Need research help: TG-16 game prices

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 03:37 PM

So, Racketboy is finally thinking about updating the TG-16 article about bargain games worth the cost. I know prices have pretty much gone up across the board, but what are the best deals $10 and under and $11 - $20?

With prices rising, the article may have to wander into import territory, but I'm hoping not.

SignOfZeta · 06/21/2012, 03:44 PM

Since everyone buys stuff from eBay or this forum anyway I don't understand the distinction between "import" and otherwise. It's not like you can buy this stuff at Target either way.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 03:53 PM

Import means biting the bullet and modding a US system or buying a Japanese system and getting JPN games vs simply getting US games for a US system.

Arkhan Asylum · 06/21/2012, 04:32 PM

any Turbo Grafx-16 owner that doesn't plan to region mod or get a PCE in the future, is a tard.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 04:37 PM

Well, these guides are for the most beginner, most financially constrained folks just starting out, really.

I did find a couple sites that monitor ebay auctions, which is the primary source for this kind of stuff outside of dedicated forums like this one. Too bad I could only find TurboChip data. No robust data on CD games, and I'm not about to troll through the data on eBay all by my lonesome.

Arkhan Asylum · 06/21/2012, 04:40 PM

Can't this priceguide just link people to here, and say "OBEY or gtfo" ?

It seems like it might be more useful to tell them to come here and get real deals instead of getting it up the ass on eBay

CrackTiger · 06/21/2012, 04:41 PM

<$10:

Bonk's Adventure
Bonk's Revenge
Alien Crush
Bomberman
Ninja Spirit
Dungeon Explorer
Sidearms

<$20:

Military Madness
Cadash
Aeroblasters
Bloody Wolf
Neutopia
Order of the Griffon
Devil's Crush
Dragon's Curse
R-Type
Monster Lair
Lords of the Rising Sun
Cosmic Fantasy 2
Exile
Shapeshifter

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 04:37 PMWell, these guides are for the most beginner, most financially constrained folks just starting out, really.

I did find a couple sites that monitor ebay auctions, which is the primary source for this kind of stuff outside of dedicated forums like this one. Too bad I could only find TurboChip data. No robust data on CD games, and I'm not about to troll through the data on eBay all by my lonesome.

It's easier for beginners to find a PCE unit for less than a TurgoGrafx-16 nowadays and their are more cheap PCE games with zero language barrier than there are for TG-16. Turbo stuff is more for hardcore collectors than PCE today, unfortunately.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 04:54 PM

Quote from: CrackTiger on 06/21/2012, 04:41 PMIt's easier for beginners to find a PCE unit for less than a TurgoGrafx-16 nowadays and their are more cheap PCE games with zero language barrier than there are for TG-16. Turbo stuff is more for hardcore collectors than PCE today, unfortunately.

I rather agree, at this point. Still, there's so much more JPN material around that trying to do THAT article would be like opening a giant can of worms that I'm not ready to take on.

As for your guesses there, I do know that by current eBay pricing, none of those games in your =< $10 list are available under $10. The only truly must-have game I found available for under $10 was Legendary Axe (note that eBay prices necessarily include shipping costs).

420GOAT · 06/21/2012, 04:59 PM

i know im the new guy but i see the same thing occuring here as in the vw parts. they are going up at a crazy rate. Devils crush was $13 plus shipping so $17, about three months ago, now i just saw them starting at $25 plus. id say about 5-10 percent every month or so.

VestCunt · 06/21/2012, 05:30 PM

I've ranted about both Racketboy and price guides in the past, but I don't have any problem with games being placed in very loose tiers of value.

For the <$10 list, these games are currently available from ebay, half, amazon, or prominent online vendors for $10 or less, with a couple of exceptions of recently auctioned items (not freak BIN's) in the completed listings. I did not note their completeness as casual beginners shouldn't concern themselves with such things. I'll let you be the judge of whether they are good or bad games. Games marked with a "+" were slightly above ten: $12-13.

Alien Crush
Andre Panza
Ballistix+
Battle Royal
Bravorman+
Champions Forever Boxing+
China Warrior
Cratermaze
Cyber-Core
Davis Cup Tennis
Double Dungeons
Drop Off+
Dungeon Explorer
Fantasy Zone
Final lap Twin
Hit the Ice
Jack Nichlaus
JJ and Jeff
Keith Courage
King of Casino
Legendary Axe
Legendary Axe 2
MotoRoader
Ordyne
Pac-Land
Power Gold
Sidearms
Silent Debuggers+
Sonic Spike
Supervolley Ball
Tailspin
Takin'It to the Hoop
Tricky Kick+
TV Sports games
Victory Run
Vigilante
World Class Baseball
Yo Bro

I did not include shipping. It typically ranges from "free" to $4, but can vary widely depending on where the buyer lives and combined rates. I think it's best not to include shipping.

There are only a few U.S. CD games immediately available in the $10 range; none of them I would call good:
Addams Family
Sherlock Holmes
Magical Dinosaur Tour
IT Came from the Desert +

I would recommend including Buster Brothers, Exile, CF2, and Prince of Persia as good $10 games, but patience is required to find them at that price.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 05:38 PM

Vestcoat, I am not a fan of the give an exact price range approach ($12 - $15), because once that article is out it only takes a couple weeks for it to be largely useless. I do think assuming some small amount for shipping is reasonable. Meaning if I see a game regularly with a price of $10, but always someplace with $2-4 shipping, I'm more likely to put that game in the $11 - 20 category, simply because that's what someone will probably have to actually pay out to own it.

The categories I'm going by are $10 and under and $11 - $20. A $12 game (after shipping) is 11 - 20, because with the variability in the market, if you want the game NOW you may have to pay closer to $20, whereas if you are patient you may indeed be able to nab it at $12.

Your list seems to be of the patience over time (maybe a few months). My early/preliminary recommendations on the RB forum have been of the can get it within a couple weeks variety. I'll cross-post them here so y'all can rip them to shreds.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 05:41 PM

Below is what I posted to the RB forum topic about this based on some early research which largely centered on current and very recent eBay prices.

Because prices are variable I'm not going to list a price. I'm just going put them in loose price categories, in rough price/value order. May of these titles can easily be found more expensively, but for the patient I think these categories and listings are pretty representative.

$10 and under Must Haves
Legendary Axe

$10 and under Worth Considering
Keith Courage
Power Golf
China Warrior
J.J. and Jeff

$20 and under Must Haves
Dungeon Explorer
Alien Crush
Blazing Lazers
Bonk's Adventure
R-Type
Bonk's Revenge
Ninja Spirit
Bloody Wolf
Galaga '90
Tricky Kick

$20 and under Worth Considering
Vigilante
Bravoman
Side Arms Hyperdyne
Moto Roader
Champions Forever Boxing
Final Lap Twin
Tiger Road
Space Harrier
Dragon Spirit

VestCunt · 06/21/2012, 05:54 PM

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 05:38 PMVestcoat, I am not a fan of the give an exact price range approach ($12 - $15), because once that article is out it only takes a couple weeks for it to be largely useless.

Of course. You can do what you want with those "plus" games I marked. I was only working on the <10 category, but I thought I would flag those so you could put them in either category. If they're sitting at $12 today, they certainly come up below ten fairly often, but I know you're looking for exact references.

QuoteYour list seems to be of the patience over time (maybe a few months). My early/preliminary recommendations on the RB forum have been of the can get it within a couple weeks variety.

Those weren't my usual, conservative prices that I toss out around here - virtually all of those games I listed are sitting online for sale TODAY, with a couple being from very recent completed auctions.

BigusSchmuck · 06/21/2012, 06:07 PM

I dunno about you guys, but I have found a lot of the under $20 games for a whole lot less than that:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/280898887913?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649

VestCunt · 06/21/2012, 06:10 PM

I know. Dungeon Explorer, Alien Crush, Tricky Kick, Vigilante, Bravoman, Side Arms Hyperdyne, Moto Roader, Champions Forever Boxing, and Final Lap Twin are all sitting online for <10 right now.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 06:15 PM

Well, roll me in shit and dip me in breadcrumbs... Time to re-do the list.

VestCunt · 06/21/2012, 06:54 PM

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 06:15 PMWell, roll me in shit and dip me in breadcrumbs...

I'll have to use this one.

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 08:03 PM

You might want to use the correct one. I screwed it up. I think it's "dip me in shit and roll me in breadcrumbs," but I couldn't remember it correctly when I typed it.

CrackTiger · 06/21/2012, 08:40 PM

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 04:54 PMAs for your guesses there, I do know that by current eBay pricing, none of those games in your =< $10 list are available under $10. The only truly must-have game I found available for under $10 was Legendary Axe (note that eBay prices necessarily include shipping costs).

If you're up on current prices, then why are you asking for help?

spenoza · 06/21/2012, 08:58 PM

Quote from: CrackTiger on 06/21/2012, 08:40 PMI think that a "how-to-use-eBay" guide is mandatory before posting a Turbo deal guide. Shipping costs are completely random and shouldn't be included in any kind of price guide, especially for TG-16 games which can be sent by letter mail and whose combined shipping can work out to pennies a piece.

I guess what I'm trying to do is help folks know what to expect. If Joe Shmoe who reads RB articles decides he's got some spare income and wants to get into the Turbo, what games can he reasonably expect to find relatively affordably that are worth picking up? That's really it. When you're starting out it can be daunting looking at an entire library of games, even one as small as that of the Turbo, and try to figure out what to go for. I'm not trying to tell folks that if they go to eBay and buy it at this auction they'll get it for $11.95 with $4 shipping, but rather if they've got $20 to give to it they can probably find a couple games on this list of quality starter titles if they hunt around a little.

SignOfZeta · 06/21/2012, 09:11 PM

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 03:53 PMImport means biting the bullet and modding a US system or buying a Japanese system and getting JPN games vs simply getting US games for a US system.

How is it any "simpler"? I've been into PCE for almost 20 years now and aside from a brief period in time from 92-94 when I could buy games at EB, all the shit I own has come from the same place: the mail box. Actually, that's not totally true. I did buy games from a Die Hard store near me back in the day, but all they had were imports.

The first thing a NEC noob needs to know is to not waste his money on a TG-16. This is because, if he likes the system, his next step will be trying to find a working US CDROM, then trying to afford a Super System card for less than $150, then fixing his CDROM which will have broke by now, etc etc when what he should have done right off the bat was buy a Duo R. I've seen this story play out here and in person even more times than I've told it.

FiftyQuid · 06/21/2012, 09:27 PM

I think most of the prices everyone has posted up until this point are very accurate. I'm yet another of the noobs around here reconnecting with my youth who decided to collect the entire collection of US hu cards. At the start I admittedly overspent. I tossed a $20 out for Bonk's Adventure, and a $20 out for Ninja Spirit. Both were complete in jewel cases and in good shape. I had some disposable income and paying $20 for Bonk's Adventure didn't bother me. I wanted the game and $20 was a lot cheaper than the price I paid back in the 90's so I figured I was ahead. Then I found PCEngineFX and the members here raked me over the coals. Well, not so much in the forums, but the posts I was seeing were things like "Are you nuts?!" and "You paid how much?!". Also, the eBay gouging thread is a fantastic read and a great learning experience. So I learned a few things very quickly;

1) You can get some great games here for cheap.
2) Trade games whenever you can.
3) If I really really want a game, and someone offers it here for sale there's a good chance no one here will buy it because many of the members already have it.

TheClash603 · 06/21/2012, 09:40 PM

Quote from: SignOfZeta on 06/21/2012, 03:44 PMSince everyone buys stuff from eBay or this forum anyway I don't understand the distinction between "import" and otherwise. It's not like you can buy this stuff at Target either way.

This seems like an odd statement. Doesn't import simply mean that you are purchasing a game from another country? If I buy a game on ebay or on this forum, but the guy I am buying from is in Japan or Europe, then that's importing.

Recently I bought a bunch of Gizmondo games, which were somewhat reasonably priced. However, after the currency exchange rate, the cost of shipping from the UK, and the wait to get the games, the "cost" to me was high. This cost being time and money.

Obviously if you buy a PCE game from a guy on the forum who lives in the US, then it isn't an import. That's also the preferred way to shop, because it is cheaper and quicker. Thankfully there are a lot of games from other regions floating around the US now, so it is also an easier option.

However, even in the year 2012 there is a very distinct difference between purchasing a game domestically and importing.

CrackTiger · 06/21/2012, 09:43 PM

Quote from: SignOfZeta on 06/21/2012, 09:11 PM
Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 03:53 PMImport means biting the bullet and modding a US system or buying a Japanese system and getting JPN games vs simply getting US games for a US system.
How is it any "simpler"? I've been into PCE for almost 20 years now and aside from a brief period in time from 92-94 when I could buy games at EB, all the shit I own has come from the same place: the mail box. Actually, that's not totally true. I did buy games from a Die Hard store near me back in the day, but all they had were imports.

The first thing a NEC noob needs to know is to not waste his money on a TG-16. This is because, if he likes the system, his next step will be trying to find a working US CDROM, then trying to afford a Super System card for less than $150, then fixing his CDROM which will have broke by now, etc etc when what he should have done right off the bat was buy a Duo R. I've seen this story play out here and in person even more times than I've told it.

I bought my first PCE CD games in 1991 (would have started earlier, but got ripped off with my first mail ordered Turbo-CD). I continued to mail order imports until 1993, when I ordered a kisado convertor with SFII'. After which I continued to buy PCE games locally and through the mail to this day. I still see as many PCE games in the wild as TG-16 ones and they are much easier to find than Turbo stuff online.

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 08:58 PM
Quote from: CrackTiger on 06/21/2012, 08:40 PMI think that a "how-to-use-eBay" guide is mandatory before posting a Turbo deal guide. Shipping costs are completely random and shouldn't be included in any kind of price guide, especially for TG-16 games which can be sent by letter mail and whose combined shipping can work out to pennies a piece.
I guess what I'm trying to do is help folks know what to expect. If Joe Shmoe who reads RB articles decides he's got some spare income and wants to get into the Turbo, what games can he reasonably expect to find relatively affordably that are worth picking up? That's really it. When you're starting out it can be daunting looking at an entire library of games, even one as small as that of the Turbo, and try to figure out what to go for. I'm not trying to tell folks that if they go to eBay and buy it at this auction they'll get it for $11.95 with $4 shipping, but rather if they've got $20 to give to it they can probably find a couple games on this list of quality starter titles if they hunt around a little.

Personally, I consider any game <$20 basically free. I'm not concerned about getting the best deal when the most I am paying is the price of a meal. If a game player or collector is poor enough that the difference of a few dollars is going to be a deal breaker, then the best advice would be to steer clear of the Turbo brand and/or eBay altogether. If they don't have trouble navigating eBay and understand that not everything in the world is available all the time, then the tiniest patience will save them a fortune.

I have made many purchases from Japanese eBay sellers of 30+ games which cost <$15 to ship and arrived within 2 - 3 business days. The games themselves are a fraction of the price of North American versions, but the shipping is pretty much free as far as I'm concerned.

PikachuWarrior · 06/21/2012, 09:56 PM

My TG16/CD Unit works fine. I didn't pay anything for it a few months ago, so I'm still in the green.

SignOfZeta · 06/22/2012, 04:07 AM

Quote from: TheClash603 on 06/21/2012, 09:40 PM
Quote from: SignOfZeta on 06/21/2012, 03:44 PMSince everyone buys stuff from eBay or this forum anyway I don't understand the distinction between "import" and otherwise. It's not like you can buy this stuff at Target either way.
This seems like an odd statement. Doesn't import simply mean that you are purchasing a game from another country? If I buy a game on ebay or on this forum, but the guy I am buying from is in Japan or Europe, then that's importing.

Recently I bought a bunch of Gizmondo games, which were somewhat reasonably priced. However, after the currency exchange rate, the cost of shipping from the UK, and the wait to get the games, the "cost" to me was high. This cost being time and money.

Obviously if you buy a PCE game from a guy on the forum who lives in the US, then it isn't an import. That's also the preferred way to shop, because it is cheaper and quicker. Thankfully there are a lot of games from other regions floating around the US now, so it is also an easier option.

However, even in the year 2012 there is a very distinct difference between purchasing a game domestically and importing.

Are you serious? In case you are...

First off, the distinction between "import" and domestic for the purposes of NEC hardware being purchased by the majority of the people on this forum is the difference between PC Engine and TG-16. PCE games are "import", TG-16 games are not. When someone says the "collect import Turbo games" they are talking about PCE, not TG-16 games that spent time in France before heading back to the US.

My point was that if they all show up in my mailbox, if they are all purchased online, these traditional definitions are totally meaningless. These are just...games.

Spenoza was saying that he was trying to keep things simply by excluding PCE games from his list. My opinion is that including US games at all just complicates things. US games/hardware are the reason we need mods and converters. They are the reason there are "Turbotaps" and "Duotaps" instead of just "taps". US games are the ones that are so fucking expensive. The best way to keep it simple is to just buy PCE. Europeans, for example, almost always choose PCE since both systems are "imports" to them. Why buy the more expensive, uglier, less reliable stuff?

majors · 06/22/2012, 11:22 AM

Quote from: guest on 06/21/2012, 05:38 PMVestcunt, I am not a fan of the give an exact price range approach ($12 - $15), because once that article is out it only takes a couple weeks for it to be largely useless.

You could just list titles as "$" "$$" and "$$$" so to avoid exact prices. Common good games ("$") should keep their value amount in comparison to other rare/expensive games. Of course, some random shit could cause Bonk to skyrocket but one should maintain a article such as yours (at least addendum once a year or two)

Or drop prices altogether and just list must-haves in order of rarity. Hell, make ebay links for the games so ppl can see what is current on the auction arena. I think most RBers would hit the selling threads on the forum anyhow.

SignOfZeta · 06/22/2012, 04:16 PM

I like that idea, $, $$, $$$, and $$$$..

CPTRAVE · 06/23/2012, 04:00 PM

Thirty dollars for shadow of the Beast a good price U.S version?

Bernie · 06/23/2012, 05:20 PM

Quote from: CPTRAVE on 06/23/2012, 04:00 PMThirty dollars for shadow of the Beast a good price U.S version?

I'd buy it.

VestCunt · 06/23/2012, 06:02 PM

Quote from: CPTRAVE on 06/23/2012, 04:00 PMThirty dollars for shadow of the Beast a good price U.S version?

It's a $15 game. If you're impatient, you can find it online right now for $18 used or $35 new.

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Need research help: TG-16 game prices