which presents the obvious problem: if you have sealed games you’re hoping will increase in value over time, these could potentially become unplayable at some point.
It doesn’t matter what’s in the sealed box…
Because after a certain point opening the box ruins it as a collectible.
It’s a cognitive dissonance thing for collectors. They want the preserved, playable copy but they don’t ever want to break the seal because that lowers the value.
I bet there are a bunch of collectors out there in possession of empty game boxes (with placebo weights) that have been expertly resealed and then submitted to grading companies for a seal of approval.
It doesn’t matter what’s in the sealed box…
Because after a certain point opening the box ruins it as a collectible.
It matters if you value it less as a collectible and more as a preserved, playable copy.
And within 5-10 years, no one is buying it to play…
It’s a moot point.
If the original buyer bought to play, they wouldn’t wait so long the cart goes bad.
And after 5-10 years there’s no reason to overpay for a sealed copy to play.
You can just pirate a dump of the game and flash it on if you want to actually play it.
It’s a cognitive dissonance thing for collectors. They want the preserved, playable copy but they don’t ever want to break the seal because that lowers the value.
I bet there are a bunch of collectors out there in possession of empty game boxes (with placebo weights) that have been expertly resealed and then submitted to grading companies for a seal of approval.
I honestly wonder about this. What will collectors value be for sealed items in 50 years when the game inside is almost certainly useless?
The same as for a comic book that hasn’t left it’s rated sleeve in 30 years, and never will again without ruining the value.
It doesn’t matter what happens after you open it, if no one is going to open it.
The value remains unchanged because long before degradation comes into play, what people are buying is the rarity.
I don’t think collectors who buy sealed items ever intend to ooen it up, tbh