Goodwill Hunting - Pitfall 3D and Game & Watch Gallery

Eh, why not?

Planted firmly in the "it was on sale, so why not?" territory are these two pickups from 2 days ago.  Pitfall 3D was half off at around $1.50, Game & Watch Gallery at it's regular price of $4. Neither have very much value, so this isn't a pickup for the record books.

In other news, It looks like I'll be needing a bit more time on my current game review, so I'll be bumping up the review of the PowerPak to this week.  Look for it soonish!

GameStop's New Incentive Program: Retro Game Vault

Try harder, GameStop.

If you haven't heard, the generally anti-retro game retailer GameStop is now trying their best to steal their own little piece of the nostalgia pie.

Through GameStop's PowerUp Rewards program, you earn points for each purchase, which can then be exchanged for rewards, similar to Best Buy's Reward Zone membership.  But what's this?  You can now use these points towards classic games through GameStop's "Retro Game Vault".

Sounds great, doesn't it?  Well, yeah, until you check the values.

Super Mario Bros., a pretty common cartridge, has a current value of around $4 (the SMB/Duck Hunt cartridges are easier to find and much cheaper).  Through the GameStop Rewards program, the game is 43,250 points!

Here's the point breakdown for the program, per their website:

• 10 points per dollar spent on all new games and consoles 
• 20 points per dollar spent on pre-owned games, accessories and consoles 
• 20 points per dollar on traded-in games or consoles

Assuming you're smart enough to stay away from trading in games for less than a quarter of their value, and also assuming you avoid buying "new" (It's not used if GameStop removes the seal and plays it, only if you do) copies, you'll get 20 points per dollar on used games.  Okay, cool.

So, 43250 / 20 = 2162.5.

Spend $2,162.50 on used games, and you'll take home a game that was free with the NES.  One that you can find at any given garage sale or flea market for 25 cents.

What a deal!  Clearly you've changed your stance on retro games, GameStop.  The retro community salutes you!

Only a single finger in the salute, though.  The rest of them just weren't feeling it.

See it for yourself at https://www.poweruprewards.com/PUR/Index/RetroGameVault.

I Do Still Hunt, I Swear.

Guess what?  I'm still here.

Let's start off by repeating what was already said in the video - Fami-complex is a year old as of yesterday!  It's hard to believe it has already been a year.  So much has happened in so little time!

I'm sorry about the lack of content lately, aside from the regular review episodes.  I haven't had access to my car regularly, which means I haven't been taking my regular thrifting trips.  As a result, of course, I have less pickups and less new acquisitions to talk about.

But, I will, of course, update when I'm able to make it out.

Today's trip was a fairly successful one - I picked up Resident Evil 2 for the Playstation and Pro Wrestling for the NES at just under $5.  I overpaid for Pro Wrestling (which is at around $1), but Resident Evil 2 was a pretty good deal (at around $7).

The best deal, however, came from last weekend, when I hit up a new and unfamiliar Value Village, finding a Sega Saturn backup cartridge for just $2!  The official cartridge generally sells for around $50, so this is a steal.

Oddly enough, I'm most excited about Pro Wrestling, common and cheap as it is.  It's one of those games I played a ton as a kid and haven't touched since.  I always played as Starman.

Real men wear pink leotards.

I mean, just look at him.  So calm.  So mysterious.  Is he from Mexico?  What is his date of birth?  Did he accidentally throw his white costume in the washer with his red towels?  The world will never know.

The Cutting Edge of The Past - Sony's 1995 E3 Keynote

I haven't been around much lately.  Why?  Among other things, it's E3 time.

Yes, I do play modern video games as well.

Anyway, with all the E3 excitement, why not take a look at the very first?  Here's the background - Sega is still relevant, Nintendo still cares about the gamer and Sony is the newcomer with a lot to prove.  Here's the full Sony keynote speech from 1995.  Enjoy!

Sorry about the owner of the video spamming his URL every 5 seconds.  This is the best complete video I was able to find.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Playstation RPGs - A Collection In Progress

Oh, the hours these games have eaten.

My wife and I don't always see eye-to-eye on this classic gaming stuff, but the one thing we can agree on is this: PlayStation-era RPGs had it right.  These were the glory days of Squaresoft, but they weren't alone - Japanese companies were churning out hit after hit, and some of the best role-playing games ever made landed here.

Our (that's right, 'our') meager collection of RPGs barely scratches the surface of what's out there, but isn't that what this blog is all about?

Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete is a holdover from my original collection, one of the games I couldn't bear to part with.  Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy IX, Final Fantasy Anthology, Final Fantasy Chronicles and Chrono Cross are games I married into (score!).

I once had a copy of Xenogears, but my young, naive self loaned it to a friend of a friend - not one of my brighter decisions.  Of course, I never saw it again.

This copy was purchased at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo last year for $35.  The Final Fantasy VII was purchased there, too... at only $30.

Oh, and it's the black label misprint version, too.

No, you can't borrow it.