Retro Megabit

PIKO Interactive Sega Genesis Cases Follow-Up

Posted by Sega Dude on March 28, 2016

Posted in: Community, Restoration. Tagged: clamshell, CustomGameCases.com, piko interactive, sega genesis cases. 7 Comments

After receiving a free aftermarket replacement Sega Genesis game case from PIKO Interactive with my purchase of Water Margin I went ahead and ordered 10 more of these cases directly from the creators CustomGameCases.com.

Below are 10 of my Sega Genesis games with cases that are in good shape but still showing some wear. The subtleties of aging for these particular cases is mostly lost in the image below. They photograph very well! But in person it is noticeable.

What is easier to see is that they are all missing their hanging tabs. Over the years I’ve been very diligent about swapping cases whenever a chance comes up to slowly upgrade each case to the best ones I’ve found. I started doing this early enough for my Sega Master System games and I believe everyone of them has a good case with a hanging tab. But for my Genesis collection I still have about 35 cases that I wish were in better shape.

Which is why in my previous post I was so excited about the high quality of these CustomGameCases.com replacement cases. Below are my 10 new CustomGameCases.com replacement cases. They really do look very shinny and new. But if you look close you might notice a fault that I overlooked when I had only 1 on hand. The plastic cover sleeves are inconsistent. Some fully span the case completely from top to bottom. While others are about 1-2 millimeters short. Yes, I understand that I’m fussing over a few millimeters but it makes the different of entirely covering the Artwork Insert or leaving some of it exposed.

Look at all those pristine hanging tabs!.. hmm, the glory is somewhat tainted now by those inconsistent cover sleeves. It’s all I see now!

I am exaggerating a bit. After putting the games into their new cases I found that they still look very good. Really good in fact. For the most part the cover art from each game is in good shape and that combined with cases that are actually new the total combined effort left me with something that I haven’t seen since the 90’s… Genesis games that look brand new.

YEAH! Check out those brand new hanging tabs!!! I love an intact hanging tab.

While writing this post I realized that CustomGameCases.com cases are not the only good quality aftermarket cases that I own. I had almost forgotten that I have the reprint edition of Pier Solar by Watermelon Team and it’s truly perfect. Unfortunately they don’t sell empty cases. Hopefully someday this will change.

And below are my new CustomGameCases.com cases feeling right at home on a shelf with the rest of the collection.

Yeah, I’ve got a complete in the box Wonder Boy in Monster World… no big deal.

To eBay or Not to eBay

Posted by Sega Dude on March 23, 2016

Posted in: Article, Community. Tagged: alternative, brick and mortar, convention, ebay, forums, game swap, retro video games. 11 Comments

I’m going to start by confessing that the Sega Dude and eBay have had a falling out. I’m tired of premium prices on both goods and shipping. And I’m actually offended when I see eBay’s ‘customs services’ included via eBay’s Global Shipping Program as if it’s a feature that the buyer will benefit from.

I’ve been using eBay since the early 2000’s (maybe earlier) and on December 2015 I closed my eBay and PayPal account. I believe I’ve suffered from the ‘frog in boiling water‘ syndrome. Maybe someday I’ll go back but so far I’m surviving life without eBay. And my bank account is fatter for it.

What’s the alternative for retro video gaming? For me I’ve found that forums are really good places for buying and trading retro games. If you decide to check out forums do yourself a favor and do not treat them as stores. Treat them as communities and participate in discussions and see what others are up to. You’re going to have to be known to established members before you’ll really be able to benefit from their markets. The markets are for invested community members and not Joe off the street.

I really do enjoy buying games directly from other gamers just like myself and cutting out the middle man. Doing so has really helped reduce the cost of many of the games I’ve been buying. Of course there is no denying that eBay is convenient and the single most likely place to find that special retro game that you’ve been looking for. So maybe it would be rash to run out and cancel your own account but there is no harm in expanding your shopping horizons and peeling back the curtain a little bit more to see what else this Internet of ours has to offer.

If you’re curious here are a few excellent retro gaming related forums to check out:

www.sega-16.com

www.racketboy.com

www.smspower.org

assemblergames.com

neo-geo.com

The alternatives don’t end with forums.

Occasionally I’ll find good deals at local retro video game stores and buy a few games or do some trading. These are very fun places to visit. But better still are retro video gaming conventions. Thanks to Nintendo Joe I’ve found out about many of these events both close to home and in neighboring cities. We both really enjoy going to these gatherings and we always seem to come home with a few good finds.

Before I even completed this post I have already re-signed up for a new PayPal account. I’ve learned that PayPal is pretty much required for purchasing games from individual gamers on the forums scene. People know how to use PayPal and trust in the protection it offers. So, I managed to go about 2.5 months without PayPal and I now see it as a requirement for the hobby. I still do not have an eBay account and I’ll tell you about the things I miss. eBay was very convenient and affordable for a bunch of miscellaneous things. I’m currently looking for good alternate places to buy clear plastic case protectors for Sega Genesis games, cap kits and game manuals (and other misc items). And for these reasons I may someday return to eBay but it’s my hope that I’ll manage just fine without it. Of course it would be better if value returned to eBay but it has been lost now for many years now and I’m not too optimistic. This is my opinion and I do believe it’s shared among many other people. If you use and enjoy eBay I’m happy to hear it. Maybe you can give me some pointers? 🙂 For me the final price of the things I’ve been buying after all is said and done has consistently just been too high for my liking. I’ve been spoiled for many years buying games for great prices and maybe that’s all there is to this. But I do believe this venting has been very therapeutic, so thank you for listening!

What are your favorite types of places to hunt for Retro Video Games?

Update: Since this post I managed to go about six months before signing up for a new ebay account. Why? The short answer is sometimes you will find good prices on ebay and sometimes the convenience is worth the premium. *For the specifics of my return the see very bottom of this post.
Update: As of Dec. 2016 I have closed my ebay account again. I just don’t feel like I’m getting good value there. Let’s see how long it lasts this time 🙂
Update: As of Jan 2019 I am still without an ebay account. It’s been a little over two years and I feel better for it. With massively inflated prices, hidden/bogus fees and misrepresented reproductions/bootlegs it’s hard to find value in ebay. I have no desire to go back.

Stone Age Gamer BitBoxes Vol. 2

Posted by Sega Dude on March 20, 2016

Posted in: Hardware, Modifications, NES, Nintendo, Restoration, SNES. Tagged: bitbox, case, cover, NES, nintendo, snes, stone age gamer. 4 Comments

After previously sampling a few Stone Age Gamer BitBoxes for five of my favorite SNES carts I’ve decide it’s time to dive in.

For anyone not familiar with BitBoxes they are aftermarket cases for your Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) game cartridges or for your Super Nintendo (SNES) game cartridges. If you’re not able to find or afford to collect your NES and SNES games in their original cardboard boxes then the BitBox might be for you.

When adding this second order of new BitBoxes to the previous 5 my collection of NES and SNES game cartridges have started to look pretty impressive.

Below you’ll see my new game cases are for Final Fantasy III, Chrono Trigger, Breathe of Fire, Super Mario World, Top Gear and Street Fighter II Turbo.

My Final Fantasy III game cart I bought from a forum member at neo-geo.com for $55 USD including shipping which is about $75-$80 CAD. This is by far the most I’ve spent on any SNES game but we’re talking about Final Fantasy III so I don’t have to say it but I will, ‘totally worth it’.
Chrono Triger I traded for at Retro Game Brothers. It had a $130 CAD price tag and I had to trade in a lot of stuff for it: 2 boxed Neo Geo Pocket games, 3 Genesis games (2 were boxed), 4 NES carts, 1 SNES cart and about 5 complete PS2 games. The only rare items of the lot would be the two NGPC games and maybe Two Crude Dudes for the Genesis. The rest of the SNES games below were given to me by a good friend a year or so back.

Of the Star Wars trilogy games I only ever played Super Star Wars back in the day but I wanted all three for the collection and to try out. I’ve read that Super Empire Strikes Back is very good. I forget what they cost me but they were not expensive games. All of Star Fox, Cybernator and F-Zero were given to me by the same friend that I mentioned above. In my eyes he’s a very wonderful human being 🙂

Even though my main focus has always been the Sega Genesis, Japanese Sega Mega Drive and the Sega Master System over the years I have been picking up loose SNES and NES carts. I haven’t been as diligent about recording what I’ve paid for my Nintendo games. I think I paid about $30-40 CAD for Mega Man X which was the most expensive of the 6 below. (I’m also noticing that Super Street Fighter II Turbo managed to sneak into the photo shoot a 2nd time… oops.)

Below are Donkey Kong Country, Mega Man X, Super Punch Out, Super Mario World and Super R-Type.

The last two SNES BitBox cases I got for some of my SNES carts are Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts and Super Mario All Stars.

As good as BitBoxes are they’re not cheap considering how many you’re likely to buy if you start at all. As a result I’ve actually sold many of my NES carts because they were not games that I was really interested in and for every game cartridge I sold that would be one less BitBox I had to buy. I know, I know… I’m crazy. What am I collecting? Cool old retro video games or boxes? The up side of my new philosophy is that it really forces me to consider how much I really want a particular game. It’s because of this that I feel like I’m going to end up with a quality collection of games that are either really good or are games that I have a lot of nostalgia for.

The next collecting trap that BitBoxes landed me in is offering a convenient place to store manuals. Just great… so yeah, now I’m looking for game manuals too.

BitBox case are not identical for SNES and NES cartridges. Each are built specifically for SNES or NES and they are not interchangeable. The NES BitBoxes aren’t as deep (marginally) and are skinnier than the SNES BitBoxes (both are identical in height). Other wise the quality and function is the same. The SNES BitBoxes can also accommodate a Super Famicom cart instead of a SNES cart if you collect for both systems.

This was my first order for NES BitBoxes and I’m enjoying them just as much at the SNES BitBoxes.

Below we have Kung Fu, Metroid, Excite Bike, Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, Castlevania, Rygar, Journey to Silius and Punchout.

Next up are Ghost ‘n Goblins, Super C, Final Fantasy, The Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link.

Pretty awesome right?! Here’s what they cost me. Each BitBox cost $4 USD plus 50 cents if you want a document strap. A document strap is a sleeve/band of clear plastic with one adhesive side. You open the BitBox and stick the document strap to the inside of the left side of the case, as close to the bottom as you can. (See Super Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts below) Once installed you can slide a game manual into this clear plastic sleeve and it will be snugly held in place. At the moment I don’t have any document straps for my NES BitBoxes but I am going to get some.

I can’t really argue with Stone Age Gamers prices on these cases. They have created a really good product and if you’re looking for a nice case for your carts I really do highly recommend BitBoxes. Personally, I do like them more than UGC’s (Universal Game Cases). That being said UGC’s are still a great option because they also look good and they cost a lot less. My good friend Nintendo Joe has managed to buy UGC’s for about $1 each CAD when buying in bulk. You can also get a small price break when buying BitBoxes in bulk but they still cost significantly more money.

My only real problem with BitBoxes is I’m spending Canadian dollars on a product only available in the US and I have to deal with very expensive shipping costs (and I run the risk of duty and broker fees which can add up to another 80-90% more money). By the time my BitBoxes arrived at my door I’ll have spent about $6.50 CAD each. Then I go to my local print shop and get my covers printed for about another $3.25 each (includes printing and cutting). So BitBox cases will cost me about $9.75 each. Which circles back to my plan of trimming down the collection and other creative hobbyist tactics like removing my wife from this blog to help ensure a continued and healthy gaming budget.

If the cost alone didn’t hit hard enough some of my BitBoxes arrived damaged (despite being packaged well) and this was pretty upsetting. I took some pictures of the damage and emailed Stone Age Gamer and they did not question or hesitate. Right away they mailed me replacement cases. This initially bad experience transformed into a huge amount of trust and faith in Stone Age Gamer. Yes, you’re paying a premium compared to a similar product (UGC) but in my experience you will be taken care of.

Below are all of my current SNES carts that I have BitBoxes for. All lined up like good little soldiers supported by the very few boxed SNES games that I have.

Of the boxed SNES games all but Magic Sword were given to me by a good friend who had them kicking around in his basement for many years.

Below you can see the size difference between a Stone Age Gamer BitBox and an original Super Nintendo cardboard case. The BitBoxes are a little bit larger.

Below is my smaller contingent of NES games in their BitBoxes. I’m loving how these boxes dress up the collection and I already have another order placed with Stone Age Gamer.

All of the custom covers for BitBoxes can be found for free for anyone at the following to links:

NES Covers:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/07vlzgyficoohw0/AACa7UzwyI16MocIjCTDC5sda

SNES Covers:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/aqbad5j2xz5gger/AABXqs5NRanbDVIdP-vzGhW7a?dl=0

What do you do with your carts? Are you content with loose carts? Do you only buy complete and in the original box games? What aftermarket Retro Video Gaming stuff are you enjoying?

Save

Gifts from Nintendo Joe

Posted by Sega Dude on March 9, 2016

Posted in: Collection New Additions, Games, Genesis (North America), SEGA. Tagged: bart vs the space mutants, cambat cars, cliffhanger, genesis, might and magic, sega, virtua racing. 3 Comments

At first glance you might think that the Sega Dude and Nintendo Joe just cannot exist peacefully in the same Universe. But despite a wee bit of tension whenever we enter a Thrift Store together we’ve found a pretty good balance because of our differing ideologies. To the point where we’re almost regularly passing games back and forth to help fatten up the others collection.

Very recently Nintendo Joe visited a local thrift shop and bought two complete Sega Genesis games for me that I did not have. How’s that for a nice surprise? I’ll tell you, it’s pretty nice.

Below are Virtua Racing and Cliffhanger for the Sega Genesis. They’re not in perfect shape but they are in good condition. As an added bonus Nintendo Joe managed to get an addition 30% off these games which brought the cost down to about $18 CAD for both after tax. Even better than that Nintendo Joe didn’t take any money from me! (I might not have offered.)

If you zoom in and look real close you might notice that these prices are reduced. The price tag hidden beneath the top sticker on Virtua Racing was originally $28 and Cliffhanger was originally $8. NJ and I have both noticed that Thrift Stores have been really jacking up the price on anything retro video game related.

For a store that sells ‘as is’ and offers no refunds for any reason what so ever and staples price tags onto Sega Genesis cases I would think they would clue in as to why they’re not getting the inflated prices that seem to think these games are worth.

With the reduced prices I hope they’re learning that gamers and collectors don’t actually throw their money at anything retro.

I was able to pull out the staples and the holes left behind are not too bad. You can see them if you go looking for them but the cases are still intact.

Below is my complete Cliffhanger for the Genesis.

And below is my complete Virtua Racing for the Sega Genesis.

The manual for Virtua Racing was actually a lot more bent and wrinkled than what you see above. I put it under a few boxes to help press it flat. It’s better now but I’m hoping to improve it even more. It’s currently back under a stack of heavy boxes for a second treatment.

Nintendo Joe has also contributed to my comparatively small Nintendo collection. Often while rummaging through his stuff I would find games that he was planning on selling. Many of these he would let me take for noth’in! (I’m pretty sure he knows I’ve been taking them.)
Here are King of the Monsters, Fighter’s History and Doomsday Warrior for the Super Nintendo that he sent my way.

Many months ago now Nintendo Joe and all of my close buddies pitched in to get me some Sega Genesis games as a gift. I’ve been lazy with my blogging and the following games did not get the attention they deserve.

So even though at the time I said so in person I would like to thank my friends again for getting me something that contributes a lot to a hobby that I really enjoy. Below are Combat Cars, Might and Magic Gates to Another World and The Simpson’s Bart vs. the Space Mutants.

Again all these games are all complete and in Good Condition.

My friends did not cheap out. Nintendo Joe got these games from a local Retro Video Game store called Iceman Video Games and together after tax they cost $100 CAD.

Thanks again Dudes for these excellent games! (of all my friends only NJ will see this.)
And an extra thank you to Nintendo Joe for being a great friend to collect old Retro Video Games with. **There’s something in the mail heading your way.**

Wonder Boy Reincarnated as Monster Boy!

Posted by Sega Dude on March 5, 2016

Posted in: Community. Tagged: FDG Entertainment, monster boy, ps4, wonder boy, xbox one. 3 Comments

Wonder Boy has been one of my favorite video game series since I first discovered it in the late 1980’s on my Sega Master System. The first installment (Wonder Boy) was a very simple concept and a lot of fun to play. I have very fond memories playing hotseat Wonder Boy all through the night with my good buddy EvilKalman. We were very young and knew nothing about the mysteries of the kitchen but we managed to bake up a mountain of Rice Crispy Squares for fuel and we were determined to keep at Wonder Boy until we beat the game!

Wonder Boy has gone through a lot of changes with each installment and as each version added a ton of great new features and gameplay mechanics I always found that the previous versions were still really fun games and manage to hold their own.

Thankfully Wonder Boy has not been forgotten! And he has returned to us in Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom.

News has been circulating for a long time now about Monster Boy but now we are finally close enough that the game feels very real. FDG Entertainment is promising a release date for 2016 with an exact release date coming sometime down the road.

Wonder Boy… I mean Monster Boy has never looked soooo good! These screen shots are really something to get excited about.

Monser Boy Town
Monster Boy will be coming to both the PS4 and Xbox One. For more details on the game check out this PS4 Blog announcement.

And if you think you can handle some Japanese Pop-Rock check out Monster Boy in action:

We never did manage to beat Wonder Boy on the Sega Master System but I remember thinking that we had come a really long way. It was a massive amount of fun and I’m very pleased that EvilKalman and I will now have a chance re-join forces to save the Cursed Kingdom.

Welcome Back Wonder Boy!

Trading Games at GameSwap

Posted by Sega Dude on January 3, 2016

Posted in: Community, Games, Mega Drive (Japanese), NES, Nintendo, SEGA, SNES. Tagged: adventure island, Gunstar Heroes, japanese, Joe & Mac, mega drive, NES, nintendo joe, sega, snes, verytex. 6 Comments

For a long time now I’ve been selling many of my old video games in an effort to establish a focus on the gaming platforms that I really want to collect for and to reduce the amount of stuff in my basement.

At first it was very easy and I was able to sell lots of games. Then as my inventory was slowly reduced and I was left with the more common stuff and sales started to slow down.

What do you do then when selling at Retro Video Gaming Conventions and on-line classified are no longer the bounty they use to be?

Well, you go to a professional of course.

It might sound simple enough but what has transpired here was not my doing. Thanks to my brilliant and amazingly thoughtful wife something wonderful has happened.

While trying to hunt down the perfect Christmas gift for the Sega Dude my wife reached out to the owner of a local retro video game store called GameSwap.
And against all odds she found a complete, very good condition, hard to find spaceship shooter that I did not have. Let me tell you that is no small feat considering that my Japanese Sega Mega Drive collection includes about 250 games.

The game she found is a Japanese Sega Mega Drive exclusive called Verytex.

When I found out the price for Verytex was $120 CAD I immediately sent my wife out to buy me a much more expensive gift for Christmas that looks something like this 🙂
**Feel free to comment on how wonderful she is!**

I then grabbed a banker box full of Xbox original and PS2 games and headed off to GameSwap.

Only once before have I ever spent $120 on a single Sega Mega Drive game and that was for Panorama Cotton. Even my copy of Eliminate Down cost me less! And I once spent $100 on a bootleg copy of Tetris. Before those titles, $60 CAD would have been a very expensive Sega game for me to purchase and that did not happen often.

In short I didn’t want to pay hard cash for this game; despite how much I wanted it. I let the store owner pluck out the games that interested him the most and he showed me how he valued them. There is no mystery or randomness to his calculations. I always feel good about how open and honest he is (this was not my first time dealing with GameSwap). And as if by fate the games he selected came to a store credit value of $120. Keep in mind this $120 credit came from about half a banker box of games. To some it might feel odd to trade so many for just one game.

Minus what looks like two Wii games and a few jewel cases; below are the games I brought in to trade with.

This is what it took to win my prize.

My logic goes something like this; I have tried to sell the above games for a very long time, I no longer play or collect for Xbox original and PS2, I have too much stuff and the value of almost all of those games is very low.

And just like that Verytex was a done deal!

Then I asked him to reconsider the remaining games that he didn’t want. Keep in mind that he didn’t want them but in the end he was willing trade the remaining games for a loose copy of Joe & Mac for the SNES and Adventure Island for the NES. Both games were priced at $30 each.

Joe & Mac for SNES and Adventure Island for NES.

I spent no actual cash, got some great games that I actually want and supported a local Retro Video Game store (and a good guy). It was a very good day.

If you’re able be sure to visit GameSwap at:
1601 Birchmount Rd, Scarborough, ON M1P 2H5
Phone:(416) 901-8820

And follow GameSwap on Facebook.
www.facebook.com/gameswap/

Meanwhile… when I was off at GameSwap my wife was rediscovering another Christmas gift that she hunted down but forgot to give me. So when I came home I was handed a very small but beautifully wrapped gift. The very second the festive wrapping paper touched my hand I knew right away there was a Sega Genesis cartridge inside. Oh yes, the Sega Dude is that good. But what game could it be?

Gunstar Heroes!

Check out that price!

When I go hunting for awesome Sega Genesis games at thrift stores I find games like NHL Hockey ’94, Wheel of Fortune and Crystal’s Pony Tale. When the wife goes she’s finds Gunstar Heroes! It’s an action run and gun platformer with some of the best graphics and animation that has ever been produced for the Sega Genesis.

Yeah sure, I’ve already got it complete in the box for both the Sega Genesis and Japanese Sega Mega Drive (no big deal) but for $1.99 I too would have bought it in a heart beat!

I later learned that the master mind behind the above Gunstar Heroes was actually Nintendo Joe who was very diligently following my wife’s orders to find something ‘awesome’. Yes, she’s the boss of a lot of different people and not just her husband 😛

Thank you Asawa! You’re the best wife I’ve ever had!
And thank you Nintendo Joe! You’re best Retro Video Gaming buddy I’ve ever had! …even despite the fact that you refuse to get a SONY SP4.