A year ago, I started planning a possible Sega CD FMV gaming series. I am curious to see how prices have changed and if now is a good time to start collecting.
| Rank | Title | L24 | L25 | C24 | C25 |
| 1 | Road Avenger ($) | $34.11 | $30.07 | $200.14 | $143.28 |
| 1 | Tomcat Alley ($) | $6.99 | $8.72 | $15.38 | $15.41 |
| 3 | Night Trap ($) | $23.21 | $25.03 | $129.24 | $98.99 |
| 4 | Time Gal ($) | $33.75 | $27.70 | $121.05 | $153.61 |
| 5 | Revenge of the Ninja ($) | $35.72 | $29.99 | $50.46 | $47.68 |
| 6 | Novastorm ($) | $74.99 | $66.72 | $119.98 | $95.56 |
| 7 | Mad Dog II: The Lost Gold ($) | $54.99 | $54.00 | $159.50 | $112.40 |
| 8 | Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. II ($) | $8.90 | $8.90 | $35.00 | $36.70 |
| 9 | Panic! ($) | $46.27 | $45.00 | $85.00 | $141.51 |
| 10 | Crime Patrol ($) | $44.17 | $76.84 | $170.00 | $144.01 |
| 11 | Ground Zero Texas ($) | $8.43 | $10.67 | $17.73 | $19.89 |
| 12 | Dracula Unleashed ($) | $15.69 | $14.87 | $24.13 | $22.46 |
| 13 | Space Ace ($) | $28.31 | $21.53 | $49.25 | $43.71 |
| 13 | The Masked Rider: Kamen Rider ZO ($) | $14.85 | $16.45 | $35.45 | $28.59 |
| 15 | Iron Helix ($) | $19.75 | $15.49 | $31.48 | $30.99 |
| 16 | Dragon’s Lair ($) | $13.99 | $14.45 | $34.99 | $34.37 |
| 17 | Double Switch ($) | $8.82 | $8.48 | $15.00 | $14.77 |
| 17 | Wirehead ($) | $21.91 | $20.99 | $39.99 | $40.00 |
| 19 | Sewer Shark ($) | $5.61 | $7.73 | $44.30 | $31.94 |
| 20 | Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I ($) | $6.18 | $6.34 | $9.10 | $9.09 |
| 21 | Surgical Strike ($) | $9.70 | $13.87 | $24.99 | $25.06 |
| 22 | Mad Dog McCree ($) | $13.95 | $17.07 | $29.99 | $29.99 |
| 22 | Microcosm ($) | $11.71 | $13.79 | $19.90 | $18.99 |
| 24 | Fahrenheit ($) | $27.00 | $25.75 | $41.76 | $37.89 |
| 25 | Corpse Killer ($) | $21.69 | $15.63 | $32.90 | $34.95 |
| 25 | Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ($) | $14.63 | $10.43 | $24.54 | $25.50 |
| 25 | The Lawnmower Man ($) | $66.36 | $66.64 | $106.08 | $94.95 |
| 25 | Kris Kross: Make My Video ($) | $16.92 | $13.18 | $25.38 | $23.87 |
| 39 | Prize Fighter ($) | $6.94 | $5.87 | $13.59 | $12.12 |
| 30 | Midnight Raiders ($) | $10.47 | $11.44 | $18.95 | $19.99 |
| 31 | Who Shot Johnny Rock? ($) | $16.22 | $14.54 | $29.70 | $37.99 |
| 32 | INXS: Make My Video ($) | $19.41 | $16.50 | $33.65 | $37.47 |
| 33 | Kids on Site ($) | $12.70 | $8.49 | $19.90 | $12.96 |
| 34 | Slam City with Scottie Pippen ($) | $21.24 | $20.06 | $38.00 | $31.32 |
| 35 | Loadstar: The Legend of Tully Bodine ($) | $21.01 | $17.99 | $39.89 | $25.94 |
| 36 | Supreme Warrior ($) | $24.33 | $23.05 | $35.08 | $35.92 |
| 36 | Power Factory Featuring C+C Music Factory ($) | $10.97 | $14.56 | $22.99 | $18.62 |
| 38 | Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch: Make My Video ($) | $14.99 | $13.44 | $30.48 | $29.94 |
| 39 | NFL’s Greatest Teams ($) | $7.75 | $6.48 | $16.11 | $15.03 |
I would say there is nothing too remarkable here. Inflation is up, so the fact that game prices are slightly down may suggest a downward trend. But these are not high-volume transactions, and if you really want a $20 game, paying an extra $2 or $5 is not a significant amount.
Another interesting note: the cases themselves have value. Sega CD cases are known for cracking and breaking. Reproduction cases start at $8 each, while you’ll only see games that didn’t use standard Sega CD packaging for under $10.
Panic! almost doubled in price, but almost every other game was within a margin of 20%.
The true issue is less about whether a game is $15 or $25, but if you can actually obtain one.
Obtaining The Games
I still own my 32X and Genesis, but I do not have my Sega CD. I believe I traded that in to buy my release-day PlayStation. Therefore, not only do I need to buy the games, but I also need the console.
Ideally, there would be a lot for sale where I could get a console and at least a dozen of the games. I wouldn’t be opposed to collecting more Sega CD non-FMV games and having a complete collection, but that is not my priority now. It is also a very niche request and one you would like to only do once. I don’t want to be in the business of buying bulk and then reselling to maintain my collection.
I also have to decide on the quality of game I want to collect. I plan on playing these games, so obviously graded and sealed are out of the question. For most of these games, the complete-in-box version costs about twice as much as the loose one. I think that is not unreasonable. But for games like Time Gal, Road Avenger, Night Trap, and Panic!, I might have to be happy with loose copies for now.
I did a search on eBay for each title to determine the lowest price I could get each game complete. I was stunned to find that it was only 5% more than what PriceCharting showed.
But isn’t the fun of building a collection in finding the games? Getting a deal? Stumbling across a holy grail?
Is there joy in simply swiping a credit card and clicking a few buttons?
I need to find a balance between starting my collection appropriately and simply trying to buy enjoyment.
