How much to pay for dead games?

lostarcade

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After reading the I got a Star Castle for 10 bucks thread I was wondering how much is a fair deal for a dead game.

Lets say Star Castle. The guy says it just doesn't work and doesn't know anything about arcade games. It's complete and the cab looks pretty good.

What would you want to pay?
 
After reading the I got a Star Castle for 10 bucks thread I was wondering how much is a fair deal for a dead game.

Lets say Star Castle. The guy says it just doesn't work and doesn't know anything about arcade games. It's complete and the cab looks pretty good.

What would you want to pay?

i would pay as much as 100 to 150 if it was complete and in nice shape
 
depends what game it is. a dedicated classic that is complete and in good cosmetic condition is obviously going to fetch more than a beat to shit generic jamma cab.
 
After reading the I got a Star Castle for 10 bucks thread I was wondering how much is a fair deal for a dead game.

Lets say Star Castle. The guy says it just doesn't work and doesn't know anything about arcade games. It's complete and the cab looks pretty good.

What would you want to pay?

I always figure half the value of a working game if its is complete and doesn't work.
 
I base it on how nice the cab is in, especially the side art. Then, add value for PCB, monitor, etc. Nonrunning, complete? $150 tops. Usually $50-$100 for a dead cab, unless it's a highly sought-after machine.
 
I base it on how nice the cab is in, especially the side art. Then, add value for PCB, monitor, etc. Nonrunning, complete? $150 tops. Usually $50-$100 for a dead cab, unless it's a highly sought-after machine.
+1. Any dead (but complete) game is worth about $50 IMO (hey, good for parts if nothing else). I usually wouldnt pay more than that unless its a classic. Most I ever payed for a broken game was $150 for my Ms. Pac, and even then it was semi-working, just drunk. Mr. & Mrs. Pac-Man Pinball was $300, mostly working, but as far as vids go (aside from Ms. Pac), I dont think I've ever paid more than $50 for a broken game.
 
unless you know what you're getting yourself into I wouldn't go higher than 100. I would hate to lug that "I can't believe that guy let go a beat nonworking (720/Star Wars/Tron, etc) for $200" home to find out that it's gonna cost you an arm and a leg to get going. If you're just getting into the hobby I would suggest checking ebay and doing a google search to find out what some of the common pieces are going to cost you before drving to someone's house. I'm sure there's some guy cursing himself for lugging a firetruck home w/o checking to see how often a board comes up at a reasonbable price.
 
I paid 1800.00 for a non-working Quantum before. Which coincides with Mickey valuation, as it was worth 3600 at the time. So the half of a working game is a good guesstimate. I sell project games alot and usually price them at half the value of the same game working
 
Thanks those are great replies. About 10 years ago I was usually paying $50 - $100 for common games so that's still about the same.
 
but most of all, it depends on how bad you want the game. for example, when i was looking for a satan's hollow, i probably would've paid more than 50-100 if i had found a non working one.
 
Though I completely agree with all the previous posts, how much you will pay really depends on your budget. Sure, there are people that would gladly pop $150 for a non-working game. But there are also people like me who are on a very tight budget. I personally can't afford much more than $100 total for a complete and working game... so for a nonworking one I can't see myself offering any more than $50 or $60. Probably closer to $30.
 
Sure, there are people that would gladly pop $150 for a non-working game. But there are also people like me who are on a very tight budget.

We are on a very tight start-up budget. Not only are we starting the museum but also a cafe. At this point maybe I should worry more that the games work so at least when we open the cafe there are a bunch of working classics. We can then start restoring them one at a time later on. I just hate to pass up good deals on cabs that are complete and have pretty good sideart. I might have some kind of arcade sickness. I think we are up to 17 games now.
 
Though I completely agree with all the previous posts, how much you will pay really depends on your budget. Sure, there are people that would gladly pop $150 for a non-working game. But there are also people like me who are on a very tight budget. I personally can't afford much more than $100 total for a complete and working game... so for a nonworking one I can't see myself offering any more than $5o or so.

Once you factor in restoration costs, the final end price can go way past what you were expecting.

What you can afford to pay has nothing to do what a game is worth. It only means you have to work harder to get your games.

As for what to pay, depends on the game and its shape. The kid nikki in the converted tempest cabinet might not be worth $50 broken. Were as the tempest would be worth 4x that.

I would say, learn what a game is worth( ebay/CL/auctions/ect). Take a look at the game. If its really clean and looks complete I would say up to 3/4 what its worth working. If its in average shape I would say 1/2. If its beat, 1/4.

Condition is also the key factor. so is knowing if a game has had or will soon have its artwork reproduced. So you best tool is knowledge. If you know you want to own a game, find out everything you can about the game. If you buy the star wars cockpit with the 19" monitor your crazy if you think your going to pickup the 25" tube some day.

A game like star castle is is the easiest game to find. now if your looking for a sundance, thats a different story.

You really can't put a price on it. You also have to factor in how rare the game is. You might get 1 shot to ever get a game like quantum, cosmic chasm or reactor. If its a pacman, you can assume you will get another chance if you pass...
 
I paid $50 bucks for this non-working Xevious. Made an unbelievable 48-1. I didn't hack it either. All the original guts are still inside the cabinet. I added a separate power supply and JAMMA harness and spliced into existing controls. I have less than $150 bucks in the machine and about 3 hours labor....(the original monitor was junk and I did have to replace with one I had already fixed)
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Never more than $100 for a non-working game. . . . Buy them broke, fix them up, and you'll have a nice collection for a fraction of the cost that other people spent. . . .
 
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pac-man sees dead people
 
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