Originally Posted by spmahn El Viento always reminds me of Nick Arcade and how terrible it was (the show not the game). The game would always appear as an option, but I don't ever remember it being picked.

Nick Arcade was awesome - never speak badly of it. As a kid, I somehow convinced myself that Nick was actually able to transport people into a game.

Originally Posted by spmahn This shit just sickens me. Goodwill is a NON PROFIT CHARITY, they receive tax money, and their directors take home six figure paychecks. I understand the need to cover your overhead costs in running the retail stores, but if they are just going to hold back everything of even nominal value, why even bother running the stores? Just run donation centers, train the handicapped guys to take the donations, list the stuff that can be sold online, and then toss the trash in the dumpster. Yeah, if you get something of value, you can jack the price up a bit, that's fine, but if you're just trying to squeeze every last penny you can out of it, why even waste your customers time by running a store?

I used to work at Goodwill. Boy, could I tell you some dirt.

Anyways, not all stores sell online. It is a division thing. So, chances are your local store doesn't sell online. I believe it would be those stores in the larger cities. That listing was probably uploaded by some manager who did not have a clue on what it's value was. The store may have been trying to meet budget also. Usually any time there are games, the manager, assistant managers, automatically think they can charge a lot of money for them, because games are almost a guarantee sell.

For this, it should of been put in a bin, and the games should of been sold for like $3 per game. Nothing in that was worth the cash. Plus, Goodwill is a second hand store.

You guys would be surprised at the gaming gems that some of the staff throws in the compactor. My old manager, tried selling a bunch of Sega Genesis stuff that didn't sold. It was thrown in the compacter. I would normally eye ball the compactor on my breaks, or just to act like I was working.

Some of my finds, to be CRUSHED:

- A NES Top Loader, with controllers
- Metal Gear
- Final Fantasy
- Final Fantasy II
- Every Legend of Zelda NES titles.
- Every rare Mario NES titles

I freaked out whenever I seen this. I got it all out, and sold it. I sold each game for $7 each. The top loader sold for $20. The lady returned it and said it didn't work. It didn't have the AC adapter. Somebody tried throwing it away again, so I put $3 on it, and it sold immediately.

This was a good $150+ eBay lot, about to be crushed. I died.

I've also found numerous SNES consoles. I once sold twenty atari games, for $20. We once had a donation of a sealed xbox 360 with kinect.

Once, a manager put something in the showcase by the register when I wasn't looking. She had stuck a Nintendo DS in there, not knowing what it was for fifty cents. She was an older lady. A customer had seen it before I could grab it and correct the price.

I can help you guys out with the Goodwill stuff. If anyone has any kind of questions, I'll try and check this thread to see if you guys have anything to ask.

Originally Posted by The Acacia Strain I used to work at Goodwill. Boy, could I tell you some dirt. Anyways, not all stores sell online. It is a division thing. So, chances are your local store doesn't sell online. I believe it would be those stores in the larger cities. That listing was probably uploaded by some manager who did not have a clue on what it's value was. The store may have been trying to meet budget also. Usually any time there are games, the manager, assistant managers, automatically think they can charge a lot of money for them, because games are almost a guarantee sell. For this, it should of been put in a bin, and the games should of been sold for like $3 per game. Nothing in that was worth the cash. Plus, Goodwill is a second hand store. You guys would be surprised at the gaming gems that some of the staff throws in the compactor. My old manager, tried selling a bunch of Sega Genesis stuff that didn't sold. It was thrown in the compacter. I would normally eye ball the compactor on my breaks, or just to act like I was working. Some of my finds, to be CRUSHED: - A NES Top Loader, with controllers - Metal Gear - Final Fantasy - Final Fantasy II - Every Legend of Zelda NES titles. - Every rare Mario NES titles I freaked out whenever I seen this. I got it all out, and sold it. I sold each game for $7 each. The top loader sold for $20. The lady returned it and said it didn't work. It didn't have the AC adapter. Somebody tried throwing it away again, so I put $3 on it, and it sold immediately. This was a good $150+ eBay lot, about to be crushed. I died. I've also found numerous SNES consoles. I once sold twenty atari games, for $20. We once had a donation of a sealed xbox 360 with kinect. Once, a manager put something in the showcase by the register when I wasn't looking. She had stuck a Nintendo DS in there, not knowing what it was for fifty cents. She was an older lady. A customer had seen it before I could grab it and correct the price. I can help you guys out with the Goodwill stuff. If anyone has any kind of questions, I'll try and check this thread to see if you guys have anything to ask.

Why was that stuff being crushed? Did no one just have any clue what to do with it, and thus it was just assumed to be garbage? What happens with shit that doesn't sell, like the PS2 era sports titles that litter the shelves? Does it all eventually sell, or do they try to keep track of how long stuff has been sitting and just throw it in the dumpster if it doesn't sell after a month?

Originally Posted by The Acacia Strain I used to work at Goodwill. Boy, could I tell you some dirt. Anyways, not all stores sell online. It is a division thing. So, chances are your local store doesn't sell online. I believe it would be those stores in the larger cities. That listing was probably uploaded by some manager who did not have a clue on what it's value was. The store may have been trying to meet budget also. Usually any time there are games, the manager, assistant managers, automatically think they can charge a lot of money for them, because games are almost a guarantee sell. For this, it should of been put in a bin, and the games should of been sold for like $3 per game. Nothing in that was worth the cash. Plus, Goodwill is a second hand store. You guys would be surprised at the gaming gems that some of the staff throws in the compactor. My old manager, tried selling a bunch of Sega Genesis stuff that didn't sold. It was thrown in the compacter. I would normally eye ball the compactor on my breaks, or just to act like I was working. Some of my finds, to be CRUSHED: - A NES Top Loader, with controllers - Metal Gear - Final Fantasy - Final Fantasy II - Every Legend of Zelda NES titles. - Every rare Mario NES titles I freaked out whenever I seen this. I got it all out, and sold it. I sold each game for $7 each. The top loader sold for $20. The lady returned it and said it didn't work. It didn't have the AC adapter. Somebody tried throwing it away again, so I put $3 on it, and it sold immediately. This was a good $150+ eBay lot, about to be crushed. I died. I've also found numerous SNES consoles. I once sold twenty atari games, for $20. We once had a donation of a sealed xbox 360 with kinect. Once, a manager put something in the showcase by the register when I wasn't looking. She had stuck a Nintendo DS in there, not knowing what it was for fifty cents. She was an older lady. A customer had seen it before I could grab it and correct the price. I can help you guys out with the Goodwill stuff. If anyone has any kind of questions, I'll try and check this thread to see if you guys have anything to ask.

I can never find anything at my Goodwill and if I do it's overpriced (ex: NES system for $100) Regardless, how often do they add new items? What are the best times/days to go in hopes of scoring a deal?

Originally Posted by spmahn Why was that stuff being crushed? Did no one just have any clue what to do with it, and thus it was just assumed to be garbage? What happens with shit that doesn't sell, like the PS2 era sports titles that litter the shelves? Does it all eventually sell, or do they try to keep track of how long stuff has been sitting and just throw it in the dumpster if it doesn't sell after a month?

They crush anything they do not sell. It is policy. They would rather crush things, than let their employees take it home with them.

As for the top loader my idiot old boss thought because the Sega Genesis didn't sell, that it wouldn't sell either.

Usually the games that don't sell will sit there till they sell. You mark anything at $1 game related and it will sell. If it doesn't, they get thrown away.

It items that don't sell, just get crushed.

Originally Posted by highoffcoffee496 I can never find anything at my Goodwill and if I do it's overpriced (ex: NES system for $100) Regardless, how often do they add new items? What are the best times/days to go in hopes of scoring a deal?

Good question. Most people think the stores are stocked overnight and all the new items will be out in the morning. That is false. At night we had to close, clean, and count drawers down. The morning is usually the worst time to thirty at Goodwill.

The year I worked there, I noticed that the wares racks started coming out around 11-12. The morning shift at my store started at 9, the evening shift at 11/12. the more people working, means more people are sorting in the back of the store. You'll also see a lot if stuff coming in and out around 1-3:30.

Usually Saturday is when you'll see the most stuff. Sunday is great too, it's also a shorter shift. These two days are great, because these are the last two days of the week the stores can meet budget. The management will be putting out more stuff than normal.

It all depends on your store's policy.

As for the games, we probably were putting new ones out roughly 2-4 times a week. I live in a small town though, so I would imagine that ratio to differ in a large area.

Also contrary to popular belief, the workers cannot shop on the days they work. Items can't be held back either, since so much is being put out daily, and its against policy. My store installed cameras to watch us. Policy is very seriously enforced. The corporate people are a joke, I've net several of them. They're unfriendly till somebody says let's take a picture, and they want to look good next to their worker ants.

Pretty shit place to work, you see so many gems go through..

I may post some of my off day finds though. I was friends with the other cashier, so when I came in she would tell me if there was an item in the store I would want.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html...A32UWF11CYXVV6

Goodwill sells on amazon too.

I finally got to talk to one of the managers I'm kind of friends with and got the low-down on why the GW's around here (not sure if it's national) stopped selling Target stuff.

It turns out, as I suspected, Goodwill buys the merchandise from Target by the pallet (not donated). Well, according to him, and as I have personally witnessed, 90% of the stuff they get from Target is literally broken junk. Goodwill was losing (or at best breaking even) on the Target stuff, so at the end of last year, they stopped dealing with it.

I'm going to miss it, since it was nice to occasionally find a stack of clearance games at half of the last Target price, although it was more common to find those same games at MSRP. I've had quite a few good scores, as I've posted in the past, but eh, it is what it is.

Also, anyone picking up and flipping Guitar Hero controllers needs to be wary of the wireless Les Pauls. I've picked up two in the past week where the upstrum doesn't work. I'm glad I noticed before I put them on Amazon.

Originally Posted by The Acacia Strain Good question. Most people think the stores are stocked overnight and all the new items will be out in the morning. That is false. At night we had to close, clean, and count drawers down. The morning is usually the worst time to thirty at Goodwill. The year I worked there, I noticed that the wares racks started coming out around 11-12. The morning shift at my store started at 9, the evening shift at 11/12. the more people working, means more people are sorting in the back of the store. You'll also see a lot if stuff coming in and out around 1-3:30. Usually Saturday is when you'll see the most stuff. Sunday is great too, it's also a shorter shift. These two days are great, because these are the last two days of the week the stores can meet budget. The management will be putting out more stuff than normal. It all depends on your store's policy. As for the games, we probably were putting new ones out roughly 2-4 times a week. I live in a small town though, so I would imagine that ratio to differ in a large area.

Thank you!! If I think of anything else I will be sure to ask I really appreciate it!

Originally Posted by ChuckT Frogger by ChuckT2012, on Flickr Found this at an army surplus store in my hometown. Friend of mine told me they started selling odds and ends, and that it was worth a look. He was right. Six dollars, and it came with the game, instructions, and the Coleco battery adapter. Will look good on my gaming shelf.

Beautiful. This brings back pangs of nostalgia for me. I love this thread. I used to cruse the thrifts looking for games, but I sort of began reaching critical mass a couple years ago. LOL. Search my posts history, and you'll see some doozies.

This thread is almost as much fun, and uses less gas.

An odd and eclectic GW shopping weekend for sure, picked up the following:

Game Boy Printer, $3
SSBB Prima Guide, $1 (not as good as penny though)
NBA Jam TE for Genesis, $2.50
Rollcage Stage II, $1.50
Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix, $5

The DDR Mario Mix was kind of high, but it was for a complete good shape copy, so I figured why not. It's also funny that people were talking about the GB printer last week, and lo and behold one was just waiting there for me at one of the GW stops.

Originally Posted by ChuckT Frogger by ChuckT2012, on Flickr Found this at an army surplus store in my hometown. Friend of mine told me they started selling odds and ends, and that it was worth a look. He was right. Six dollars, and it came with the game, instructions, and the Coleco battery adapter. Will look good on my gaming shelf.

This is an awesome find! In the box?!

Originally Posted by spmahn Why was that stuff being crushed? Did no one just have any clue what to do with it, and thus it was just assumed to be garbage? What happens with shit that doesn't sell, like the PS2 era sports titles that litter the shelves? Does it all eventually sell, or do they try to keep track of how long stuff has been sitting and just throw it in the dumpster if it doesn't sell after a month?

SAVERS is the same way for most stuff. Sometimes media gets pulled and repriced, but most of the time they crush it. It would break my heart to work there.

Originally Posted by slowdive21 This is an awesome find! In the box?! SAVERS is the same way for most stuff. Sometimes media gets pulled and repriced, but most of the time they crush it. It would break my heart to work there.

Not all Goodwills crush, at least not at that store. If there's an outlet store in the area, the local stores will send their non-selling stuff there. The outlet sells stuff by the pound, so people are more inclined to buy the "junk" then.

Went to my local thrift store, which is owned by Orthodox Jewish people (I think), saw two NES controllers, the RF adapter, the power cable, four games. The games were Final Fantasy, Tengen Tetris and some Sesame Streets. I passed on all of them, since I couldn't find the freakin' console. I could've gotten a reasonable deal on all of them maybe $20, but I just didn't feel like it.

Originally Posted by highoffcoffee496 Thank you!! If I think of anything else I will be sure to ask I really appreciate it!

No problem at all. Anything to expose one of the more fake corporations in America, and to help out a fellow CAG.

Originally Posted by detectiveconan16 Went to my local thrift store, which is owned by Orthodox Jewish people (I think), saw two NES controllers, the RF adapter, the power cable, four games. The games were Final Fantasy, Tengen Tetris and some Sesame Streets. I passed on all of them, since I couldn't find the freakin' console. I could've gotten a reasonable deal on all of them maybe $20, but I just didn't feel like it.

just final fantasy or tengen tetris would be more than $20 from the game stores around here >.> you just passed up a good deal

Here are a few of my finds.

I'm not sure if you'd call this a thrift store find or not, but my coworker was hard up on cash and sold me all of these for $25.



Snagged this stuff over a span of time. The other workers put the GC games out at $0.50 each. I bought them because I didn't want them to go to a flea market, and it was simply too good of a deal to pass up. I actually have another copy of Paper Mario too, that I cannot seem to find. I was really hoping to find Luigi's Mansion that day. I also got the Jordan backpack there, fifty cents.

The Sega games were funny. My friend I bought the Pokemon games off of, he was mad and sick of his job. He sold everything to me for $0.25 each. I actually had more Sega stuff, I just can't seem to dig it out. Whenever I checked out, he told me to go get the rest of the games.



I also found this vintage ninja turtles backpack. I'm trying to find it to get a picture of it.

I found this stuff by going to Goodwill on Sunday. As I told another user, Sunday seems to be the best day for me shopping, and when I worked there it was when the most stuff was put out due to a shorter shift, you have a greater chance at finding something.

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Originally Posted by The Acacia Strain No problem at all. Anything to expose one of the more fake corporations in America, and to help out a fellow CAG.

Goodwill's prices are always terrible whenever i find something They are a fake corporation
I'm gonna head there this Sunday though so here's hoping I find something half decent....lol

Originally Posted by highoffcoffee496 Goodwill's prices are always terrible whenever i find something They are a fake corporation I'm gonna head there this Sunday though so here's hoping I find something half decent....lol

I don't have many kind words to say about them. I did meet some great people though who worked there, and who came in the store. It was a fun job, minus all the bs and dumb policies. The prices are likely a result of lack of knowledge from management. We weren't allowed to look up prices at our store, the division people said it took too much time and wasted production.

Try it though! The worst thing that can happen is you come out empty handed and still have cash in your pocket. The people that practical camp there, are the ones that get the good stuff though. There were people at my store that would come in 3-4 times a day. Were I live in a small Kentucky town though, you know, many of them did it for just something to do, and others did it to resell.

The more you go, the more likely you are to find something. If you are looking for good deals too, I'd suggest the lowball auctions on here, and even staying up to date with your local craigslist, or online classifieds. A lot of areas have some sort of group on facebook for trading. You can haggle those people pretty easy. My favorite line is "(Insert your price here), and I will pick it up today". Usually gets them!

Best of luck with your Goodwill adventures though. Let us know how it goes!