Holy crap on a cracker! Gotta love ebay!...or hate it!

[nat]

A moment of silence for a good company gone bad.

Make no mistake: This is a new company that bought the rights to the name of the old company.

It may look like TZD, but it isn't the TZD you know.

[geise]

Man I had no idea that this thread would bring out all this shit!  I was just slacking at work with nothing to do and said to myself "Hey lets see if there's a version of Dynastic Hero on ebay that I'll never be able to afford!"  Holy hell I didn't know it would be that much.  It's sad I didn't order from TZD back in the mid 90's  I've had my Duo since launch, and I didn't buy those last couple games cause I was a broke High School/College student.  Plus I spent all my money on a Sega Saturn instead in 95.  Now I have the money, but I'd rather pay my mortgage for the month.  Actually that game is just a couple bucks more than my mortgage.  It's just sad that this is how it is.  f*cktards that don't give two shits except taking advantage of someone that cave's cause they want a game so bad that they'll eventually pay that much money.  I seriously doubt that there are really people that collect Duo games just to collect.  It was such a niche console.  If they bought it to brag not I bet 90% of the people would be like "WTF is this shit!?"  It's not like some rare nes game or a freaking "sealed copy" of Chrono Trigger that sold a couple days for around $1,300.  That was popular so collectors will pick that stuff up in a heartbeat.  I was surprised that TZD went out of business.  Just a couple months ago I bought a controller extension cable from them with no problems, and fast shipping.  Why does this have to be this way.  Why the hell didn't Hudson buy them or something.  Someone at TZD was definitely saving these for a rainy day.  Speaking of Hudson I wonder if anyone there would have anything to say about this?  Probably not but thinking how an ass load of their games were sold by them and Hudson was big on the PC-Engine/Duo you never know.

[Kitsunexus]

No game is worth 900 dollars unless it is an arcade machine!

And only a couple of arcade machines fit that criteria, anyway.

[nodtveidt]

I got a response from them:

If you can provide me links with the last time a sealed one has been up on eBay with the price you claim, I will gladly adjust it.

[_joshuaTurbo]

It makes me sick. The old tzd should have sold those games to us. I am very upset with redfrog.

Exactly- Why didn't TZD sell off the entire stock?  If they were holding on to some of these Uber rare titles in storage, then they are the BIG sell outs!! 

[vestcoat]

I got a response from them:

If you can provide me links with the last time a sealed one has been up on eBay with the price you claim, I will gladly adjust it.

OK, I'm totally with you guys and I'm pissed off and I won't sell to them or buy from them...but, to be devil's advocate on one little point, I have never seen a sealed Dynastic Hero on ebay and I've been keeping an eye on all the Dynastic Hero auctions (which I can't afford) for about five years.  I've also seen complete copies of Magical Chase go for $700-900, although rarely and not in the last couple years.  Anyway, my point is that his absurd price is not completely without context. 

Now to join in the rant,
Redfrog initially started his bidding fairly low and my one hope from this outrageous price gouging on Terreforming, Super Air Zonk, etc. is that these may be signs he's not making as much on his "investment" as he planned.
I frequently hear people say that ebay is overpriced (true) and advise gamers to look elsewhere for better deals.  My question is where?  Unless you're willing to settle for PCE versions, Ebay increasingly IS setting the price for U.S. TurboGrafx games.  I have an extensive list of online stores I've been compiling since 1997 and, with the exception of some sealed games from European ebay sellers in the last year, there are no good deals on this stuff...from reliable sellers (Tellegames UK doesn't seem to actually ship orders).  If redfrog wasn't pulling this shit, someone else would and the problem is bigger than Redfrog.  There are not a lot of sealed Dynastic Hero boxes sitting anywhere, that disc was the last one the real TZD had. 
The only way the price on games like DH is going to go down is if:  1)we all stop collecting and start pirating (unlikely) or 2)something surfaces like the Sapphire bootleg.  I'm not going to settle for the Wii version of DH, but if I can get a disc on my shelf that sort of matches the color of my other labels and won't risk f*cking up my system like a CDr, then I'm a happy camper.
Without sounding too much like a motivational speaker, I remember hearing somewhere that rather than trying to fight something you should "make the existing paradigm obsolete."  What are the chances we could show Hudson that there's enough interest to reprint this game or at least grant someone else a license to do so?  I realize Nintendo has a stake in this now with their VC that would probably make things impossible..but, Hudson did reprint DE2 a few years after the system died and with enough consistent pressure it seems that something could happen.

[nodtveidt]

There will soon be a new auction site for games only. And its owners will be on the lookout for price gougers.

[nat]

I frequently hear people say that ebay is overpriced (true) and advise gamers to look elsewhere for better deals.  My question is where? 

My primary sources:

This forum, and the Turbo List. And formerly, TZD.

While these places don't always have ultra-low-OMG sales listed, the people I meet through them are genuine gamers like myself and 98% of them aren't there to price gouge. So when someone has something available, they're willing to make a fair trade or at least offer it at a fair price. I also have a local store that carries Turbo and PCE games. 90% of their prices are lower than eBay, especially on the US Turbo stuff. I realize this isn't an option for many/most people, however.

If you are someone who has no patience, then sure, you're at the mercy of your nearest B.I.N. eBay retailer and whatever premiums they're charging this week. Me, I'm in no hurry in my collecting and the deals seem to find me just fine without too much extra footwork on my part. I've never spent more than $100 on a US Turbo game, and that was for Dungeon Explorer II. I'm sort of sorry I did because even that seems high to me now. Some of the other "heavy" games like Bonk 3, Terraforming, and Beyond Shadowgate all ran me in the $40-$70 range.

[SignOfZeta]

Anyone who loves NEC stuff, wants Dynastic Hero really bad, *must* have the US version, and *must* have shrink wrap is a pretty irrational freak and is just going to have to pay $900 for this sort of thing. And boo f*cking hoo to them who have that kind of money to piss away. It certainly doesn't have much of an effect on the poor average guy that just likes to play cool games. The average guy doesn't care about plastic wrap.

Meanwhile I'll just have a JP version for $20 or whatever and blow that remaining $880 on...every single video game thing I'm likely to purchase for the next 3-5 years.

Its probably worth speculating just how many copies of DH the new TZD has. One? Probably. It'll mostly likely sit there on eBay driving up the average price of other DH on eBay, in which case that will effect the average guy, but probably not my much. Being an average guy myself I'll make more practical choices like buying open copies, JP copies, the VC release, or just avoiding the game in general because I'm honestly not that crazy about it.

Two questions keep coming to mind though:

1) Why do US releases have any value at all, let alone 10x the almost always superior JP version? To me US versions of PCE games are like...a SECAM laserdisc of Star Wars dubbed into French. A f*cked up inferior derivative or something much cooler in a more original form (ie: the US Star Wars Trilogy LD set in the big black box).

2) Who are these people paying so much money for the stuff? Some of them are here, but I'm pretty sure most of them aren't. It seems like anyone nerdy enough to buy Magical Chase for $400 would be active on the internet (where else would they get the idea that its worth so much?) so where are they hanging out if not on this forum? Neo-Geo.com?

[nodtveidt]

Not long ago, Aaron himself paid a small fortune for a sealed Magical Chase.

[Pcenginefx]

Not long ago, Aaron himself paid a small fortune for a sealed Magical Chase.

I did, but it sure wasn't $900...

[MurderDate]

for some reason I really kind of doubt they only have the one copy of Dynastic Hero.   if anyone on the planet was going to have multiples it would be them.   

and if they do only have the one copy of DH - you can bet they have TONS of Super Air Zonk / Terraforming
(the difference between an absurdly high starting bid and a low / fair starting bid)

the collector's market - where urban legend can overshadow logic/fact

[Sinistron]

The only way the price on games like DH is going to go down is if:  1)we all stop collecting and start pirating (unlikely) or 2)something surfaces like the Sapphire bootleg. 

Normally I'd be against the bootlegging thing since it wouldn't be fair to the woeful who've paid heavy for some of these games- however- the Sapphire bootleg hasn't exactly brought down the price of the original Sapphire, has it?  Also if the bootleg was made with love by real fans then it wouldn't feel so cheap.  It would be nice to see some expertly crafted bootlegs of at least seven US CD games that are way overpriced- Terraforming, Super Air Zonk, Might & Magic III, Dynastic Hero, Dungeon Explorer II, Cotton and Bonk III.  My girl paid $150 for a DEII CD for me- and the game is great enough that I feel that it's worth it- but that doesn't mean that I feel that everyone should have to pay the same price to play it.  On the other hand, cheap emulations and cheaply burned discs by people who just want to play whatever game as cheaply as possible does not sit right with me.

[MurderDate]

My girl paid $150 for a DEII CD for me- and the game is great enough that I feel that it's worth it- but that doesn't mean that I feel that everyone should have to pay the same price to play it. 

well if only everyone were as cool as you ...

[BigT]

Sealed copies of Dynastic Hero are truly very rare on the market.  I doubt that anyone will pay $899 for it, but I can't blame Red Frog for trying    They are a business and their main goal is to maximize the profit on their investment.  They are not our friends!

This really doesn't affect me because I'd never pay that much for any game unless I truly had unlimited money.

Besides, now if you really want to just play the game, you can get the Japanese version (which I have), buy the Wii VC version ($8), or just download a Bin/cue for free (it's not like Hudson or NEC are going to get a penny of the >$900 you'll pay to Red Frog>