason but the space started to become an issue again.
 

You don’t have to go all out and sell the lot, just get rid of a few bits you barely even notice anymore and see how you feel. 

[Gorf]

Get it in the trading folder!

 

I sold the vast majority of my collection 10 years ago for about 3-4k, I dread to think what it would all cost nowadays

 

Ive got back into older games with everdrives and ODEs, probably had more fun with that than on my PS5.

 

I like picking up old hardware and loose carts where I can but I’m not going back to buying mint and complete in box stuff

[gone fishin]

Depends on what systems/games are in the collection; 8-bit home computer systems like the Spectrum and Commodore 64 seem to be dropping in interest and maybe value. It’s hard to tell from something like eBay, but going to retro game markets recently, the tape games are less and less prominent and cheaper to pick up. There will still be the rarer collectible games that hold value, but it feels like they’re dropping in value. I’d also add Atari 2600 to that list.

 

I think the Famicom and NES will be the next to start dropping in value, you can pick up the lesser titles for not much now (Famicom games are dirt cheap), again the rarer ones will hold their value. That might be down to the likes of the NES mini and NES games being made available on the switch, supply and demand and all that.

 

If you’re looking to get more space, I would go through your collection and keep aside the games that are worth a lot and/or have some nostalgic value to you or are likely to be played by yourself in the future. The rest I would sell on, it’s unlikely they’ll go up in much value now against inflation. 
 

If you need the money sell off the games that are valuable but you don’t play! 

[simms]

I was shocked, GameCube games cost a fortune at the moment.  I’ve got sealed Resident Evil games which fetch a high price

[phillv85]

We’re (PAL regions) actually in a bit of a dip from all time peak prices at the moment. Not sure we’ll get back to where it was pre-pandemic, but looking at average selling prices on pricecharting for a bunch of console libraries and also seeing (and buying) higher end games for a little less than they were previously.

 

If you’re holding NTSC-U games at the moment then you’ve won the lottery, their prices have gone batshit and even with a dip on some systems, prices are stupidly high.

[Anne Summers]

I have a feeling the prices for everything are going to keep going up as we get close to the age when people who remember the systems from their youth will retire (so we're getting close for Atari stuff, and in another 10-20 years will be there for the Speccy/ C64).

Then there will be a huge crash when we all die and out kids flog of everything on Ebay (or whatever the equivalent is, then) for peanuts.  

 

[megamixer]

1 hour ago, Anne Summers said:

Then there will be a huge crash when we all die and out kids flog of everything on Ebay (or whatever the equivalent is, then) for peanuts.  

 

That's what I think too. I think there is like a certain point where the really old home computer stuff will lose desirability and value in accordance with the ageing of people in general. There will come a point where the oldest of collectors are people that started with 8-bit or 16-bit consoles and have no link/connection to anything beforehand, so why would they be willing to collect it?

 

The same thing happens with certain periods of antiques or other collectables that far less people care about anymore once a certain period of time has passed.

[Vimster]

Have to agree about 8-bit computers. FB groups can't seem to give tape games away apart from a few hard-to-find later games (someone was selling Addams Family on C64 tape for £50 the other week). You can pick up job lots of Speccy and C64 tapes for not much, but as has been said there will come a day when the link back to that era will break and it'll cease to have any value except to some niche collectors. Only nutters would want to load games from tape on original hardware now, especially multi-load. Disc games still hold their value though, it's difficult to get hold of C64 disc games, people don't want to let go of them. 

 

The PS2/GC/Xbox generation is probably going to be the next big thing for collectors as the people who were kids in the 2000s want to relive it, but even then emulation is getting to the point you really wouldn't need to. 

 

A lot of GC games are now too expensive to collect, PS2's library is vast and diverse and I've noticed the prices for some previously easy-to-get games rising. Xbox is a bit of an odd one, there are some very collectable games but it doesn't seem to have the nostalgia value of GC and PS2. 

[Oh Danny Boy]

I also think a lot of games are artificially inflated by a handful of sellers who stick things on an exorbitant BIN. When games go to auction I find they go for a fraction of the BINs that have probably been there for months. Most retro games generally go for less than their original rrp. 

[yakumo]

For me legacy titles like Pokemon, Zelda, Mario etc regardless of generation will retain their value or go up. I had a largish collection at Uni which I then sold off stupidly because I need the money not due to space. Then when my comic book/graphic novel collection got to big and was just there taking up space I decided to just sell them all except for a few specific books which hold sentimental value. Like a previous poster said, always money or space which rings so true. 

[Gorf]

The only big thing I kept from when I sold off my collection 10 years ago was an NTSC-U N64 with 18 carts in one of those Nintendo branded carry bags. I bought most of it off the trading folder here a long, long time ago.

 

Ive just looked up the sold prices of some of NTSC-U N64 carts, I’m gobsmacked by the price of some of them.

 

Maybe now is the time to hoard cheap wii & wii u games and sit on them for the next decade

 

 

 

 

[roobarb]

42 minutes ago, Gorf said:

Maybe now is the time to hoard cheap wii & wii u games and sit on them for the next decade

 

 

 

 

Probably DS & 3DS too

[Sumire]

I sold off most of my stuff apart from personal things that are just nostalgia to me, not particularly worth a lot.

I replaced the games with Everdrives etc but kept the original hardware, Megadrive, SNES, etc and have a CRT to play them on.

[MattyP]

Well depends if you have a physical attachment to the devices or not. For me I sold off all my retro machines etc a while back as it simply wasn't getting used.  However my attachment was with actually playing the games themselves so quite content with picking up games via the digital stores or emulating. Much more convenient and can't really say I've missed all the physical baggage in fact it's quite liberating. Also hopefully people are enjoying my old games or machines!

 

I try to stay digital more these days so have little clutter around just the odd trinket and everything I want to play is easily accessible. For example justj picked up Daytona USA on the Xbox today. It's pretty much arcade perfect and loads in seconds! Much more convenient!

 

Also there is an "Arcade Hub" in the city centre here where I can bob down and play many arcade classics. It's great and also a bit more social sometimes chatting to people and reliving the memories.

 

I've g one through a phase recently in life where I have been having a good clear out - read a book called "Goodbye Things" a bit back and it was a bit of a game changer. Realised many of the physical things in my life were adding no value to it. It was hard work especially with my gaming kit but feel better for going through the process.

 

So you can keep that retro vibe and interest but mainly just make sure you value the things you have and they add something to your life. If they are just stick in the cupboard doing nothing they aren't really adding any value to your life. In fact I'd go as far as saying they are adding stress and taking up space. 

 

Good luck whatever you decide to do. But remember you can always get a retro experience in plenty of places these days!

 

[yakumo]

Retro Bird just did a video today about this.

[Anne Summers]

19 hours ago, Oh Danny Boy said:

I also think a lot of games are artificially inflated by a handful of sellers who stick things on an exorbitant BIN. When games go to auction I find they go for a fraction of the BINs that have probably been there for months. Most retro games generally go for less than their original rrp. 

I don't think those silly prices actually inflate or affect the price of the market in general. They just sit there and no-one buys them. That's the case with the old games mags I like to buy, anyway. Loads of issues of Ace, Zero and C&VG from the 80s and 90s sitting there for months or maybe years at £20 which frankly I'm not going to pay and obviously no-one else is either. I'm not sure that people waiting for an idiot to come along actually affect the overall price of the market. Maybe.

[DeciderVT]

14 hours ago, MattyP said:

I've gone through a phase recently in life where I have been having a good clear out - read a book called "Goodbye Things" a bit back and it was a bit of a game changer. Realised many of the physical things in my life were adding no value to it. It was hard work especially with my gaming kit but feel better for going through the process.

 

Thanks for posting this, I've decided to give this book a try after reading a sample. Being one half of a hoarder couple has become increasingly tiring and stressful. Age and solutions like MiSTer and flash carts led to me having a hard look at my collection and boxing up loads of it for sale but there's a lot more I can let go of, like collections of old magazines and all sorts of hardware.

[Ninja Doctor]

Pretty much my entire games collection fits in a single kallax cube. I’m very much on the play it and sell it team

[DarhkFox]

Personally, i find most console stuff still highly collectable but it will get to a point, especially NES stuff will start to devalue and perhaps that's already started.

 

I got rid of my snes collection years ago, but currently have a decent selection of megadrive, n64, GC, PS2, Gameboy/GBA, DS, 3DS and Switch games.

 

Handhelds in particular seem to hold their value more i find - i pretty much just focus on my 3DS collection these days whilst prices are not too bad for the majority of titles.

 

Also i think Nintendo is much more collectable. I do think in the future Nintendo will be a massive power house in the media industry and prices will retain their values for the games.

 

[yakumo]

7 minutes ago, DarhkFox said:

Personally, i find most console stuff still highly collectable but it will get to a point, especially NES stuff will start to devalue and perhaps that's already started.

 

I got rid of my snes collection years ago, but currently have a decent selection of megadrive, n64, GC, PS2, Gameboy/GBA, DS, 3DS and Switch games.

 

Handhelds in particular seem to hold their value more i find - i pretty much just focus on my 3DS collection these days whilst prices are not too bad for the majority of titles.

 

Also i think Nintendo is much more collectable. I do think in the future Nintendo will be a massive power house in the media industry and prices will retain their values for the games.

 

Definitely agree with the incoming movies etc its going to bring in a legion of new and old fans again. Though Nintendo has always been a safe bet.

[Anne Summers]

51 minutes ago, DarhkFox said:

Personally, i find most console stuff still highly collectable but it will get to a point, especially NES stuff will start to devalue and perhaps that's already started.

 

 

 

Not  sure why you think it will devalue? That's just not the way collectable stuff tends to work, it gets more valuable as it gets older and rarer. Ok I get that maybe you're saying we're in a bubble and it will deflate at some point, but that's only going to affect the short-term prices. Whatever way you look at it, a genuinely rare and collectible Nintendo cart is going to be worth a lot more in 20 years' time than it is now (as long as it still works/is complete). 

[IR354Lifeqhybot]

RGZPFM

[X_2_0]

This is something I’ve been thinking about more and more. I was quite happy with a £50 game sitting on my shelf that I was planning on getting back to at some point. 

 

But then that game is now a £500 game for some reason, and I’m still not playing it, so I feel I should move it on now before the bubble bursts. 
 

However I don’t trust eBay for anything over £100 as it’s way to easy to scam the seller. So I’m not sure what the best way to move it on is. 
 

 

[HappiestRogue]

@X_2_0 trade folder is the way to go my friend.