Which games do I own again?
So you’ve started collecting games and before you know it, you’ve amassed so many titles that you can’t remember whether or not you’ve purchased a title. Eventually, you’ll find yourself purchasing duplicates and unless it’s an especially cheap purchase or a variant, that’s not good for your wallet or your collection. If this sounds familiar, it’s time to start cataloguing your games. There are numerous ways to accomplish this: the spreadsheet, the database, the checklist and the portable app.
The Video Game Trader iPhone app can be a useful base tool for cataloging your collection while out on the road. The app covers most systems released in the US and lists two prices per title: loose and complete. These prices are only updated once a month so they are often not completely accurate but can at least give an idea of an acceptable price to pay. The prices listed will generally at least give an idea of the rarity and desirability of a title so that you can decide whether or not the game is worth the given price. I rarely use this feature as I tend to pay the price that I think a title is worth based on experience but in checking it right now, I’d say the prices are fairly accurate if you plan on using normal eBay prices (I wouldn’t recommend it). In checking, I chose three of my favorite NES titles and compared the prices within the app to the current eBay prices (I know, I know… I hate eBay. But it currently has a broad selection of these particular titles from which to pull an average so I’m doing it).
First, the prices from the app:
Wall Street Kid: $10.75 (C) and $5.00 (L)
Wizards & Warriors: $18.50 (C) and $7.00 (L)
Uninvited: $31.25 (C) and $17.00 (L)
Averages on eBay including auction prices + shipping cost:
Wall Street Kid: $12 (C) and $6 (L)
Wizards & Warriors: $20.00 (C) and $6.00 (L)
Uninvited: $45.00 (C) and $20.00 (L)
The most important part of the app for my purposes is the “Have It/Want” it feature. This addition lets you mark whether or not you have a title in your collection or if it is a title you are currently looking for. The main drawback is that you can only mark items as “loose” or “complete”. This causes quite a few issues when your collection has grown to a point where you can no longer remember the state of your games. For instance, I have several games that are semi-complete (either missing a box but has the instructions or missing the instructions but owning the box). I also wish that I could tag each item with a phrase so that I would know the condition of the item. I have several items that I would love to find replacements for so having a tag of “replace box” or “rental manual” would be extremely helpful.
Currently the app has a price of $4.99 in the app store and, while I can’t recommend it wholeheartedly, if you’re looking for a basic app to catalog your loose carts, this might do the job for you. I contacted the developer and he has stated that they might add a note feature in the future but that an update is not currently in the works. If this “tag” update is ever released, this app would become one of the best tools a collector on the road could have.
