Video Game Collecting

There are a number of posts here on www.salzmafia.com about finding retro videogames from a thrift store.  For me specifically I’ve found more hardware and hard to find games in thrift stores than from any game store.  For example, in the past year I’ve found:

• 2 SEGA Genesis: 1 complete with two controllers, and one with a licensed and an unlicensed controller
• 1 Dreamcast: Two controllers
• Countless PS1′s
• Atleast one PS2
• One yellowed Super Nintendo
• 1 complete Nintendo NES
• 2 loose Nintendo NES’s
• 9 complete SEGA Genesis Games (included game, case, and manual)
• 15 loose Nintendo NES games
• Several Guitar controllers
• Several Steering wheel controllers
• A metal DDR dance pad
• And probably a lot more that doesn’t come to mind

About 12 years ago I lived in Hayward California and there was a thrift store that I frequented.  I know I picked up atleast five Atari 2600s over the course of a few months, a few Nintendo NES Advantage Joysticks, and more.  There was a classier thrift store in Alameda that had an endless supply of Atari games it seems.  Many of which were in their original shrink wrap still.

The good news is that after all of these years I’ve gotten a pretty keen eye at finding games in a thrift store.  These are the tips I follow:

• The best day and time of the week to go thrifting is Friday mornings.  It’s been my experience that all thrift stores are mad houses from Friday afternoon until Sunday evening.  Generally it seems that by Friday afternoon you’re going to be hard-pressed to find anything valuable.  It also seems that during the week the thrift stores will put more of their nicer merchandise out on Thursdays and Fridays for the weekend rush.
• Older thrift stores in low-income areas will have better finds then a newly opened thrift store in a newer neighborhood.
• There are four key places you want to search when you’re in the thrift store.  Generally all thrift stores will have a display case with more expensive nicer items, an electronics section, a toy section, and a VHS/DVD section.  The display cases will mostly have complete game systems and cartridges if there are any to find.  The electronics section will generally have consoles, but no power supplies or RFU adaptors, etc.  This is also where you’ll mostly find controllers.  Although rare, the toy section will occasionally have boxed games or systems (I’ve found at least 2 complete Nintendo NES, a complete Magnavox Odyssey, and a complete Atari 7800).  The VHS/DVD section will have the occasional PS1, PS2 and XBOX game stashed there, but you can frequently find SEGA Genesis games stashed there as well.  The SEGA Genesis cases kinda look like the plastic clam-shells that special (mostly family) VHS movies came in.  They will often get tossed into this section.  Genesis cases are a little bit shorter, but wider.  Their cases are always black.  When scanning a huge shelf of movies I concentrate around the top two inches of the cases on the first pass, and the bottom two inches of the second pass.
• If I find any video game merchandise, such as a system, or controller, or even a game, the first thing I always ask myself is “where is the rest of it?”.  When people donate to a thrift store they usually donate a bunch of stuff at once.  Sure, a piece or two might be missing from a system, but it seems unlikely to me that if someone was donating gaming merchandise they would donate just one piece.  Items do get scattered pretty easily so if you do find a single item you may want to do a couple more passes before you leave.
• It is of my personal preference but I’d cautious of any videogame system that is disc based, is missing screws, has yellowed, smells of cigarette smoke or pet dander, or any system that appears to have any sticky residue.  Sticky residue = roaches.
• When it comes to games I’m really only interested in games I don’t have, or that I know are of significant value.  I’m not going to buy Anticipation for Nintendo NES.  I will buy a copy of Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt however (I can always put it with a system I find and therefore have a complete Nintendo to sell or give as a gift).
• If you find loose cartridges that do not have a price make sure you tell the cashier that you found them in the VHS or book section.  Some stores will come up with a ridiculous price for unmarked merchandise.  It doesn’t hurt to act annoyed.  Thrift stores are often ran by religious organizations, and therefore employ soft-hearted people.  They will avoid confrontation.  If you  have no morals there are two other “tricks” you can do for a reduced price.  The first is scratch the label off before you get to the counter and hope that they will give you a lower price.  The other is two chew gum and apply it on the merchandise and act offended at the counter.
• And finally if you have a willing partner bring them along.  A second set of eyes never hurts.