Game Hunt - Very First Grabs!

DAY ONE: The Collection Begins at "BITS and Pieces"...

    Many have followed "Pat the NES Punk" and "The Game Chasers" as retro games are continually added to their massive collections. At "Bits and Pieces", gamers will be able to chronicle MY adventures in retro gaming as I develop my collection from scratch! Tune in and comment as I share my finds and hunt some of the greatest games in existence...

     A YouTube series may follow as I make more and more finds! For now, let's take a look at day one: the very first games in my collection!

TODAY'S BUYS:

GAUNTLET - (Tengen) 1987

Price Tag: $5.45

Condition: Excellent, out of box 

Fondest Memory: "Blue elf is about to die..." 

    Gauntlet has a lot of nostalgic value to me and is TRULY a great find. I'm not claiming Gauntlet is rare, but a Nintendo collection isn't complete without this intricate game. We all know Tengen has released a lot of poor titles, but when I think of Gauntlet - I think of how impossible it was for me as a child. It's hard to fathom a game from 1987 having 100 LEVELS, but Gauntlet succeeded in doing so - resulting in an NES cartridge with immense replay value.

CASTLEVANIA II: SIMON'S QUEST - (Konami) 1988

Price Tag: $11.00

Condition: Excellent, out of box

Fondest Memory: Sound of throwing holy water!

    Simon's Quest is certainly not the best Castlevania in the series, but all Castlevania titles are a must in my collection. When I spotted it today in nearly mint condition, it was as though the game was saying "forget my price tag - I'm a steal in this condition for being 24 years old!" Excellent find and I'm pumped to have it!

BLADES OF STEEL - (Konami) 1988

Price Tag: $4.48

Condition: Rough box, pristine cartridge 

Fondest Memory: "Rip my pants!" ... ("With the pass")

    This was for sure the find of the day... My goal is to accumulate games in immaculate shape, but when I spotted "Blades of Steel" in the box for under $5 - I knew it had to be mine! This is one of the best hockey games ever released on NES - and (I believe) the first hockey game to include fighting scenes! I remember losing the Stanley Cup Finals (when I was about 9) and being devastated... Blades of Steel has tremendous replay value and remains a blast to this day. If you've never played it, you need to. 

    The box is in rough shape, but the cartridge is in phenomenal shape. As long as I can find cartridges free of gunk and sticker residue, I can worry about mint boxes down the road.

All in all...

    Today was fun and my collection is under way! I'm probably the most psyched to pick up meaningful titles with cartridges in nearly perfect condition. My next stop is a local flea market and I literally can't wait... Expect MANY more posts as my collection continues to grow. When I come across duplicates of rare titles, I am more than willing to post them and sell them for a reasonable price. I'm not out to capitalize on rarity... My goal is to collect and respect history... 

Mini Wish List:

- Castlevania 1 and 3

- Mega Man

- Final Fantasy