CGC Video Game Grading? 1 1

[Bronty]

31 minutes ago, Broke as a Joke said:

Super Mario 64 in "Wata 9.8"  is 1.5 million??  That's so damn crazy that I can't even...

Seven years ago that game could have been bought for under $1000, probably cheaper.

I have my doubts about whether that sale is repeatable.   The zelda at 870k for an early version, that's repeatable because I have zero confidence I could get one like that even with 870k in hand.      The mario 64, even in that condition, if I had 1.5m in hand, I bet I could find an owner or three or five to buy that from.

FWIW I'm hearing that the person that bought the zelda and the contra has already paid, and while I don't know who bought the mario 64, I understand heritage is saying that's a known and legit buyer too.

Edited July 12, 2021 by Bronty

[Terry JSA]

6 hours ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

You never will, as the art is in the cartridge/disc, which requires a system to read it.

Collecting graded video games is like a blind man collecting visual art, or a deaf man collecting vinyl.

That’s my whole reasoning to why I don’t understand it. A video game is meant to be played, but ironically enough I collect graded comics but I’m still able to enjoy it opposed to a game I can’t even play. 

[Kevin76]

29 minutes ago, Terry_JSA said:

That’s my whole reasoning to why I don’t understand it. A video game is meant to be played, but ironically enough I collect graded comics but I’m still able to enjoy it opposed to a game I can’t even play. 

Like a graded comic, you can't read it but you can read a reprint right?  Same thing with games...go play a used copy  

[Bronty]

Yeah .   The only difference is preconceptions. 

[Terry JSA]

2 minutes ago, Kevin76 said:

Like a graded comic, you can't read it but you can read a reprint right?  Same thing with games...go play a used copy  

That works too. 

[D84]

Someone else posted the same thing.

Edited July 12, 2021 by D84

[Jo Seph]

9 hours ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

Collecting graded video games is like a blind man collecting visual art, or a deaf man collecting vinyl.

Not going to lie, I did laugh at this post on a forum dedicated to Graded comics that can’t be read. 

[darkstar]

10 hours ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

You never will, as the art is in the cartridge/disc, which requires a system to read it.

Collecting graded video games is like a blind man collecting visual art, or a deaf man collecting vinyl.

You're posting on a forum wherein the focus is on grading and entombing something in a plastic case preventing the story from being told and the artwork to be seen.

This can't be a serious take. 

[darkstar]

22 hours ago, Domo Arigato said:

You would think.....but the market for Atari 2600 games isn't nearly as strong as it is for many other systems.  I don't collect them, so I'm not sure if the market is glutted with them (there still seems to be a lot of unopened cases of them floating around) or if the demand just isn't there for them.....or possibly other reasons.

With Heritage at least.....only one Wata graded Atari 2600 game has approached the $20k mark.....a Mario Brothers in 9.2 grade sold for $19,800.....and I think that's just because it was a Mario game and it's a cross-collectible due to that fact.  Every other Wata graded Atari 2600 game has sold in the $10k or less range regardless of how high the grade was......and many sell for a lot less.

Out of 1,366 Wata graded Atari 2600 games showing as currently sold on the Heritage website.......only 35 of them have surpassed the $4k mark. 

Certainly not chump change......but also not "picking out a mansion and yacht" kind of money. 

 

The issue with pre-NES games is that they are effectively far too primitive to still be enjoyed and appreciated and the vast majority of those IPs are dead or were never a thing to begin outside of the game itself. 

Mario is an international multi-billion dollar IP that has been a signficant part of pop culture on more than 1 continent across 5 decades. And even his oldest games still hold up and are played heavily, speedrunning Mario 64 is still a huge deal today. 

[darkstar]

10 hours ago, Bronty said:

I have my doubts about whether that sale is repeatable.   The zelda at 870k for an early version, that's repeatable because I have zero confidence I could get one like that even with 870k in hand.      The mario 64, even in that condition, if I had 1.5m in hand, I bet I could find an owner or three or five to buy that from.

FWIW I'm hearing that the person that bought the zelda and the contra has already paid, and while I don't know who bought the mario 64, I understand heritage is saying that's a known and legit buyer too.

The Mario 64 sale isn't repeatable. It is effectively a first to market auction after Heritage and WATA primed the market for two years. The important thing to note here is what the other titles sold for across all platforms, especially the ones that weren't 9.8s. Like the original Tomb Raider for Playstation selling for close to 150k. 

[carcrawfordfan]

1 hour ago, darkstar said:

The Mario 64 sale isn't repeatable. It is effectively a first to market auction after Heritage and WATA primed the market for two years. The important thing to note here is what the other titles sold for across all platforms, especially the ones that weren't 9.8s. Like the original Tomb Raider for Playstation selling for close to 150k. 

That is the craziest sale imo. I sold a VGA graded copy 5-6 years ago. IIRC it was an 85 or 90 and it probably sold for 2k or so. I will probably go jump off a bridge soon as a result. 10K I could believe, 100k+ is staggering. 

[Domo Arigato]

3 hours ago, darkstar said:

The issue with pre-NES games is that they are effectively far too primitive to still be enjoyed and appreciated and the vast majority of those IPs are dead or were never a thing to begin outside of the game itself. 

Mario is an international multi-billion dollar IP that has been a signficant part of pop culture on more than 1 continent across 5 decades. And even his oldest games still hold up and are played heavily, speedrunning Mario 64 is still a huge deal today. 

That makes sense.  I would like to pick up a few graded Atari 2600 games myself just because of nostalgia, since that's a system I grew up with.  And even though they aren't going for crazy money, the ones I have looked at are still going for more than I'm willing to pay.  One I was eyeing in the latest Heritage auction was the early production Pitfall graded in 9.2 A+ condition.  It went for $7,200 with the buyers premium.  No thanks.  I would pay in the hundreds for something like that, but I'm not going to pay in the thousands.  If you look at the "sold listings" for many of them on Heritage's website, they are certainly not scarce.

[Domo Arigato]

6 hours ago, carcrawfordfan said:

7 hours ago, darkstar said:

The important thing to note here is what the other titles sold for across all platforms, especially the ones that weren't 9.8s. Like the original Tomb Raider for Playstation selling for close to 150k. 

That is the craziest sale imo. I sold a VGA graded copy 5-6 years ago. IIRC it was an 85 or 90 and it probably sold for 2k or so. I will probably go jump off a bridge soon as a result. 10K I could believe, 100k+ is staggering. 

This is a game I've been following for a while......and as you mentioned.....you definitely should have kept that copy.  The PS1 market is heating up quickly, and the first Tomb Raider game for it in high grade is not an easy one to find. 

Honestly, I'm a bit surprised that it didn't happen sooner.  I know everyone is all about the Nintendo's.......and the Mario's.......and the PokeYerMoms.......etc. etc etc. until I want to puke........but the PlayStation consoles have always been massive sellers.  On the top five list of best-selling game consoles......the PS2 holds the number one spot......the PS4 is number four.....and the PS1 is number five. 

If you narrow that list down to just Home Game Consoles (no handhelds, etc).....the list looks like this:

1. PS2
2. PS4
3. PS1
4. Wii
5. PS3

I also see people on Facebook all the time that keep wondering why Tomb Raider sells for any kind of money......and I keep wondering why they keep wondering why.  It's a MASSIVE franchise and this game started it all.  The Tomb Raider game was a huge hit when it came out in 1996, and they've released 12 main title games since then (not counting mobile, etc) on multiple systems, and the franchise is still going strong today, 25 years later.  It's had several big budget movies based off of it, and another one is in the works now.  And that's not even taking into account all the toys, action figures, statues, lunch boxes, t-shirts, comic books, graphic novels,  etc. that have been based off of it.

So, frankly, Mario can suck it. 

Here are the sales I've tracked for the sealed or graded PS1 Tomb Raider game over the last year or so:

On 11-2-2020........Tomb Raider (sealed but ungraded and with a huge price sticker on the front) sold for $3,250 on eBay

On 11-4-2020........Tomb Raider in 8.5 (A++) Wata grade sold for $3,350 on eBay

On 2-1-2021..........Tomb Raider in 9.2 (A+) Wata grade listed for starting bid of $7,000 on eBay and one smart bidder sniped it at the end.

On 3-8-2021...........Tomb Raider in 9.4 (A) Wata grade listed for $12,995 buy-it-now on eBay and was quickly pulled before it sold.  I suspect this might have been the one that just sold in the Heritage auction, but I don't know for sure.

On 3-16-2021..........CIB (opened but complete in box) Tomb Raider in 9.4 Wata grade sold for $1,725 on eBay

At this point, people seemed to realize that eBay wasn't the best place to sell this type of game, and listings/sales dried up completely there (I think the Heritage sales that followed showed that they were correct).

On 4-2-2021........... Tomb Raider in 8.0 (A) Wata grade sold on Heritage for $26,400

on 7-11-2021............Tomb Rider in 9.4 (A) Wata grade sold on Heritage for $144,000

So......in the last nine months of watching eBay and all of the major auction houses for listings of this game......I've seen one sealed ungraded copy........one opened (CIB) graded copy......one 8.0 graded copy........one 8.5 graded copy...........one 9.2 graded copy..........and one 9.4 graded copy.

(Almost forgot......Metropolis has a 6.5 graded copy listed for sale on their website right now for $20,000).

It may not stay that way......and the recent Heritage sales may start shaking more loose......but for right now, it's just not an easy game to find in high grade condition (Wata 9.0/VGA 85 or higher).  Especially when you compare it to a lot of other popular franchises that have dozens or hundreds of high grade copies that still sell for huge amounts.

Another thing people will have to consider if they have a high grade raw or VGA copy of this game they want to sell on Heritage.  First, they're going to have to get it graded by Wata (Heritage does not sell raw or VGA graded games).  And now that these recent sales have happened, they are going to have to use either the Speed Run or Warp Zone grading tier with Wata......which includes a 2% charge of the games value in addition to the grading fee for any game valued over $2,500.  Which means getting high grade copies of this game slabbed by Wata is no longer going to be inexpensive.

 

Edited July 13, 2021 by Domo Arigato

[theCapraAegagrus]

12 hours ago, Terry_JSA said:

That’s my whole reasoning to why I don’t understand it. A video game is meant to be played, but ironically enough I collect graded comics but I’m still able to enjoy it opposed to a game I can’t even play. 

Two very different things.

Crack a comic book? You can read it.
Crack a video game? Buy the system and wires required to plug it into your new TV. Pray that it works.

[Bronty]

Domo:

I’ve been collecting for 20 years.   There just aren’t that many sealed TR 1s.   That price could hold up.

FF7 error NOT first print for the same money seems really stupid.   I’m not confident that’s repeatable. The only reason that used to be the desired version is because people used to think incorrectly that it was the first print. 
 

But we will see, who the hell knows with any of it anymore. 

Edited July 13, 2021 by Bronty

[theCapraAegagrus]

9 hours ago, Jo Seph said:

Not going to lie, I did laugh at this post on a forum dedicated to Graded comics that can’t be read. 

I'm guessing that you laughed because you didn't realize the massive difference between a comic book and a video game?

[theCapraAegagrus]

7 hours ago, darkstar said:

You're posting on a forum wherein the focus is on grading and entombing something in a plastic case preventing the story from being told and the artwork to be seen.

This can't be a serious take. 

This can't be a serious take.

The only reason that I buy CGC/etc is for: Signature Series and/or Golden Age authentication. I can crack any comic book and read it. /end

Grading a video game is equally dumb as grading a Modern.

[Bronty]

Open your mind a bit and imagine that 99% or more  of vintage comics were in gvg condition or less.  
 

Wouldn’t you be awfully interested in the 1% that were 9.6s?   Is that so hard to understand?

Comics have been bagged and boarded and protected since the 70s. Not only was there zero and I mean zero collector or speculator base back then to save copies, they were also 50 bucks a pop not 12 cents.

Edited July 13, 2021 by Bronty

[Domo Arigato]

3 minutes ago, Bronty said:

Domo:

I’ve been collecting for 20 years.   There just aren’t that many sealed TR 1s.   That price could hold up.

FF7 error NOT first print for the same money seems really stupid.   I’m not confident that’s repeatable. The only reason that used to be the desired version is because people used to think incorrectly that it was the first print. 
 

But we will see, who the hell knows with any of it anymore. 

Thanks for the heads up, Bronty.  I knew you had been involved in the hobby for a long time (you actually helped me in a PM a couple of years ago when I was getting ready to submit my first games for grading).  Even back in 2007 when I was looking for my sealed copy of TR1 on eBay, it took me a while to find one.

And yeah.....that FF7 sale definitely has a lot of people confused on Facebook.  

 

[Domo Arigato]

On 7/11/2021 at 1:15 PM, Domo Arigato said:

In case anyone is still wondering why CGC is going to bother with the video game market after that sale.....

......new world record for a video game sale just happened on Heritage.

I didn't even realize Heritage did this now. 

I don't play in that end of the pond.....but apparently Heritage posts videos now for each auction item when they surpass a certain threshold (which appears to be about $55,000 for video games).

Anyway......here's the video for the $1,560,000 auction for those that want to see it.

 

 

Edited July 13, 2021 by Domo Arigato