whats the deal...

[jcbball86]

ok i know this doesnt have to do with rbi, but it does with nintendo, so here goes.
whats the deal with funcoland/gamestop whatever you call it.  ok i went in there a couple days ago. i wanted to get that four score deal because i had some games and wanted to try it out, etc.  i was also looking for Tennis and some other games.  I looked around and saw NOTHING.  i saw 2 games. 1 was baseball stars.  not a bad game at all. but when i can hear little things falling around inside and they charge 13 bucks for it, thats garbage. the other game was caesars palace, which i have no idea what its like.  I remember going in there a couple years and seeing about 500 games on the shelf (if you have a funco land near you, you know just what im talking about).  i go in there and see 2, both are broken and overpriced.  i was so pissed off i just left.  unfortunately i dont have anywhere to go to get classic nes games.  does anyone know of a better place to go besides pawn shops and garage sales in the chicagoland area?

[ericdavisfan]

I think the best place to buy cartridges now is on ebay.  That's where I got my RBI and for only $5.  It works perfectly and I'd have no problem buying from a respectable dealer there again.  Plus, if you're willing to use PayPal, you can get your game rather quickly (I got mine within a week!)  

If you want to play NES games and don't care about having the actual cartridge, then I've found a great site that claims to have every game put out by NES as a ROM.  Here is the link:  

http://www.cincydna.com/nesmain.htm

The thing I've liked best about this site is that they don't give you all of the question/poll pop ups or advertisements.  They just let you go in and get whatever emulator and games you want.

[jcbball86]

i like the site, but its down due to updating, so i will go back later.

i have looked at ebay and considered it, but i would rather walk in a store and walk out 5 minutes later with the games and accessories i want, and not have to search around, find a good price, bid, wait for delivery, etc.  i know thats a lot to ask, but its what funcoland used to provide.  i used to walk in, they would always have what i wanted, and i would leave happy. i also heard about electronics botique...maybe i will try that.

[Gantry]

Gamestop/Funco stop buying/selling NES games a year or so ago...

Ebay is easily the best bet.  Otherwise, your best bet is Pawn shops or used music stores...

[nightwulf]

Actually, my last job was the Asst. Store Manager for a Software Etc. store (part of GameStop, Inc). Incidentally, GameStop, FuncoLand, Software Etc., Babbages, Super Software, and Planet X are all stores belonging to GameStop. They're all supposed to be renamed to "GameStop" by the end of 2003, but I'll believe that when I see it.

Each store is pretty much responsible for their own used product. Customers bring in games for trade-in credit, and those games are immediately ticketed and put on the sales floor. My store had a great selection of NES games, simply because we had people trading them in all the time. Sounds like your store just doesn't have many people bringing them in.

At the same time, it is the job of the District Manager to monitor used product volume levels. If store #1 has 800 used NES titles and store #2 has 100, he/she should send a request to have 350 or so titles sent to store #2, or less if that store has a poor sales history of NES titles. If the selection is really that bad, you might ask for the district manager's office phone and call with the problem.

As far as broken games go, here's a little inside information. If you get a working cartridge-based game from their selection, you're one of a very few. Video game systems are tested before accepting them as trade-ins. No software is ever tested. If it's a CD, and is relatively free of scratches, then throw it up for sale. If it's a cartridge, just sell it. I turned down several cartridge trade-ins due to rattling, chipped cases, whatnot; some employees (especially idiot part-timers) don't. 98% of "broken" CD-based games can be refurbished to good-as-new status. Really. I was impressed by what corporate refurbishing machines could do. Unfortunately, you can't really fix a broken cartridge.

So, all traded-in cartridges are put on the sales floor. There's no testing, period. If they're returned, then the product is marked "defective" and literally is destroyed and discarded by their district manager on his/her next visit. I bet the customer got $3-4 trade-in credit for that $13 game. Why is the markup so high (40%-60% is normal for most used product)? 'Cause the majority of the cartridges sold come back as defective. Who cares if these five are thrown out; the sixth one sold at a 400% markup.

Sorry for the long post, but I thought you'd get a kick out of it. I'm a little biased against my former employer, if you couldn't tell ...

Nightwulf

[jcbball86]

thanks, i learned a lot
im going to find some pawn shops or other game stops, if that doesnt do anything, im doing ebay, it seems like the way to go

[ericdavisfan]

I also have seen used NES games at Target and K-Mart, though not at every location.  I bought a wrestling game there for $5 about a year ago (K-Mart, I think)  You may check there as many of the K Marts are going out of business.  You may find a bargain on an old game!

[jcbball86]

i heard about them having games at kmart, but i talked to some other people and said that they didnt.
i will check anyway

[sucka free]

I have found a lot of sucess with garage sales.  Plus you get around 20 games for about 5 bucks

[Gantry]

Garage Sales are a very good way to find games, doubly so when a whole subdivison is having one...

I've never seen a NES game at Target, and I hardly ever go to KMart.  The stores around Chicago are dropping like flies...

[SmokedUBad13]

I'll never understand why K-Mart was selling used NES Games.  But they most certainly did.  I went to check out the liquidation sales at the local K-Mart before they shut down and they had about 20 different games.  I was very much surprised.  Didn't pick any up though because I wasn't sure what I would have done with them if they were broken (due to the no refund policy).

EBay is by far the best place to find quality NES cartridges.  Nearly 75% of my collection is from EBay.  Just make sure the game you're looking for is in good shape and that the seller offers money back guarantees.

SmokedUBad
www.dee-nee.com/rbi/mbeales - The Official R.B.I. Baseball COTUT

[Gantry]

And with EBay, you want to make sure the person accepts some sort of credit card transaction, as money orders and checks are a pain in the ass...

Also be patient with EBay...   There are so many games available all the time, don't go overboard to get a cart.  Odds are there will be a few more for sale in a week...

[clyon81]

I know the post it old, but I believe that you can purchase games at http://www.vimm.net . They also have downloadable manuals from the games, and you can download a rom before you decide to purchase the cartridge. Careful though, because they have a limit  on rom downloads (per day or something)

[jcbball86]

i cant believe it, i was driving home today and i passed by hollywood video and i saw Game Zone or something also saying "we buy and sell used games"
i took a look inside and they had about 20-30 games in stock, plus many accessories.  Its not just nes, though, its also snes, genesis, and all the most popular ones
i dont know if its just for the store near me or what, but i know that im going there for now on

[Gantry]

There used to be a huge Flea Market by me which was a boon for just about anything old.  I think Swap-O-Rama is still around in the Chicagoland area, that might be worth a trip...