Imaginary Atari VCS values

[Synthead]

Is is just me, or does it seem like there are a lot of people on craigslist and ebay trying to pawn off their stuff to the next guy for hundreds and hundreds of dollars? $100 for a heavy sixer with some controllers and a dozen common carts is just right, but it's pretty silly when I see "L@@K" auctions for four-switch consoles and a couple games for Buy It Now prices around $300-500. I'm thinking, 'Are you for real? Did you not see the other auctions where you could buy about eight of what yours has for the same price?' I'm even seeing games on ebay like Combat, Super Breakout, etc. being listed as "RARE" with Buy It Now prices in the double digits. This is a thing on craigslist too, look! If the posting expired, it was an ad for Combat, Asteriods, Football, and Soccer, each for $30.

 

It's ridiculous, but I have the feeling that Atari systems are going to be extremely collectible in the next five to ten years. Not because they're getting rarer with time--even though they are, but that's not the point--but because the conceived value of this common Atari stuff is way higher than collector's standards. What I'm saying is if that if someone gets a huge wow-factor of how "hip and vintage" the games are in that craigslist ad to the point where they buy them and feel like they've made out, chances are there's more than one person who would do this. One sale after another, cartridges could become very valuable simply because it plays on a "trendy" 2600 and has the holy words, Atari, stamped on them.

 

I wouldn't be thinking this if I didn't have to fish through these exorbitant auctions on Ebay just to find a new common cart to play for a reasonable price. What do you guys think of all this?

[potatohead]

Something is worth what others will pay for it. The take home lesson that many get from that, is it never hurts to ask.

 

(and I think it's lousy too, but there you go)

[shadowdoggie]

Yes, I have definitely noticed this lately, and I know that others have acknowledged this in the Marketplace forum. It's also been difficult lately getting anyone to bid very much on Atari eBay auctions for some reason. So, like many others, instead of starting auctions at $.99, I set it at the minimum amt I'm willing to sell the item(s) for, but this has lead to a great deal of relistings because people don't seem willing to spend much on Atari right now... just people looking for bargains. That's what I've noticed anyway.

[fiddlepaddle]

I guess if a lot of people start buying Atari stuff at inflated prices, then the value has gone up. What people are asking has virtually nothing to do with it, except to shut the door to those people who might pay a lower price. Maybe all the latest hype has brought enough new people into Atari collecting that actual values go up, but it would take a LOT of people...

[Benzman66]

Is is just me, or does it seem like there .......

 

I agree, and the sad thing is, many of them get that price too! There are a few sellers on Ebay that I thought were doing some shill bids and jacking it up to high amounts just to see if anyone would bite, but when I started checking their feedbacks weeks after the listings ended, and saw where the buyer paid for the item and left positive feedback, I knew it was for real.

 

I sell Ataris on a daily basis, but keep a very reasonable price even being they are repaired. I would love to get some ridiculous price for my systems, but you know what, I would not feel right about charging so much being these units are 30+ years old. Yeah, I know, what a sap I am.

[bohoki]

Is is just me, or does it seem like there .......

 

I agree, and the sad thing is, many of them get that price too! There are a few sellers on Ebay that I thought were doing some shill bids and jacking it up to high amounts just to see if anyone would bite, but when I started checking their feedbacks weeks after the listings ended, and saw where the buyer paid for the item and left positive feedback, I knew it was for real.

 

I sell Ataris on a daily basis, but keep a very reasonable price even being they are repaired. I would love to get some ridiculous price for my systems, but you know what, I would not feel right about charging so much being these units are 30+ years old. Yeah, I know, what a sap I am.

 

 

i think they are just gambling that someone will come along with nostalgic rage and just do a buy it now so they dont have to dick around i dont know if they get some kind of deal cause every thing i list costs me 50 cents and their constant listings must be costing them plenty

[BassGuitari]

$100 for a heavy sixer with some controllers and a dozen common carts is just right...

 

Maybe I'm just cheap, but I wouldn't pay $100 for an unremarkable set of Atari stuff that is distinguished only by the fact that the system is a Big Sexy.

 

But that's me.

[classicgamingguy]

I've been wondering this myself. The prices seem way high and out of control for the moment. I'm sure after the initial craze fades and people go back to their PS3's and Xbox 360's the Atari 2600 stuff will go back to it's normal price range. I'm assuming the recent price hikes are because the common person is "interested" in Atari again.

 

-Steve

[boxes of sawdust]

I've been noticing the trend of sellers on ebay tagging just about any 2600 game as "RARE", and lot of them really just make me wanna laugh out loud. Some titles I saw recently were Pac-man and Berzerk.

[Nukey Shay]

Anything is rare (depending on who the parties are), so the word is essentially meaningless.

 

Oxygen is rare if you are in orbit.

[carmel_andrews]

Perhaps someone will start digging up a certain well known new Mexico landfill when the likes of ET and Pacman (2600) become rare

 

Or are there other landfill contracts that Atari hadn't told us about

 

Hint to anyone selling anything atari on the craigslist etc at silly prices 'Atari isn't rare on planet earth, or even in cyberspace, go back to your own planet' (and like someone said elsewhere on AA, it pays to do your research first before trying to sell your atari gear/kit)

Edited May 17, 2010 by carmel_andrews

[stvd]

Last week, one of the newspapers here in the UK did an article on "Future Antiques".

Amongst the (mostly electronic) items was, of course, the Atari VCS.

I'll omit the other meaningless garbage this "expert" knew about Atari, only

to say that he predicted that in 10 years the Atari "could" be worth around £200!!!!

 

With games going for £200 each.

 

My collection isn't particularly large or impressive but by his values it was sitting at just under the £60,000 mark!

 

 

[classicgamingguy]

I don't care...I'm still not parting with my Atari 2600!!

[DickNixonArisen]

I also vote for "this too shall pass".

 

on the other hand, maybe we should all be soaking up every combat and pacman we can, driving the prices up and creating a new social class of wealthy retrocrats

[Rik]

Yikes!!I feel sorry for anyone just starting to collect classic gaming stuff, i mean that in the sincerest way.

[Mirage]

Maybe asking/starting prices tend to be higher now or more common now (I'd believe it), but ebay has always been full of high BIN's/starting bids on "RARE" common carts. But mixed in there are always plenty of sanely-priced ones as well.

 

And if a 2600 is ever worth 200 pounds (~$300US?!) and games worth 200 pounds each as well, I'll sell everything save 1 or 2 2600's and my Harmony. But that's never going to happen, at least for a very long time, unless inflation goes crazy, then it won't matter. Any random ebay sellers who see that article are going to jack their prices even more, so if anything, that was a disservice to the collecting community. I honestly hate worry about "values" all the time, it really ticks me off, but only because I actually enjoy having and using this stuff, not thinking of it as some sort of pseudo-investment or ebay get-rich-quick scheme.

[classicgamingguy]

Yikes!!I feel sorry for anyone just starting to collect classic gaming stuff, i mean that in the sincerest way.

 

Hmm, my collection is rather small at the moment, so I guess I qualify as one of the persons "just starting". That doesn't make me real happy. Eh, I like the collection aspect of it AND the play value I get from my Atari 2600.

[seanhq]

Is is just me, or does it seem like there are a lot of people on craigslist and ebay trying to pawn off their stuff to the next guy for hundreds and hundreds of dollars? $100 for a heavy sixer with some controllers and a dozen common carts is just right, but it's pretty silly when I see "L@@K" auctions for four-switch consoles and a couple games for Buy It Now prices around $300-500.

I've seen this too recently. There are a lot of people who don't know any better and will pay these high prices, but at the same time I've personally paid a little more for something that I really wanted or couldn't find for a lower price. Thankfully most of the time I can get or find good deals from my fellow AtariAge members.

 

In other news, it's crazy seeing a cropped version of my avatar being used

[Rik]

Yikes!!I feel sorry for anyone just starting to collect classic gaming stuff, i mean that in the sincerest way.

 

Hmm, my collection is rather small at the moment, so I guess I qualify as one of the persons "just starting". That doesn't make me real happy. Eh, I like the collection aspect of it AND the play value I get from my Atari 2600.

Yep!If a was just starting, I would only get the IMO, "GOOD" games.Games by Imagic, Activision, and not try to get every game out there for my 2600, CV, INTV, etc.Gotta set limits, as IMO, it's impossible to get every game for every system.This may be a little biased, since I've been collecting seriously now since 94, and have amassed quite a large collection.But now, since prices have gone up quite a lot, I'm about 98% sure this decision I've pre-implemented for myself, would hold true today.Regardless, CLASSICGAMINGGUY, good luck in your collecting endeavors, and as you may already know, there's still plenty of stuff out there, at reasonable prices.

Edited May 18, 2010 by Rik

[Herbarius]

Some people seem to put "RARE" next to the title of every game they sell, even if it isn't rare at all.

 

That's ebay, often it's a contest of "who shouts the loudest"

[Synthead]

This popped up on craigslist in the last couple of hours

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/clt/1747676274.html

 

This just popped up on ebay

eBay Auction -- Item Number: 320534921968

 

And also

eBay Auction -- Item Number: 180509138880

 

[Nukey Shay]

You need a pretty good imagination just to get through the game description on that last one.

 

Description

If you're wondering how they updated a black-and-white arcade game from 1978 into a experience for the Atari platform, the answer is...the right way. With detailed graphics, awesome sound effects, and a wide variety of terrain, this isn't your father's SPACE INVADERS. Muster up your courage and try to get through multiple levels of intense gameplay, traveling through a gamut of worlds from Pluto to Saturn to Mars, and back to Earth. Each world has its own dynamic terrain and interactive background elements, and some of the hidden bonuses include additional worlds, additional levels, and a replica of the original SPACE INVADERS. Another notable update is the firepower. Remember the cannon-style pellet shots from the original? Your new arsenal includes infrared laser beams, flame-throwers, and neutron blasts, not to mention the bonus power-ups and special weapons that are particular to each world. If you're playing in Single-Player mode, there's an engaging storyline, while the two-player options include a Cooperative mode and a frenzied Head-To-Head game. With 18 species of aliens, 10 powerful bosses, and lots of hidden goodies, this is one sequel that's better than the original.

[accousticguitar]

You need a pretty good imagination just to get through the game description on that last one.

Man, I'd like to play that version!

[cybercylon]

Yes, there have been more of those kinds of auctions and idiotic craigs list postings. I doubt they get very many bids or takers though. There are still reasonably priced ones too. There's a classic game store near me, and commons generally go for 50 cents to 2 dollars, depending on condition... was like that before the hype and has stayed that way during it.

[classicgamingguy]

This popped up on craigslist in the last couple of hours

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/clt/1747676274.html

 

This just popped up on ebay

eBay Auction -- Item Number: 320534921968

 

And also

eBay Auction -- Item Number: 180509138880

 

 

What the???

 

That's interesting. I've never run across a version of Space Invaders like this. It looks amazingly like the original Space Invaders for the 2600! Where does it list these features? Must be the fine print...