Funny story.
Today I yet again found myself in Omocha Souko. I had a very specific purchase in mind. It was just one game. It was relatively expensive at 2000 yen (about 27$), but a good deal considering what it was.
The game was Pacar for the Sega SG-1000, a console I had
just purchased the other day and didn`t have any games for yet.
This wasn`t just any copy of Pacar though. This was a pristine mint copy that was still sealed. Wow.
Now, I am
on record here as finding this whole collecting sealed games trend silly. My somewhat condescending views on that segment of the retro game collecting hobby have not, however, entirely blinded me to the fact that hard to find sealed games are worth a lot of money.
It is pretty safe to say that Pacar, or just about any SG-1000 game, is pretty hard to find. I did a search on Ebay and found a CIB copy that wasn`t sealed going for about 35$, which seems about right.
So my rational, calculating brain thought to itself `Hey, the price they are charging for the sealed one is less than what an unsealed one costs elsewhere. So I can buy it and then decide whether I want to open it or maybe sell it for more to some sealed game collector and then use some of the funds to buy a loose copy and save the rest. Either way I win.`
Brilliant plan. It went smoothly at first. I arrived at Omocha Souko, picked the game off the shelf and proceded to the cashier. I waited in line while another customer was served. Then when my turn came I placed it on the counter next to the register.
Then something interesting happened. The guy at the cash picked it up and looked at the price tag. He punched in the amount. Then - in a single motion that happened so quickly I didn`t have a chance to utter a word of protest - he ripped the plastic seal completely off the box so that he could check to make sure the cart in the box was the correct one.
For about 30 seconds afterwards I stood motionless, looking like this while the cashier awkwardly peeled the cash from my catatonically frozen hand:
Yet another victim of an Omocha Souko human resources policy that does not require employees to know anything about the collector value of retro video games.
Anyhoo, I`m not really upset about it as it takes the agony of the `should I open it or sell it` decision out of my hands. And now all I have to do is get an AC adaptor for my SG-1000 II and I`ll be able to see if it works!
And if any of you have seen auctions at which sealed SG-1000 II games went for astronomical sums, please do me the favor of keeping that information to yourselves.
Related PostsMega Bargain of the Day: Sega SG 1000 IIFamicom Cart Condition: Why Bad is Good and I`ll Never Buy Sealed Stuff
Just wanted to post a quick update about my recently acquired Sega SG-1000 II. I found an RF switch for it and decided to take a chance on using a PC Engine AC adaptor with it.
I can`t wait until I get some more games for it!
