I recently got back into tabletop gaming after a 25 year hiatus. When I left Canada and moved overseas in '95, I sold off nearly all of my collection. I only kept three of my wargames: Squad Leader (and expansions), Defence of Rorke's Drift, and Pax Britannica. The latter two weren't particularly great games, but I kept them mainly because, along with WWII RAF Night Bombing, Victorian colonial wars are far and away my favourite subject of history.
I haven't even looked inside the Pax Britannica box, let alone played the game in a quarter century so I decided to take advantage of one of my local FLGS's consignment system and put it up for sale. I brought it in tonight and listed it for $30. It sold within 20 minutes and I felt and instant pang of regret that I can't quite explain.
I only ever played the game to completion twice and I never found it to be that great of a game but I fell in love with the idea of the game rather than the mechanics itself. Anyone else ever run into a similar feeling?
I also put Operation Dauntless up for sale. I never even punched the counters for that one. It looks great but I know that I'll never, ever get that one on the table. That kind of detailed tactical simulation would have been my go to in my 20s, but I find that that sort of game is exactly the kind of thing that PC gaming excels in replacing. Even amongst the few in my group who like heavy wargames, a tactical level boardgame that's going to take 4-6 hours to play is something they aren't likely to go for.
FWIW,
Living in Euro Zone (and behind the customs wall of EU to add to it) has its disadvantages especially with two of my dear hobbies: reading (and there's never enough books), and acquiring more board games that I need. Kindle has resolved the first problem, but due to the ridiculous postage costs from US (mainly) and the customs hit to add to the insult (if the purchase was > USD 25ish), I am pretty active in second hand game market, especially with BGG and its Marketplace. Plus, there's a lot of great games available there!
I look for sellers who've been active there, have many sales, positive reviews (I try to always leave a positive review after a purchase that went well). Not many US sellers (due to postage fees I'g guess), but Canada is a completely another manner, fair postage yet the folks there have the US made games I'm after.
Haven't sold any of my games lately, but as an active buyer perhaprs read this the other way around: If you're an active seller and especially once you have the positive references ensuring your trustworthiness (sp?), I'd wage it's not that difficult to sell games at all.
Interesting take on it. I gleaned from some of Bob's earlier posts that obtaining certain board games in Europe is much more problematic than it is in N. America (Living in a major urban centre, finding the latest game rarely takes more than a few phone calls and on those rare occasions where none of the local sellers have it, it's never more than 5 days from delivery). My original post was meant to be more of a reflection on the emotional investment than on the difficulties of supply but I can see how that could be a problem as well.
Ah, emotional point of view. Right. :nerd:
Well I haven't sold any and am not looking towards selling, so I'd say it'd be very difficult.
I still hold into my original Panzer Leader and Rise and Decline of Third Reich boxes as something I'd not sell despite not really expecting to play them that much anymore.
I played boardgames briefly during the last years of High School (Reagan was first elected during my Senior year) but stopped after graduation. Then about 10 years ago I come across some games among stuff I had stored away at my folks place since graduation. They included my copies of Panzer Blitz and Von Richthoven's War. I opened them, started reading the rules...
... and now I have half a bookcase full of boardgames. I may eventually sell many of them since I never get time or space to play but I'll always hang on to those first two, bought with money from a summer landscaping job while still in High School.
I haven't found it very difficult at all, to be honest. I've bought and at least a couple hundred games. Now, I do it occasionally for profit just to set my cost basis for the hobby to zero. I tell myself after that I'll stop... we'll see. It has kind of become part of the hobby to me, for some strange reason. Another game, I guess.
It also bothers me to have a large collection and games that sit unplayed or will likely sit unplayed. Think I own about 50 games these days and most have been played and will be played in the future, even if most of my play time is now spent on ASL.
Quote from: jwoodall04 on March 14, 2017, 03:15:06 PM
I haven't found it very difficult at all, to be honest. I've bought and at least a couple hundred games. Now, I do it occasionally for profit just to set my cost basis for the hobby to zero. I tell myself after that I'll stop... we'll see. It has kind of become part of the hobby to me, for some strange reason. Another game, I guess.
It also bothers me to have a large collection and games that sit unplayed or will likely sit unplayed. Think I own about 50 games these days and most have been played and will be played in the future, even if most of my play time is now spent on ASL.
I've always found it easier to give games away...or trade with friends. I sold some at a bookstore once and it was pretty fun. A large percent of the current stock will probably get sold or traded soon.
Your question offends me.
That's of a piece with selling children...
More seriously, though, for those who do such wicked things, I hear good luck is had at the Wargame Marketplace on Facebook and the Marketplace on Consimworld. Both are pretty aggressively policed against the less honest and it seems the market is strong there.
I'd sooner sell my children.
Quote from: mirth on March 18, 2017, 03:52:42 PM
I'd sooner sell my children.
Take my wife.Please.
FWIW...I recently made some inquiries into helping someone sell off a very large collection of old wargames. I called a games store that I know to usually have a large stock of old games, and was very cordially and sincerely informed that there really isn't a big market for many of the "classic" titles. At the time I called, they had 3 copies of AH Airforce, a couple Luftwaffe and Richthofen's War and Flight Leader, to name a few. Granted...some titles - like Civilization, Up Front, Raid on St. Nazaire, Sniper & Gunslinger are still in demand...but other titles just seem to pile up.
Contact Noble Knight or Troll & Toad, now that Crazy Egor is out of business.
Or come to Origins and you'll probably find a buyer :)
I sold some out-of-print RPG stuff this month on Ebay.
(MERP 2nd Edition pair of books and a stack of 40k Dark Heresy 1st Ed)
May as well cash out some stuff I don't plan on playing anytime soon.
Thing is.. this is the slowest time of year for people spending money so I'll probably wait until summer time before selling anything further (few boardgames perhaps).
So damn easy.
Any good memories I have aren't of the game itself, but of playing said game (usually with friends). If it hasn't come off the shelf for over a year, it clearly isn't something I'm all that interested in playing, so out it goes for money I'll spend on something different that might get played.