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KEN SWEETAP Business Writer
New York (AP) – Obsessed with collectibles, Americans have raised the prices of trading cards, video games, and other youth souvenirs. Enthusiasm has made small fortunes for some, but it is a deep frustration for those who love games and trading cards as a hobby.
Some of the most sought-after and controversial items include millennial relics from childhood. This includes copies of trading cards such as Pokemons Lizardon and Magic: The Gatherings Black Lotus, as well as Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. game cartridges. Some cards sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and unopened Super Mario games recently sold for a record $ 2 million.
This is more than the case of opportunistic collectors trying to invest in the explosion of nostalgia caused by a pandemic. Everyone seems to be fishing for part of the cake.
However, while some collectors and investors are seeing signs of the dollar, others are complaining about the collapse of their close-knit community. Players trying to play face-to-face again after a pandemic will not be able to find the tokens they need. If the work is available, the price rises astronomically.
“Prices go up and access goes down,” said Brian Lewis, who runs a YouTube channel called Tolarian Community College.
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The collecting craze is fueled in part by the personality of YouTube. With 23 million subscribers on YouTube, Logan Paul shot a few videos that just opened a box of vintage Pokémon cards, shot up the price paid, and got millions of views. I did.
“It may be a fast growing industry, but it’s still big business. The brand wants to reach these target groups, ”says Justin Kline, co-founder of the influencer marketing agency Markerly. Says. He estimates that Paul could generate six numbers per video in ad revenue.
The hype made collectors scramble to see if their Pikachu or Mox emeralds might be worth the luck. For this purpose, they rely on the grading of order-flooded services. Some have a waiting period of a year or more.
In response to the record demand, companies are releasing new versions of their games, including premium products, that charge higher prices. It is unclear whether the dynamic is sustainable, at least in terms of price.
But the excitement goes beyond trading cards. Earlier this summer, the US Mint released the Morgan Silver Dollar 100th Anniversary Collection, widely recognized as one of the most beautiful designs ever made by coin collectors. The product was sold out within a few minutes.
From The Legend of Zelda to Super Mario 64, there was also record sales of vintage video games.
The trading card community, on the other hand, has its own high prices as players strive to find the items they need for their collections.
Magic: The Gathering’s first set, the mint condition Black Lotus known as Alpha, sold for over $ 510,000 in January. The price is double the retail price of cards in a similar condition six months before July 2020.
Austin Deceder, 25, buys and sells cards primarily on Facebook and Twitter as an intermediary between players who want to drop out and new players. Dededer had a used Black Lotus card that he said sold for $ 7,000 in September 2020.
Inflation isn’t just for extremely rare cards. Get the popular Magic: The Gathering Card “Ragavan, the nimble thief”. A card showing a monkey with glasses sitting in a treasure trove cost $ 30 earlier this summer. The card is currently selling for just under $ 90, Deceder says.
But not everyone is happy. Some enthusiasts say the enthusiasm caused the worst fans and speculators. Under the motto “Gotta Catch’Em All!”, Nothing is more obvious among Pokemon card collectors.
Pokemon trading card boxes regularly sell out in hobby stores and large retail stores. Conflicts broke out and chains like Target have to limit the number of packages that individual customers can buy. Pokemon says it is trying to print as many cards as possible to catch up.
“The entire Pokemon community has deteriorated significantly,” said Shelby, creator of the Pokemon video Frosted Caribou on YouTube. Shelby, who refused to reveal her last name so as not to be harassed, said some of the community’s greatest collectors have been harassed in the past, especially when it came to prices. I did.
But the growing interest has been good for businesses and Wall Street.
Hasbro’s division Wizards of the Coast develops the tabletop role-playing game “Dungeons & Dragons” and Magic: The Gathering. Wizard sales doubled to $ 406 million in the second quarter.
Meanwhile, private equity fund Blackstone bought a majority stake in Certified Collectibles Group, a rating agency for trading cards and other collectibles, in July for $ 500 million.
It’s unclear if it’s good for players who have had these hobbies for a long time. Longtime collectors are likely to make money in the future, but those who have recently joined these communities are buying overpriced cards hyped by the most profitable positions. Maybe, said the mayor.
“Now there is a whole subculture that uses Pokemon as an exchange. I don’t know how these people can look at the community and say it’s healthy, ”said Shelby.
Copyright 2021 AP Communication. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed in any way without permission.
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Source Link Prices Explode For Collectors, Disappointing Enthusiasts | lifestyle
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