What happened to some of the game prices?

[SamIAm]

Gaijin have stripped Japan of the majority of classic games. Stores that used to have hundreds of PCE games now have dozens. If the prices didn't go up there wouldn't be a single PCE game in Japan.

Boy is this ever true. I live in the 5th largest city in Japan (I think it was 5th), and there is only one really good game store within a several-mile radius of the city center. In 2008, they had everything for the PC Engine that anyone who actually plays the thing could ever want. However, it and every other section has been steadily dwindling down for the past few years. At this point, it's a small step away from "pathetic".

[MrBroadway]

Interesting Wired article, thought it appropriate.

http://www.wired.com/2015/09/akihabara-4/

[esteban]

Interesting Wired article, thought it appropriate.

http://www.wired.com/2015/09/akihabara-4/

I know the story relied on anecdotal evidence, but as this trend is corroborated (and I suspect it will be), I am getting the sinking feeling that only common Famicom games are in my future (the problem, of course, is that I spent the last 15 years buying cheap mediocre Famicom games...when I should have been picking up better stuff).

Well, at least I have a lot of Famicom baseball to enjoy.

[pulstar]

I'm surprised that the everdrive isn't lowering prices. A flash cart contains every game for the system, but it costs less than a lot of single games. Everyone likes to act like resellers are cornering the market and preventing them from having their favorite games. In reality, they're only preventing you from being able to hoard. Actually playing these games is easier than ever.

The same can be said of emulation. Sadly it wouldn't surprise me to start seeing more overpriced repros just cause its cheaper than the real thing.

In fact, I think both of these can actually increase prices of cheaper games. Some truly hidden gems get found, have a spotlight on some youtube channel (probably where somebody says its rare and it isn't) and then people go looking for it because they have to have it now. Almost instant double/triple price increase.

[bob]

One of the worst trends is the scum bags jacking up PCE prices on super common games just because the 'murica version is a R@R3.

Cotton, MC, terraforming, etc. have all jumped becuase of it. Im surprised super air zonk is still affordable for PCE.

[Opethian]

One of the worst trends is the scum bags jacking up PCE prices on super common games just because the 'murica version is a R@R3.

Cotton, MC, terraforming, etc. have all jumped becuase of it. Im surprised super air zonk is still affordable for PCE.

probably because people who don't do any research don't realize its called CD Denjin

[esteban]

One of the worst trends is the scum bags jacking up PCE prices on super common games just because the 'murica version is a R@R3.

Cotton, MC, terraforming, etc. have all jumped becuase of it. Im surprised super air zonk is still affordable for PCE.

probably because people who don't do any research don't realize its called CD Denjin

That is probably 99% of the reason!

[bob]

One of the worst trends is the scum bags jacking up PCE prices on super common games just because the 'murica version is a R@R3.

Cotton, MC, terraforming, etc. have all jumped becuase of it. Im surprised super air zonk is still affordable for PCE.

probably because people who don't do any research don't realize its called CD Denjin

ha true.  every time i have searched for denjin, i see it from 35-50 (which is why i said it was still affordable).  so you are prob right that people arent even seeing it.  i havent seen "pce super air zonk" in a while, so i wonder if it has spiked under that title.  hmmmm.

[VenomMacbeth]

This makes me incredibly sad.  My list of "must-own" games is growing ever smaller.  Now, if I got Hyper Duel & Dracula X, I'd probably be set as far as rare games go. 

[Trenton_net]

Interesting Wired article, thought it appropriate.

http://www.wired.com/2015/09/akihabara-4/

I find it funny that a white guy going to Japan to strip it of games, is complaining about how too many white guys go to Japan to strip it of games. But that's just me.

[Otaking]

I agree it appears the price of PC Engine games has gone up in Japan itself, but the price in the west for Japanese PC Engine games for the most part has either stayed static or gone down over the last few years.
A very small percentage of games have had a price increase in the west, games such as Tatsujin, Magical Chase, Dracula X, Liquid Kids and Ninja Spirit. But these games are in the massive minority, the vast majority have not gone up.
The common cheap PC Engine games have gotten even cheaper with all those auctions for 100 game lots with free shipping that have been on eBay for the last few years. They have completely over saturated the availability of the cheap common games.

Regards in Japan itself, I think a few years a back a load of gaijin all had the bright business ideas to move to Japan to buy games from Yahoo.jp and Akiba and then resell them on a western eBay shop. I get the impression that most of these entrepreneurs were French. This does appear to have effected the PC Engine prices in Japan, but not the west.

[xelement5x]

Interesting Wired article, thought it appropriate.

http://www.wired.com/2015/09/akihabara-4/

I find it funny that a white guy going to Japan to strip it of games, is complaining about how too many white guys go to Japan to strip it of games. But that's just me.

I had a lol over that too.  A single collector going abroad is not bad, it's the guys who are living over there full time and from what I can see, basically reselling older "cheap" goods full time on ebays. 

I think Google Chrome's autotranslate has made it much easier for people to identify games in YJA listings as well.  To get deals anymore I pretty much only bid on lots where nothing is listed out and you have to actually know Japanese to read the titles. 

[Punch]

The french and hardcore collectards have dominated retro stores in well known places unfortunately. lol
You need to go to less visited places nowadays, and not in the "mecca of retro gaming" as I heard some idiots say once.

This ain't no toymachine's signature!

[geise]

Japanese sellers I'm sure are a huge part of the problem.  They know what's going on and are buying games up to flip them on ebay, amazon and other places to international buyers.

[mackdanger]

I can add a little to this since I am seeing it happen in real time. Another factor, besides what has been mentioned, is that many players have dropped out. Around 2005, you could get the old console and cart based stuff at many places beyond the specialty stores. Yodobashi Camera, Bic Camera, Sofmap, Book Off, the stuff was everywhere. Moving into the latter part of 2005, everyone seemed to liquidate at the same time. There was absolutely nothing gradual about it. I remember going into Book Off and getting Steam Hearts on the Saturn for 500 yen. A still sealed copy of Samurai Shodown 2 for the Neo fetched the same price from Sofmap. It was crazy. But like I said, they all seemed to do it suddenly, at the same time. Stuff from the PS1 era forward is still available at a lot of those places, but if you find some carts they are thrown together in a bin.

While I am sure the internet is one of the biggest factors, I would like to toss out another theory. I think Mandarake is trying to corner the market. I can't prove it, but I am sure that games in showcases at places like Trader are finding their way to ManD's. I keep seeing too many games with the same condition issues "moving around" to be a coincidence. Oh, and then there is this:

http://www.mandarake.co.jp/company/recruit/em_sahra.html

That was completed, if I remember correctly the end of last year or so. It doesn't specifically mention games, but it says toys, comics, anime, and other collector's items. It wouldn't surprise if they are moving games out of there as well.