the.com/cartridge collecting
hoarding plastic rectangles because childhood was a receipt you refuse to lose.
means the hobby of acquiring, grading, and preserving video game cartridges as physical artifacts rather than just things you play.
from emerged in the 2000s as nes and snes games stopped being sold new, turning discount-bin junk into scarce relics once collectors and ebay noticed the supply had a ceiling.
grading obsessionwata and vga grade cartridges like rare coins now
record salea sealed super mario 64 sold for 1.56 million
box matters morecomplete-in-box can be worth 10x loose cartridge
reproduction problemfake relabeled carts plague the resale market constantly