Mia Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I just got $75 for my birthday recently, and was thinking it would be nice to pad my snes/n64 collection. Replace a few games I've lost, get a few games I never had. There used to be a really cool retro video game store in Ventura on Main street. It had Mario and crap painted on the windows. But it's gone. I live in Santa Barbara, and would like to plan a trip anywhere up to maybe 3 hours in any direction, to visit a good vintage video game store. So I'm here to ask if anyone knows of some good places. Before you refer me to Google, allow me to explain that 95% of what searching the internet produces in this area are online stores. I don't want to place an order online and wait for shipping. I want to browse in a physical retro video game store atmosphere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum4n After All Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 There's 2 of them around me here in Orange County. Video Game Geeks and Games For Less. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mia Posted February 7, 2009 Author Share Posted February 7, 2009 Thanks. I'm scheduling this trip for next Thursday, the 12th. So when that time comes, I'll plan to go to the best or closest of what has been suggested. Or maybe I'll go to all of them. =D lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mia Posted February 9, 2009 Author Share Posted February 9, 2009 Also wondering if anyone knows what kind of prices I'll probably be looking at for SNES and N64 games at these stores. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaster Atoms Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 After Funcoland was bought by Gamestop it was the beginning of the end for vintage game stores. Have you checked in your local newspapers? Besides that I might just reccommend you break down and get them online. You'll at least have a better selection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyuura Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 There's a store in Torrance called Gameland if you wanna check it oot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Wish there was a Disc Replay out in California (moving there soon). It has cases full of SNES, Genesis, NES, PS1, Atari, etc games for all really cheap. And you can sell your games there too and NOT get raped in tradein value like at Gamestop. Right now they have FF3, FF2, and Breath of Fire 1 sitting on the shelf (FF3 = $30, FF2 = $20, BOF1 = $18) that I desperately want to score before I move. McVann's is another used place out here but their prices are ASTRONOMICALLY unfair. They have the first Lufia which I want, but they want like $80 for it. BOF1 there is $60. FF2 is $70. F McVann's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadofsky Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 McVann's is another used place out here but their prices are ASTRONOMICALLY unfair. They have the first Lufia which I want, but they want like $80 for it. BOF1 there is $60. FF2 is $70. F McVann's. I heard of McVann's. There's a place at Florence Mall in KY that specializes in selling used classic games. Atari, Dreamcast, you name it. And not only that, they also have the consoles REFURBISHED, fully functional. I have yet to go back to visit my relatives there in Ohio, so I might stop by that place and check it out. The dreamcast they had was going for 80 bucks. Not bad for a refurbished console! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 I heard of McVann's. There's a place at Florence Mall in KY that specializes in selling used classic games. Atari, Dreamcast, you name it. And not only that, they also have the consoles REFURBISHED, fully functional. I have yet to go back to visit my relatives there in Ohio, so I might stop by that place and check it out. The dreamcast they had was going for 80 bucks. Not bad for a refurbished console! Wat You can get DC's on ebay for like $40, with games. Disc Replay also has consoles (I was going to get a Saturn for Ash's birthday but decided on Silent Hill 3 instead...). McVann's is the biggest ripoff I have ever seen in used gaming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaden Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 WatYou can get DC's on ebay for like $40, with games. Disc Replay also has consoles (I was going to get a Saturn for Ash's birthday but decided on Silent Hill 3 instead...). McVann's is the biggest ripoff I have ever seen in used gaming. Even worse then gamestop, when you trade something in for like, 10-15 and they turn around and sell it for 35-40? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy In Rubber Suit Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Game Dude is an excellent place for used games. They have games of virtually every system including some hard to find games and the games are generally in very good condition with the box and manual with very little markings and the prices are reasonable. It's located in LA though so I don't know how far that would be for you. I've been there twice, the second time I got some decent Sega CD and Saturn games. Almost bought Shining Force III. www.gamedude.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evilhead Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 There's a store in Torrance called Gameland if you wanna check it oot. Yeah, it's a long drive for you, but Gameland is pretty damn awesome. Lots of imports, and lots of games for any old system for decent prices. They have everything. Last time I was there I picked up a few old Sega CD games I had been wanting to play. Gameland is the closest thing I've seen in the States that compares to the blinding glory of the used game shop in Japan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toadofsky Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 WatYou can get DC's on ebay for like $40, with games. Well, my sister is the one who went through the place, along with her husband. She couldn't remember the exact price of it. But I think it was refurbished, along with a few extras, at least that's what she could remember. If I ever get the chance, I'll probably tour it myself, just to see what they have, and if they have reasonable prices. So can you buy it off ebay? Or do I have to get into an auction? Every time I had tried to go through ebay into an auction, I always lost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blaster Atoms Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Gotta love the emulation capability of the Dreamcast. Just today I played Sunset Riders on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hum4n After All Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Also wondering if anyone knows what kind of prices I'll probably be looking at for SNES and N64 games at these stores. Can't be more than 10 dollars. It's been a while since I've been to those stores. There's also Game It Video which may also have vintage games. Haven't been since it used to be Game Square. So I don't know if they changed their ways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solid Krono Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 I'd say your best beat is online or yardsales. Yardsale hunting with a buddy for good old video games can actually be fun. Got an extra SNES with 2 controllers in the box and some random game for like $5 that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mia Posted February 12, 2009 Author Share Posted February 12, 2009 Can't be more than 10 dollars.It's been a while since I've been to those stores. There's also Game It Video which may also have vintage games. Haven't been since it used to be Game Square. So I don't know if they changed their ways. Yeah.. that's what I'm inclined to expect the prices are. I'm just a bit confused because my brother once purchased Secret of Mana for $40. Was the shopkeep just an asshole or is that just a really expensive game for some reason? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekofrog Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 RPGs tend to cost a hell of a lot more. They did when they were new, and they do 15 years later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mia Posted February 15, 2009 Author Share Posted February 15, 2009 RPGs tend to cost a hell of a lot more.They did when they were new, and they do 15 years later. Good to know.. I'm not into too many RPGs. The only one I would probably buy (depending on how much it is) is Chrono Trigger. I didn't end up going to a store yet. I had a tooth extracted and I'm waiting for it to heal. To give an idea why I need to go on a shopping spree.. I grew up with no summer jobs or allowances, and only ended up owning some of my select favorite games (plus some random filler ones). My line-up as of right now (of prior to GCN stuff) is this (there were others, but they were lost in various ways): SNES: Super Mario All-Stars Super Mario World Super Mario Kart Zelda LttP Secret of Mana (somehow I ended up with it.. technically it's my brother's but he doesn't have his own SNES) N64: Zelda OoT Goldeneye Super Mario 64 Mario Kart 64 BattleTanx Star Wars Ep I racer Star Wars Rogue Squadron Cruisin World Pokemon Snap should still be around somewhere.. GB/GBA: Pokemon Red Tetris Zelda Minish Cap ...seriously? That's all the GB games I can find at the moment. Unless you wanna count "Snoopy's Magic Show" which sucks balls and I have no memory of how I ended up with it. Among games I seem to have lost (or in one case stupidly traded away) in the past are: -tons of random GB games (including all the Mario lands..) -Zelda Link's Awakening AND a replacement Link's Awakening DX which I also lost -Duke Nukem 64 and Zero Hour -Majora's Mask -Pokemon Stadium There's probably one or two SNES games I'm missing, but I can't remember. My SNES collection has always sucked. I didn't get it until long after its time, after I already had my N64. I had already played through most SNES games I've played through during rentals, so my collection has ended up being basically Zelda and Mario. Speaking of Zelda and Mario, of my dozen or so GCN games, like 2/3rds of them are Zelda or Mario something.. It's funny. like 4 mario games and 4 more zelda discs as well.. Sorry for TL;DR. I'm still trying to figure out which games I'm gonna get.. I do want Duke Nukem back even if it's a shitty game just cause I liked it, but I'm a little reluctant cause I last saw it just months ago and have hope it could still be in a box somewhere. I thought about Megaman X.. but now I'm thinking the PS2 Megaman collection is probably the way to go for that.. Partly I'm just planning on browsing and being surprised, but any recommendations are welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ajax Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 You might want to grab a super gameboy if you can find one, there was a place at a mall near where I live which had a few of them foing for about 5$ a piece and I picked one up. They're kind of cool to have when you want to play links awakening DX on a big screen with a nifty border. Though not supporting Gameboy color games always made me sad. Also, Super Metroid is a good one, a few years ago I went out of my way to buy a copy online for like 12 bucks and i think i got my moneys worth out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy In Rubber Suit Posted February 15, 2009 Share Posted February 15, 2009 You might want to check Videogame Price Charts for price comparisons. The prices are just averages culled from eBay, Amazon, Half.com and a few other sources if they have it. The places you go to could be using that as a reference, but at the very least you have a barometer to determine if you're getting ripped off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mia Posted February 15, 2009 Author Share Posted February 15, 2009 You might want to grab a super gameboy if you can find one, there was a place at a mall near where I live which had a few of them foing for about 5$ a piece and I picked one up.They're kind of cool to have when you want to play links awakening DX on a big screen with a nifty border. Though not supporting Gameboy color games always made me sad. Also, Super Metroid is a good one, a few years ago I went out of my way to buy a copy online for like 12 bucks and i think i got my moneys worth out of it. Actually I was thinking Gameboy Player for my Gamecube. Seems like the better choice just from what little I know.. Unless there's something about it that sucks. Cause I would like to have the option open to play GBA games on the TV as well. I haven't gotten too much into Metroid games in the past.. though I know Super Metroid would have to engage me more than the last one I played, Metroid Prime 3 for Wii. I had some disagreement with the controls. And I'm one of those left who still admire the (almost) lost art of two dimensional gameplay. You might want to check Videogame Price Charts for price comparisons. The prices are just averages culled from eBay, Amazon, Half.com and a few other sources if they have it. The places you go to could be using that as a reference, but at the very least you have a barometer to determine if you're getting ripped off. Awesome. Thanks. =) EDIT: Average price of Chrono Trigger is $39. I may have to rethink how badly I want to own that.. I've got $75 but most of the other things I want are cheap and I'd like to bring home a lot. =D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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