c/retro-gaming-finds

I mean, maybe it's just me, but I found that doing finger stretches before digging into my old Gameboy games helps a ton

I found Chrono Trigger for $5 at a flea market (the seller just wanted it gone), but now I'm wondering if I should have said something. Thoughts?

My Sega Genesis haul had silent cutscenes until I poked around inside

I grabbed a bunch of Sega Genesis games from a thrift store, and when I popped in one of the RPGs, the music played but the cutscene voices were totally mute. I figured my TV or cords were messed up, so I swapped cables and even tried another Genesis I have, same issue. It hit me that maybe the game cartridge itself had a problem, not the system. I opened up the cart carefully with a small screwdriver and saw the board looked fine, no obvious breaks. On a hunch, I gently rubbed the edge connector with a pencil eraser, which I heard can help with dirty contacts. After putting it back together and testing, the voices came through clear as day. It was just some oxidation blocking the sound data from reading right. Now I keep an eraser handy for all my old cart finds, it's a cheap fix that really does the job.

My usual yard sales stopped having retro games, so I turned to the web.

I used to score retro games at yard sales every weekend. Lately, the stalls have been empty. I saw that many sellers are on online swap groups now. I tried one and landed a rare game I needed. Where do you hunt for retro titles now?

The day my spouse labeled my retro haul as 'clutter' was a real eye-opener

They called my carefully curated shelves a mess, but those cartridges hold decades of memories. It's not hoarding if it's history.

Rant: The shift in how retro games surface at thrift stores...

I've been collecting for a decade, and the casual discovery aspect is vanishing... Sellers now instantly check values on their phones, so surprises are rare. It's changing the culture from treasure hunting to just another marketplace.

Stumbled upon a pristine sealed game from the 16-bit era in a bin of junk: moral dilemma time

Last weekend, I was digging through a flea market and found a perfect-condition sealed cartridge from the early 90s. On one hand, opening it to experience the game as intended feels right, but on the other, keeping it sealed preserves its collectible value and history. What would you do in this situation, play it or preserve it?