A few weeks ago, my brother and I went to our parents’ house to check for roof leaks in the attic. Fortunately, no leaks were found, but we did stumble upon boxes of toys that haven’t been touched for decades, and we found our old NES console, and many games. We also found my old Gameboy, which unfortunately, is no longer in working condition.
Out of curiosity, I decided to check the value of some of the games, even though I have no intention of selling them at this time. Here are some highlights:
- A copy of Battle Toads recently sold on eBay for $29.99
- Ghostbusters goes for about $15
- The Legend of Zelda goes for around $30
- Castlevania sells for around $30
All of these are just the “tip of the iceberg”. I don’t plan on selling these childhood relics, but it has me thinking that there’s serious profit in vintage video games, which if you think about it, this is the first EVER wave of “vintage” video games ever, because video games haven’t been around all that long.
The first question – where do I find vintage games?
Thrift stores are an okay starting point, but they sell quickly, and many stores now keep them in the glass displays up front. The prices are hit or miss, and they are almost always sold “as-is”, with no returns and no guarantees that the cartridges actually work.
Garage sales and estate sales are great places to find vintage games, but availability is sporadic and as always, these types of sales are treasure hunts.
A great place to find vintage games for resale is the Facebook Marketplace. The key is to focus on people attempting to sell games in lots as opposed to individual games, and for the following reasons:
- They are likely selling everything in a bundle to declutter, or for quick cash
- More efficient use of travel and time
- It is easier to negotiate a discount on bundles, especially with the offer of cash on the spot
This listing is a perfect example:
The seller has obviously price this lot high, as the power cords, tv cords, and controllers are all missing. There is absolutely no way to test the console, or the games. I would not be shocked if this seller took $100 for the entire lot in the end. For reference, used consoles without controllers typically sell for $40-$50 on eBay. Also, if $100 seems like a lowball offer because of the asking price, it isn’t when you consider the risk. If the console or games do not work, then you’ll lose money. Items that can’t be tested simply have lower value.
Back to the values….Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt with the Zapper goes for around $35. Zelda, as mentioned before, goes for around $30. Assuming to make these numbers, you’ve already made a small profit and still have 10 games left to sell. The price floor for less popular NES games is around $10, so you stand to make at least another $100 in revenue, providing everything works.
Should I make the offer in person?
This is a matter of comfort – some people say that an offer is more appealing when the seller knows they can receive cash on the spot. Other say to message the offer as not to waste time. Both are correct to some degree, and it is worth trying different negotiation methods to see what works best for you.
A note on ethics
I might catch heat for this, but don’t care. If you notice someone unknowingly selling a rare or extremely valuable game for a cheap price, don’t take advantage of them. Tell them what they have and proceed accordingly. Remember, for every story of someone finding a $10,000 item at a garage sale for $10, there’s a seller behind it that made a huge mistake, and it could be someone in a vulnerable position that could use the extra cash.
Looking for other ideas? Read more here: Some of The Best Things to Buy and Resell in 2024 (sidehustlewatch.com)