collecting question

[wrldstrman]

I am curious about some things so I will ask and give my opinions

How long have most been collecting...myself i have been collecting for about 6 years



how much money do you think youve spent ..im probally real close to   ten thousand if not more




what system has been the easiest to collect for...me its the nes ive been able to get all the carts but 2 and 80 percent of the instructions and half the boxes within 2 years..and havent spent a whole lot less than on any other system



where did you get most of your carts
i found a lot at yard sales but most came from ebay i have bought some and traded for some in the video game forums  but i have found that if you can wait or buy in big lots you can get stuff a lot cheaper on ebay.good example is i bought a lot that had secret scout and ended up reselling the other stuff and actually getting secret scout for free and making a few bucs.


what system has been the hardest and most expensive...the 2600 for me lot of the carts rarely ever come up and when the do they go for big bucks


and out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played....i play my 2600,7800.colecovision and nes and the rest just sit around collecting dust...espicially my atari 800 channel f,sega master system odessy 2..which i have never played

[den68]

How long have most been collecting?

I have to give 2 answers for this one. About 5 years and all my life. It's been about 5 years since I stumbled onto a few collectors sites online, Digital Press, Atari Age and the old Videogame Bible. That's when I started going after anything I could find. My first intent was to just find a few more Atari 2600 games. Then to add to what I had for Genesis and NES, after a while I just started picking up anything I could find.

I also say all my life because I still have every video game and system I got over the years. When I dove into this hobby headfirst I already had a collection that included several LED and LCD handhelds, an Atari 2600, a Vic-20, a Commodore 64, an NES, a Genesis and a PSX and a few hundred games between them.

how much money do you think youve spent?

Probably close to 10 grand too but I've got over 3000 games so that's not too bad. I haven't paid over $50 for any game in my collection and that was for the occasional new release PS2 game. I even got Halo2 on sale.  The only systems I've purchased new are my NES (way back in 1986) PS2, Gamecube and Xbox. The others were used or gifts.

what system has been the easiest to collect for?

Probably NES. I have over 500 games for it. I haven't found too many I've needed lately but I went from the original 30 or so I started with to over 500 in a few short years.

where did you get most of your carts?

Thrift Stores, Flea Markets, Garage Sales. I am a very serious thrift store hunter. I got to at least one 6 days a week and I occasionly will search on Sunday's too.

what system has been the hardest and most expensive?

I don't really look for games in places where rarity has a bearing on price so none of my libraries has been any more expensive than another. Obviously the rare or obscure stuff doesn't turn up in the wild too often. More common stuff that I don't see often would be Colecovision, Atari 5200 and Turbografx 16.

out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

My current stuff, PS2, GAmecube, Xbox sees lots of action as do my NES, Genesis, PSX, Saturn and SNES. The rest don't come out of their protective plastic tubs too often.

[Tynstar]

 How long have most been collecting?

5-6 years

How much money do you think youve spent?

No idea but I have saved a lot of recipts for the last few years. I think I would cry if I started to think about it. Over the last 6 mopnths I would say around 2 grand

what system has been the easiest to collect for?

Bopught the whole library in one shot.

Where did you get most of your carts?

Local game stores

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?

Finding a CIB Power Lords of the O2 took some time. Spent 147 on it and have yet to play it. I got it 3 months ago or so. Still haven't found a US released Sonic for the SMS but it can be debaled if it is actually a US release or not.

Out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

X-Box & GameCube get the most play. Genesis and 2600 come in second. I stil havent played my 5800 & RCA Studio 2

[Arrrhalomynn]

How long have most been collecting?

4 years

How much money do you think youve spent?

many thousands

what system has been the easiest to collect for?

Saturn, it has lots of common games.

Where did you get most of your carts?

ebay

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?

I think I paid a lot of money for a jvc saturn once, but I don't recall how much. The hardest is probably the mega cd 2. I've been hoping to bump into a mint in box one for years, but never really did. Now I gave up.

Out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

Most of them collect dust. I guess my mega drive would be the worst. If it wouldn't have a 32X on top of it, it wouldn't have been played for well over a year now. The xbox gets the most play.

[Izret101]

How long have most been collecting?

Around 1998/1999 i actualy started avidly collecting so 6ish years

How much money do you think youve spent?

Probaly 2 thousand, possibly even less. That includes actual games and game related paraphinalia. I do get stuff as gifts and freebies though.

what system has been the easiest to collect for?

It would have been easiest for me to collect for GCN, PS2, NES, Genesis, Sega CD, N64, Gameboy. Just because of the sheer number of games that can be found around here. But since i do not focus on any one system i can't honestly answer this question

Where did you get most of your carts?

Got them all from family and local game shops. Actualy i believe i got 2-4 from Antimind too.

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?
The hardest if i was going for specific systems would have been all of the systems out there minus the above stated easiest. But since i do not collect system specific i don't wory about it.
The most expensive for me just depends on which system i want a game for at the time and how much it costs. In the end i have spent probably the same amount on NES games as i have current gen consoles.

Out of all your systems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

I go thru fits of gaming. All of my systems collect dust at one point or another but then i start playing something on it. For the most part though I was playing Xbox. NES isn't even hooked up at this point and i have been using emulation when i did play older games. I want to get out of that habit though.
I play a system when i get a new game for it essentially.

[CatchFiveBats]

How long have most been collecting?

I've only been seriously collecting since early 2004, but I've been playing games since before I can remember.

How much money do you think you've spent?

I really have no idea.  I haven't been keeping track, honestly.

What system has been the easiest to collect for?

N64, because I got most of my games from one guy for $100.  Some of you probably remember when I posted about that.

Where did you get most of your carts?

I've gotten my games from a lot of places.  No place more than any other, really.

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?

Neo-Geo AES.  I've already spent $420 on it and all I have is the system, the hookups, one controller, and two games.  My wallet is still hurting...

Out of all your systems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

Right now, I'm pretty much just playing my DS.  I played a LOT of Playstation games when that system was in its prime.  The rest of my systems have gotten about equal play time.

[Speedy_NES]

How long have most been collecting?

I started collecting mid-1997 until sometime in 1998, then I quit for quite a few years until around 6 months ago, April 2005, when I started again...so a total of around 2 years, with the occasional purchase on the side.  

How much money do you think you've spent?

Somewhere in the thousands, probably around 5 thousand (including for other systems).  Not really sure though, since I've only kept track of my purchases from the past 6 months.  

What system has been the easiest to collect for?

I only collect for the NES, so that would have to be it.  I do have other systems and games, but those were from back in the day when I bought them to play them and not to collect them.  

Where did you get most of your carts?

Back in the day I got about 100-150 NES games from a local video rental.  The rest I got 99% from eBay.  

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?

Since I only collect for the NES I'll say which part of the NES collection has been the hardest and most expensive to collect for:  accessories.

Out of all your systems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

All systems I own collect dust as I don't really play games anymore.  It's a shame, I know...

[atari_wizard]

How long have most been collecting?
this upcoming december will make it 3 years.

How much money do you think you've spent?
i honestly have no idea. a wild guess would be 2,500 or so. then again, i try to buy a extra accessories/games and sell them as a set around the barracks to help pay for my collections. i like helping people get reaquainted with their fav games/systems of their youth.
 
What system has been the easiest to collect for?
NES. i actually started off collecting only for the 2600, but then i found myself running into several nes games for cheap....so then i added NES to the family.

Where did you get most of your carts?
Atari 2600: 75% from a local vintage video game store in Colorado Springs

NES: 80% from flea markets and local vintage stores in Denver and colorado springs.

Atari 7800: 90% from 1 member on AA market place Forum.

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?
Hardest: Atari 2600 for me. just so many different variations for several games. i collect major label variations like pac-man sears pic and atari pic/mouse trap atari red label and coleco/ etc.

Most expensive: Atari 2600. only because i haven't tried for all the NES top dogs just yet.

Out of all your systems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?
This would go for any console that i have boxed, yet i have a second console able to play. as far as a system that gets no play, i would say my snes.

[Sauza12]

How long have most been collecting?

I have pretty much been collecting all of my life.  I have never gotten rid of anything I have ever had.  I started collecting seriously about 3 or 4 years ago

How much money do you think youve spent?

Well, I spend about $3 per game, so probably just over $3000

what system has been the easiest to collect for?  

Genesis.  It seems like Genesis carts are EVERYWHERE.  I just wish I could find more 2600 games.

Where did you get most of your carts?

That's kind of hard to say.  For a while it was Gamestop and EB Games, but they stopped carrying the older systems or stopped getting new old games in.  After that, it was flea markets, but now I only go there when I have a shitload of money to spend.  Now I get them from Thrift stores, garage sales, and other cheapo stores.  I guess if I had to come up with an answer, it would be Gamestop, but who knows for sure.

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?  

I guess it would be the 32x, oddly enough.  That is the only system that I have gotten every single one of my games from Ebay.

Out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

I go through cycles with my systems.  Sometimes I'll be on an NES kick and everything else gets ignored.  Sometimes I'll be on an Atari kick, and everything else gets ignored.  The only system that i own that I havent even turned on yet is my Odyssey 2.

[Pop Culture Portal]

How long have most been collecting?

Just as den68 said, I have two answers for that.  I started collecting heavily about ten years ago when I bought out the inventory of a game store going out of business, very much on the cheap...lots of broken, useless crap and lots of "doubles," most of which I sold at yard sales and ebay.  For a while, I was running hot and cold, collecting for a few years, then lying low for a few years afterwards.

Also, I've been gaming all my life ever since my dad brought home a Pong way, WAY back in the day (yes, I still have it, in the box, and it works beautifully  |D).

How much money do you think you've spent?

I try not to think about it.  

What system has been the easiest to collect for?

Atari 2600 and Intellivision, since that was the bulk of the stuff I got from the old game store.

Where did you get most of your carts?

See last answer  ...plus mostly from ebay...finding things in the wild is nearly impossible for me...dunno why.

What system has been the hardest and most expensive?

This may suprise most people...N64 and SNES...I can't find games for either system both complete and cheap...the prices for even the sports games for these systems are outrageous, for me anyway since I'm a cheap bastard.

Out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

That would be the old O2 since I don't have any cords to plug the damn thing into the wall!  Bought it for a $1 at Goodwill many years ago.  No idea if it even works.

My Xbox gets played daily...still trying to figure out Tony Hawk's Underground and Wreckless.  Serious Sam pissed me off the other day, so I put him back in his box.  

[PDorr3]

How long have most been collecting...myself i have been collecting for about 6 years

--Well I have been buying games since I was about 5 or 6, but I never got to be a real "collector" until I was about 12.

how much money do you think youve spent ..im probally real close to   ten thousand if not more

--About 6-8k, I will try and figure it out someday...thats also including in system prices.

what system has been the easiest to collect for...me its the nes ive been able to get all the carts but 2 and 80 percent of the instructions and half the boxes within 2 years..and havent spent a whole lot less than on any other system

--I really dont think any of my systems (besides game.com) are easy to collect for, but the n64 is probably the easiest because the games are still seen alot in the wild, and it has very few rare titles.

where did you get most of your carts

--Mostly all from ebay, and occasionaly a garage sale


what system has been the hardest and most expensive...the 2600 for me lot of the carts rarely ever come up and when the do they go for big bucks

--I just started collecting for the 3DO not long ago, and I must say it is really hard to get games with the original longbox in good condition with the instructions and inner case. If you check ebay many auctions are disc only, Im guessing because these boxes are so flimmsy and they get crushed easily.

and out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played

--I have a few
N64- Its really a thing og the past now, I really cant get into playing many of the games anymore for some reason.

Colecovision- Probably because I hate having to screw it into the back of my tv

Dreamcast-I dont own many games for it, but I owe it to myself to play this more

Jaguar- Just no urge to play

[Silent_shadow]

How long have most been collecting?
About two years now i think.

how much money do you think youve spent?
You really don't wanna khow (in other words i don't khow).

what system has been the easiest to collect for?
That will be the sega Dreamcast. I got a lot of games for let's say one euro and the most rarest games (skies of arcadia grandia 2) i got for almost nothing so i could say that the dreamcast is the most easiest to collect.

where did you get most of your carts?
First i always visted forums where got most of mine stuff (skies of arcadia & grandia 2 for exemple). But, the last time i'm also spending time on ebay where i already got a lot of cool stuff!

what system has been the hardest and most expensive?
That's a hard one. Mostly i will go for mine N64 but in the days when i had an snes the games costed me mostly somewhere near the 60 euros so i think N64 or the snes.

out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?
Well mine snes is the most unplayed perhaps. Mostly because i played on it too many when i was young and secondly because i don't really have cool games for it anymore.
The most played console will be the xbox or the N64 but i can't really pick on out of mine collection wich i played most on.

[video_game_addict]

I have been collecting since the late 90s.  

Started online in '99 created a yahoo & ebay account, as well as Digitpress & Atariage (or at that time Atari 2600 Nexus) and started to really buy & sell & learn about classic games.  

I sold alot of junk at first, & bought new junk I'd never seen locally, then went through many changes in what I wanted to collect, but from early 99 I started on one specific platform, which was the Atari 5200. I finished that in early '03 having bought every game CIB, all of which were sourced online, either on ebay or yahoo, or the various online sites I hung out at.  It's hard to find boxed 5200 games locally, for me at least. Only once where I picked up about 25 copies of Super Breakout all sealed, but who needs Super Breakout??  Not even worthy trade bait, now they are somebodies homebrews..  

After I finished up on the 5200, I decided to take on the 2600, although I first was content with loose, I later decided I wanted them all boxed like my 5200 games...  So I sold my collection in Oct. '03 and started over in Nov. of that year. Been going strong for almost two years now,  500+ with around 400 boxed. This has ate up alot of money. I decided to sell off most of the other collections I had kept til then to help afford them.  Now just 5200 & 2600 remain.  I know I've spent well over 10K on my Atari collections, but I haven't kept up with prices on every little thing. I prefer not to, lol.

Some of the higher priced games in my collection:

Quadrun $950
Asterix $750  
Bounty Bob strikes back $500
Rescue Terra I $500
Crazy Climber $450
Boing! $400
Texas Chainsaw Mascare $400
Halloween $400
Motorodeo $400
Ikari Warriors $400
Q*berts Qubes $400
Glib $300
X-Man $300


And many more in the $100+ range of course all of these are boxed. If not for the boxes I'd be much closer to a complete collection. And I've goofed on a few purchases, Ikari & Motorodeo were a mistake (they are hitting low $100 range right now)  But I'm happy with most everything I've added to my collection, and don't plan on ever selling.


On the cheap side of things, I have won Subterrenea twice for around $30 (later selling/trading for $100+ worth of stuff) And I recently scored a pair of 2600 diagnostic carts for $50  Oh and my greatest find, Atlantis II & Condor Attack for $11 I think I'll come out way ahead if I ever need to sell these two.

So with only two systems in my collection, both of which I collect boxed, I pretty much rely on ebay & online shops & forums to supply my craving. No real way past that. I have bought lots of stuff locally, which were later sold or traded, so it's not like I can't credit anything in my collection to persistent searching of thrifts & fleas, but I think 99% of what's in my collection now, has come directly from online. Indirectly, I can thank my past finds for at least some of what makes up my collection now.

I can also thankfully say, nothing left in my collection is collecting dust with only two consoles they both receive love. Not all games get played on a regular basis, and still I have many games which are still sealed, so it's all in good time if & when I decide to open & play. But I sold the stuff I never played years ago. Intellivision, O2, Channel F, 32x for the most part, CDi, 3DO & Sega CD had alot of junk with it. Jaguar was mostly junk.. I got rid of everything I never saw myself playing & then later re-evaluated the stuff I did like, but just never found the time for. No more worrying about remembering 20 different have/want lists, and rarities on all. Just the core collection from then on out..  

[tholly]

How long have most been collecting?

I have been buying and playing games since I was old enough to understand my NES w/ SMB...

...as for hardcore collecting, it started during my freshman year at college....i bought an xbox and gamecube within a month of each other and i already had a ps2 when i was still a senior in high school....

...after i got those 2 systems so quickly and found digitpress.com i really got into heavy....and have been wasting money and buying games ill never play ever since

how much money do you think youve spent?

well, i have spent a lot personally, but my parents have also bought me a lot as gifts....i have close to 1000 games right now, included some full size arcade machines and pinball machines, so just the big machines i have cost a few thosands, so my overall total $$ spent has to be way up there

what system has been the easiest to collect for?

Magnavox Odyssey 2.....i didnt have to shell out too much money and my parents had about 20 of the 49 games that they bought when the system was new that i sorta just took control over when i started collecting.....and to think, i now have a complete set, but i almost sold the stuff back when ebay was new just to get some money....good thing i didnt.....the only thing that i every sold gaming wise that i didnt have another copy of for my personal collection was my broken bally wizard full size pinball machine...and i used the $$ from that to get another machine...a bally special forces pinbally machine

where did you get most of your carts?

ebay, pawn shops, flea markets, and other collectors, plus stores back in the day when the games were still current and new

what system has been the hardest and most expensive?

nothing has been really hard yet, ...it was however hard to get 550 mountain points to get my mountain dew xbox......but i do want to complete my NES collection, so i can see that getting hard / expensive when it comes down to the panesians and stuff like that.....but even rares can be found easily if you have the money....like power lords...i thought it would be hard...but, it wasnt once i was willing to throw down the $150 for it

out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?

my xbox and ps2 see a lot of play....most of the other stuff is just sitting and getting dusty since im at school with my ps2, xbox, psp, and ds and all the others are at home

[NES-a-holic]

How long have you been collecting?
 
For about 2,5 years now.
 
How much money do you think you've spent?
 
At least a couple of thousand. |D
 
What system has been the easiest to collect for?
 
I havent got any complete collections but Videopac would be one of the easiest.
 
Where did you get most of your carts?
 
Carts i get at fleas and 2nd hands stores,but i collect boxed and complete mostly and those are bought via the internet,trades,eBay,2nd hand sites.
 
What system has been the hardest and most expensive?
 
For me that would be the NES since i really collect for this system.Others systems and games i buy when i cant find NES related stuff so i never leave home empty handed.
 
Out of all your sysems which ones sit collecting dust and which ones get played?
 
NES (corse),SNES,sometimes GB games on SNES with adaptor.Also PSone and SMS once in a while.