SUPER SMASH
BROS. BRAWL

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Are you a video-game packrat? Do you own more video games than you could possibly beat in a whole year, even if you played non-stop? Would you go without food to save up the money to buy a rare TurboGrafx-16game, an obscure Atari 2600 controller, a limited-edition Game Boy Pocket or a leather Killer Instinct jacket? If so, this monthly collector’s column is for you.

Now here’s an idea that’s really only suitable for the most ambitious and affluent video-game fans: collecting original video-game artwork!

Pictured here are the original drawings and paintings that were used on the box art for the games in question. The practice of using hand-drawn artwork for game packaging is becoming outmoded, as more and more publishers use photographs or digital (computer rendered) images instead. But these babies are the real deal; can you imagine having a one-of-a-kind piece of recognizable videogame artwork framed and mounted on the wall of your home?

There are other kinds of collectible video-game art as well. Games like Spider-Man: Mysterio’s Menace (Game Boy Advance) and Shape Shifter (TurboGrafx-CD) feature cutscene images which were hand-drawn and scanned into graphic data; the original artwork for these images should still exist somewhere. There’s also instruction manual and advertising artwork out there. Even more desirable are production drawings from a game’s design stage (character model sheets, level design mockups, etc.); these may not be as immediately identifiable as box art, but their intrinsic value could be much higher if they were to be circulated in the collecting community.

Because these key art images are often re-used for other purposes, certain illustrations may have additional value. For example, the Spy Hunter painting seen here was originally created for the backglass of Bally’s Spy Hunter pinball machine. The fact that Sunsoft used it several years later as the box art for the NES version of Spy Hunter means that this particular piece of art is desirable to both video-game and pinball collectors.

So, you ask: How do I find original video-game artwork? Believe it or not, all of the examples shown on these pages (with the exception of the Warlords art) were offered for sale on eBay over the past few years, at prices ranging from under $300 to well over $5,000. Only about half of them were sold, however. Video-game collectors are notorious bargain hunters, and most of us are not accustomed to coughing up four figures for any item, no matter how rare or unique.

With a little detective work, you may be able to locate the original artwork that was used to create the packaging for your favorite game. In some cases, it may still be in the possession of the original artist, or a former employee of the game’s publisher. We don’t know of any one collector who specializes in original video-game art, so if you’ve got the determination and the budget, you might become a pioneer in this very specialized subset of the game-collecting hobby. Good luck!

Drawerboxes
A New Storage Solution for Game Collectors?

Is your game collection strewn about your living room, stuffed under your bed or buried in shoeboxes in the back of a closet? We recently stumbled across a new storage solution that could change the way your video games are organized.

Denver-based The Collection Drawer Co. designed its DrawerBoxes for comic-book collectors who have trouble accessing their comics in a convenient way. Unlike traditional comic storage boxes with lids, each DrawerBox contains a cardboard drawer that can be pulled out like a file cabinet and even removed from the outer box. What’s more, the materials are so sturdy that you can stack up to five filled boxes on top of each other and they will bear the load without buckling, even if you completely remove the drawer from the bottom box.

We asked The Collection Drawer Co.’s Rich Vincent if the DrawerBoxes would be appropriate for video-game storage, and while he hadn’t previously considered this possibility, he saw no reason why they couldn’t be used this way. After all, considering the weight and density of paper, a box full of comics is actually heavier than a box full of video games. "Each unit stress tests at over 250 pounds of support," stated Vincent, "so games should pose no problem at all."

As you can imagine, Drawerboxes are much more expensive than ordinary cardboard boxes. However, as a storage solution for those with large game collections, they are less expensive than bookshelves or file cabinets, and the ease of access is a huge plus that ordinary boxes can’t provide. Vincent told us that his company is thinking about making DrawerBoxes in different sizes and is interested in suggestions from our readers. Visit www.CollectionDrawer.com on the Web to order or to find out more; you’ll also find contact info so you can put in a request for DrawerBoxes in video game-friendly sizes. Be sure to mention that you read about them in TIPS & TRICKS!

Auction Action
Video-Game Goodies Sold in Recent Online Auctions

	Nintendo World Championships 1990 NES Game (Gold) High Bid: $5,100.00
	The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Limited-Edition Gold Coin High Bid: $690.00
	Virtual Boy Promo Jacket High Bid: $130.39
	Entex Crazy Climber Electronic Arcade Tabletop Game High Bid: $495.00