Nobody is saying that the game, system, or toy that you have isn't cool or that it isn't in decent shape.  All I'm saying is that it isn't "Rare" and it most certainly isn't "Mint".



I'm realistic.  I think that some of the time people who post something for sale that they mark as rare or mint/near mint are doing so to entice a buyer.  I think that some people, maybe because of how badly they want the item or because of the collecting bug, want to believe that it is rare or mint to feel good about their score.  I just wanted to take a few minutes to explore these words and how overused they have become on the forums and in game collecting in general.

Mint condition refers to a newly minted item that is right off the production line.  It does not have a single blemish.  By definition, nothing that has been opened can be considered to be in mint condition.  I'm not really a fan of the term "minty" either.  It's like someone saying that they are "kind of pregnant".  Nope.  Either you are pregnant or you aren't.  I know you are just trying to convey that the Boxed NES games you just came across aren't crushed or faded, but they probably aren't close to "mint" and by using "minty" you are cheapening the term.

Shouldn't mint be extremely hard to find?  Once in a lifetime?  A CRAZY big deal? Shouldn't finding something truly in mint condition be a "Rare" occurrence?

Uh oh, there's the other one......."Rare."


Rare has become more of a joke than Mint or Minty. I just did a search on Craigslist for "rare video games" and here are some highlights:

"I'm selling my rare nes mega man games, Mega Man 1, and Mega Man 2"  Nope
"The Legend of Zelda (Rare Gray Cart)" by "rare" you mean "everybody has one"?
"10 vintage Nintendo 64 video games including the Rare Mario Smash Bros." Not even close

The only one that MIGHT be in the conversation of Rare is this one:
"Darius Gaiden game for Sega Saturn. Still Factory Sealed with hangtab attached and original store sticker"
Yes, I would concede the point that when you take an uncommon game and add "factory sealed", you have something that could be considered rare.  Extra points for proper use of "First come, first served."

In fairness to the overusers of "rare," the Internet has made the world smaller.  If the only source we had to buy games were local stores, tag sales (that we found by driving, not via apps and craigslist), and trading with friends, then many of the items listed as rare these days COULD be considered rare because you really don't see them very often.  Having the ability to jump on ebay and buy almost anything that you want to at any given time, makes almost everything less rare.  Things are more attainable now.  In those terms, only the rarest of the rare games, like Stadium Events, stand out. 

Without the Internet, way more things would be rare.  Examples:

Could the classic PC game, Homeworld stand out as rare?  If you don't count internet trading, I would argue yes, of course it's rare.  You NEVER see most big box PC games in the wild, let alone one as good as this gem.


Here is another hotly debated one:

Generally, 32X games are less common than finding a bucket of Genesis or Super NES games at a flea market.  You would think that two of the harder games to find would be considered rare.  But when you talk about "rare" World Series Baseball, Pitfall, or Spider Man, you hear shouts of "They aren't rare, you see them on forums and ebay all the time.  Well, I've never seen one, so I consider them uncommon to rare. 

Here you will see a photo of my copy of Spider Man for the 32X


At the end of the day, nothing is going to chance.  You can't make the Internet do anything.  You can't fix grammar, can't adjust spelling habits, and can't change vocabulary.  Some of the older folks here run the risk of SOUNDING like the older folks when we complain about the way things is [sic].  I don't mean to attack the people who use these terms, just point out that there may be a better way to use them.

Keep on gaming.

Permalink | Comments [23] | Digg This Article | Tweet