How keen are you to collect compared with pre-Covid/HA?

[GPX | 1,376]

A simple poll format to gauge the “excitement” level of your quest for collecting cardboard and plastics. Curious to know how things have changed around 2 years ago, when things were relatively stable/predictable. As opposed to current times mid-2021 where prices and sensibility are a fluctuating mess. 

[GPX | 1,376]

I voted in the “slightly less interested”. This is probably more due to the pandemic effect rather than the market fluctuations. I’ve been more busy with work and more concerned for the family’s health so not collecting as much as prior years. Being mainly a Pal collector, I admit though I’m certainly more interested in hearing about all these new crazy NTSC prices, just to get some shock value and some giggles. 

[Gloves | 12,030]

My buying games has slowed significantly, but honestly mostly cuz I have just about everything I set out to get. 

Most games I buy nowadays are games I've played for NA/VGS contests and liked, or otherwise games I've more recently been made aware of in general. The only games I feel I "need" still for my collection are unfortunately sitting in the "couple hundred dollars" range for the majority of them, and I'm being picky about condition, so it takes a bit to find the right seller. 

[a3quit4s | 4,178]

Meh

[Hammerfestus | 3,999]

I’ve been more seasonal I guess?  I’ve been really going to town buying and selling in the summers and I slowed way down in the winter.   That just sounds like some nonsense I made up so that I had something to say.  It is true though but it probably was true before.

Edited May 23, 2021 by Hammerfestus

[B.A. | 1,140]

No change. I've had most of what I'm after for years, so my accumulation has been minimal for a long while. 

[Tanooki | 4,978]

I voted less, almost towards the hating, but sometimes still things fewer and farther between work out.  And to be 100% clear, the title is misleading vs the question.  The VIRUS has nothing to do with my lack of keenness on the whole situation, it doesn't phase me as my cleaning process for second hand goods were already a hard sterilization of everything anyway.

My dislike is the nasty volatility of the last couple of years, and the hellscape it has created for prices across the board, and part of that isn't even the virus.  The whole wave of speculators and investors who have 6-7 figure salaries getting into the big stuff as it's all trickle down from there due to people seeing stories and getting the wrong impression.

Right now even games up to a year and a half ago that were considered like 2-3 for $5 stuff, you know, dollar dumpers, are now like $10 sales which is insane.  Known games people have crapped on for years because of some issues with it or bad design, whatever, they're even going up.

That's enough to knock the cares out of a lot of people when it's so toxic, paying for a flash kit, a pi something, loading up an emulator on a PC or mobile device seems the wiser choice.  It's just sad.  I've slowed my buying over it for some time now, until recently (2 games) I haven't picked up a SNES game in like 3-5 years, NES about as long too a couple homebrew aside, various others too.  Gameboy brand was ignored, until 2021 when all of a sudden hated $1 titles like Hard Drivin fetch $10 on ebay...it was my fall back, and now it's getting poisonous.

[GPX | 1,376]

11 hours ago, Tanooki said:

I voted less, almost towards the hating, but sometimes still things fewer and farther between work out.  And to be 100% clear, the title is misleading vs the question.  The VIRUS has nothing to do with my lack of keenness on the whole situation, it doesn't phase me as my cleaning process for second hand goods were already a hard sterilization of everything anyway.

My dislike is the nasty volatility of the last couple of years, and the hellscape it has created for prices across the board, and part of that isn't even the virus.  The whole wave of speculators and investors who have 6-7 figure salaries getting into the big stuff as it's all trickle down from there due to people seeing stories and getting the wrong impression.

Right now even games up to a year and a half ago that were considered like 2-3 for $5 stuff, you know, dollar dumpers, are now like $10 sales which is insane.  Known games people have crapped on for years because of some issues with it or bad design, whatever, they're even going up.

That's enough to knock the cares out of a lot of people when it's so toxic, paying for a flash kit, a pi something, loading up an emulator on a PC or mobile device seems the wiser choice.  It's just sad.  I've slowed my buying over it for some time now, until recently (2 games) I haven't picked up a SNES game in like 3-5 years, NES about as long too a couple homebrew aside, various others too.  Gameboy brand was ignored, until 2021 when all of a sudden hated $1 titles like Hard Drivin fetch $10 on ebay...it was my fall back, and now it's getting poisonous.

For me, the formula is between the main good and bad:

- your collection is worth more in the last 12 months (good)

- as a current day buyer, you got to deal with general price rise and sellers expecting everything to be on the rise (bad)

Regarding the price rise, the market is too volatile that makes it so hard to know what’s a fair bid/offer these days. This then creates more unnecessary tension between the buying and selling groups. Not to mention the tax issue, seeing now the popularity of games is at an all time high. So selling now becomes more trickier as to what’s the more efficient way of doing so whilst trying to minimize the tax penalties.

End result, everything is becoming a bit too complex! 

 

[drxandy | 3,262]

I am sticking to my collecting goals, if the price is right I'll bite. It may slow down some of them (jpn gamecube has very much changed, but I think I got in at the right time as the higher dollar stuff hasn't gone up much and that's pretty much all I need now.)

[OptOut | 8,910]

Luvin it, of course! 

I turbocharged my N64 collecting this year, simply because I have spent the last 4 or so years getting to this point, and I was finally ready to finish it off. I'm still looking for some boxes for my Japanese games, so it's not completely in the rearview mirror yet, but it's getting there.

I generally spend a couple hundred bucks a month on games and gaming related purchases, and that has been pretty consistent over the last few years as I've been building my collection. I have definitely spent more than that this year tho finishing up the N64 set etc. but I honestly have never had more fun collecting!

One thing that probably helps in this regard is that for the most part I am entirely insulated from the US market. I bought all my US N64 games back in 2019 (thanks @Jeevan ) , and I must say it is VERY fortuitous I decided to focus on those when I did! Other than that, the only US stuff I have been buying have been like new products at MRSP, which obviously are not inflated.

Prices here in Taiwan have remained basically stable, and the Japanese market doesn't seem to have been affected. Some of the PAL games from the UK I needed to finish my set HAD gone up, but they were nothing but a handful of cheap dregs anyway, so it wasn't much to swallow...

Where next, I guess that is a pretty open question for me now tho... Obviously I will keep my sights focused on the final Japanese N64 boxes I need, but once that is done I don't know.

I guess that's kind of exciting too, huh?! 

[Jeevan | 9,121]

@OptOut wanna return the favor?  lol, check your discord when you get time

[MegaMan52 | 2,499]

Neutral.

I have thousands of games and plenty of game-related items, and my shelves are almost completely full (one in particular looks like it is overflowing, and I have a pile of accessories and game-related toys beside it). So, I'm not really desperate to add more games to my collection and won't get angry if I can't or choose not to buy something I may want no matter how bad the pandemic has been or gets in the future.

However, I may still go ahead and buy some games (or related items) if I feel like it. As long as a store is open, they have something I want, I wear a mask, and use the provided sanitizer, who says I can't buy more games? But, it really depends on certain things. Sometimes I ask myself some questions (in my head)...like "do I really need Zelda: Skyward Sword or From Russia with Love now?" "Or should I keep playing Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, James Bond Nightfire, and James Bond Everything or Nothing and beat them before I buy more games in those franchises?" Also, I'm not stupid. I'm not going to spend $40-$50 on a loose copy of Double Dragon III for NES that's in crappy condition.

imports, on the other hand, are a different story. I really like imports, possibly even more than all the American games/releases I have. If I find an imported game I want, I won't hesitate to buy it as long as it's in good shape. Like those Mario games I bought recently at a game store that opened recently (see my newest post in the "what's new in your collection" topic)? They looked clean and weren't too expensive either. And most importantly, they all work.

[Tanooki | 4,978]

3 hours ago, GPX said:

For me, the formula is between the main good and bad:

- your collection is worth more in the last 12 months (good)

- as a current day buyer, you got to deal with general price rise and sellers expecting everything to be on the rise (bad)

Regarding the price rise, the market is too volatile that makes it so hard to know what’s a fair bid/offer these days. This then creates more unnecessary tension between the buying and selling groups. Not to mention the tax issue, seeing now the popularity of games is at an all time high. So selling now becomes more trickier as to what’s the more efficient way of doing so whilst trying to minimize the tax penalties.

End result, everything is becoming a bit too complex! 

 

I could not agree more, good formula, then the rest too.  Too many questions.

I mostly have my own answers, some though annoyingly with a ...but... attached.

Trades, cash, money order are where I will go with it, and if someone is afraid of cash or MOs they're not worth my time.

(and then the)...but...

If more is learned about this tax issue by the end of the year and how it will be properly handled I may just keep it up, raise rates to cover a margin of the tax loss since I'm not a business with a rotating endless supply, and that's that, along with offloading a game I end up disappointed with or being over with.

If we find that if you sell on ebay, since it's managed now, they also start collecting federal taxes as a courtesy to not drive off their seller base of private non-business sellers, then I'd be ok with it and continue.

My refund is vital, and without it, selling old goods online isn't worth it if I can't use those limited choices.

[DefaultGen | 5,621]

Hasn't changed my overall interest, just what I'm targeting. I do prefer the laid back "Oh, that's all over then?" feeling of the 2018 plateau compared to the FOMO gold rushes of 2020 and 2021.

Overall it's probably making my collection better because I'm quickly and predominantly getting all the stuff I've put off until a hypothetical one day. The day is here to pare down that long term want list, particularly what doesn't cost 3x what it did 2 years ago.

Can't plan on prices to increase hand in hand with rarity anymore. Some of my want list stuff is inevitably an article, Wata case size, or auction sale away from becoming the next hype thing. How many GB games used to fill bulk lots more than Super Mario Land? Today it's solidly $150+. Super Mario Land was garbage just a couple years ago. Who on Earth thought CIB SML was collectible? It was worth less than Klax. KLAX. Now it's like the hottest Game Boy game you can post on Instagram, do ya got the green screens??

[BortLicensePlate | 652]

Personally my interest for collecting has died down significantly, but that started before covid and HA. I'm thinking about getting rid of most stuff and just emulating but haven't made a decision yet

[Nintegageo | 582]

I put neutral though that is generally due to what I own and the space that my apartment [doesn't] have at this point. The prices do make ya think twice perhaps with some purchases though cheap good games do remain.

[Robot_Ninjutsu | 122]

I had to vote Neutral.  I hit my collecting quota years before all this happened.

But it is really eye opening to jump back into all this in 2021 after being away from all this for 10 years.  Just to see things that used to go for $10-15 now suddenly go for $250+ is something else.

Fantastic time to sell though.

[leonemesis | 44]

My interest remains the same, it is just that I´ve been focusing most of my time and money on building a new house for the past year and half, so with the price surges I figured I might as well take a break from collecting entirely. I just keep tabs on a few games I had on watchlist and visit the site from time to time.

Hopefully by next year I have everything on the new house sorted and prices have adjusted a bit, then I can get back to it.