Page 15 - OSG Presents Classic Gamer Magazine #6

B B systems which were prototypes or released in The pre-altered games may also be col-

efore the advent of the Internet, peo-
lectible, since generally they are in
very small quantities are sought after. The
ple searching for unusual collectibles
cially for the power cords. Unlike the very
were out of luck. Stamp and coin collectors rest are sold to be used for spare parts, espe- shorter supply.
How does this apply to the Play-
had their magazines and newspapers, and it early consoles, most systems have unique Station? Well, you can expect that your
was easy to find books on Pez dispensers, power supplies that cannot be mixed and Gran Turismo and your Tomb Raider
G.I. Joe, Barbie, tin lunch boxes, baseball matched. Just try and find an AC adapter for won't be as valuable as your Motor
cards, and Hot Wheels. If you collected an Atari 5200 or 7800 at Radio Shack, for Toon Gran Prix and your Deathtrap
something out of the ordinary, however, you example. Some people also purchase spare Dungeon. It has nothing to do with how
were limited to searching flea markets and systems to be used as back-ups for the day good the games are, but whether they
placing ads in the newspaper. when their Odyssey2 becomes a shiny silver are common or rare. It's hard to name
Thanks to the miracle of modern technol- doorstop. specific titles at this point, but you can
ogy (and our friends at eBay), you can auc- As for the PlayStation, it has been redes- be sure that the most valuable games
tion off that Space:1999 Commander igned several times in its life span. The oldest will be the ones which sold the least
Koenig doll with the bell bottoms or locate unit, with the parallel port and audio/video number of copies - meaning the crap-
that 1968 map of Disneyland you've always outputs, might be the most sought-after. But piest titles. Ironic, isn't it?
wanted. As someone who grew up with then again, due to problems with overheating, The PlayStation had its share of
videogames in the 1970's and 80's, I have it is unlikely that many of these units will still games which were never released for
spent a fair amount of time work in the future. some reason or another. The unknown
scouring thrift stores and swap I am certain that the My guess is that the variable here is the ease of copying
meets looking for games and pe- first batch of Dual such games, since they are on CD's
ripherals for long-dead systems. PlayStation will also Shock systems, with rather than ROM cartridge boards. Thrill
Thanks to the Internet, I have become collectible the built-in kaleido- Kill, for example, was an ultra-violent
been able to obtain many scope program and fighting game that EA decided to drop,
sought-after titles. The bad news some day. Scoff if you parallel port for but there are enough copies out there
is that nearly everything collecti- Game Shark usage, floating around that it is relatively easy
ble-even videogames-garners a must, but this isn't too will be the most com- to obtain one. Games such as Rattle-
heavy price. If you are only casu- far-fetched. mon. The blue snake Red and Global Domination, on
ally interested in that first edition "debugging stations" the other hand, aren't so accessible.
copy of "Pride and Prejudice," for provided to develop- The problem is that, thanks to the fact
example, you won't likely be able to outbid a ers and media will perhaps be more valuable, that many people own computers with
fanatic with the screen name but these, too, are subject to the skipping CD-ROM drives, copies can be made
"lizbennet@aol.com." problems and few who own them will be likely easily and cheaply. I therefore don't ex-
I am certain that the PlayStation will also to part with one. A nice collectible system pect PlayStation prototypes to ever
become collectible some day. Scoff if you might be the Net Yarouze PlayStation; the command the same prices that car-
must, but this isn't too far-fetched. Children high price and limited demand for them make tridge prototypes do.
and teenagers eventually grow up and de- such systems rare even today. And yes, the PlayStation also has its
velop both feelings of nostalgia and a dis- share of altered games. Remember the
posable income. The PSX is the first system GAMES fiasco with EA's Tiger Woods containing
that some young kids have ever played, and There are three main types of valuable a hidden South Park video (playable
therefore when they are older they might classic videogames: rare games, prototypes, only on a PC)? The video was removed
start looking for a few PlayStation systems and special editions. When it comes to rare from later releases-voila! Instant col-
and titles for "old times' sake." For all you games, there is an inverse relationship be- lectible! Some "Greatest Hits" versions
budding capitalists out there now realizing tween the popularity of the game and its of games-notably Jet Moto 2, Soviet
that there is money to be made, how can value. It makes sense, actually. Since Aster- Strike, and Lost World-add features,
you figure out what items will be the most oids and Space Invaders were such big hits, functions, and levels not found in the
sought after? it follows that Atari made a lot of those car- regular releases of those games. Not
Using current developments as a guide, tridges. With such a large supply, the value is long ago, a brouhaha erupted over the
I'm providing you with my predictions on extremely low. On the other hand, a game use of a "bandito" character in Toy
what may turn out to be collectors items of such as Chase the Chuckwagon-which was a Story 2. Activision announced it would
the future. Clip this article out, start buying giveaway from Purina dog food and never remove the offending character from
up the items now, and get ready to sell them sold at retail-is in short supply and thus can further versions of the game. Once
for four times the amount you paid... fetch (pun intended) more money. Games again, a collectible is born! Even as I
provided you can keep them in good condi- that were never released at all but exist as write this, I have seen two different cov-
tion for the next 10-15 years! prototypes, such as Save Mary, The A-Team, ers of Star Wars: Jedi Power Battles: a
or Tempest are also highly-prized collectibles. solid black background (Toys R Us) and
SYSTEMS Finally, some games were altered after being a comic illustration (everywhere else).
Most classic systems are not very col- released-names were changed, hidden ini- The game is the same in both cases.
lectible in and of themselves. Only those tials were removed, or glitches were fixed. Terrible, but now we have a potential
Classic Gamer Magazine Spring 2001 15