MrBlackCat

Interesting... actions and choices are so important. Bradhig1... Most of what you describe as events causing you to lose your sanity are choices though, some are not. Maybe you could focus one the events of your life you are able to control. In my opinion and practice, if some of your actions are no longer a choice, then it is likely therapy of some kind is needed. If some event allows you to use the excuse of losing control of your actions, then it is likely therapy of some kind is needed. It isn't necessary to find what you seek is how I see it. I hope you find what you are looking for, but I really don't think the Easter Egg is what that is. A different obsession will replace the Easter Egg most likely. This is my opinion... In the absence of finding what you want (said, Easter Egg) I hope you find what you need... and I am sure that exists. It too might be hidden, but it is probably more important. MrBlackCat

While I do play modern games like Little Big Planet, PAIN!, Rag Doll Kung Fu, Goat Simulator, PS2/3 Sims, Lego Anything, PS2 GTA's, and some other stuff, I generally prefer cartridge based systems for speed of loading. PS1 is painfully slow, PS2 is better, and some PS3 stuff is almost a deal breaker for loading times. The other factor leaning me toward older games is the length of play. I love Read Dead Redemption, but WOW is it time consuming... worth it, yes, but I simply don't have available blocks of time large enough to enjoy it. I am going with early stuff. MrBlackCat

Have I just never seen one, or why has no one taken an AtGames Atari Handheld and made a themed case for it? Kind of like what we are looking at here, but even more themed. Maybe even enough themed to start sacrificing function! YEAH! Like high-heels of handhelds! Ok, not really, but there are tons of cases of aesthetics over function, so it would be ok. Now that I have seen this one, I can think of other stuff that might make it look even more Atari-ish. I should sketch something up and get the spouse to try it. We do have an extra Atari Handheld or two. MrBlackCat

Lots of different display/storage methods in the original post. There are a lot of options here... this is how I would summarize what I have learned from my current spouse and threads like this. Things to consider... 1. How much of your collection do you want available at a time? 2. How much space do you have for display at any one time? 3. Are you going to buy storage, like bins, totes, shelves etc, or can you going to build your own? 4. If displaying many consoles, do will they be hooked up, or just readily available for hook up? I will show some of what he did with our (mostly his) collection and why... the reason for why is based on the above questions for consideration... because of space, which we ran out of. Note that this will not apply to some people as all of this is custom built. First, he wanted all the boxed PC FPS's displayed front out and easy access because of the box art... so above one meter or so around the entire room is shallow shelves which hold the boxes face out. This takes a LOT of space to display this way, was custom built, but serves Display and Access criteria very well. Then, for console cartridges, one project was these two Rubiks Cube chairs. Everything has to be multi-purpose because of space constraints. This is non-display storage, but still quick access as the sections just unstack. For the "modern consoles" the criteria of Quick Access and storage density was more important than display of the box art/packaging so this was the outcome. (several years old image, so looks different now) The consoles are stored on the row under the TV and under that are the most accessed cased games. The number of games did grow too large for all four consoles under the TV (PS2, PS3, Wii, XBox) so only PS2/3 Games fit there now) Well here is one more method of custom construction storage that is the result of running out of all that wall space pictured above. The ceiling was still available (at the time) so custom brackets were made to fit glass shelving... this was the result. I have more examples to post to do with plug-n-play and handhelds, but have to go for a bit and this is getting really long. Hope this helps. MrBlackCat

Maybe a Black/White toggle? MrBlackCat

Us too... YAY! Subscribers. MrBlackCat

Yeah... Every time I look at this it just seems better and better. Themed stuff is awesome, but the degree of association with the original in this case is WAY ahead of the AtGames handheld. MrBlackCat

I understand sealed completely... it is new, and mainly untampered with. So when people say this isn't THAT rare, sounds like that might not be the case. I really have no idea about boxed console games. All the plastic case type games Genesis on up, we mostly have. An example would be when I see a "bare disk" to some game for near the same price as a MIB, Factory Sealed, 10 of 10 quality etc. That is the people that don't get it. The difference between 9.5 and 10 isn't .5 in the "boxed game world"... like when people at work say "I wish I had my Star Wars action figures I had when I was a kid, cause they sell on eBay for thousands!" No, no they don't... the ones still NEW might sell for a few hundred, but these people don't understand "the packaging" either. Anyway... 30K seems way out of line to me, but is there something about this game that would make it THAT unique? Or maybe the question should be, where is a link to an identical item and what did/does it sell for? MrBlackCat

It does say Officially Licensed on the product page. I wonder if it has Blue-Tooth to the Speaker-Cap. (sorry, sorry, Hehehe) I will probably buy one, but I won't be pre-ordering it. MrBlackCat

Ok, I went and watched several videos of this... I REALLY don't get it at all. Maybe you just have to be there? Maybe I picked the wrong videos? I feel like I missed something... MrBlackCat

We never used MiiVerse before... but I was an addict to PlayStation Home for about three years. I took like 800 pictures before it closed to look back through. I had a lot of video also, but accidentally purged it... sad day. I was hoping something like that would come out for the PS4, but nothing yet that I know of. (don't have a PS4 yet anyway) Anyway... I am guessing this is a similar feeling of loss. I have a Mii or two I use with the DS/3DS and Wii. I don't know why I never noticed this before. I suppose I am now glad I didn't get into it. I would (did) really enjoy a visual social networking system like PS Home again... but I guess they cost money and are hard to market. I am amazed Second Life has done as well as it has, but I don't go there. MrBlackCat

What some might not realize is that the money was likely an eBay refund, and did not go back on the seller... so they kept the money and continue to be liars and thieves. I have had this happen several times with Chinese and US Sellers. I learned about this when I had a LOT of back and forth with a seller and eventually eBay refunded my money... so I messaged this seller with an mostly inappropriate "I told you so" and he informed me that he didn't have to refund me and eBay ruled in his favor. SO I did some research and sure enough... eBay eats it in order to keep both seller and buyer happy when there is a difficult dispute. I am aware of more than five of these types of settlements over the last few years. MrBlackCat

Maybe they are a relatively normal, but overworked person... lik maybe there were just purely time constraints involved? Some people simply don't have time to sit down, research it, and really know the market well enough, but have the money to spend. OR... Maybe they are a wiener-head and this was a bragging rights purchase to put in a glass case to show off to friends who also have no idea what something is worth. "Yes, and here is the only living sealed copy of Super Mario Brothers... to over 30g's for me to strip it from the hoards of unclean collectors of eBay..." Ok, or maybe somewhere in between those. I get caught in situations where I don't have time to learn about things... and sometimes I over-pay for things I buy. Not on the scale of what we see here however. One time I kept bidding on some shirt I wanted on eBay... I kept getting outbid over and over... after probably 20 times, I just realized it was NOT worth my time to keep doing this, so I just blew the next one out and ended the whole thing. I was getting over-focused on "winning" it. It just wasn't fun. It was a little "scary" how obsessed I got without realizing it... but was such a relief when I wasn't checking bids, waiting for auctions to end, waking up in the night to check and see if I got it. It does make the buyer look like insincere about gaming to pay this much though... that is why I lean more towards the "status purchase" vs "loves the hobby without limits". If you love something, you put effort into it in my opinion. MrBlackCat

It seems odd to me that if Nintendo has a valid reason for being so conservative, that made sense, they should not be so closed with it... I lived in Japan for years, I know the culture pretty well really, so this is (stereo?)typical behavior for Japanese Business. (Kind of arrogant and closed, you know 5th grade stuff)... but Nintendo of America is not Japanese. They understand the differences in culture in the US, so they should know, and be able to explain this... part of me wants to believe that they aren't this short-sighted, and that there is some kind of reasoning that would cause me to go "Ohh... well it's BS, but at least there is a reason I don't agree with." In short, my problem is the arrogance... it isn't better for them not to explain why they are doing this. (I know, double negative and another coming, for effect) But NO US business wouldn't have re-contracted to make more regular NES Mini's after what happened. How about speculation on possible reasons, even if we don't like them... Maybe the SNES Classic production conversion was already started so the ball was in motion and they had to go with it... like all the logistics were laid out. This stuff can take a long time to plan at the ultra-tight profit margins they choke their suppliers to. (yep, I actually do know this is typical) MrBlackCat

Hehehe... pretty accurate. By the time I would have gotten back into my dream, I am sure the scalpers in dream land would have gotten them all, and I would not have been able to check out. MrBlackCat

I got like a cart full of them for everyone I know... then I work up and went to work. This must actually be getting to me a little bit... Grrr... MrBlackCat

Times change... at least the DS/3DS Stuff isn't all digitally dependent so much that you can't play the games we do have as long as we can keep the systems running. I detest the term "Product Life-cycle". I am SO SICK of the PSP because of this... every time I pick one up, some game I am trying to play has to be re-downloaded because it has expired (Examples, GTA: VCS or GTA: LCS) I just really like having all these "cartridge-based" (memory card type) games to play... fast, and don't expire. MrBlackCat

It isn't really about unlimited funds as much as priorities I think... I live in the USA, and basically almost any working adult is rich compared to most any place I have lived. Not knocking anyone for their priorities though. I take care of my son first of course, but if I choose to share something with someone else, be it a close friend, or a YouTube personality, it will be a gesture of kindness from the passion of a shared hobby. (though I admit I've not sent people I've watch on YouTube anything unless I knew them pretty well through a Forum like this. MrBlackCat

So much for the market flood... I understand the generally conservative nature of Nintendo in these areas, but this seems really out of touch to me. Maybe it is difficult to access your position in "the real world"? Like when a musician really doesn't know "how they are doing" publicly as they are often fed tons of garbage from those around them to stroke their egos basically. Off topic, I am not too excited about the SNES 3DS... not sure why. Just doesn't appeal to me like the others do. I REALLY like themed things... but I think this early 3DS-XL Classic Edition is just excellent. Considering the NES and SNES Classic editions, I really feel lucky I was able to even get one of these at full price. I did pre-order it... MrBlackCat

I see you have focused on one particular aspect of previous statements... I do not (nor do you) know of new games for Wii really. I agree it is doubtful beyond some ports of easily scalable games. The point I was trying to make is that new games do not define a systems direct viability. Availability of games on store shelves DOES directly demonstrate viability. Is the PS 4 consoles still made? Yes. Is the PS3 console still made? No. Are PS2 consoles being made? Absolutely not. Are new games being made for PS3? Probably, doesn't matter, they are on the shelves because the system is still viable. Are new games being made for PS2? Not that I am aware of. Are PS2 new games available at retail in WalMart today and every day? Yes, in every WalMart here. They are right over there next to the Wii and PS3 games. On a side note, there are still Nintendo DS Games on the shelves as well. You see my point now. Maybe we type about two different things. MrBlackCat

While this is sensationalized, it looks like a "mainstream simple" emulation console... Microsoft used Windows to bring PC's to the ultra-casual crowd with that piece of garbage (windows) and it survived to become a standard. (understatement?) Maybe something like this will bring emulation gaming to "everyone else" interested in retro gaming outside of smartphone based stuff. I like the way this looks and is marketed. Sure I can and have used MAME since the DOS days, but modern emulation on Pi machines or any of them is NOT plug and play. Plug and Play is a big market with the "retro craze" thing going on... something like this I believe will fill that gap... and when it does, it will be huge. MrBlackCat

"Behind the Curve"... Here is how simply I see it... I buy games at their low, which I call internally staying Behind the Curve. This is generally a few years behind a given system and then the games start to go back up, but varies based on factors that don't really matter to me or need to be defined. I just track the prices, which is super easy with the internet these days. I remember when you could by Atari 2600 stuff in large lots cheap, as most of us here do... around the time the PS3 came out, Atari stuff was really sagging in price, PS2 used stuff went up like cwazy as many could not afford PS3's now had access to SO many used PS2's flooding into eBay, second hand game stores, and pawn shops. I don't have time to be comprehensive with this explanation/analogy, but I just want to point out that all systems and their games sag in price and then come back up. Some things seem to fall in value continuously (like boxed Vic-20's) and some things just rise in value continuously. The point is that I just see Atari games as back on their rise out of the low-price sag. In this age of excess, where collections are fashionable beyond the scope of actually using them of course any social icon like the Atari, or even video games in general are going to become more expensive. Don't forget that a large group of people are collecting for the sake of collecting at a social level. Then this is no long the "in" thing to do, those collections will end up right back on eBay and like Beanie Babies, you won't be able to give them away. Just don't think that everyone who has a collection of Atari games and systems (or any games and systems) isn't going to move on the next big social thing next week. Sure some people will learn about them and become genuinely interested long term, but many will not. Example: PS2 games are at their low for sure. For the last couple of years I have been buying specific PS2 games I think I would enjoy. I have doubled my library of PS2 games for SO little in the last 2-1/2 to 3 years. You can always find good deals if you watch of course, but I am talking mostly about averages of course. If we are indeed in a bubble, and you want to know when it will pop, you have to know why it exists... MrBlackCat

I will second seeing Wii (not Wii U) games still active "outside the glass" in medium sized racks at three different WalMart stores. Not so much behind the glass in prime area of course... but over with the PS3 overflow stuff. Wii and Wii U games are still viable for a bit of time I think. This is only speculation as I have no inside information with Nintendo Developers of course. Bill L is correct... the Wii U never came down in price. On the official Nintendo eBay store, they have been selling refurbished units for months for $200 USD. Last I looked it was over 15000 units sold. Pretty good demand for a "dead" system. I realized this is relatively small, but shows people don't fear its viability. Maybe some of the incomplete games for the Wii and Wii U will more likely be finished as they know they can and will be ported to the 2/3DS family as some games are. (like Lego City Undercover was... great game that shines on both systems in my opinion) MrBlackCat

Nintendo can't even keep the Switch on the shelves... I saw ten behind the glass at WalMart day before yesterday. I got hold of my cousin the next day and asked if he had gotten one yet and he said he hadn't even seen one since release. Like me, he doesn't wait in lines and track shipments etc. So I went back today and they were gone... what kind of marketing is that? I really don't know how many they are making, but what is wrong with accumulation of product before shipping? He is still ticked off about the NES Mini situation. I remember toy marketing in the 70's and 80's... you made stuff until it quit selling basically. There might be delays, but no shortages. Pre-orders were for the sole purpose of calculating demands in the 90's... that too seems to have changed. MrBlackCat

YouTube is just an extension of, or product of social networking. There are a LOT of people who do exactly the same thing, for completely different reasons. I am generally non-social, but I do like to support what I enjoy. When I show pictures of my game room and games (I consider myself a gamer, not a collector) it is only experienced as intended by a relatively small group... the rest are jealous, or experience other negative reactions which they are always too eager to share. I find it disruptive generally speaking, which is why I generally don't "show off" my game and game room. If an area of my game room/games fits a specific topic, then I try to share what I have enjoyed obtaining over the years. If there is too much penix measuring going on, I don't comment or share usually. The point is that YouTube is mostly socially based now, and today "collecting" retro games is "in"... Like others have so eloquently stated, they have what they do because they enjoy it, not for socially based reasons like "belonging" to a popular group, social competition, or my least compatible set, "investors". MrBlackCat