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SNES Game Collecting (Tips, discussion, and info for like minded collectors)

Teknoman

Member

Gotta love old school game mag ads.

EDIT: More people need to play Plok, if only to experience the soundtrack.

us_plok.jpg
 

plc268

Member
Say I'm not comfortable changing the battery myself, is there a site or something that will do it for me if I mail them in?

I could probably do it for you. I can also restore game saves if you have an existing one already.

But it depends, how many games are you looking to have the battery replaced on?
 

beanman25

Member
I could probably do it for you. I can also restore game saves if you have an existing one already.

But it depends, how many games are you looking to have the battery replaced on?

For now, only Earthbound, Chrono Trigger, and FF II & III. I have dups of FF III and CT, but I won't worry about those for now.
 

Credo

Member
Gotta love old school game mag ads.

EDIT: More people need to play Plok, if only to experience the soundtrack.

us_plok.jpg

Just got it in a few days ago! I haven't got around to trying it yet because of SC2, but once I finish that, I plan to play a bit. I really love the way it looks.
 

ShowDog

Member
Dreamcast is a fun, relatively cheap system to collect. Also it takes up very little space. I have 137 (holy cow I never updated my list with Under Defeat!) games, and it only occupies one shelf in my dresser/book case thing.

Man, the only thing with collecting Dreamcast is that you have to be real careful with the system and games. If you're the type to leave shit lying around the tiniest scratches will ruin a GD-ROM. Not to mention the longevity of the DC laser itself.

Somehow I doubt most of collector-GAF would have those types of problems though.
 
Just got this a few hours ago...



Finally, I can play my childhood copy of Tin Star properly!

Jealous. Really wanting to find one locally since they cost so much to ship if you go the ebay route. I have Battleclash and Tin Star just sitting there waiting to be played. Can you play T2: The Arcade Game with one? Have that also.

Intersted myself in one of those, the UFO8 looks like the neatest one, is it any good? What do you guys recommend?

Man between that metroid ice metal thread & zelda repro carts im debating a flashcart, which ones known for the best compatibility?

UFO8's sound like complete garbage from what I've heard. SD2SNES is by far the best it seems. Here is the list of games that it won't work with. From what I've seen, that blows away the rest of them by a long shot.

They seem to be kind of hard to find, though.
 

BocoDragon

or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
Jealous. Really wanting to find one locally since they cost so much to ship if you go the ebay route. I have Battleclash and Tin Star just sitting there waiting to be played. Can you play T2: The Arcade Game with one? Have that also.





UFO8's sound like complete garbage from what I've heard. SD2SNES is by far the best it seems. Here is the list of games that it won't work with. From what I've seen, that blows away the rest of them by a long shot.

They seem to be kind of hard to find, though.
I believe Stone Age Gamer will restock soon.

Problem is that they're totally expensive! $260+

If you decide to go with a cheaper flash cart like the Super Powerpak or Super UFO Pro 8, at least notice that very few of the games you'd want English-patched use any special chips anyway.
 
I believe Stone Age Gamer will restock soon.

Problem is that they're totally expensive! $260+

If you decide to go with a cheaper flash cart like the Super Powerpak or Super UFO Pro 8, at least notice that very few of the games you'd want English-patched use any special chips anyway.

Yeah, it's crazy expensive. You can get the board only for $200 though. Not as nice as having a custom cart, but for $60 cheaper, may be worth it.

And, yeah, very true about the chips. If you're just wanting things like Final Fantasy V and whatnot you'll be fine with the cheaper carts. The only games I personally want that won't work are Star Ocean, Tales of Phantasia, and Star Fox 2. Still a ton out there that will work just fine without any special chips in them.
 
Jealous. Really wanting to find one locally since they cost so much to ship if you go the ebay route. I have Battleclash and Tin Star just sitting there waiting to be played. Can you play T2: The Arcade Game with one? Have that also.

I haven't tried it myself, as I only have the Genesis version, but I've read that it does indeed work with the Super Scope. I might get the SNES version at some point, too. Tin Star and Super Scope 6 are the only Super Scope compatible games I own.

A warning, though...the Super Scope requires 6 AA batteries to work. Just thought I'd mention it in case you, or anyone else here, didn't know already.
 

-KRS-

Member
UFO8's sound like complete garbage from what I've heard. SD2SNES is by far the best it seems. Here is the list of games that it won't work with. From what I've seen, that blows away the rest of them by a long shot.

They seem to be kind of hard to find, though.

Hehe yeah the UFO8 claimed to work with all enhancement chips, but it turned out that to for example run Yoshi's Island, you need to put in a cart of Yoshi's Island in the top... completely defeating the purpose. Perhaps the idea is that you could use one SuperFX game to run another one, but that doesn't seem to work either from what I read.

I recently bought the SD2SNES as I mentioned a while back, and it is indeed fantastic. But as BocoDragon said, if you're only interested in translated Japanese games the Powerpak should probably be enough. Do note however that you will need to desolder the DSP chip from an original game that uses one, like Super Mario Kart, to put in the PowerPak, basically destroying the original game. I'm not sure how many games use the DSP chips but it seems to be the most commonly used enhancement chip.

Another "problem" with the Powerpaks for both the NES and SNES is that it seems they're not being worked on anymore. That is, there hasn't been any updates for them in years. And they're not open source so no one can take over development. But they already work well enough.
 

Fox Mulder

Member
Hehe yeah the UFO8 claimed to work with all enhancement chips, but it turned out that to for example run Yoshi's Island, you need to put in a cart of Yoshi's Island in the top... completely defeating the purpose. Perhaps the idea is that you could use one SuperFX game to run another one, but that doesn't seem to work either from what I read.

I recently bought the SD2SNES as I mentioned a while back, and it is indeed fantastic. But as BocoDragon said, if you're only interested in translated Japanese games the Powerpak should probably be enough. Do note however that you will need to desolder the DSP chip from an original game that uses one, like Super Mario Kart, to put in the PowerPak, basically destroying the original game. I'm not sure how many games use the DSP chips but it seems to be the most commonly used enhancement chip.

Another "problem" with the Powerpaks for both the NES and SNES is that it seems they're not being worked on anymore. That is, there hasn't been any updates for them in years. And they're not open source so no one can take over development. But they already work well enough.

The powerpaks also seem to have a complicated way to save games from what I've read.

I'll get the sd2snes if I do get one.
 

Kainazzo

Member
The powerpaks also seem to have a complicated way to save games from what I've read.

I'll get the sd2snes if I do get one.

I'll second the SD2SNES recommendation. It's actively being developed, and aside from the incompatibility list, everything plays great. Translations, mods, even things that don't work in some emulators, it pretty much plays anything perfectly; just drag and drop to the SD card. Gotta pay that premium though, unfortunately >_>.

Sure have come a long way from the old floppy disk rippers/players!
 

Niwa

Member
Well I don't know if im quite right here but ill ask anyways..

How much could i fetch for a used PAL copy of Megaman X3? It's only the cartridge. And would I get a better price out of it if i'd buy a Used box with manual etc?
 

BocoDragon

or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Realize This Assgrab is Delicious
Yeah, it's crazy expensive. You can get the board only for $200 though. Not as nice as having a custom cart, but for $60 cheaper, may be worth it.

And, yeah, very true about the chips. If you're just wanting things like Final Fantasy V and whatnot you'll be fine with the cheaper carts. The only games I personally want that won't work are Star Ocean, Tales of Phantasia, and Star Fox 2. Still a ton out there that will work just fine without any special chips in them.

I seem to remember Star Ocean has a patched version that will run on any flashcart.. It only used the chip for compression or something.
 

-KRS-

Member
That is correct. The patch uncompresses the rom into a 96Mbit rom, so the cartridge would have to support at least that romsize. I think all flashcarts supports up to 128Mbit roms. That's 16Mbyte, which is insanely huge for a SNES game. Were there even any official games that big?
 

Alfredo

Member
I've got a SuperUFO Pro 8, and it's okay. Not anything amazing. You get what you pay for. It's super cheap compared to the rest, and also readily available.

Running patched games is weird on it. Some work, some don't. Some suddenly start working when they didn't work before, and vice versa. The interface is kinda bad, too, since it only shows the first, like, 7 characters in a filename. Also, the cart smells weird!

I could never get special chip games to work properly, even with the original cartridge plugged in to the top. And the top connector feels super tight and I feel like i'm damaging my games every time I try to take a cart out of it. So I wouldn't recommend it as a "region converter" to get foreign carts to fit in your system without modifications.
 
I seem to remember Star Ocean has a patched version that will run on any flashcart.. It only used the chip for compression or something.

I know for sure the patched one will work for SD2SNES. I don't have a clue about the rest. I'm curious what exactly the difference is, or if there is literally no difference (or at least none that you would actually notice).

I really know nothing about Star Ocean. I thought I read it was something to do with voices in the game. Which got me wondering, I assume the voices are Japanese since it never came out in the US?
 

Michan

Member
My US SNES collection is getting a bit stronger. I started on it last month and currently have:

Super Mario World
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Earthbound
Mega Man X2
Mega Man X3
Turtles IV: Turtles in Time
Kirby Super Star

Planning on selling some extras and duplicates tomorrow.
 

Fox Mulder

Member
My US SNES collection is getting a bit stronger. I started on it last month and currently have:

Super Mario World
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Earthbound
Mega Man X2
Mega Man X3
Turtles IV: Turtles in Time
Kirby Super Star

Planning on selling some extras and duplicates tomorrow.

nice ass list, I havent gone after anything pricey or rare yet. I've only got like 30 games that are pretty cheap now. I had to get stuff like the DKC trilogy and super mario allstars + world again and play Yoshi's Island for the first time.
 

McBradders

NeoGAF: my new HOME
This thread is kind of disgusting in the way it's wanting me to pay good money for games in genres I have zero interest in. I am currently considering buying Earthbound. Why? I have no love for that series. Hell, if it wasn't for Smash Bros. I wouldn't even know it existed.

Firstworldproblemsdotgif
 
This thread is kind of disgusting in the way it's wanting me to pay good money for games in genres I have zero interest in. I am currently considering buying Earthbound. Why? I have no love for that series. Hell, if it wasn't for Smash Bros. I wouldn't even know it existed.

Firstworldproblemsdotgif

Have you played any of them? I really don't like modern/real world settings in my RPGs, but I really fell for the NES one despite it being balls hard. Had some really awesome moments/characters/music. Hope parts two is as good or better.
 
This thread is kind of disgusting in the way it's wanting me to pay good money for games in genres I have zero interest in. I am currently considering buying Earthbound. Why? I have no love for that series. Hell, if it wasn't for Smash Bros. I wouldn't even know it existed.

Firstworldproblemsdotgif

I wouldn't, then.

I'm not a big RPG player either, outside of the really, really, really fucking good ones like Chrono Trigger, FF3, and the like.

If you don't think you'll like the game, I wouldn't buy it. The #1 rule of game collecting(or any hobby) is that you should enjoy your collection, don't just buy it just to be able to say you have it. Otherwise you risk burning yourself out.
 

Linkhero1

Member
This thread is kind of disgusting in the way it's wanting me to pay good money for games in genres I have zero interest in. I am currently considering buying Earthbound. Why? I have no love for that series. Hell, if it wasn't for Smash Bros. I wouldn't even know it existed.

Firstworldproblemsdotgif

I bought Earthbound and tried playing it. I'm not into it but my taste in games always seems to shift so I'm keeping my copy for that day. You may regret it one day as I have with other games.
 
I've recently started collecting SNES games...though probably not collecting in the same sense that some of you do. I don't particularly care for complete items with boxes and manuals and stuff like that, just getting the games is enough for me (for now at least).

There are a couple retro game shops near my place that I go to once in a while just to see what they have. Occasionally they have pretty decent sales (got Chrono Trigger, Mario RPG, and FF3 for 20 bucks each at one a while back, batteries still work) but usually I just pick up the random garbage game I remember from my childhood that happens to be dirt cheap (Buster Busts Loose, NBA Jam TE, NHLPA Hockey '94, stuff like that). I got Yoshi's Island off Amazon for like $15 not too long ago, too (cart only again).

I still have some fairly big name games I'm on the lookout for: Super Punch-Out, Super Metroid, the DKC games, Star Fox, Earthbound. Wouldn't mind Kirby's Dream Course either.
 

McBradders

NeoGAF: my new HOME
I wouldn't, then.

I'm not a big RPG player either, outside of the really, really, really fucking good ones like Chrono Trigger, FF3, and the like.

If you don't think you'll like the game, I wouldn't buy it. The #1 rule of game collecting(or any hobby) is that you should enjoy your collection, don't just buy it just to be able to say you have it. Otherwise you risk burning yourself out.

Sense and reason. I like it :)

Have you played any of them? I really don't like modern/real world settings in my RPGs, but I really fell for the NES one despite it being balls hard. Had some really awesome moments/characters/music. Hope parts two is as good or better.

Nope. But I fucking love Persona 4 (some of that is to do with its setting).

I bought Earthbound and tried playing it. I'm not into it but my taste in games always seems to shift so I'm keeping my copy for that day. You may regret it one day as I have with other games.

My biggest fear is that one day I will happen to really want to play it and it will be a million dollars or something :(
 

Krelian

Member
Well I don't know if im quite right here but ill ask anyways..

How much could i fetch for a used PAL copy of Megaman X3? It's only the cartridge. And would I get a better price out of it if i'd buy a Used box with manual etc?
I got around €350 for my boxed copy (box and manual were in bad shape). I think for the cartridge alone it'd be around €150. I don't think you'll be able to find a genuine box without the game though.
 

IrishNinja

Member
Yeah i can relate, recent castlevania kick has mw wanting dracula x despite knowing its nowhere as good as others like bloodlines

actually it sucks and one of youse should sell me a loose copy for like $50 or trade me, i gots stuff
 
Yeah i can relate, recent castlevania kick has mw wanting dracula x despite knowing its nowhere as good as others like bloodlines
Castlevania: Dracula X is a very good game. It gets a bad rap (less so in recent years, thankfully) only because of the greatness of Super Castlevania IV and Rondo of Blood. On its own, it is a highly enjoyable game for any traditional Castlevania fan out there.
 

beanman25

Member
What are some of the cheapest and most fun SFC games? I'm looking mainly for ones that are Japan only, unless it's a case of being muh cheaper then buying the SNES cart.
 

Danielsan

Member
Caught the SNES bug again and bought a couple of games this week.

r7baYXf.jpg


Already beat Run Saber earlier this week. Great, but short, game. Gradius is awesome, and pretty damn hard a soon as you get hit and lose all your powerups mid level. Love that it actually saves your high score, as opposed to Super R-type (and Run Saber for that matter).

Also have a CIB copy of Donkey Kong Country on the way.

What are some of the cheapest and most fun SFC games? I'm looking mainly for ones that are Japan only, unless it's a case of being muh cheaper then buying the SNES cart.
In a similar vein, I'm wondering which Super Famicom games either have full English screen text, or so little Japanese text that it's still a good game to pick up for someone who can't read Japanese.
 

IrishNinja

Member
Castlevania: Dracula X is a very good game. It gets a bad rap (less so in recent years, thankfully) only because of the greatness of Super Castlevania IV and Rondo of Blood. On its own, it is a highly enjoyable game for any traditional Castlevania fan out there.

I hear you, so sell it to me bro!
haha maybe itd be cheaper to just mod my shit and get tge sfc version, what do you guys think?
 
I hear you, so sell it to me bro!
haha maybe itd be cheaper to just mod my shit and get tge sfc version, what do you guys think?
You wish. ;)

Got it at a local store for $35 (cart only) in 1998. I'm not surprised it's worth so much these days: even then it was extremely hard to come by. If you have some disposable income right now, I would pony up the cash as the game is not going down in price anytime soon.
 

Danny Dudekisser

I paid good money for this Dynex!
I hear you, so sell it to me bro!
haha maybe itd be cheaper to just mod my shit and get tge sfc version, what do you guys think?

It would be cheaper, and the SFC version is uncensored. The censorship in Dracula XX wasn't on the level of Super Castlevania IV, but it's still there.
 

IrishNinja

Member
It would be cheaper, and the SFC version is uncensored. The censorship in Dracula XX wasn't on the level of Super Castlevania IV, but it's still there.

huh...okay
1) how much does X for sfc usually go for?
2) what all do i gotta do to my snes to make it work?
3) anyone know if theyll fit in universal game cases? This might be a better option for overpriced/non text heavy SNES carts
 
I scored pretty good last night:

KCKSPQD.jpg


Has that small tear right above the left shoulder spike, but it's not bad at all and the rest of the label looks great. Got some other stuff with it just to flip, depending on how ebay sales go it will have cost me $50-70 in the end.

I'm pretty ecstatic. Thought it'd be a long time before I could afford that game.
 

-KRS-

Member
2) what all do i gotta do to my snes to make it work?
I can't answer the other ones, but if you have a North American SNES you just need to cut off the plastic tabs inside the cartridge slot. That's the only form of region protection the NA SNESes had. Or you can get a passthrough adapter, but make sure it has passthrough pins for enhancement chips if you want to import games that uses them.

If you have a PAL SNES you need a converter to play NTSC games. I recommend the so called AD-29 Universal Adapter. It has worked with everything I've thrown at it including Earthbound which doesn't work with any of my other 3 adapters. I'm guessing that you'd need a converter to play PAL games on an NTSC console as well, but that doesn't seem to be a very common thing to do anyway.

I scored pretty good last night:

KCKSPQD.jpg


Has that small tear right above the left shoulder spike, but it's not bad at all and the rest of the label looks great. Got some other stuff with it just to flip, depending on how ebay sales go it will have cost me $50-70 in the end.

I'm pretty ecstatic. Thought it'd be a long time before I could afford that game.

Wow that is indeed a great price. Congrats on the get! :)
 
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