I stumbled across a niche Sega Saturn title originally made for visually‑impaired players. I really liked the concept and the price was reasonable, so I purchased it. The listing showed all accessories complete. When it arrived, however, the outer game box had obvious damage. The seller explained a family member handled the shipping and suspects the damage happened during sea freight. They offered me a partial refund.
Returning the game would be bad for both of us: the seller would cover return shipping, and there is risk of further damage in transit. Also, I might not find another copy at a decent price with acceptable condition.
I’ve come up with three options and I’m wondering what this community would do in my situation:
1. Get a PET protective sleeve to safeguard the cracked original box, preventing cracks from spreading. 2. Source a second‑hand genuine original empty long‑box from another collector. I want to understand how swapping the box affects the item’s overall condition rating and scarcity value. 3. Store only the disc inside a standard CD jewel‑case, and keep all original accessories sealed in storage bags.
Even if a future buyer wouldn’t mind these issues, disclosing the full truth might lower the resale price and make it harder to sell. Still, I want to be completely honest about its condition.
I’m curious about the community collectors’ perspective. What are the pros and cons of each option for long‑term personal collection and future resale value?
Yes! I've thrown away hundreds of cases for old games keeping only the sleeves, manuals, discs and cartridges. I buy games to play and enjoy them, not to start a museum or hoping I can sell them off and retire early. I want them to take the least space possible so I can buy more games.
Saturn is annoying though, cause the majority of the Pal games have cardboard cases glued to the disc holders, so they take up more space than most other consoles.