Insane nerds bid war for a sealed Chrono Trigger

[TR0N]

  Yeah a good rpg but for this price !?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=280196150761

[nat]

What?!? Is this game even rare? I don't understand.

I bought a complete in box copy last year for around $40 and felt I got a pretty lame deal (on the logic that most SNES games are really cheap). Definitely would never dream of adding $1,200 for some shrinkwrap I was going to take off anyway.

[Turbo D]

wow, thats insane, lol. I bet the winner has buyers remorse!

[Keranu]

The sad thing is that no snerd is going to open it which is going to cause the box to damage over time and become a pitiful mess.

[PCEngineHell]

The sad thing is that no snerd is going to open it which is going to cause the box to damage over time and become a pitiful mess.

The battery on the inside will resolve any other "still worth something" issues in about another 15 years prob,if not sooner when it leaks.

[nat]

I still don't understand. Is having the shrinkwrap really worth $1,200? I've never seen anything like this.

If I go get my copy re-shrinked somewhere can I really sell it to some poor, unsuspecting victim for $1,200? Guess I better erase my saved games first or the buyer might think something is up.

[rolins]

Holy sh*t, morons! Since when did CT become so rare?

[Kitsunexus]

This game is good, but it's nowhere near this kind of praise. I personally wouldn't pay more than $10 loose and $25 boxed, $30 boxed+manual, $40 mint.

Other SNERDs are retarded.

[MurderDate]

It's the same way with records and record-nerds.    Put me in any city with $2 and a day to look around and I can give you a copy of Kiss - Alive.  It's super easy to find and not worth much to anybody.  Find a sealed copy tho, and I could sell that for $300-$400 easily.  (Even though you never know with a sealed record - it could be as warped as your brain).   There's die hards out there who need a full collection of sealed games.  Look at what billmarioman bids on,  I only ever see him buying sealed TG16 games (you'd think he has them all by now.. but he still bids).

[Tatsujin]

CT us always was kinda value stuff. but then we talking around US$120, and not its 10times.

[nectarsis]

Hey Nat..you actually got a great deal.   Tatsujin is right...$120 mint/compltete is about on par.  I have seen "sealed" copies of Dragon Warrior 4 go for over $400, and "sealed Final Fantasy go for over $400.   Both sealed are semi rare, but worth that much???  Final Fantasy as a whole is a fairly common game.  I guess there's a sucker every minute...

[OldRover]

Well, some sucker is going to empty his wallet buying that overhyped piece of trash, only to never actually use it. That alone makes me laugh and yet feel just a little sad for the complete and utter tool who wins it.

I wouldn't even pay that much for a sealed US Magical Chase, which has a market value 30X that game.

[Rainbow_Bright]

Games are for playing, not for  keeping in the shrinkwrapped box:( I understand if you get two copies really cheap and then you keep one (one for play, one for your collection), but bidding so high for a game, just cause its shrinkwrapped? Thats so silly and extravagant. 

[nat]

I still have games that are shrinkwrapped, but that's more a matter of me not having gotten around to playing them yet rather than anything else. I don't collect sealed games just for the sake of having them.

[Rainbow_Bright]

All the sealed games I have bought, are now opened Most of the games I have are played, apart from  a small bunch (some neo geo aes games. I don't have the system yet.., some Atari 7800 games (same with aes, will get the system in due time!). I do like to keep my games in perfect condition though

And I would buy extra copies for some games, if they were cheap. It's kinda the collectors mentality and it is kinda silly..but I am silly!

I think I kinda contradicted myself, from my earlier post. lol Well, more than one copy is fine, but paying so much just cause its shrinkwrapped? Thats silly.

[r_benchley]

Anyone who pays a premium for a "sealed" copy of a game is a fool.  It is very, very easy to shrinkwrap a used game, and ta-da!  Brand new game!

[OldRover]

I have a couple of unopened TG games (R-Type and Fantasy Zone) that I will never unwrap, but only because I've got duplicates on the way. I sure as hell didn't pay anywhere NEAR that price for either of them though. I also know that Aaron didn't pay anywhere near that price for his unopened, minty fresh copy of Magical Chase US.

[CrackTiger]

I don't see anything wrong with paying a premium price to get to open a brand new game yourself, that will only ever be marred by your own grubby hands. There are still lots of mint complete games for all the non-"idiots".

$1200 to me today is about what $120 meant to me when I bought Chrono Trigger back in the day.

Of course, sealed game prices are jacked up by collectors who plan on never opening the games.

[OldRover]

Well, there's a difference in paying $1200 for an unopened copy of, let's say, Pepsi Invaders or Atlantis II, and paying $1200 for an incredibly common game like Chrono Trigger.

[Dark Fact]

These guys could've just had downloaded ZSNES and the Chrono Trigger ROM and saved themselves $1,200 right there.

By the way, I saw one store sell just the cartridge for Chrono Trigger for $40.  The thing is, the game is rare and it is incredibly beloved by RPG gamers everywhere.  I played the game and it is a personal favorite of mine but I wouldn't pay $1,200 for it.

I guess when you're dealing with games that are beloved by gamers everywhere, they'll do just about anything to get their grubby little hands on it.

[OldRover]

But the game ISN'T rare. That's the thing.

[CrackTiger]

But the game ISN'T rare. That's the thing.

There may be a decent number of copies out there, but there's also a large demand for the SNES version(apparently). Where as most people haven't even heard of Magical Chase or Dynastic Hero.

[nectarsis]

Yea, but the ones that know aboutthose 2...USUALY know that they are rare

[GUTS]

Man, Nintendo fans truly are the stupidest mother fuckers on earth.

[OldRover]

There may be a decent number of copies out there, but there's also a large demand for the SNES version(apparently). Where as most people haven't even heard of Magical Chase or Dynastic Hero.

Large demand doesn't equal rarity though. I'm sure you saw the whole FF7 fiasco...it wasn't because it was rare, it was because Advent Children was coming out in the West and people drove up the price of the game as a result. But even now, it's being touted as "RARE!" despite the fact that not only was it mass-produced on its first run, but had a SECOND RUN as a Greatest Hits release.

[Rainbow_Bright]

Maybe this nintendo fanboy is a millionaire, it may be peanuts to him

or..maybe not. It's too much, I could spend that money a lot more wisely!

[Kitsunexus]

I myself had always wondered about the "FF7 is rare" thing. Aren't RARE games something that only a few like, thus a few were produced? Or having a lot produced and all but a few destroyed?

Nothing like that happened to FF7.

Man, Nintendo Squaresoft fans truly are the stupidest mother fuckers on earth.

Arguably fixed.

[Dark Fact]

It's rare where I live.  I can't even find that game without going to specialty stores or the occasional flea market.  If Mistwalker and Square-Enix weren't in such a rights dispute, we could've seen this game re-released for the Game Boy Advance or the Nintendo DS years ago.

[r_benchley]

The problem with games like FF 7, isn't that they're rare, but that most of the copies are in the hands of people that actually want them and have no intention of selling them.  Same thing with Symphony of the Night on the Playstation.  Contra for the NES is common as crabgrass, but back when I used to work at Funcoland, it was far more expensive than just about every other NES game because very few people were willing to sell their copies.

[CrackTiger]

There may be a decent number of copies out there, but there's also a large demand for the SNES version(apparently). Where as most people haven't even heard of Magical Chase or Dynastic Hero.

Large demand doesn't equal rarity though. I'm sure you saw the whole FF7 fiasco...it wasn't because it was rare, it was because Advent Children was coming out in the West and people drove up the price of the game as a result. But even now, it's being touted as "RARE!" despite the fact that not only was it mass-produced on its first run, but had a SECOND RUN as a Greatest Hits release.

Although sellers are awful for advertising their games as RARE!!!, however common or not loose Chrono Triggers are, I'm guessing that there aren't too many sealed copies for sale regularly.

People buying pristine copies of collectible retro games aren't just buying them to play, otherwise they'd stick to rereleases like Chrono Trigger PSX or non-mint bare carts.

[Joe Redifer]

Although sellers are awful for advertising their games as RARE!!!...

Actually the proper term is ULTR@ R@RE L@@K!!!!

[SignOfZeta]

Wait...FFVII got expensive? WHY? There are shitloads of copies of that game. When I worked at EB (2001-2002) we got got copies of that game in almost every other day. It was sitting there for $20 in quantity on the shelf for years.

I think it must be that people are impatient. They want a copy *this*very*fucking*second* and bid a billion dollars on eBay like morons.

The thing is everywhere. I think I have five or six copies in the trunk of my car and I don't even like it. Almost all my gamer friends have this game and haven't touched in it years.

On a related note I find it amazing how many people don't even know about the indy game stores in their very own town, or that indy record stores, pawn shops, etc often have games. Its like they can't comprehend anything outside of eBay and the mall. These places are loaded with old crap that the malls won't touch.

[MissaFX]

The guy paid 353.51 for a Virtual Boy and 12 games.  Cripes.  I got my VB. + 10 games + AC adapter for under 80 dollars when Toys R US cleared them out.  I got a few more JPN games for 10 dollars each off of ebay.  There is noooo way a VB is worth this.

[Rainbow_Bright]

I don't think thats expensive at all for a Virtual boy. They were never released in Europe. I have one too, but only two games. They are quite rare, in Europe anyway.

[r_benchley]

Wait...FFVII got expensive? WHY? There are shitloads of copies of that game. When I worked at EB (2001-2002) we got got copies of that game in almost every other day. It was sitting there for $20 in quantity on the shelf for years.

Yep.  It regularly goes for about $50 nowadays.  Although FF VII is one of the least rare games you could imagine (several million copies sold in the US), I do have to say that its been a long time since I saw a copy in any of the video game shops around here.  It doesn't compare to any TurboGrafx games, but for a widely available, extremely popular game, it has become slightly difficult to find, hence the ridiculous prices on ebay.  You should grab those games out of your trunk and make some money.

[Hobo Xiphas]

Anyone who keeps the shrink wrap on a cardboard boxed game is asking for trouble as the plastic will compress the box's edges over time and make the  box crumple.

And this is probably re-shrinked anyways.  Damned snerds.

[CrackTiger]

Anyone who keeps the shrink wrap on a cardboard boxed game is asking for trouble as the plastic will compress the box's edges over time and make the  box crumple.

And this is probably re-shrinked anyways.  Damned snerds.

I've got this happening on the sealed TG-16 games I have.

[OldRover]

I found my copy of FF7 in a Play n Trade. They were asking $45 for the thing. I talked with the guy running the place and managed to talk him down to $20...we had a pretty big discussion over the reason for the price inflation, and how I pretty much wasn't going to pay the ridiculous price. So, he sold it to me at cost because he knew I knew too much about the reason for the price inflation and wasn't going to buy it otherwise. Sure, the store didn't really make any money on the sale, but they also didn't lose a client and they didn't lose face...important details as well. We still shop there, although lately they haven't had squat worth buying.

I just recently bought a CF2 which is quoted to be in its original shrinkwrap. When I get it, we'll see just how honest that really was. All of the other TG games I've bought claiming to be "new in original shrinkwrap" have been legitimate. It's pretty easy to tell, too...no one seems to be able to shrinkwrap like they could, nooby-wrap always has rough edges that are telltale of a rewrap.

[Dark Fact]

The thing is everywhere. I think I have five or six copies in the trunk of my car and I don't even like it. Almost all my gamer friends have this game and haven't touched in it years.

Can I have a copy?

I've got this happening on the sealed TG-16 games I have.

Shame on you. Unwrap that plastic packaging this instant, you swirly sprite!

[CrackTiger]

I've got this happening on the sealed TG-16 games I have.

Shame on you. Unwrap that plastic packaging this instant, you swirly sprite!

Why don't I play the copies of the same games that I already have loose?

[OceanBlueKirby]

I've got this happening on the sealed TG-16 games I have.

Shame on you. Unwrap that plastic packaging this instant, you swirly sprite!

Why don't I play the copies of the same games that I already have loose?

You must have tons of copies for a whole bunch of the games that you have, Black Tiger, seeing how big of a collector you are. Probably enough to either give away to other TurboGrafx-16 fans in the world or to build your own house !

How is it possible that a hard plastic CD-ROM-like case can be compressed by plastic wrapping? It sounds unfortunate, really  .

I'll admit, too, to stay on topic, that really is quite a high price for Chrono Trigger (I remember it being around $12,000 the first time I've looked through here).

[GUTS]

I think these guys are nuts with their "shrink wrap crushes the box" stuff, I've had tons of shrink wrapped games in boxes over the years and all the factory wrapped ones were fine.  The only ones that have damaged the boxes are the ones where people re-shrinkwrap them too tight and it slowly caves them in.  Just take a look at all those new Turbo games Nat linked to on ebay, those boxes look fine and it's been almost 20 years, I think they're probably going to be ok.

[OceanBlueKirby]

I think these guys are nuts with their "shrink wrap crushes the box" stuff, I've had tons of shrink wrapped games in boxes over the years and all the factory wrapped ones were fine.  The only ones that have damaged the boxes are the ones where people re-shrinkwrap them too tight and it slowly caves them in.  Just take a look at all those new Turbo games Nat linked to on ebay, those boxes look fine and it's been almost 20 years, I think they're probably going to be ok.

Well, Xiphas Classic (as TootTootTheRiotBus on YouTube) had told me that Marty Goldberg, who most on here probably know about through Tatsujin's "The 'How Do You Look' Thread", was the one who had made this discovery, and Xiphas's own copy of E.T. was evidence of this. This may or may not apply to all casing types, however, especially tougher ones.

[Keranu]

I have also seen shrink wrap warp and crush boxes. HOW WOULD YOU FEEL IF YOU WERE STUCK IN SHRINKWRAP FOR DECADES!?

[SignOfZeta]

The shrink wrap thing goes back to vinyl records, which certainly have the problem. Some of this is because the corners on a record sleeve are naturally week due to the fact that the record inside is round. I've not seen this effect newer stuff though, so maybe the problem was cured in the mid-80s. I bought a copy of Lou Read's "Transformer" a few years ago that was a pressing from...the early 80s, I think, and the shrink had not damaged the sleeve. The record inside though was very warped and in need of repair, so that proves what shrink wrap means (nothing). I once bought a shrink wrapped record that was actually cracked inside.

I fucking hate it when the smaller, cleaner, niche record shops shrink wrap everything, even UK and EU releases that never had shrink in the first place, DJ promos, etc. All the cool stores let you see the vinyl and most of the time let you hear it also like record stores did back in the 70s. I'd pay money to see the twat with the $1200 copy of Chrono Trigger open up the game (for some reason) only to find that inside is a copy of Zoop with a Block Buster sticker on it and a coverless manual for Home Improvement.

There is something much worse than a crushed box though that also results from collecting things in shrink wrap; it makes you a %100 guaranteed douche bag.

Get a fucking life...wtf...

[Hobo Xiphas]

Well, Xiphas Classic (as TootTootTheRiotBus on YouTube) had told me that Marty Goldberg, who most on here probably know about through Tatsujin's "The 'How Do You Look' Thread", was the one who had made this discovery, and Xiphas's own copy was evidence of this. This may or may not apply to all casing types, however, especially tougher ones.

Toot Toot.

I doubt Marty made this discovery by himself.  I am saddened that apparently he didn't discover the peanut butter trick himself either.  Oh well, yet another hero has been brought down to earth.

ANYWAYS, I have seen this happen without a doubt.  My copy of E.T. for example has had shrinkwrap crushage.

[OceanBlueKirby]

Toot Toot.

I doubt Marty made this discovery by himself.  I am saddened that apparently he didn't discover the peanut butter trick himself either.  Oh well, yet another hero has been brought down to earth.

ANYWAYS, I have seen this happen without a doubt.  My copy of E.T. for example has had shrinkwrap crushage.

I meant to say that it was your copy of E.T.: The Extra-Teresstrial that you've told me what your proof was, but I forgot to type it in before (in was corrected in the previous post).

If it wasn't Marty Goldberg, then who could it have been? Like I said before, this may not apply to all casing types, especially harder ones.

[OldRover]

A factory-sealed TG game won't crush over time because the shrinkwrapping isn't very tight. If you have one that did cave in on itself, it's a rewrap. It makes me wonder if NEC deliberately shrinkwrapped games in this fashion; to stand the test of time.

[Hobo Xiphas]

If it wasn't Marty Goldberg, then who could it have been? Like I said before, this may not apply to all casing types, especially harder ones.

This isn't exactly calculus or evolution, it's not like there is extensive documentation on this sort of thing.  It's not very important after all.

Maybe you should make this your life's work. 

[rag-time4]

Neither the buyer nor the seller have received feedback for this transaction yet.....

I've never played through Chrono Trigger. I remember renting it once when it came out... but I got bored with it and returned it before beating it. I recently fired up a game via emulation. Haven't played it in a few weeks though.