As game collectors, one of the things that crosses our minds on an almost daily basis is "value."  Often, when out hunting for games, systems, toys, etc., we have to weight out the estimated monetary value of a game with amount the seller is asking for it and the amount we are willing to pay for said item.  This is always quite the juggling act, and one in which we are always working toward being the primary beneficiary of the "good deal."  However, when it comes to value, it doesn't mean that we maintain a spreadsheet of what we spent on games, determine what they are currently worth, and adjust monthly as the prices go up.....well....maybe some of you do.  For most of us, games aren't merely a monetary investment, but an investment in something on a grander scale. 



Webster's defines "value" as: (1) a fair return or equivalent in goods, services, or money for something exchanged; (2) the monetary worth of something: market price; (3) relative worth, utility, or importance.

Recently, I was lucky enough to receive a visit from one of our German site members and all-around great guy, erikescapade.  He had contacted me a few months prior to his visit to let me know that he would be in North Carolina with a friend and was hoping that we could meet up.  At the time, I had my 3rd kid on the way and his visit was nervously lining up with my wife's due date.  Luckily, the baby came on time and I was able to offer Eric and his friend Alex a place to stay for the night; we also managed to work in some shopping at a few game stores, a stop by the local arcade, and a nice Vietnamese dinner.

When we got back from our nightly escapade (see what I did there?), the first thing Eric wanted to do was see my gameroom.  Upon entering, I watched as his eyes as they wandered frantically around the room, much like all of ours do when we are checking out someone else's collection.  We spent some time talking about a few games he saw and it was nice hearing about the differences in what was released in Germany and what we got in the U.S.  Before the story goes any further, it's important to note that Alex isn't a gamer, but was a great sport when going out to the game stores with us and was interested enough in our hobby to ask me some thoughtful questions. However, one of his questions really took me by off-guard and even rattled me a little: "So, what's your highest valued item?"


I have to admit, when this question came out of his mouth, my tongue was stun-locked.  The first thought that entered my mind, as I image would be that of many of you was, "Which game do I own that I could sell and get the most money out off today?"  My second thought was, "Does this guy want to rob me?"  I'm joking of course, Alex and Eric are super classy guys and even brought flowers and candy to my wife who just gave birth. If they are in your area, I suggest that you host them too. But I regress.....

So after Alex's question, I started racking my brain about which NES game in my collection was next in line in terms of value behind the two remaining titles I still needed (Little Samson and Flintstones: Surprise at Dinosaur Peak).  "Well, Panic Restaurant is up there, but I know that Bubble Bobble 2 or Bonk's Adventure have jumped in value lately as well.  Geez, I dunno."  While all of this information was going back and forth in my head, my mouth seemed to frantically utter, "Uhhhhhh... Uhhhhhh...Uhhhhhh"  Eric's friend, realizing that maybe his question had been lost in translation, clarified it by stating, "I mean, which item do you value most?" 

At that moment it hit me, his concept of "value" had nothing to do with worth, but instead, what piece do I like most.  This question was much easier to answer, and in response, I quickly spun to the shelf behind me and pulled down my Atari 2600 Gremlins Loaner Cartridge.  As I handed it to him to look over, I explained that there were three reasons that I like this piece: (1) My first gaming experience was on the Atari 2600, (2) it was a cool piece of video gaming history and I liked to imagine whose hands it might have gone through in Sunnyvale, and (3) I told the story of how I found it locally.  I also explained that it wasn't worth an extraordinary amount as one might think, because the game was in the final stages of completion.  However, other than out of curiosity when I first found the game, the monetary value of this item is something I've never really thought about too much, and it's certainly an item, due to it's history and mine with it, that I would never part with.


Answering this somewhat simple question within the timeframe of merely a few minutes was something that oddly stuck with me for several days.  And what confounded me the most over the passing days was, "Why have I been thinking about Alex's question for so long?" (and thus the reason for this article).  Though I probably haven't arrived at a solid conclusion yet, I think that the multiple definitions of "value" are something that we as collectors sometimes get caught up in the crossfire of.  Let's face it, there's nothing better than going out game hunting and coming across a high monetarily valued item at a super low price.  A lot of us have had this experience and if you keep plugging away, others of you will someday as well.  These moments are extraordinary and become great tales that we convey to basically anyone who notices this game/system in our collection.  Thus, something that has great monetary value, also becomes something of great personal value to us.  But what happens when we already have a piece our collection or an item's "value" far exceeds its worth to us? 

The Negative Side of Value

I think I'd be remised not to note that as collectors, it's often difficult for us to remove ourselves from "value" in terms of it's relation to profit, and sometimes that nasty label of "reseller" comes into play. But what defines a "reseller?"  If I purchase an item that I already have in order to trade for another item does that make me a "reseller?"  Or, if I make a profit by selling an item and put that money back into my hobby, does the definition stick?  Or, am I only a reseller if profit, am not a collector, and the profit is the only means to the end?  I'm not here to argue for or against this definition, but merely to point to it as we consider the term "value" and how it pertains to and shapes our hobby, and to discuss an incident that recently affected me. 

Recently, I went into a pawn shop that I often frequent and came across copies of Mike Tyson's Punch Out and Tecmo Bowl for the NES.  The shop owner, who I am familiar with and have told about my collection, has always been friendly to me and has even allowed me to look at his "eBay inventory" that he keeps in the back.  I've pulled a lot of good things out of there for good prices because the owner likes me and knows that I'm not a reseller.  However, on this particular day, I wasn't so tactful.  After the shop owner offered my both games for $5 (yes, total), I gleefully mentioned that I already had the games, but was going to grab them for a friend who had recently introduced his childhood Nintendo to his son.  The story was true and I recently gave the games to my friend; however, what I didn't realize at the time was that I had negatively impacted my relationship with the shop owner by relaying this story.  Looking back, I can see how my story sounded like bulls@#t, and since then, I've been told that there isn't any "eBay inventory."  When it comes to matters where value is involved, sometimes it's best to keep your mouth shut...lesson learned.

The Positive Side of Value

While some items that we collect have high monetary value, there are also those things in our collections that aren't rare or highly sought after by fellow collectors, but are items that we hold great sentimental value for.  For instance, my copies of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link and my CIB copy of Grand Prix for the 2600. I've detailed this significance of these items HERE before, so I won't retell those stories for the sake of brevity. However, I am including some pics of my most prized items in my collection throughout this article, and I'd love to hear about some of your most "valued" gaming items in the comments below.


A few weeks later, I finally came up with the answer to Alex's question.  Over those weeks, I somehow remembered a question that my wife asked me a few months ago, "How much was my collection worth?"  After an "I don't know", her guesstimate of $1000, and a concealed snicker on my end, I realized that I had never thought about it as a whole before, but quickly dismissed it until recently. I thought about this question several nights ago as I was sitting in my gameroom all alone, and I came up with an answer: "This is what it's worth."  For me, that "value" is sitting in that room by myself, with my kids, or with friends and being surrounded by my past.  Having the ability to enjoy these things (the exceedingly vast majority of which I never owned as a child) and share them with others who had a similar love of gaming growing up, or a kid who is experiencing these things for the first time, gives me great joy in life.  And maybe I'm alone in this, but the smell of old cardboard and plastic is pretty pleasing too! 

So the next time your significant other or friend asks you about the "value" of your entire collection, just say, "You know, I've never thought about it, but let me show you what things in it mean the most to me."

Permalink | Comments [11] | Digg This Article | Tweet