I'm considering buying older game consoles...

[mjr]

Because I played them as a kid...and want to kind of re-live that nostalgia.

I don't know if I have to obfuscate the consoles here, but I'm gonna try.

I know that a console with a "4" in it came out in the past couple of years...You know the one...the Station where you Play.

However, I'm looking for the second one. Preferably the one in which you can install a hard drive. I've heard these are available, but might be harder to get and/or much more expensive. I have games for the second Station where you Play, and I don't wanna drop a ton on a version 4 of it, and have to buy a bunch of new games.

Also, I'm looking for the old Nin-Eleven-Do...you know the one where you could hunt ducks...and had plumbers that ate mushrooms and had to rescue a princess.

Also, the Super version of the Nin-Eleven-Do. I've also been looking around for these, and the games seem rather expensive.

I'd prefer NOT to purchase through an e-auction site, but that might be my only way to go.

Thoughts?

[AdamAnt316]

*cracks his knuckles*

Ahhh, just my kind of topic!

I've been collecting classic video game systems for many years now. I've amassed a collection spanning from the original Magnavox Odyssey (whose creator I got to meet!) to the Nintendo 64. As Dave1982 can attest, I have a lot of crap stuff.

Personally, I think your best bet would be to search around at yard sales, flea markets, swap meets, thrift stores, etc. The game stuff might not be as common as it once was, but it's still out there. Your best bet might be electronics-related swapmeets, if you can find them (hamfests may work as well). Patience is a virtue when it comes to stuff like this; if you come across something which seems too expensive, don't bother. There's always another one out there.

Some of the systems might need repairs, particularly the original Nintendo and its ever-wonky cartridge slot, but fixing them shouldn't be terribly difficult if you know how to solder. For most old cartridge-based systems, all you need is a can of contact cleaner and some Q-tips. Optical disc-based systems may need more effort.

Another tip: Find an old CRT television. Classic games generally just do not look right on modern LCD flat-screens. Plus, any games involving a "light gun" (Duck Hunt ahoy!) will not play correctly due to 'screen lag' and whatnot. Some flatscreen TVs have an option for "game mode" somewhere in the menu system, which may help with games that require 'crackerjack timing', but it may not be enough.

Hope this helps!
-Adam

[Dreamstalker]

Have you tried the List of Craig? That can be hit-or-miss as to whether the consoles work, but the same could be said for yardsales unless the seller has an old TV set up to test them.

[Kogarashi]

The Bay of E might have some too, but I would assume that was the first place you looked.

Unfortunately I don't purchase old consoles for the most part. I recently sold my Dreamcast and its games since I could replace the ones I wanted to keep anyway with GameCube or PS2 versions, and my PS2 is still working (knock on wood).

[Dave1982]

No need to obfuscate trademarks here.

[Kogarashi]

No need to obfuscate trademarks here.

I will admit to gleaning a certain enjoyment out of obfuscating business names, though. Mostly because it frequently makes them sound silly.

[Aragarthiel]

Pawn shops. Hands-down one of the easiest places to find old game consoles. I can't say the cheapest (or even the best condition), but I have an old PS2 that doesn't work anymore and when we went to the nearest pawn shop, they had four for cheaper than it would have been to fix mine.

[Racket_Man]

*cracks his knuckles*

Ahhh, just my kind of topic!

I've been collecting classic video game systems for many years now. I've amassed a collection spanning from the original Magnavox Odyssey (whose creator I got to meet!)

WOW I did not think anyone remembered that console from back in the (if my old foggie memory serves correctly) day from like 1971 or 1972. at the time it had VERY few cartridges and was just an way overpriced (but reasonable for the time) Pong machine/console.

[mjr]

No need to obfuscate trademarks here.

In that case...

I'm not entirely sure why I want the classic Nintendo. I may not even go that route. But if I did, it would probably be for a game like Bases Loaded and/or Mike Tyson's Punch Out.

I basically want the Super Nintendo for two or three games:

Bill Walsh College Football
F-Zero
Tecmo Super Bowl

As far as the PlayStation, I already still have several games just laying around collecting dust at my house. My console broke several years ago. I have two or three football games, a Monster Truck game, a Mortal Kombat game (or two??), and a couple of rasslin' games.

[Kazim]

You do know that the PS3 will play PS1/PSX games, right?

[Victory Sabre]

My friend buys and sells old games and systems. If you're interested, I can give you his contact info.

[AdamAnt316]

WOW I did not think anyone remembered that console from back in the (if my old foggie memory serves correctly) day from like 1971 or 1972. at the time it had VERY few cartridges and was just an way overpriced (but reasonable for the time) Pong machine/console.

Actually, the Magnavox Odyssey was the very first home video game console ever! Invented by the late, great Ralph Baer in the mid '60s and released by Magnavox in 1972, it predates Atari Pong by several years. The Odyssey was the very first method of playing electronic games on the screen of a TV set; there were such things as computer games at the time, but unless you had a mainframe computer taking up several rooms of your house...

The "cartridges", such as they were, were merely circuit cards which bridged various connections within the Odyssey itself in order to set it up to play the various games, which made use of a mylar 'overlay' which you placed over the TV screen, plus flash cards, chips, tokens, and other doodads. The system included six cartridges, which allowed it to play 12 games, which were mostly defined by the overlay; the only actual "graphics" were two large dots for the player 'characters', a small dot which was controlled by the computer (the "ball"), and a vertical line which could be placed somewhere on the screen.

Five other "cartridges" were released, two of which went with the "shooting gallery" set (the very first light gun) to allow play of four shooting games. Some games required multiple cartridge changes during the game, depending on what action you were undertaking. Football (such as it was) required two different cartridges depending on whether you were passing/kicking or running, and "Invasion" required three! I don't know how many people actually went through with all of these shenanigans; I suppose since there wasn't anything else around at the time...

Naturally, once this "TV game" idea proved to be popular, competitors followed, and so did the lawsuits. Atari introduced their arcade Pong game later in 1972. It has been proven that Nolan Bushnell played the Magnavox Odyssey's "TV Tennis" game at a trade show earlier that year, and tasked one of his early employees with coming up with a similar game. Things soon hit the courts, and litigation continued into the '90s, all of which were won by Ralph (or, at least, the companies associated with the Odyssey) thanks to the fact that he filed several patents pertaining to the concept in the mid-late '60s. I feel privileged to have been able to meet him, and get 'schooled by the master' at his game!
-Adam

[dendawg]

Gamestop sells refurbed PS2's online.

[mjr]

Gamestop sells refurbed PS2's online.

I checked that out after you told me this. Very interesting. Though I didn't see the consoles, but that's probably because I didn't sort.

[dendawg]

http://www.gamestop.com/browse?nav=1...2+system,28zu0

There ya go.