Gaia Marketplace: WTF?!?!

[Zellie Crescent]

A while ago I complained about people asking me for unreal discounts and freebies and how it pissed me off, today I found some thing else that bothers and really confuses me. People that sell stuff that goes for extremely cheap for insanely high prices, for example: Ian's hat. Take a look the first price and the second to last, huge difference right? Now take a look at the very last price, WTF right? Do people intentionally do this to make themselves look like assholes? I already own it I bought it when the lowest price was 35, but I was looking to get another one for my second avie when I saw all the different prices. Kinda ranty I know, but has anyone else encountered this?




Hopefuly this link works: http://www.gaiaonline.com/marketplace/itemdetail/17603

[SongsOfDragons]

I think your link is broken, dumpling...

I've seen mad prices go around on Gaia for donkey's years. Time was I think this was one way to transfer items between two (rather wealthy) accounts before the trading system got streamlined. Or it could be a brand new items and people aren't sure what to charge, so they charge greedy prices and the more careful sellers price theirs perhaps a few million underneath, and so on until the price stabilises.

Or they could just be stupid morons who seriously think their crap will really go for eight figures, then have a hissy fit when no-one buys it...

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

That happens for physical items in the real world too. Check out some of the used prices on certain collector's items at Amazon. It's not uncommon to have at least one or two that have been MASSIVELY marked up (usually 4 figures or more).

I have no idea why people do this.

[Crossbow]

I can't speak for Gaia (or most games, for that matter), but in one of the MMOs I'm on, alliance members will use insanely high prices to essentially "lock" items so another alliance member can buy them (and then reverse the process with something else to even out the transaction). Depending on the game, it can be used to get around trade restrictions.

If someone wants to actually pay that insane price, fine. Get the money and go out and buy what you need and have a profit.

Also, again depending on the system, items in "trade status" might not be considered in inventory. Put something up with a huge cost and you still have it, even if it's not in your inventory.

Is this what they're doing? No idea. But it might be a possibility.

[Gerrinson]

That happens for physical items in the real world too. Check out some of the used prices on certain collector's items at Amazon. It's not uncommon to have at least one or two that have been MASSIVELY marked up (usually 4 figures or more).

I've encountered this, in fact. I was looking for an out of print trade paperback (collection of comics in a single book sans advertisements.) The trade only collected 7 issues and was originally printed in...2001 or so, with a retail price of $30.00 USD.

The cheapest price I could find on Amazon was over $1,000 USD.

Needless to say, I haven't purchased one yet. I know the story is good, but it ain't that good.

[Kogarashi]

You see this on Neopets as well, at least in the regular marketplace. Items that are selling for as low as 1 NP, yet have some people convinced theirs will sell for 2,000 NP.

More annoying, though, are all the people in the Trading Post (where you offer, but aren't guaranteed to get the item based on the seller's whims) who put as their wishlist the following: "Lowest on Trading Post! Bid what it's worth!" But they don't tell you what it's worth, and since everyone has either that or "None," you have no clue what the item is worth and thus no clue how much to offer.

[Seraph]

I've encountered this, in fact. I was looking for an out of print trade paperback (collection of comics in a single book sans advertisements.) The trade only collected 7 issues and was originally printed in...2001 or so, with a retail price of $30.00 USD.

The cheapest price I could find on Amazon was over $1,000 USD.

Needless to say, I haven't purchased one yet. I know the story is good, but it ain't that good.

You'd be amused by http://www.michaeleisen.org/blog/?p=358 then.

And yes, that book was listed for $23,698,655.93. I saw it myself back when it happened, LOL.

[fireheart]

You see this on Neopets as well, at least in the regular marketplace. Items that are selling for as low as 1 NP, yet have some people convinced theirs will sell for 2,000 NP.

More annoying, though, are all the people in the Trading Post (where you offer, but aren't guaranteed to get the item based on the seller's whims) who put as their wishlist the following: "Lowest on Trading Post! Bid what it's worth!" But they don't tell you what it's worth, and since everyone has either that or "None," you have no clue what the item is worth and thus no clue how much to offer.

Hooray for another closeted neopian!

The worst case of the price driving up thing has gotta be the Secret Laboratory Map items (basically 9 map pieces, which when formed, gives you access to a secret lab which allows you to play god with your neopets ). While most of them have settled down towards the 50k mark, one piece is almost going for 1 million dollars.

[Android Kaeli]

I sold one of the letters from the Valentines event for close to 400k, I belineve it was the one from Stein. 400k, where it's now less then or just above 20k. Well, it helps with the questing.

I sometimes go tinker with Neopets, haven't for a while though. o.o

[Kogarashi]

Hooray for another closeted neopian!

The worst case of the price driving up thing has gotta be the Secret Laboratory Map items

Yeah, thank goodness I've already got my map. It's just a pain now whenever I end up with one of the pieces, trying to figure out how much to price them at and rolling my eyes at the people who are trying to sell them for far more than they're actually worth (and then griping when it doesn't sell).

[fireheart]

Yeah, thank goodness I've already got my map. It's just a pain now whenever I end up with one of the pieces, trying to figure out how much to price them at and rolling my eyes at the people who are trying to sell them for far more than they're actually worth (and then griping when it doesn't sell).

I have all but 2 pieces.

If you do a check around, there are a few places that should give you a guide as to how to price your lab map items.

I used to put my Forgotten Shore pieces up for auction, but it seems that they no longer accept them. *grumble grumble*

[MystyGlyttyr]

This is why when I sell stuff on Gaia, I just set it for Bid Only and take whatever. Though generally I only sell stuff that I don't want that's not quite worthless enough to throw in the Dumpster Dive game, heh.