Edward Boyke
Do you ever wonder why some publishers don't just print more copies of their rare games? In preparation for next month's Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow for the Nintendo DS, I've been trying to get my hands on a used copy of Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. It's not easy without resorting to eBay--and eBay prices (currently starting at $50+ for a new copy, and $35 used). Not one EB or Gamestop in Southern California has the game in stock, and even the sprawling GameDude megastore in North Hollywood came up dry. What was Konami thinking, printing only one production run for each of their Castlevania games on GameBoy Advance? Maybe they have an eBay sales division.
When you look at the prices some of the rare video games are selling for, it seems like these companies are leaving big money on the table. I don't know if Sega's still got the old Saturn printing presses in good working order, but a run or two of Panzer Dragoon Saga would probably pocket them a quick half-million, even if it were issued at the "bargain price" of $99 apiece. The game sells for over $200 in brand-new condition. Working Designs and Treasure could probably mine the Saturn's cult audience for a few buck themselves, Dragon Force and Radiant Silvergun are hot properities on eBay and have never been re-released. And those are games for a console that's been dead eight years!
At least Nintendo fans will never have such a predicament. Most of their games are printed in quantities large enough to prevent them from becoming super rare, and their new Revolution console will reportedly be able to download and play the company's entire back catalog via emulation. Even though it's not the same as having the original game for a collector, those who simply want to play the software will have a path of recourse besides paying an arm and leg. Then again, we haven't seen what Nintendo will be charging per game.
Rare RPG titles like Valkyrie Profile for the PSOne would probably gross in the six figures if reissued by Square Enix. Actually, the pre-merger SquareSoft was one of the few publishers that seemed to pay attention to the soaring secondary market for their cult favorites. Final Fantasy Tactics, Xenogears, and Vagrant Story were scarce and selling for nearly twice their original retail value on eBay when Square caught on and reissued them as part of PlayStation's "Greatest Hits" budget software line. Ebay prices for the originals fell drastically, to the delight of fans seeking the games--and the despair of dealers who were hoarding them like eBay gold.
Even the rumor of a rare game's reissue can affect its value. I sold my duplicate factory sealed copy of Sega's cult favorite Rez for $40 last October, because the latest issue of Official PlayStation Magazine suggested that it was about to be re-released as a PS2 Greatest Hit--presumably plunging its value to $20. Well, that never happened...
And now Rez, rarer than ever, trades at $80.
By the way, anyone want to help me start a rumor that Konami is re-releasing Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow next month?
