Selling "rare" games for a profit - NOT WORTH IT!

If it is a popular current gen game it isn't "rare" no matter how much anyone says it is. "In high demand" is the term you are looking for, not rare.
 
Look on the bright side, OP, from what I heard about the markup on video games, you probably made more profit than the retailer you bought it from. But it's up to you what your return on investment would have to be to be worthwhile; sounds like you jumped through a handful of hoops to make the sale when you would have been better off flipping burgers at the BK lounge for an hour and 15 minutes to make that $9. Just me two cents though ;)
 
LOL, OP as others have stated, your expierment in flipping ended in disaster because your plan of action was chock full of FAIL from the get go.

Why the fuck would you even think that a current collector's edition would be "limited" or "rare"? The odds are so much against this, hell look at the Halo Legendary edition...as with the vast majority of "limited" editions, the manufacturers/publishers overprint them well beyond the point of there being anything "limited" about them.

And why the hell did you think to send it priority? Send it MEDIA MAIL, MEDIA MAIL, MEDIA MAIL. It's mother fucking MEDIA, so send that shit MEDIA MAIL. Did I mention MEDIA MAIL? Especially since it is undoubtedly larger and heavier than a normal game (haven't seen the collector's edition for ME, so I can only assume it's bulky). You should have gotten your own box from either a re-use of a box that was shipped to you, or purchased the right size box at a shipping/office supply place.
 
They've been cracking down on media mail. A collector's edition does not qualify for media mail because it has non media items in it. Sure, you could probably try - but once a postal inspector hears things moving inside the supposed game, they will open, and your buyer would be stuck paying the different for a forced priority upgrade (which is what they do).

I've had people include a cover letter along with a book and get charged priority upgrade because the cover letter nullified the media mail status.
 
You went about selling the whole thing wrong.

If you wanted to make some profit, you needed to sell each part of the collector's edition separately: The Game Discs, Artbook, Steelbook Case, and Codes all in separate auctions.

If you did this, you would have made $40-$50 profit (after fees). I did this with 2 copies of the CE.
 
[quote name='karkyco']LOL, OP as others have stated, your expierment in flipping ended in disaster because your plan of action was chock full of FAIL from the get go.

Why the fuck would you even think that a current collector's edition would be "limited" or "rare"? The odds are so much against this, hell look at the Halo Legendary edition...as with the vast majority of "limited" editions, the manufacturers/publishers overprint them well beyond the point of there being anything "limited" about them. [/QUOTE]

While I agree with your Media Mail advice (unless he contracted to ship at a different rate - it's been a while since I've sold on Amazon), the OP's error wasn't trying to sell the item immediately.

As we saw with the DRAGON AGE CE, people that sold before the reprint managed to make some scratch. People that held onto it, hoping for some future increase will probably have to hold onto it for a while - perhaps until DRAGON AGE 2 to recapture the same buying frenzy.

Personally, I sold a PS3 ASSASSIN'S CREED 2 CE for $250 within days of launch. Meanwhile, there are a ton of auctions currently languishing on eBay for $115 or less right now. And as someone pointed out upthread, your profit for selling at that price is relatively minimal ($10 or so).

Basically, I'd say that there's no hard and fast rule about when to sell Limited/Collector's Editions. Your best bet is to look at completed auctions and eBay to see if prices are trending down or up. But that's not even a great indicator of long term value.

And as a general rule, games are shitty long term investments. Collect things that you're interested in and just sell them whenever you don't want them/the price is too good to resist.

At the end of the day, unless you've got the time and energy to sell these items in sufficient numbers (i.e. college student or between jobs), it's probably not worth earning just $10 per transaction. Just my two cents.
 
Trying to flip games isn't very profitable 99% of the time; you do a lot of leg work for what amounts to table scraps. After shipping and fees, you don't make much in the end. In my experience, the only thing that tends to bring in a decent dollar are pre-order or otherwise unique (like CE) bonuses or DLC.

During the first week, it's pretty easy to get anywhere from $10 to $40 for what you got for free or included with the game. You just have to get out there quickly because once the interest for the game fades, so does the value of the DLC.
 
Games are not eligible for media mail and if they catch you sending it via that method then your buyer will have to pay the remaining value (yes, they do hold packages) of what it would have otherwise cost to send it the correct way.
 
[quote name='Purkeynator']Its totally dependent on the rarity of the game. After seeing how many places were taking pre-orders for the game, I decided the Collector's Edition would not be rare enough to flip like the first one was (Gamestop.com exclusive). Now the pre-order DLC and collector's edition DLC on the other hand are a different story.... I sold my DLC code for $35 with free shipping (naturally) and that paid for a good chunk of my Collector's Edition.[/QUOTE]

$35 for the Collector's armor code? I got it for free on xbox marketplace while it was up the day before release LOL...
 
I got $31 for the Collector armor and rifle. I was amazed, but I certainly can't complain. I also got a few bucks for the Inferno armor. Got the code from Amazon, even though I canceled my pre-order when they hadn't even shipped it by Tuesday. Again, can't complain. I basically got the CE for around $45 after fees.

Games are not eligible for media mail. There's always been a common misconception about this, because folks rarely get caught. But that's because most of the time, you're sending out a game or two in a bubble mailer. Thus, they are not motivated to check such packages. But if you ship something out in a sizeable box via media mail, it's far more likely to be checked, because they want to make sure you aren't sending out something they could make a lot more on the shipping from.

Selling early was still the issue, in my opinion. We're talking about a game that just came out from EA...and a sequel to a big hit at that. There were definitely going to be plenty of copies to go around. Plus, everyone has the same idea. It's not like one or two people say, "Oh, hey, let me buy extra copies and sell them!" Everyone is flipping or running a small business on eBay nowadays. Yes, holding onto the game always runs the risk of a reprint, like Dragon Age, but in the long run, you'll always do better holding onto it. You might just have to hold onto a long time. But selling it right away for a small profit isn't worth it.
 
[quote name='Rozz']Games are not eligible for media mail and if they catch you sending it via that method then your buyer will have to pay the remaining value (yes, they do hold packages) of what it would have otherwise cost to send it the correct way.[/QUOTE]
Here's the info from the USPS website about media mail eligibility:

http://pe.usps.gov/text/dmm300/373.htm#wp1015205

It doesn't indicate you can ship games via media mail, since it's not explicity stated in the items allowed to be shipped that way.
 
[quote name='GuilewasNK']If it is a popular current gen game it isn't "rare" no matter how much anyone says it is. "In high demand" is the term you are looking for, not rare.[/QUOTE]

You're telling me the Demon's Souls Deluxe Edition isn't a rare game?

[quote name='karkyco']
Why the fuck would you even think that a current collector's edition would be "limited" or "rare"? The odds are so much against this, hell look at the Halo Legendary edition...as with the vast majority of "limited" editions, the manufacturers/publishers overprint them well beyond the point of there being anything "limited" about them.

And why the hell did you think to send it priority? Send it MEDIA MAIL, MEDIA MAIL, MEDIA MAIL. It's mother fucking MEDIA, so send that shit MEDIA MAIL. Did I mention MEDIA MAIL? Especially since it is undoubtedly larger and heavier than a normal game (haven't seen the collector's edition for ME, so I can only assume it's bulky). You should have gotten your own box from either a re-use of a box that was shipped to you, or purchased the right size box at a shipping/office supply place.[/QUOTE]

You haven't been seeing the crazy amount of money CEs have been fetching lately, have you? Did you, by any chance, miss the Dragon Age: Origins CE craze? It was a limited CE for an the first 2 weeks of its release and commanded a high price. Now, it's not, but it still fetches a decent price, but that's why everyone is jumping on the CE bandwagon all of a sudden. They saw the money people were making off of Dragon Age and now they want in.

And yes, you mentioned Media Mail about 6 fucking times.

[quote name='rusty']$35 for the Collector's armor code? I got it for free on xbox marketplace while it was up the day before release LOL...[/QUOTE]

I don't know why I'm responding to your post. Maybe it's because you ended it in an all caps "LOL" and sounded like an idiot for doing so or maybe it's because I wanted to point out that not everyone got in on the free DLC. I sure as hell didn't because when I noticed the thread on CAG, it was too late and I was screwed. I don't mind though. I'll sell my armor code. From what I've heard, it makes the game a bit too easy in the beginning and to me, that just isn't fun.

[quote name='bigdaddybruce44']

But that's because most of the time, you're sending out a game or two in a bubble mailer.
[/QUOTE]

The one thing I don't get about people is why they don't send it first class. Unless the package is over 13 oz or if it's somewhere around 10-13 oz, then first class is cheaper than media mail. I was shocked when I saw that it would cost me almost $2.80 (forgot the exact numbers) to send one game via Media Mail while I could have just sent it via First Class for $2.09 or something along those lines.

And as an eBay seller, I refuse to ship anything via media mail. It's just too slow and all you do is get a ton of customer complaints. I'll shell out the extra $2-$3 it takes to send it priority instead.
 
As far as I know you can ship games media mail, but they cannot have anything else included but the game. A cartridge game may or may not qualify. Media mail would be better for shipping disc only games as if your shipping games with cases or manuals they may find advertising in the manuals and disqualify based on that.

You cannot ship magazines media mail because they contain advertising, same with comic books, anyone charging media rates for these on ebay is scamming the USPS or just undercharging in general which is rare.

You can use a priority flat rate envelope to send games which are larger if the envelope works for that or if your sending a game with a strategy guide that is what I do. Its probably gonna be cheaper to send a game + a guide in a priority flat rate envelope than it is paying Parcel Post or regular priority mail on it.

Otherwise ebay allows for calculated shipping in the games category, as long as you use that for heavier items and listings of more than a couple games you won't get screwed.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']Here's the info from the USPS website about media mail eligibility:

http://pe.usps.gov/text/dmm300/373.htm#wp1015205

It doesn't indicate you can ship games via media mail, since it's not explicity stated in the items allowed to be shipped that way.[/QUOTE]
Here is the info from the USPS website about video game ineligibility for media mail.

In conclusion, video games, whether on CD-ROM, diskettes, or similar software, regardless of form, or playable systems including computers, do not meet the standards for Media Mail. In addition, storage devices such as “portable hard drives,” "thumb drives," "flash drives," "jump-drives," and "USB drives” for use with computers are also not eligible for Media Mail prices. Qualifying computer-readable media may contain no advertising except when provided for by standard, e.g. incidental announcements of other books with books in a computer-readable format.
Click to expand...

Does that mean every time someone ships a video game media mail the recipient will get hit with a postage due? No
Does it mean if you ask in your local PO if video games qualify they'll say no? No
Is it an official statement from a high up in the USPS? Yes
 
[quote name='DarkRider23']The one thing I don't get about people is why they don't send it first class. Unless the package is over 13 oz or if it's somewhere around 10-13 oz, then first class is cheaper than media mail. I was shocked when I saw that it would cost me almost $2.80 (forgot the exact numbers) to send one game via Media Mail while I could have just sent it via First Class for $2.09 or something along those lines.[/QUOTE]

Well, that's a good point, too. Shipping out a regular game via media mail doesn't make much sense, anyway. You'll pay around the same, and it will take longer to get there. Never do it. Just pointing out that is why it almost never gets caught.
 
All in all these "collectors edition games" or even "Limited edition games" are not meant for an "end user/collector" to make money. Look at most of your classic games or you big name games they all "mostly" come out on your current systems/remake. The devs will put whatever they can on the box and add some artwork so YOU buy a copy. These "editions" are and where never meant for the "end user/collector" to turn a profit or big profit...
 
[quote name='DarkRider23']You're telling me the Demon's Souls Deluxe Edition isn't a rare game?[/QUOTE]

Yes.

http://www.game-rave.com/psx/playstation_perfect_guide/features/assassin_case/index.html

Granted, this was not readily available at retail, but this is true rarity. If you can find copies readily for sale of a game on various auction sites, at almost anytime, it isn't rare. It's just extremely hard to find for a reasonable price.
 
[quote name='nddave']All in all these "collectors edition games" or even "Limited edition games" are not meant for an "end user/collector" to make money.[/QUOTE] Yes they are. Who plays games, I got like 3 pair of gucci flippin dem ces
 
That media mail article about how games are not eligible is pretty recent, I don't think I have sent a game out media mail in a long time, but I have in the past and it got through just fine. I wonder if they will start inspecting more packages now that that statement has been released.
 
Buying and selling sealed copies that just came out is not really the way to go about it. Now selling DLC is worth it since it pretty much doesn't cost anything to the person selling it (it's a fricking combination of letters and numbers).

I won't sell something unless it makes me at least 2x what it cost me to buy. With the copies of Endless Ocean I just found, i can get at least $20 after fees and such after selling. That's worth it to me.

My best sales in the last few years was selling a DDR: Disney Mix new I got from Fry's for $30 on eBay for $150, and buying DDR: Mario Mix at Christmas time for $50 at a Target and selling it a day later on eBay for $150. If I can turn a game into 2 or 3 games, then I'll do it.

When Hollywood had their $3.99 sale on PS2/Xbox/GCN games, coupled with GameStop's trade in policy bonuses, that's where I was able to make double what I spent. That was worth it.

Buying a game for $10 and then flipping it in for $15 ($5 gain) doesn't appeal much to me. If you got $20, then I would be interested.
 
[quote name='SaraAB']That media mail article about how games are not eligible is pretty recent, I don't think I have sent a game out media mail in a long time, but I have in the past and it got through just fine. I wonder if they will start inspecting more packages now that that statement has been released.[/QUOTE]

I remember getting flack about sending strategy guides via media mail before.
 
[quote name='MasterSun1']I remember getting flack about sending strategy guides via media mail before.[/QUOTE]

Hahaha yes I got denied once too. I was so :bomb:.

She saw it was thin and larger than most books, so she asked me to open the package up. She then said in a nasty tone - "This is mario! This ain't no book!" I was livid but didnt have anything to refute her with, even though I knew she was in the wrong.

And when I did my Homework I found I was right:

From everything I read including the 1000+ page postal code and postmaster rulings, strategy guides are books and thus acceptable for media mail.

If you ever get shot down ask them if that guide isn't a book then what is it?

The only thing close is magazine and the postal code is clear what makes a magazine. It has to have some sort of sequential numbering, only on sale for limited time, extremly cheap binding/covers, etc. It should be noted though that one of the big postmaster rulings made clear things could still be books even if they were cheaply bound/covered.

If they cant show you how it is part of series (as in a periodical -annual monthly, etc.) its a free standing publication thus a book.
 
[quote name='mguiddy']Here is the info from the USPS website about video game ineligibility for media mail.

Does that mean every time someone ships a video game media mail the recipient will get hit with a postage due? No
Does it mean if you ask in your local PO if video games qualify they'll say no? No
Is it an official statement from a high up in the USPS? Yes[/QUOTE]Thank you, I hadn't been able to find that recent "ruling".

Though you're right, they probably won't care, though it always happens that it'll be your day to be "lucky" and you'll get stiffed on the package.
 
While I did mention media mail about ten times when it comes to heavier/bulkier games (and now stand corrected), I almost always send games First Class because they're almost always light enough to qualify. For the bulkier stuff, I try to figure out the best value, but have used media mail for heavy games previously. I will avoid it if at all possible int he future.

It looks like I screwed up though, I sold a VTech learning system that plugs into computers via a USB cable, and has various "lessons" and "learning" software it can play, and shipped it Media Mail, since it was heavy and large. I would have shoved it into the prepaid Priority box, but it wouldn't fit.

Not sure whether it qualifies or not, since it does actually meet many of the media mail requirements. I asked the P.O. clerk and they said it looks like it should be fine. Oh well, hope it gets where it's going ok. I insured it and added tracking - it was a Christmas gift for my daughter that we really don't need, costs $40 or $50 at Walmart (only available at Walmart from what I've found), and I sold it for $130. It would suck if on top of me gouging the recipient for the damn thing, the recipient gets dinged for extra postage, but LOL oh well.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']

Though you're right, they probably won't care, though it always happens that it'll be your day to be "lucky" and you'll get stiffed on the package.[/QUOTE]
yup they dont care and i've taken advantage of that last december :cool:
 
[quote name='MasterSun1']Buying and selling sealed copies that just came out is not really the way to go about it. Now selling DLC is worth it since it pretty much doesn't cost anything to the person selling it (it's a fricking combination of letters and numbers).

I won't sell something unless it makes me at least 2x what it cost me to buy. With the copies of Endless Ocean I just found, i can get at least $20 after fees and such after selling. That's worth it to me.

My best sales in the last few years was selling a DDR: Disney Mix new I got from Fry's for $30 on eBay for $150, and buying DDR: Mario Mix at Christmas time for $50 at a Target and selling it a day later on eBay for $150. If I can turn a game into 2 or 3 games, then I'll do it.

When Hollywood had their $3.99 sale on PS2/Xbox/GCN games, coupled with GameStop's trade in policy bonuses, that's where I was able to make double what I spent. That was worth it.

Buying a game for $10 and then flipping it in for $15 ($5 gain) doesn't appeal much to me. If you got $20, then I would be interested.[/QUOTE]Weren't you the guy on GameTZ who was telling me how bad of a person I was for flipping?
 
[quote name='davo1224']$130?! What the hell? We used to sell those at RadioShack for $30-$40 regardless of what it did/the model.[/QUOTE]

Yeah I couldn't believe it. Mine was the only one available for sale on amazon, so I had no competition in either the NEW, USED or COLLECTIBLE page for the product. I just decided to list it for a crazy amount and see what happens. I kept dropping the price by $10 increments from $99.99 on down until it hit $79.99, then boosted it back up to $130.
 
Learn to profit. 1) You have to find the right time to sell.

I sold my copy during the period where none were in stock (before release) for $200. Minus $30 in fees for selling through ebay/Amazon

I ended up getting $170 and paying around $10 for shipping, leaving me with $160.

I spent $70 and got $160. $90 profit, for very little work.
 
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