eBay gaming ridiculousness

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BUBBLER-by-ULTIMATE-SPECTRUM-RARE-MINT-CONDITION_W0QQitemZ8231362692QQcategoryZ112866QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

other games had 'unphotocopyable' sheets full of numbers and it'd ask you to enter them after the game had loaded (i still have my handwritten copy that i did for jet set willy using the letters rgb etc instead of actual colours. which is odd given that i had a proper copy of the game anyway).

then hardware copiers appeared that would plug in the back and dump entire memory contents to tape at the press of a button. about 2 months later games started checking for these copiers and calling RST 0 if they found them...

THIS CASSETTE CONTAINS ASTEROIDS

and the copy protection was an involved SubGenius joke! Geeks were everywhere!

well, the jsw code sheet was colour bars and access to colour photocopiers / scanners / printers was difficult at the time.

the ultimate games, before they switched to the speed loader thing, all contained extra code blocks at the end of the tape that loaded values into various system variables including the internal timer. the first block of code then went through and deciphered big chunks of memory based on the (now incrementing) timer value. sneaky.

Please enter the 4 digit number you can't see on page 4 column 2 row 92

Cheat protection making it harder for the person who actually owns the game to play it shockah!

ha, that jsw cheat sheet in full:
http://www.wayoftherodent.com/wilbur/clip_image005.jpg

As if the console wasn't rare enough, the games that come with it!

http://www.chronicgames.net/pics/thumbs/snes_familydog_boxed.jpg

NES Kiosk with 16 inbuilt games
guess how much?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SEGA-MEGA-DRIVE-MICHAEL-JACKSONS-MOONWALKER_W0QQitemZ250452787290QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_PC_Video_Games_Video_Games_JS?hash=item3a5026405a&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65:13|66:2|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50

http://cgi.ebay.com/Nintendo-NES-1989-Dragon-Warrior-VGA-80_W0QQitemZ120435724953QQcmdZViewItemQQptZVideo_Games_Games?hash=item1c0a875299&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A16%7C66%3A2%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A0%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50

I'm amused at the fact that there's some company out there that will appraise and grade your video games. How can a factory sealed game be only in "near mint" condition?

horse armor? how about <url=http://cgi.ebay.com/Killzone-2-HOME-Costume-Code-PS3-Playstation-3_W0QQitemZ120435183036>;$66 for a code that gives your Home avatar a new costume.</url>

"Shipping is Free!"

you couldn't pay ME to spend more than 5 minutes in home

What, there's a CGC for video games now? I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. They seem to have the same hard plastic-sealing thing down.

Earthbound fans are kinda insane
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140385427925

sealed copy of Link's Awakening, currently at £1,550 with a day to go
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Legend-Zelda-Links-Awakening-Game-Boy-SEALED-RARE-/160732847689

hmm, i might actually finally play through that after it inevitably comes to the 3DS store or whatever

it's a crazy price, but i imagine a sealed copy is pretty much impossible to find at this point, so...

the gameboy color DX version is already up on the 3DS shop. play it!
i just don't get the whole sealed copy thing, i guess. no utility, just an investment.

i don't even think there's an investment - with very few exceptions like that world championships NES cartridge, I don't think there's been any real gold mines in video game speculation?

have to admit, i can understand the nostalgic or emotional value of acquiring a sealed game like that, assuming money was no object

thanks for the heads up though, Link's Awakening DX be an immediate purchase whenever i get a 3DS (aka when Nintendo releases a fixed version of the hardware, maybe). Did they do Oracle of Seasons/Ages too?

i don't even think there's an investment - with very few exceptions like that world championships NES cartridge, I don't think there's been any real gold mines in video game speculation?

when most older titles were only available on legacy formats (or roms) youd could get a fair bit of money for them on ebay but even then you were probably not much more than breaking even, considering. now that so much stuff has been rereleased on newer formats the market is p dead

no Oracle of Seasons/Ages yet, but they have GBA 4 Swords with added single player & new levels (free until ... tomorrow i think?)
sealed Link's Awakening went for £2050. wonder what is worth buying sealed now & storing away for 20 years? as we are heading to a DD future this might be the last time to do this with games...

i think anything that uses obvious licenses, like music games or Crazy Taxi (never the same without Offspring, Bad Religion and Tower Records) since it's usually not worth the cost of paying for those again

but then again, i never thought Planescape Torment or any of those Infinity Engine D&D games would really get a re-release, especially after Interplay died, and that turned around... same with the recent releases of The Simpsons, X-Men and TMNT arcade games by Konami

i was going through my stuff and found that i own FOUR copies of a link to the past, one of which is complete-in-box which i guess i should probably sell. i also have like the first 40 or so issues of nintendo power and people want like $40 for issue 1 which seems... unrealistic somehow

there is also a factory-sealed copy of secret of mana on ebay for $4,000 atm. :/

I'd think copies of Nintendo Power #1 would be as common and thus worthless as polybagged X-Force #1 w/ trading card

I still have my ocarina of time limited edition gold cartridge with the gold box ._.

Who didn't have Nintendo power #1??

genesis fanboys
you got a subscription when you bought an NES as i recall

http://www.ebay.com/itm/POKEMON-PIKACHU-ILLUSTRATOR-PROMO-GRADED-PSA-9-MINT-RAREST-CARD-HIGHEST-GRADE-/360722199528?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&;hash=item53fcb7f3e8
has sold for $20,000 before http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Illustrator_%28CoroCoro_promo%29

people are bidding on garbage
http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&afsrc=1&_ssn=tbhs575&_sop=16

Wow that is amazing. I remember ending up with two copies of that game when it came out cos my friends hated it and just left it at my house.

Good god