2008 Price Predictions 5 Month Follow-Up

In January I made some predictions on which games would increase or decrease in value every month of the year. Three more months have passed since my last check-up so I think its time to see how I'm doing now after five predictions. For those keeping score at home, I was one for two in my first check-up.

April 2008 Prediction

"Grand Theft Auto games will increase in price because of GTA IV"
I actually did a full write up about GTA IV raising old Grand Theft Auto resale prices, so I won't repeat everything. In summary the average GTA game on Xbox and PS2 increased about 10% after GTA IV was released. So I got the April prediction correct, which brings my score to 2 of 3.

May 2008 Prediction

"Chronicles of Narnia goes up in price because of new movie"
This was a much riskier prediction compared to the GTA one in April because it was based upon a movie to video game relationship. In June I wrote an article showing that some movies do increase classic games prices but I didn't know that when I made my prediction. Turns out I got this one right, but only slightly. 3 out of 6 Chronicles of Narnia Lion Witch and the Wardrobe games increased in price. But overall the average price did increase because the increases were bigger than the decreases. 3 out of 4 right.

June 2008 Prediction

"Metal Gear Solid games will increase in price because of MGS 4"
7 of the 8 Metal Gear Solid games increased in price from May to June. The only exception was Metal Gear Solid 2 for Xbox which dropped $0.02. Games like Metal Gear Solid 3, Metal Gear Solid for Gameboy Color, and Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes had very substantial price spikes of 50% or more. My prediction also said that Metal Gear Solid for Playstation 1 would NOT increase in price because it was so expensive already. The price did increase from May to June but the price plunged from January to February the month after I made my prediction so most of the price that I said was too high already erased sooner than I thought. Overall I predicted 6 out of 8 MGS games correctly. 4 out of 5 right.

So far in 2008 I'm batting .800. I haven't reached the half way point but I think that is pretty good so far.

Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes Becomes Rare

Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes has become a rare collectible in the matter of months. The game has always been a relatively expensive game as you can see from the chart below. Selling for about $20-25 used for most of last year. But in the last six months MGS Twin Snakes has increased in price every month and now sells for about $53 used and $124.99 NEW.

What caused Twin Snakes to become such a collectible so fast and will it last? The release of Metal Gear Solid 4 probably helped ignite interest in the Metal Gear series again which increased demand. The game didn't sell very well so there aren't many copies available to meet this new demand. But the price increased nearly 150% from January 2008 to today. That is much bigger than previous sequel price increases we have seen like Grand Theft Auto and Pokemon.

This price spike is more than a temporary increase because a new game comes out. I think collectors have decided for some reason that this is a game they want for their collections. This kind of increase will keep prices high for the foreseeable future.

Sealed Auctions: Battletoads for NES

All the auctions listed in this article series are brand new and sealed. They are relatively hard to find or sought after by collectors.

Battletoads - NES

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-31-08 13:00:09
The game sells for $9 used and $130 new.
See Historic Battletoads Prices

Metal Gear Solid 3 Subsistence Limited Edition - Playstation 2

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-29-08 09:56:20
The game sells for $170 used and $330 new.
See Historic Metal Gear Solid 3 Subsistence Limited Edition Prices

Pokemon Blue - Gameboy

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-31-08 11:39:44
The game sells for $10 used and $99 new.
See Historic Pokemon Blue Prices

Samurai Shodown - Super Nintendo

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-31-08 13:17:51
The game sells for $5 used and $120 new.
See Historic Samurai Shodown Prices

Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes - Gamecube

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-31-08 23:23:26
The game sells for $56 used and $96 new.
See Historic Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes Prices

Zelda Ocarina Gold Cartridge - Nintendo 64

Auction Link
Ends: Aug-03-08 18:00:00
The game sells for $32 used and $200 new.
See Historic Zelda Ocarina of Time Collectors Edition Prices

Sealed Auctions: Team Buddies for PS1

All the auctions listed in this article series are brand new and sealed. They are relatively hard to find or sought after by collectors.

Team Buddies - Playstation 1

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-25-08 15:44:41
The game sells for $52 used and $130 new.
See Historic Team Buddies Prices

Mario's Time Machine - Super Nintendo

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-25-08 21:00:42
The game sells for $7 used and $90 new.
See Historic Mario's Time Machine Prices

Star Ocean Second Story - Playstation

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-27-08 18:45:52
The game sells for $35 used and $120 new.
See Historic Star Ocean Second Story Prices

Castlevania III - Nintendo NES

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-28-08 18:03:04
The game sells for $8 used and $199 new.
See Historic Castlevania III Prices

Magic Knight Rayearth - Sega Saturn

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-29-08 20:04:31
The game sells for $56 used and $179 new.
See Historic Magic Knight Rayearth Prices

Legend of Zelda - Nintendo NES

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-26-08 17:41:19
The game sells for $9 used and $100 new.
See Historic Legend of Zelda Prices

5 Rare Nintendo DS Games | Most Expensive DS Games

The Nintendo DS has been available for a little more than three years in the US but some games and limited edition bundles are already rarities and collector's items. Below is a list of the rare and expensive Nintendo DS games and bundles that are selling for more than the initial MSRP.

Metallic Rose Nintendogs Bundle

Used Price: $170 New Price: $250
This bundle was released for the 2007 holiday season and includes a special edition Pink Nintendo DS with a paw print and a copy of Nintendogs Best Friends. The bundle originally sold for $149.99 in stores but Nintendo had a hard time keeping them in-stock because they were so popular. The Bundle now sells for almost $100 more than original retail price.
See Current Pink DS Bundle Prices

Monopoly / Boggle / Yahtzee / Battleship

New Price: $70 Used Price: $45
This game came out the first month of the DS's release. It has four classic board games on one cartridge. These same board games can be purchased separately as different GBA 3-in-1 packages, but this four game pack sells for a premium. The game sells for almost $40 more than MSRP and $50 more than the other 4-in-1 board game compilations.
See Current Monopoly / Boggle / Yahtzee / Battleship Prices

Electroplankton

New Price: $68 Used Price: $43
Electroplankton made its first appearance at GDC 2005 as a demo of what the DS could do. A DJ "played" the game and made some music during a presentation by Nintendo. The game was actually released in the US in January 2006 but only through online retailers and the Nintendo World store. The game developed a very devoted, niche following who are willing to pay top dollar to make some music.
See Current Electroplankton Prices

Tetris DS

New Price: $60 Used Price: $40
Nintendo released this Tetris game for the Nintendo DS with 10 player local play, online multiplayer, and many Nintendo themed levels. The game sold more than 2 million copies worldwide but Nintendo doesn't sell it anymore. Tetris fans have to pay almost double the retail price for a new copy of the game.
See Current Tetris DS Prices

Clubhouse Games

New Price: $50 Used Price: $40
Released in late 2006 by Nintendo, Clubhouse Games is a collection of 42 card games, board games, parlor games, and action games. The game was part of Nintendo's "Touch Generation" series of games for the DS. Unlike other games in this series which sell for years and years, Nintendo has stopped publishing the title and it is very hard to find in stores.
See Current Clubhouse Games Prices



See Prices For All Nintendo DS Games
Video game prices provided by VGPC.com

Sealed Auctions: Panzer Dragoon Saga

All the auctions listed in this article series are brand new and sealed. They are relatively hard to find or sought after by collectors.

Panzer Dragoon Saga - Sega Saturn

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-23-08 13:57:44
The game sells for $215 used and $440 new.
See Historic Panzer Dragoon Saga Prices

Super Mario NES Series - Gameboy Advance

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-24-08 21:47:33
The game sells for $26 used and $110 new.
See Historic Super Mario NES Series Prices

Castlevania Chronicles - Playstation 1

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-24-08 08:09:36
The game sells for $41 used and $99 new.
See Historic Castlevania Chronicles Prices

161 New Sealed NES Games - Nintendo NES

Auction Link
Ends: Aug-01-08 13:12:31

Tales of Eternia - Playstation 1 (Japanese)

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-29-08 02:58:55

Signed Albert Odyssey - Sega Saturn

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-23-08 16:47:46
The game sells for $40 used and $??? new. We haven't seen a new version of this game yet. But this one is signed and will probably sell for several hundred dollars.
See Historic Albert Odyssey Prices

Rare Auctions: Stadium Events

This is the first in a series of articles highlighting rare game auctions on ebay. Unlike the other "sealed auctions" series, these games are opened but the games are rare collectibles and usually very hard to find.

Stadium Events Complete - NES

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-22-08 06:52:18

Donkey Kong Country Competition - Super Nintendo

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-23-08 10:49:26

Menace Beach - Nintendo NES

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-19-08 08:05:11

Intelligent Qube - Playstation 1

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-19-08 19:59:48

Aero Fighter - Super Nintendo

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-20-08 19:48:56

Guilty Gear - Playstation 1

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-23-08 13:41:09

Sealed Auctions: Ikaruga for Gamecube

All the auctions listed in this article series are brand new and sealed. They are relatively hard to find or sought after by collectors.

Ikaruga - Gamecube

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-18-08 19:24:04
The game sells for $30 used and $117 new.
See Historic Ikaruga Prices

Guardian Heroes - Sega Saturn

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-20-08 20:19:49
The game sells for $75 used and $??? new (this is the first one we've seen).
See Historic Guardian Heroes Prices

Vanguard Bandit - Playstation 1

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-17-08 19:18:59
The game sells for $35 used and $84 new.
See Historic Vanguard Bandit Prices

Xenogears - Playstation 1

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-20-08 18:23:17
The game sells for $45 used and $85 new.
See Historic Xenogears Prices

Mana Khemia with Action Figure - Playstation 2

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-17-08 21:09:31
The game sells for $34 used and $41 new (prices for regular version, not limited edition). Limited edition only printed 1,000 copies.
See Historic Mana Khemia Prices

Zelda Collector's Edition - Gamecube

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-19-08 13:29:52
The game sells for $32 used and $64 new.
See Historic Zelda Collector's Edition Prices

Sealed Auctions: Silent Hill Collection

All the auctions listed in this article series are brand new and sealed. They are relatively hard to find or sought after by collectors.

Silent Hill 1-4 - Playstation 1 and Playstation 2

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-20-08 21:36:42
These games sell for $14-30 used and $20-60 new.
See Historic Silent Hill Prices

Spawn In The Demon's Hand - Dreamcast

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-21-08 15:32:35
The game sells for $15 used and $130 new.
See Historic Spawn In the Demon's Hand Prices

Valkyrie Profile - Playstation

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-19-08 22:09:27
The game sells for $92 used and $227 new.
See Historic Valkyrie Profile Prices

NES Challenge Set - Nintendo NES

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-18-08 20:08:44
I don't know how much this system sells for new. The original console sells for $109 new.
See Historic Nintendo NES Console Prices

Zelda Link to the Past - Super Nintendo

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-16-08 19:57:37
The game sells for $12 used and $82 new.
See Historic Zelda Link to the Past Prices

Final Fantasy X Black Label - Playstation 2

Auction Link
Ends: Jul-23-08 17:00:00
The game sells for $12 used and $17 new. (black label will be more expensive)
See Historic Final Fantasy X Prices