Author Topic: Retro Collectors (Read 7884 times)

Forest Guy · « **on:** July 18, 2009, 01:25:38 PM »

So I recently reached the conclusion that the majority of new games really don't do it for me anymore, and that I want to start collecting older games. I just picked up a Dreamcast and an original Playstation. Eventually I want to work my way all the way down to the Famicom Disk System. I've already had an impressive Game & Watch collection (real ones), plus all my Nintendo systems, so right now I've got my eyes on getting an Atari 2600 and a Sega Genesis. Anyone else ever get into this? Also, any ideas of where I could look around for stuff besides ebay?

CrossEyed7 · « **Reply #1 on:** July 18, 2009, 06:54:23 PM »

I totally would if I had any money.

ShadowBrain · « **Reply #2 on:** July 18, 2009, 09:30:39 PM »

I've always wanted to start doing retro collecting--I already have a fair amount of old games and systems, though not necessarily for the explicit purpose of retro collection.

Weegee · « **Reply #3 on:** July 18, 2009, 10:58:47 PM »

Have you ever considered simply downloading a compendium of classic games onto an emulator, or does their questionable legality have you (understandably) weary? Emulation would just be much, much gentler on your wallet, Forest Guy. SNES9x is da bomb, by the way. I'd still be playing it to this day hadn't it been for the Wii's Virtual Console.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #4 on:** July 19, 2009, 12:51:33 AM »

Weegee fails to grasp the joy of Historical Gaming Reenactment. Having the physical cartridge to plug into your archaic entertainment devices is a sizable portion of the fun.
Meowrik, if there are any smaller/independent gaming stores or chains (i.e. not GameStop) or pawn shops and flea markets nearby, that's where I'd look. Also garage/estate sales.
Right now I have an Atari 7800, Atari 5200, NES, TG16, Genesis/Sega CD/32X, SNES, Saturn, N64, PS2, GCN, and Wii as well as a various Game Boys, a Nomad and a TurboExpress. I'm probably going to start actively seeking a Turbo CD before too long since I own some games for it already. Be warned, though: The majority of old games don't do it for you either.

ZSNES is better than SNES9x. Except in a couple areas of compatibility.

Forest Guy · « **Reply #5 on:** July 19, 2009, 02:13:13 AM »

Quote from: Chupperson Weird on July 19, 2009, 12:51:33 AM

Be warned, though: The majority of old games don't do it for you either.

Haha yeah, I think about that sometimes. It's probably just a matter of going through phases though. Right now, all I've been playing is the original Donkey Kong on my Game Boy Pocket. Before that, it was Pokemon Platinum.

Thanks though, you reminded me there's a couple of pawn store type places in the area. I'll have to head down sometime and see if they have anything interesting.

ShadowBrain · « **Reply #6 on:** July 19, 2009, 10:52:38 AM »

Yeah, no emulation unless there's really no other way. Like CW said, the glory and satisfaction of owning the original cartridge/disc is pretty sizable (and you can just use emulation legally to back up games you already own). It's just like art: A replica of the Mona Lisa can look exactly the same, but wouldn't you rather see the original?

Weegee · « **Reply #7 on:** July 19, 2009, 03:27:23 PM »

Quote from: Chupperson Weird on July 19, 2009, 12:51:33 AM

Weegee fails to grasp the joy of Historical Gaming Reenactment.

Ironic that this comes from someone with allegedly "broken" nostalgia sensors.

I suppose never having played on the original consoles detracts from the warm fuzzies one may feel by playing them now. My first gaming device was a GBC, followed shortly thereafter by a battered, dust-riddled NES my mom purchased from a co-worker for twenty dollars under the assumption that it was the newest system on the market. The came a GBA (c.2001), a GameCube (2002), a Nintendo 64 which we kept at our camping trailer (c.2003), a Nintendo DS (2004), and lastly a Wii (2007). I have never touched, let alone played any games on, older consoles not mentioned above. This includes the Atari 2600 through 7800, PS1, Genesis, Saturn, Dreamcast, Jaguar, Virtual Boy, or even a SNES. Call me n00bish or historically-technologically depraved, but I simply have no interest in tracking down games which I have better memories of as ports or Virtual Console titles anyway.

CrossEyed7 · « **Reply #8 on:** July 19, 2009, 04:48:20 PM »

I love having the physical cartridges, but on an emulator, I can play on a better-looking screen even than any of my TVs (or, if I ever get a good TV, I can play it on there through the Homebrew Channel) and I don't have to worry about the cartridge battery dying (I was really torn up when my G&WG1 save started crapping out; I spent the better part of my childhood getting that 1100+ score on Modern Manhole.). Plus it opens it up to romhacks, of which there actually are a fair number of good ones. Also, as mentioned previously, I have no money. I do have standards, though; I won't download a rom unless it hasn't been rereleased recently and can't be bought new (if it's only available used, then I'm not really taking any money away from the guys that made the game), or if I've bought at least one rerelease (and if a game is rereleased after I've downloaded it, I delete my rom, or at least hide it somewhere and don't play it, and try to buy it as soon as I have money). I also try not to get them through BitTorrent, because distributing is definitely illegal, and I have a feeling most of the people I'm seeding to don't have as many scruples as me.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #9 on:** July 19, 2009, 06:37:45 PM »

I forgot about my Virtual Boy somehow.
Anyway Weegee, I don't do any of this for nostalgia since how would I have nostalgia about game systems I've never played until I bought them? The point is the excitement of seeing how all the old stuff works and thinking about how back in the day there wasn't anything more advanced. People who re-enact medieval battles don't have any nostalgia about the middle ages, let me tell you. Also there are good games on old systems that aren't on new systems and shiny Working Designs box sets.

Forest Guy · « **Reply #10 on:** July 23, 2009, 11:10:29 PM »

Ughh, Virtual Boys are so hard to come by, it's ridiculous. If I end up getting one of those cancer goggles, it'll probably be the last thing I get. On a related note, I just bought an Atari 2600 and some games for $20, and I bought a Colecovision with DK Jr. for $5.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #11 on:** July 24, 2009, 12:06:16 AM »

I don't care what you all say, Virtual Boy has never given me problems. And I got mine for $15 worth of work.

WarpRattler · « **Reply #12 on:** July 24, 2009, 12:12:04 AM »

And a local pawn shop had one for $20. I would've bought it if I didn't have more important purchases to make later that day.

Forest Guy · « **Reply #13 on:** July 24, 2009, 10:24:43 PM »

I have yet to go to the local pawn shoppe. However I was in an antique store with my mother the other day, and saw there was a pinball machine with some pachinko machines. I saw an NES controller and thought "Hey, here we go." But then when I asked the owner about it, he told me that the NES controller was the only video-game-related thing he had there.

Trainman · « **Reply #14 on:** July 30, 2009, 12:45:50 AM »

ZSNES all the way for playing those harder-to-come-by titles. Also, being able to mute separate sound channels in the game is awesome for messing with music or helpful if you're trying to nail some complex bass part or some muddied-up chords in Mario songs on your piano/whatever.

Also, I agree with Chupperson's Historical Gaming Reenactment.

As for me, I want to collect every Nintendo system (need a Virtual Boy) and collect every single "main" Mario game, ever... all 137 of them (according to the Mario Family Game Tree [or whatever it's called] thread before someone shoots in to correct me).

Forest Guy · « **Reply #15 on:** July 30, 2009, 01:07:58 AM »

Including handhelds, Trainman?

Trainman · « **Reply #16 on:** July 31, 2009, 03:28:46 AM »

Of course! Two GBs, one GBC, one old DS. Guess I'm gonna need a GBA.

WarpRattler · « **Reply #17 on:** July 31, 2009, 03:33:52 AM »

I think it's great how everyone in this thread is quietly ignoring arcade games, which incidentally are what I'd probably start collecting if I had money and space.

Trainman · « **Reply #18 on:** July 31, 2009, 06:27:55 AM »

Well, not necessarily, WarpRattler, because I was saying I wanted to collect every Mario game... and of course, that includes Mario Kart GP and its sequel... so I'd have to somehow muscle those arcade cabinets in if I ever wanted to complete the collection.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #19 on:** July 31, 2009, 11:08:48 AM »

You're forgetting Vs. Super Mario Bros.
Also Warp, you have to admit collecting arcade games is a bit pricier and more space-consuming than consoles. I wouldn't mind a few key arcade cabinets sitting around myself.

WarpRattler · « **Reply #20 on:** July 31, 2009, 11:11:30 AM »

Quote from: Chupperson Weird on July 31, 2009, 11:08:48 AM

a bit pricier and more space-consuming than consoles

Quote from: WarpRattler on July 31, 2009, 03:33:52 AM

what I'd probably start collecting if I had money and space

Trainman · « **Reply #21 on:** July 31, 2009, 01:20:42 PM »

Vs. Super Mario Bros., oh yeah. I wonder how much those cabinets would be...

Actually, can any TMKer explain this one:

I saw a Mario Kart... well, kart at a flea market near Dallas (Denton Flea Market). It had a Mario crudely formed out of plastic (like... it looked liked his Mario Bros. art cover days, pretty much, but in his red shirt and blue overalls), and he was smiling and jumping out of the driver's seat of his red kart from Double Dash, but for some reason it was painted gold. It looked like it could've been part of an arcade cabinet, or almost looked like it'd be perfect for a merry-go-round judging from the open rear seat behind Mario (where the co-pilot would stand in Double Dash).

I would've definitely taken a picture of it if I had a phone at the time, but I did stop and examine it; I couldn't find any information of where it came from, what it was for, etc. I could maybe draw a picture of what it looked like, basically and let you guys figure out what it could've been.

Basically, it astonished me. It felt like I found some random, unlicensed Mario toy in a 3rd world country.

Forest Guy · « **Reply #22 on:** August 01, 2009, 01:26:20 AM »

Yeah WarpRattler, I didn't mention it here, but my ultimate goal really is to get a Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, Pac-man, or Mario Bros. arcade cabinet. Of course, as Chupperson said it's very expensive, and even more difficult to come across. Hell, if you wanted to go on eBay for them, you'd be spending upwards of $700 most likely. I think once I look at my collection and go "yep, this is pretty good.", that's when I'll start looking for arcades.

Oh and in today's news I bought a ROB and got a Comodore 64 keyboard from my friend. He works at Best Buy and said a customer brought it in trying to get a refund for it. (???)

WarpRattler · « **Reply #23 on:** August 01, 2009, 12:52:24 PM »

Upwards of $700? A lot of the classic PCBs cost about as much as a current-gen game, I saw a full Marvel vs. Capcom unit for $500 on eBay the other day, and a local guy is selling a Centipede unit (with original side-art, meaning it wasn't the victim of a conversion kit) for $550 (also Cruisin' USA for $600, but I don't care about racing games). It's only when you get into the rarer games (usually shmups like Ikaruga, Radiant Silvergun, and some Cave games) and newer games that you go up into the thousands.

Glorb · « **Reply #24 on:** August 01, 2009, 02:13:20 PM »

Quote from: WarpRattler on August 01, 2009, 12:52:24 PM

also Cruisin' USA for $600, but I don't care about racing games

How can you like arcade games but not care about the Cruis'n series?

TEM · « **Reply #25 on:** August 01, 2009, 05:12:05 PM »

A "sprite cutouts in a 3D space" classic.

Forest Guy · « **Reply #26 on:** August 01, 2009, 08:14:01 PM »

Yeah, $500, $700, it doesn't matter. It's the point of spending hundreds of dollars. Once you go over $200, it's all the same ballpark.

Chupperson Weird · « **Reply #27 on:** August 02, 2009, 12:54:49 AM »

I dunno where you play ball, man.

ShadowBrain · « **Reply #28 on:** August 10, 2009, 10:21:45 AM »

Judging by his seeming indifference towards price differences in the triple-digit range, probably the Field of Dreams.

Forest Guy · « **Reply #29 on:** August 14, 2009, 11:30:05 PM »

I bought two Sega Geneses with a handful of games and a controller. Next on the list I need to get myself a Super Scope.

ShadowBrain · « **Reply #30 on:** August 15, 2009, 11:27:28 PM »

I've been hoping to get a Super Scope/Yoshi's Safari.