darkSpyro

With the influx of Skylanders showing up at retail stores these past few weeks, I decided to buy a whole complete unopen set of Skylanders. Who knows, they may be of value one day.

Naturally, I went after all of the 3 packs. I also purchased the Xbox Starter Set and the 3DS Starter Set. The only ones I'm missing are a) Eruptor/ChopChop/Bash 3-pak b) Camo/Warnado/Whamshell (Unreleased) c) All of the gold/silver/toyfair exclusives.

But then it dawned on me...from a collector's perspective, would the 3 packs be more desirable or the individual character packs be more desirable??? Does anyone here collect toys and knows which is the better path for something like this? I actually started to buy the individual characters too, but I plan to sell one set once I have this figured out. I can't afford to keep both.

fyi, for the individuals, I'm missing around 8. Stealth Elf, Prism Break, Boomer, Voodood, Zapp, Dinorang, Lightning Rod and Zook.

I think the single packs will be worth more because all of the kids opening them and throwing away the package.

3 packs would be the better deal, but I think having one in it's own package would be really nice for a future collection. I mean, from say..Star Wars, the big sets and stuff go for a lot, but I'm sure old ones in their own package go for a lot too.

However, keep in mind that right now we might just be experiencing a high point for the series. This could fail hard like Beanie Babies or Furby.

Crash N Burn it could.

well, id go with singles because you cant get wham shell in a three pack. it would just look stupid have like 100 3 packs then 1 single pack.

the value may go down as well as up so only invest as much as you are happy to lose

... alternatively just buy them and open them. they are toys after all.

Yeah, I've considered the crash and burn aspect. But that's the chance you have to take with collecting toys. If I knew the old school Transformers I grew up playing with or the GI Joe or Star Wars would be in high demand, I would have bought cases back in the day.

As it stands, if you catch stuff on sale, you can get an entire set of Skylanders in the ballpark of $350 or less. Not chump change, but not breaking the bank either. Especially, when the opportunity to grab all of them is staring you in the face. Aside from the Legendary set, I was able to get almost all of the 3 packs/adventure packs last Sunday ($20 each) and the Starter Sets for $45 (factoring in the $25 giftcard). Today, I got 2/3 of the individual packs. Couple this with the Legendary Set I picked up a month back, Legendary Trigger Happy and Blue Bash.

I'm hoping my kids get tired of Skylanders so I can sell their figures used and recoup some money. Doesn't look like that's going to happen with Giants coming out this fall.

Quote: t7gga

the value may go down as well as up so only invest as much as you are happy to lose

... alternatively just buy them and open them. they are toys after all.

I have the entire set for my 2 boys: opened, broken and glued back together, chewed on, paint missing...etc. I had no intention on getting the second set, but figured why not. Worst case, I could get even money for it on ebay if demand diminished. The Legendary set and Blue bash should help it retain some value. I'm a collector...not a toy collector, but I collect other things. I just felt this was a good opportunity to take a chance on a toy.

Collect only if u want a set. Dont collect for value. Its at its higjest point right now and figures lile chop chop you cant give away for free. Years from now these will not be worth a dollar for the whole set.

Quote: pakman916

Yeah, I've considered the crash and burn aspect. But that's the chance you have to take with collecting toys. If I knew the old school Transformers I grew up playing with or the GI Joe or Star Wars would be in high demand, I would have bought cases back in the day.

This is why they are in high demand - because so few held on to them.

The moral of the story is now every man and his dog are collecting things...

The moral of the story is now every man and his dog are collecting things...

DING! DING!

Especially when for every one collection like gamemasters there are 10 people with bigger and badder collections. Many people dont even post here.

Here my take on collecting, be 30 years old and collecting all sorts of random things.

Honestly I would only really worry about value if you plan to sell it. If you never plan to sell then value is a bragging right only.

Collect what you like and what feels right. Some people collect stuff for value some because they like the subject matter. I suppose at this point you have to decide which camp you fall into. If you have enough money you can fall into both (collect unopened items and collect opened and played with items).

As far as Skylanders staying popular. Honestly I do not foresee them going down in value in the future. The reprints coming with Giants might tank the 1st wave value or it could sky rocket it, because they are out of print. Its a tough call to make. I collect Pokemon cards and once something is reprinted the value is usually gone. That being said you will get the random collector who's looking to pay whatever, but that's usually pretty rare.

An important note in Collectible history, is that generally fades such as this, tend to be completely worthless money wise after enough time. While there may be shortages now, the scalping doesn't help but eventually you will be able to walk into a tru and find them stuffed on the shelves.

That's just my opinion however. I collect Pokemon Cards and plushies (some which are still worth quite a bit) Collectors edition video games (most which are not worth a cent). Lego's are an exception to the rule. Aftermarket on Star Wars sets that go out of print are crazy money. So I always buy two of every set. While that seems like a lot of an initial investment at first, because of that down the line when everything is added up my entire lego collection was FREE. Yes FREE I paid money initially but managed to keep one of everything for myself and walk away with money. Just had a set that went out of print a year or two ago. That brown Ship MTT I think, that holds the droids. It retails for $100 I paid around $80 a piece for mine. Put it up on Ebay with starting bid at my cost and its sold for just over $400. That the norm for out of print mega sets not the exception.

Anyway that got a bit off topic, sorry!

Quote: StormbringerGT

Here my take on collecting, be 30 years old and collecting all sorts of random things.

Honestly I would only really worry about value if you plan to sell it. If you never plan to sell then value is a bragging right only.

Collect what you like and what feels right. Some people collect stuff for value some because they like the subject matter. I suppose at this point you have to decide which camp you fall into. If you have enough money you can fall into both (collect unopened items and collect opened and played with items).

As far as Skylanders staying popular. Honestly I do not foresee them going down in value in the future. The reprints coming with Giants might tank the 1st wave value or it could sky rocket it, because they are out of print. Its a tough call to make. I collect Pokemon cards and once something is reprinted the value is usually gone. That being said you will get the random collector who's looking to pay whatever, but that's usually pretty rare.

An important note in Collectible history, is that generally fades such as this, tend to be completely worthless money wise after enough time. While there may be shortages now, the scalping doesn't help but eventually you will be able to walk into a tru and find them stuffed on the shelves.

That's just my opinion however. I collect Pokemon Cards and plushies (some which are still worth quite a bit) Collectors edition video games (most which are not worth a cent). Lego's are an exception to the rule. Aftermarket on Star Wars sets that go out of print are crazy money. So I always buy two of every set. While that seems like a lot of an initial investment at first, because of that down the line when everything is added up my entire lego collection was FREE. Yes FREE I paid money initially but managed to keep one of everything for myself and walk away with money. Just had a set that went out of print a year or two ago. That brown Ship MTT I think, that holds the droids. It retails for $100 I paid around $80 a piece for mine. Put it up on Ebay with starting bid at my cost and its sold for just over $400. That the norm for out of print mega sets not the exception.

Anyway that got a bit off topic, sorry!

Perfectly on topic and well written. I recently bought the whole set of Sonic The Hedgehog 20th anniversary toys and well the amount it's worth really doesn't matter to me because I love the way it looks displayed. Super Sonic, Shadow and Tails along with comics.

I would love to start up Legos again but they seem to take up a lot of space. I would need a hobby room to do that.

Back to Skylanders I think the value of them will depend on how they innovate and change the game with Giants. Also can they perhaps create other Skylanders games such as a tactics game like Final Fantasy Tactics. Scan a maximum of 6.

Also if I remember correctly the reprints will look different then the originals so that will be great for collectors.

IMHO the single character packs are more collectible than the 3 packs. I'm collecting both a sealed triple and single character pack and I find then single pack more appealing. The 3 packs are probably better to sell to someone who is going to open them but the single packs will have value to both a collector and just someone who want to own the figures. In terms of value, Activision is in control if our collections will have any value at all. So far the reposed figures will lessen the value of the current set and with the news of the level cap on the older figures then the older figures are going to lose more value. I really don't care about the value of my collection right now because as long as we keep playing the game, it has value to us no matter what happens.

I am a Gamer and Collector. So this game appealed to me in both ways. With that said I'm not one that goes for every Single thing. I Open alot of my Action figures i get then there are some I leave MOC or MIB. I went for characters I liked I'm not a Poke Master I don't have to catch them all.

I say go with what your gut tells you.

But from a long time collectors stand point I say the Single packs and The Adventure packs will be you best best MOC.

Exactly. To us the value in our collections is how much we smile as we sort them again for the 100th time!

I have a hobby room, luckily. We opted out of having kids so we can afford hobbies.

@SkylerS

A tactics Skylanders game and I would die from happiness... like shining force or FF tactics... oh my lord....

Don't buy toys, because you have a hope of turning a profit somewhere down the line. In general you will always loose money collecting toys, unless you become a scalper. A rare few can make a huge profit, most make only a little, and when you think about the profit they could have made if they had invested that same money into something like gold, then it's very measly. Not to mention, you have to be prepared to sit on them until they are out of production, or run the risk of being labeled a scalper. Even then, some toy investors still get labeled as scalpers, because they bought the toys with intent to profit. Ask yourself this, are you more interested in profiting or collecting? If you are more interested in profiting, then why not pick something more predictable like gold? If you are more interested in collecting, then why do you really need 2 sets?

This is what I go by when collecting. In my experiences I've found these guideline to be the most beneficial to the collecting community and myself.

Quote: http://www.rebelscum.com/collect.asp

- Buy only what you need and make sure others get one before you get many.

- Acquire pieces for your collection because you want them, not because you plan to profit from them.

- Help others achieve their collecting goals for the sake of the hobby, not profit.

- When you trade or sell available toys, do so at cost.

- When you trade or sell unavailable toys, do so keeping the golden rule in mind: you'll always win in the long run if you don't take advantage of people.

- Buy from scalpers as a very last resort. They exist because people buy from them and do not make collecting toys easier. Scalping only promotes decay within the hobby.

- Understand it is more important for a kid to have the toys than you; help them out whenever possible. You're likely to get another chance at the toy, he/she may not.

As for my personal opinion on the future value of Skylanders, I predict they will drastically drop in popularity and price sometime after Giants. Eventually Activision will get their production problem resolved, so there is no shortage, and most families will quickly get sick of the marketing model. Most people that play this game and collect these figures are children or families with children, not collectors, so don't count of the first series being viewed as rare when Giants is out. They won't be nearly as desirable among the majority, because the new figures will be set up to work better with the new game(higher level cap and what not). Given enough time and I'm sure we'll be able to walk into any store that sell Skylanders and see them filling the shelves. I've seen it happen so many times with other toys. Whatever value they do end up holding, I predict singles will be worth more than the triples. Of course, this is all just opinon. I can't see into the future. ;p

^this

...except gold is simply a more historic variant of "greater fool theory" and is no more an asset, in pure economic terms, than collectible toys.

Only stocks and properties are true assets as they generate passive income - invest in those.

Quote: chaosworrier

^this

...except gold is simply a more historic variant of "greater fool theory" and is no more an asset, in pure economic terms, than collectible toys.

Only stocks and properties are true assets as they generate passive income - invest in those.

I assist part time with a friend's family that runs a gold business. I guess you are right. My friend and his family can turn a decent profit in a only a couple days(faster then sitting on Skylanders for a few years), but I guess it's not really investing, since they are buying/selling so fast. That's been my only exposure to gold, so I forgot that normal people who aren't in the business plan to sit on their gold for some time in hopes the prices raises, which is a huge gamble. Last time I worked, it was very high(17 something!), but it's been that way for a few years now. It's going to be really bad for a lot of people when the prices finally starts coming down. Nonetheless, they get regular people that go to estate and yard sales, buy up mixed and untested jewelry that looks like it might be gold for only a few dollars, and then take it to my friend/his family to be tested. It's an easy way to turn a few dollars into $20+ if you get lucky or are good at spotting gold without testing. Anyway, that's getting way off topic. I agree with you.