I use ebay for import games. Two things I'd like to add: (1) be patient with shipping time and (2) check the seller's feedback (be careful of anything lower than 99%). I've had TONS of great transactions with great sellers, but I've also had a few negative experiences. I hope this helps!
Sometimes you have to use your own judgement, even if their feedback is not perfect. You weigh in when the bad feedback was left and for what reason. And see the positive transactions and such. There are times that buyers are shady and not 100% truthful either. It can go both ways with sellers and buyers. I have been on Ebay since 2001 and my feedback is over 1500. I have been mostly a buyer, but have sold things here and there as well. I think in that whole time, I have had just a few bad transactions. So not too bad, considering how long I have been Ebaying. lol
A lot of trustworthy sellers have lower feed only because a lot of people are assholes and expect stuff deliver in a couple of days, so reading the negative feed back is better than looking at just the number.
@Think Before You Sleep Bullshit, videogamesplus has 99,3% and it's like the biggest Ebay game retailer for previous games. Gamèlyzed Yeah, Play Asia is great, I bought many sealed games for my PS3 Gamèlyzed Play Asia is great, bought many sealed PS3 copies much cheaper, they also have good packaging.
Small note on the possible taxing through customs. In the United States, packaged worth under $800 USD can be imported duty free. Anything over $800 dollars will be taxed. So if you buy a lot of stuff and consolidate it, make sure everything in total is worth less than $800USD.
Another nice thing is that some Japanese sellers is that they may pack in small thank you gifts for purchasing from them like key chains and tea bags/leaves which is quite nice.
I love when they do that. One guy I buy from a lot always sends me tea bags as well as paper shurikens. It's nothing I'm dying to have but they're nice little gifts.
Chris and I both grew up in a small town called Winthrop, Wa. His parents ran the local Snake Milker business...and my parents moonlighted as Professional Mourners, showing up at funerals for people they had no association with. Was it weird? Sure. But it made me who I am... They say: "You can take the boy from Winthrop, but you can never take Winthrop from the boy". I don't know what that means, but perhaps its why we both enunciate in similar ways.
Metal Jesus I wanted to let you know I dig your videos not to be too personal but I am officially 7 months clean off of 12-year pain pill addiction and I started collecting for the GameCube I got my life in order I'm trying to collect and I watch your videos and you help me keep my mind on other things.. I like to sit down and relax and drink a beer and watch your videos it helps me not think about other things thank you sir . I mean this as a high compliment
Well there goes our little secrets for import games. It's not that alot of this stuff wasn't talked about before in forum posts and such but public videos like this bring out the worst in scalpers and resellers and just make it generally harder for us collectors as a whole to buy this stuff later.
It's a much bigger issue then people like to admit and unless your knee deep in collecting circles everyday you really don't see it as such. It's also what has caused alot of systems to be grossly overpriced especially when flippers buy large amounts of these products to resell. The average budget collector may drop no more then $100-$200 at most for their heavies. This doesn't work the same though if a reseller can easily buy a $4000, $6000 or even $10000+ lots and resell all games at max or just above retail pricing hurting the market value by creating an artificial inflation. You wouldn't see this as much on let's Super Mario Bros. As you would compared Megaman/Rockman on the famicom where the US counterparts cost alot more then their japanese counterparts already. Their is also Japan only exclusives which are already a bit pricey due to low quantities or end of life cycle releases that will get raised as more copied disappear from the market.
@@tims6046 I don't think it's so much of a secret. Anyone has been able to go on eBay for years and can see the the prices for Japanese copies are generally much less than their US counterparts. But most people in the US aren't interested in them anyway because of the language barrier or the lack of a nostalgia factor when it's not exactly the same as the game they grew up with. There's also the fact that certain systems have other requirements to play import games that some may not want to bother with. Beyond that, consider that if you're buying from Japan, they just don't look at this stuff the way we do in the US. It's old tech that there's tons of lying around. About the only reason it sells at all is because it's cheap. If they start raising prices significantly, people outside Japan won't bother, because why compromise when it's expensive anyway? Scalping doesn't work when anyone can easily find a cheaper seller. Hell, I've bought several Japanese games from US sellers in the past couple years and they were still dirt cheap. I think the retro market for many systems will fall in general before Japanese game prices rise significantly.
Jason, if you go to Japan try to look in Book Off stores, they sell used stuff, their generally full of artbooks, games, music, and model kits in like new conditions, super cheap
I used to import all my stuff from NCSX and TronixWeb back in the day! Amazon japan with that English option was something I never knew about. Mindblowing. Love Chris. He always has cool import stuff on his table at conventions.
I go to Japan every year and he speaks the truth, most of the time Ebay can actually be cheaper, depending on where you are. Akihabara is awesome but a tourist trap unless you know where to go. Traders is one of the more decent places. Stay away from Super Potato unless just to check it out. The Mandarake in Akiba is a cool see and the one in Shibuya is even cooler. Hard-Offs and Book-Offs you can find some cool stuff if you're lucky, there's one in Gotanda you can hit that not many people do.
Great host to have with you for this episode! If Chris's book was anything to go off of, I'd say he definitely knows what he's talking about with this topic. Also, great book Chris! Was a wonderful and educational read!
I'm on vacation in Japan now and have visited many game stores in Yakota and Akihabara. The prices on all the games I looked at for games ranging from Famicom to PlayStation 2 are WAY cheaper than eBay! I was pleasantly surprised. Some I've already picked up dirt cheap are King Kong 2, The Goonies, Devil World for Famicom all complete, Resident Evil HD Remaster Collectors Edition for PS3 complete for $20! And my list goes on. The prices I can tell you first hand, even on rare stuff like Captain Commando for the SFC, are cheaper than eBay! Not only is the shipping high on eBay but the prices alone are priced higher than in Japanese stores. eBay is NOT the same price as in Japanese game stores!!!
Play Asia is what I use. It's fantastic. Prices are always the correct prices as what they released at. Shipping really isn't too expensive. Ships fairly fast. And exclusives that are always sold out here in the states & on online stores I always find available on Play Asia. Idk why I'm telling people this cause I don't want the site to be over run but hey check it out.
I have been buying retro games from Japan for a few years now. I usually use a couple of Ebay stores, but I may try this. Thanks for this video Metal Jesus. It is very informative!
I live in Japan, Something a lot of people don`t understand is that buying anything in Tokyo is stupidly overpriced and it general over hyped. Other areas of Japan sell items for cheaper! Please do your research people buying anything.
indeed . It is quite expensive to buy retro games in Tokyo. But if you are in the countryside, you may be able to buy retro games cheaply. Tokyo, especially Akihabara, may be expensive because foreigners visit it a lot.
How awesome that you're going to Japan. Come back with lots of footage :) This was a lot of great advice. I had no idea how to get imports from Japan other than ebay.
Some things that should be mentioned. Surugaya is a chain in Japan with many stores across Japan. They also run the chain A-Too which has some stores in the Kansai region. Buying anything in Tokyo is likely going to be more expensive than in any other part of Japan. I managed to find many games at great prices in the Kansai region (Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto). It's good to check both eBay and Japanese auction sites but just keep in mind that a proxy will charge you shipping from the buyer to the warehouse and then to you. So take all those fees plus the proxy fees and see if you're still saving money cuz usually it'll balance out if you just get it on eBay, depending on what it is. Another good thing proxies are good for is buying things from e-shop sites that DONT ship to the US. I did a video on the Capcom Belt Action Collection E-Capcom Edition and I used Buyee (a proxy) to buy it from their e-shop. I'm also making a video of this but I focus on imports anyway. Careful with buying from auctions though, sometimes there are things that are explained in the description but if you miss some sort of fine print and they send you a boot or something, there's no real recourse. Hope this helps a bit! :)
I've been considering getting a Japanese PS2 along with the original EDF and Onechanbara games for said system. This video was super informative and did a great job at explaining the best ways to get import games. You da man, Metal Jesus!
Get a modded PS2 and burn the games.......save millions of money for cocaine and hookers...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Dont do drugs!.
Might want to let people know that you can't just pop in a Japanese Saturn, Genesis (MD), or TG16 (PC Engine) in your US systems without either modding, or using add-on devices to bypass it. Region locking was around back in the early 90's as well.
I've purchased two or three things from Japanese sellers on eBay and had nothing but a great experience. I bought a beautiful purple metallic Gameboy Micro with a fantastic case and charger about 5 years ago that was cheaper than the US and was in beautiful condition (free shipping) . It was by far nicer than any of the domestic units and it's purple! Same with two Starfy games that weren't released here. The boxes were mint. I get this feeling that either Japan takes good care of its products or they don't sell things in ratty broken condition as often. Maybe I just got lucky. You will love Japan! I went many years ago and would love to go again! Thanks for another informative video! 😊
Great video as ever sir. One of the things I noticed about ordering from overseas via eBay is that the customs charges are included at the time of purchase which makes the import fee guessing game MUCH easier. At least that's the case here in the UK. Have a great trip dude!
As someone who occasionally buys new games from Japan, I can definitely agree with the value/quality of Amazon Japan. Relatively cheap and very fast shipping, often 2 days or less to arrive directly from Japan, and no I'm not talking about paying the extremely top end shipping options.
I picked up the Ace Attorney Trilogy for Switch from Amazon Japan fairly cheap. It was about $10 more than the digital version will be here in the US. But I already have it, it's a physical copy. Super easy. Got it in 3 or 4 days.
I personally love imports especially on the ps2. There used to be a site called samurai buyer, but as of late 2020 they are no longer in business. I normally rely on eBay and play Asia. Some retro stores near me occasionally get Japanese imports but not extremely often
I’ve had great luck with Japanese eBay sellers. Always well packed, and often with little cute “thank you” notes. One even packed in a few Japanese Black Panther movie posters that were 8.5”x11”!
The other benefit of wikipedia is that you can copy a name to amazon jp and find games you didn't even know existed for that franchise or title. Awesome vid. Thanks for the tips.
I went there a month ago. Lots of cheap games. You can get North American Vita games for 150 Yen. Since there isn't much use for english games, they discount them to clearance price. I picked up Zelda BOTW Wii U for 400 Yen (Around $3.50 USD)
Just to agree with the video, for used stuff ordering off eBay is easy. For new stuff get an Amazon JP account. Note that I have never bought anything from a Japanese eBay seller that wasn’t in beautiful condition. I actually now seek out Japanese sellers... you just have to be patient with slow shipping. As mentioned in the video, stuff from Amazon ships fast. Highly recommended
I love getting Game Boy consoles to fix up from Japan along with SNES games that don't require you read Japanese! There are some real bargains out there and 9/10 times the games are VERY well cared for and arrive in lovely condition. Great guide here chaps!
I went to Japan last summer and picked up a few cheap video games. The best places I went to were Nakano Broadway, which is a massive multi-floored mall that sells ANYTHING you can think of, and the other were stores called Book Off or Hard Off (depending where you go). They sell used video games, DVDs, Blu-Rays, music CDs, all sorts of cool things, so look out for those places on your travels.
I've purchased probably 20 games from Japan using eBay. My experience has been uniformly _excellent_: everything comes neatly packaged, often with a friendly note and once even with origami packaged. Don't think twice about it.
The only time I used a Proxy service was to get my copy of Bayonetta Climax Edition on the Switch. I used CD Japan (my go-to website for importing) and the entire process was smooth. CD Japan always packages their items really well too; when I bought something heavy from them they securely taped it down to the inside of the box so it wouldn't slip around during shipping. If you're in the market for newer releases, or figures, anime Blu-rays, etc, I can't recommend them enough.
Thanks for the tips guys this was very helpful. A tip from me is if you’re going to japan to buy games you need to go to akihabara. That place is literally their pop culture capital and they have hundreds of shops full of games, anime, manga, clothing and so much more.
I love how I recently became obsessed with Game Dave’s “FAMICORNER” series. Now I want to important games for the Famicom like crazy. Thanks MJR for giving cheaper ways of getting these import games.
Every time I used to listen to Chris Kohler on his old podcast I could never shake out the image of the little brother from Orange County Choppers off my head (Michael). They have the same exact voice, pitch and tone. Nice to put a face to the voice.
I recently bought a ps4 exclusive that was released digital only in the US but has an english released physical copy in South Korea, Japan and china. I ordered from south korea and was surprised how quick it came and packaged very nicely, arrived mint condition.
Definitely a cool video, I really want a few of the Japanese exclusive OG Xbox games. Probably will never happen, but one can dream. Loving the Sega Genesis t-shirt MJR!!
Hit Japan is a good ebay seller. They have a ton of stuff and shipping usually only takes about a week. Ryoplanshop is pretty good, sometimes better prices, shipping is pretty fast, but not quite as fast as Hit Japan. Japan4U is usually a lot cheaper and also has faster shipping, maybe the quality is quite as good as the other two.
I don't even use amazon for second hand items, but last time I checked, especially for newer video games, you can't just hop on amazon Japan and buy whatever you want. It's definitely far from cheap and easy. Amazon Japan won't allow shipping worldwide on video games, especially from Nintendo, that is, from third-party sellers. All the true bargains that are at the 100-yen level or less are from third party sellers and you can't get those shipped to you outside of the Kanto region unless you use some sort of in-between buyer program like Buyee...which isn't risky but IS expensive. You may be able to buy certain video games shipped by Amazon themselves, but even then, the price is most likely cheaper elsewhere. Then, there's the fact that systems do have region-locks, you'd need a power converter to even play any Japanese console outside of North American and Japan and shipping overall is off-putting in the long run. Import gaming is not something that should be bandwagoned and everyone should attempt to jump onto. It isn't for everyone. Some of you out there who might think that it is easy to do this are either gonna end up wasting time and money or end up getting scammed.
The prices have been going up dramatically latly here, in Japan. I have been collecting games, living here, for more than 10 years and everything seems to go crazy, price-wise. I am pretty sure that Surugaya, discovering the potential of abroad buyers, decided to focus on them and put the prices up following ebay lines. One downside buying from them is also that you never know in what condition the game will be when you buy it: sometimes, you'll get lucky and get the Obi and the Postal card, but sometimes the condition can be on the edge of B Rank (Surugaya always tells if the game is B Rank, or if something is missing, though). Yahoo Auction is also pretty dead now. The prices are high and those proxies are easily recongnized. To be honnest, I delete any proxy entering the games I put out on auction. Collectors use a new service now, where the prices are closer to the Japanese reality. There is a few proxy buyers there, as well, but it is not that bad. In the end, I think the influence of people buying from abroad is a natural process. The Ebay prices are really high for most of the rare Japanese games and these prices are influencing Japanese prices as well. What made me kind of laugh (and kind of sad at the same time) is seeing that a game like Kiki Kaikai 奇々怪界, hard to find nowadays in Japan, is available by the dozens on Ebay. I don't know what will happen next, but if you really want to collect from Japan, you better be quick. The situation gets worse month after month.
yeah... although with a good will..these kind of videos don't really help. YHJ is dead, Surugaya is adjusting their prices more and more. and even Hard Off and Book Off are now swarming with resellers basically. wonder how long it will take for M***ka** to go the same road...then again they ban proxies from what I heard.
@@retrogames_jp1404 Not only that but they forbid buying from abroad. I was surprised when I tried during one of my trip for work. Anyway, the prices will probably rise close to those on Ebay and then, the only place to buy games from Japan will probably be... on Ebay :D I have noticed some Japanese sellers on Auctions offering 1.5 the usual price with a direct link to proxy sites. I never thought it would happen.
Sometimes Ebay is cheaper, I have scored hard before on MD stuff. I have been looking for a good recommended proxy service so I will use this one. Thanks for the video, this was awesome dude!!!
I bought off Amazon Japan but at checkout I buy in yen not use their conversation rate may be worse then your bank, check first. It was for me. Got some hori let's go pickachu eevee stuff that only available in Japan like the PC case for the pokeball.
In EU / Finland you have to pay duties for products that cost over a certain amount. Well when ordering stuff from China they always put a receipt with a false price on it just below the price in the package :D Pretty clever... If the customs open the package and notice the price is below 50€ or whatever the limit was, then they cant charge customs from you no matter what the product actually is.
I am a huge Japanese importer. Most of my consoles are Japanese. So many great exclusives and the artwork is nearly always better. Using the proxy services really helps if you are able to bulk buy. Great video and glad you covered this topic to highlight how great importing Japanese games is.
If i recall, tourists in Japan do not have to pay tax on anything and most stores will have a sign up stating this so you should be able to get things even cheaper with just a flash of a passport and a form to fill out.
I’ve purchased 100’s of famicom superfamicom games and you can save so much money. Example Ducktales 2 is expensive on the Nes but the famicom version I got for 20 bucks with shipping. Shipping takes about 2 to 3 weeks unless you pay for faster options.
Hey dude! If you're coming to Japan I live in Tokyo and I'd love to hang out. I can even show you some of the cooler shops that are off the beaten path.
The first time I ordered some famicom games from Japan they sent my games with a handwritten note and a little gachapon toy I thought that was really cool :)
what stops me from buying bulk is the customs lol I really dont wanna pay customs fee. But japanese treat their stuf a lot better. So the quality is very good most of the time.
I don't know too many games that came from Japan. But I would love to play em one day. But I strongly agree with you guys said about em being inexpensive. Lol
I just went to Japan recently and hit just about every game shop in Tokyo and when it came to the better and more sought after Japan only releases for older systems like the Famicom and such, they were far cheaper there than importing them. I Shipped a box back with a Famicom Twin and about 40 Famicom, Super Famicom, Saturn and Wonder Swan games and even with shipping costs it was far cheaper. So if you happen to be going there or plan too, I would suggest buying the better stuff on the trip. Also...Flea market are awesome in Japan, I got a lot of cool shit for practically nothing. I was getting good games 50-100 yen each at those on top of finding other cool gaming related stuff cheap.
I use ebay for import games.
Two things I'd like to add: (1) be patient with shipping time and (2) check the seller's feedback (be careful of anything lower than 99%).
I've had TONS of great transactions with great sellers, but I've also had a few negative experiences. I hope this helps!
I won't trust a seller with a rating below 99.8%. That shit better be near perfect.
Sometimes you have to use your own judgement, even if their feedback is not perfect. You weigh in when the bad feedback was left and for what reason. And see the positive transactions and such. There are times that buyers are shady and not 100% truthful either. It can go both ways with sellers and buyers. I have been on Ebay since 2001 and my feedback is over 1500. I have been mostly a buyer, but have sold things here and there as well. I think in that whole time, I have had just a few bad transactions. So not too bad, considering how long I have been Ebaying. lol
A lot of trustworthy sellers have lower feed only because a lot of people are assholes and expect stuff deliver in a couple of days, so reading the negative feed back is better than looking at just the number.
@Think Before You Sleep Bullshit, videogamesplus has 99,3% and it's like the biggest Ebay game retailer for previous games. Gamèlyzed Yeah, Play Asia is great, I bought many sealed games for my PS3
Gamèlyzed Play Asia is great, bought many sealed PS3 copies much cheaper, they also have good packaging.
Small note on the possible taxing through customs. In the United States, packaged worth under $800 USD can be imported duty free. Anything over $800 dollars will be taxed. So if you buy a lot of stuff and consolidate it, make sure everything in total is worth less than $800USD.
Another nice thing is that some Japanese sellers is that they may pack in small thank you gifts for purchasing from them like key chains and tea bags/leaves which is quite nice.
I love when they do that. One guy I buy from a lot always sends me tea bags as well as paper shurikens. It's nothing I'm dying to have but they're nice little gifts.
@@TreasureHunterLocke I too have bought from this seller as well! Their name escapes me at the moment.
I bought a wii unit last year and the box had origami shuruken in amongst it.
You also get Japanese horse racing papers in them.
@@glenolivier8099 Whenever you remember the name please tell. The guy sounds awesome and I have some FE games to import :)
Yea, I bought a copic pen from a Japanese seller, and they included a hand written thank you note, I was genuinely shocked.
WTF...do they have the same voice? lol
Lmao they do sound very similar now that you mention it. 👍
@@TheOGNoName it tripped me out when the video started lol
Chris and I both grew up in a small town called Winthrop, Wa. His parents ran the local Snake Milker business...and my parents moonlighted as Professional Mourners, showing up at funerals for people they had no association with. Was it weird? Sure. But it made me who I am... They say: "You can take the boy from Winthrop, but you can never take Winthrop from the boy". I don't know what that means, but perhaps its why we both enunciate in similar ways.
Paul C I’m 100% white...they definitely sound similar haha
@Paul C Before you throw around the R word, maybe you should look up what it actually means.
Metal Jesus I wanted to let you know I dig your videos not to be too personal but I am officially 7 months clean off of 12-year pain pill addiction and I started collecting for the GameCube I got my life in order I'm trying to collect and I watch your videos and you help me keep my mind on other things.. I like to sit down and relax and drink a beer and watch your videos it helps me not think about other things thank you sir . I mean this as a high compliment
Well there goes our little secrets for import games. It's not that alot of this stuff wasn't talked about before in forum posts and such but public videos like this bring out the worst in scalpers and resellers and just make it generally harder for us collectors as a whole to buy this stuff later.
I don't think that's as much of an issue as you think it is.
It's a much bigger issue then people like to admit and unless your knee deep in collecting circles everyday you really don't see it as such. It's also what has caused alot of systems to be grossly overpriced especially when flippers buy large amounts of these products to resell. The average budget collector may drop no more then $100-$200 at most for their heavies. This doesn't work the same though if a reseller can easily buy a $4000, $6000 or even $10000+ lots and resell all games at max or just above retail pricing hurting the market value by creating an artificial inflation. You wouldn't see this as much on let's Super Mario Bros. As you would compared Megaman/Rockman on the famicom where the US counterparts cost alot more then their japanese counterparts already. Their is also Japan only exclusives which are already a bit pricey due to low quantities or end of life cycle releases that will get raised as more copied disappear from the market.
@@tims6046 I don't think it's so much of a secret. Anyone has been able to go on eBay for years and can see the the prices for Japanese copies are generally much less than their US counterparts. But most people in the US aren't interested in them anyway because of the language barrier or the lack of a nostalgia factor when it's not exactly the same as the game they grew up with. There's also the fact that certain systems have other requirements to play import games that some may not want to bother with.
Beyond that, consider that if you're buying from Japan, they just don't look at this stuff the way we do in the US. It's old tech that there's tons of lying around. About the only reason it sells at all is because it's cheap. If they start raising prices significantly, people outside Japan won't bother, because why compromise when it's expensive anyway? Scalping doesn't work when anyone can easily find a cheaper seller. Hell, I've bought several Japanese games from US sellers in the past couple years and they were still dirt cheap. I think the retro market for many systems will fall in general before Japanese game prices rise significantly.
Jason, if you go to Japan try to look in Book Off stores, they sell used stuff, their generally full of artbooks, games, music, and model kits in like new conditions, super cheap
I used to import all my stuff from NCSX and TronixWeb back in the day! Amazon japan with that English option was something I never knew about. Mindblowing. Love Chris. He always has cool import stuff on his table at conventions.
Awesome tips MetalJesus!!!
I'm never sure whether I should collect Japanese imports or not, but these tips definitely make the choice easier!!
@@Chicomite I think you can get some kind of adapter so you don't need to break off those bits.
@@Chicomite cool definitely sounds like you know your stuff! :)
Whoa, never knew about the Amazon Japan trick. Thanks a million (yen)!
I go to Japan every year and he speaks the truth, most of the time Ebay can actually be cheaper, depending on where you are. Akihabara is awesome but a tourist trap unless you know where to go. Traders is one of the more decent places. Stay away from Super Potato unless just to check it out. The Mandarake in Akiba is a cool see and the one in Shibuya is even cooler. Hard-Offs and Book-Offs you can find some cool stuff if you're lucky, there's one in Gotanda you can hit that not many people do.
Great host to have with you for this episode!
If Chris's book was anything to go off of, I'd say he definitely knows what he's talking about with this topic.
Also, great book Chris! Was a wonderful and educational read!
Tarks Gauntlet 🧤
I use a seller named (hitjapan) on ebay alot. Always had good luck with them
Me too, I never had a problem with them
Same here.
Yeah used them also
Nippotopia Gamestore on eBay is also good
they overprice
I'm on vacation in Japan now and have visited many game stores in Yakota and Akihabara. The prices on all the games I looked at for games ranging from Famicom to PlayStation 2 are WAY cheaper than eBay! I was pleasantly surprised. Some I've already picked up dirt cheap are King Kong 2, The Goonies, Devil World for Famicom all complete, Resident Evil HD Remaster Collectors Edition for PS3 complete for $20! And my list goes on. The prices I can tell you first hand, even on rare stuff like Captain Commando for the SFC, are cheaper than eBay! Not only is the shipping high on eBay but the prices alone are priced higher than in Japanese stores. eBay is NOT the same price as in Japanese game stores!!!
Charles Macaluso Shaft1515 believe it or not Japan has a much cheaper place to hunt down deals on games.
Charles Macaluso Shaft1515 Go to the top floor of this store and you will thank me later.
Love my Japanese Sega Saturn and PC engine collection. Got a lot cheap years back, now prices are crazy!
Play Asia is what I use. It's fantastic. Prices are always the correct prices as what they released at. Shipping really isn't too expensive. Ships fairly fast. And exclusives that are always sold out here in the states & on online stores I always find available on Play Asia. Idk why I'm telling people this cause I don't want the site to be over run but hey check it out.
I have been buying retro games from Japan for a few years now. I usually use a couple of Ebay stores, but I may try this. Thanks for this video Metal Jesus. It is very informative!
That's awesome that you're coming to Japan! I hope you're ready for tons of game shops, arcades and the best in themed bars.
TBH themed bars were one of my favorite parts when I visited Japan
@@Jarjarfunk There are so many great ones in Tokyo. In particular, I know MJ will enjoy our many metal bars.
Chris, we salute you sir.
Fellow game fanatic since the Odyssey2...always look forward to your newest vid. Thanks for all the fun! Greetings from Vic BC Canada. :)
I'm from there originally lol
I live in Japan, Something a lot of people don`t understand is that buying anything in Tokyo is stupidly overpriced and it general over hyped. Other areas of Japan sell items for cheaper! Please do your research people buying anything.
I'm heading up to Sendai in a few days. If I see any games / consoles up there I'm expecting them to be at least 30% cheaper than Akihabara / Tokyo.
indeed
.
It is quite expensive to buy retro games in Tokyo.
But if you are in the countryside, you may be able to buy retro games cheaply.
Tokyo, especially Akihabara, may be expensive because foreigners visit it a lot.
How awesome that you're going to Japan. Come back with lots of footage :) This was a lot of great advice. I had no idea how to get imports from Japan other than ebay.
Yes I think I’m turning Japanese. I really think so
Some things that should be mentioned. Surugaya is a chain in Japan with many stores across Japan. They also run the chain A-Too which has some stores in the Kansai region. Buying anything in Tokyo is likely going to be more expensive than in any other part of Japan. I managed to find many games at great prices in the Kansai region (Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto). It's good to check both eBay and Japanese auction sites but just keep in mind that a proxy will charge you shipping from the buyer to the warehouse and then to you. So take all those fees plus the proxy fees and see if you're still saving money cuz usually it'll balance out if you just get it on eBay, depending on what it is. Another good thing proxies are good for is buying things from e-shop sites that DONT ship to the US. I did a video on the Capcom Belt Action Collection E-Capcom Edition and I used Buyee (a proxy) to buy it from their e-shop. I'm also making a video of this but I focus on imports anyway. Careful with buying from auctions though, sometimes there are things that are explained in the description but if you miss some sort of fine print and they send you a boot or something, there's no real recourse. Hope this helps a bit! :)
I've been considering getting a Japanese PS2 along with the original EDF and Onechanbara games for said system. This video was super informative and did a great job at explaining the best ways to get import games. You da man, Metal Jesus!
Get a modded PS2 and burn the games.......save millions of money for cocaine and hookers...........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Dont do drugs!.
Might want to let people know that you can't just pop in a Japanese Saturn, Genesis (MD), or TG16 (PC Engine) in your US systems without either modding, or using add-on devices to bypass it. Region locking was around back in the early 90's as well.
Haha that example of Biohazard 3 for 30€! Those cost 500 Yen at any given Book Off store!
Book Off and Hard Off are my favorite places. Flea Markets there are awesome too.
This guy knows his stuff, very informative. Great video
I've purchased two or three things from Japanese sellers on eBay and had nothing but a great experience. I bought a beautiful purple metallic Gameboy Micro with a fantastic case and charger about 5 years ago that was cheaper than the US and was in beautiful condition (free shipping) . It was by far nicer than any of the domestic units and it's purple! Same with two Starfy games that weren't released here. The boxes were mint. I get this feeling that either Japan takes good care of its products or they don't sell things in ratty broken condition as often. Maybe I just got lucky. You will love Japan! I went many years ago and would love to go again! Thanks for another informative video! 😊
Thanks so much for this video! I’m going for a complete n64 set and eventually get the japan exclusives these tips will help a lot.
Always a cool start to the day when a metal Jesus video shows up on my phone. Thanks for another video bro.
Great video as ever sir. One of the things I noticed about ordering from overseas via eBay is that the customs charges are included at the time of purchase which makes the import fee guessing game MUCH easier. At least that's the case here in the UK. Have a great trip dude!
I always enjoy listening to Kohler. Complete in box is awesome.
As someone who occasionally buys new games from Japan, I can definitely agree with the value/quality of Amazon Japan. Relatively cheap and very fast shipping, often 2 days or less to arrive directly from Japan, and no I'm not talking about paying the extremely top end shipping options.
I picked up the Ace Attorney Trilogy for Switch from Amazon Japan fairly cheap. It was about $10 more than the digital version will be here in the US. But I already have it, it's a physical copy. Super easy. Got it in 3 or 4 days.
You are looking a lot slimmer mjr
haha 😂
I’ve bought games from Japan on numerous occasions over the years and have never had a problem.
Ty for showing this and blowing up the priceses for the rest of us :(
Already knew about all these tips but I still appreciate sharing them! More ppl need to know it’s not difficult at all to import Japanese games
I personally love imports especially on the ps2. There used to be a site called samurai buyer, but as of late 2020 they are no longer in business. I normally rely on eBay and play Asia. Some retro stores near me occasionally get Japanese imports but not extremely often
I’ve had great luck with Japanese eBay sellers. Always well packed, and often with little cute “thank you” notes. One even packed in a few Japanese Black Panther movie posters that were 8.5”x11”!
The other benefit of wikipedia is that you can copy a name to amazon jp and find games you didn't even know existed for that franchise or title. Awesome vid. Thanks for the tips.
Hh
I bought some Japanese GameCube games a while back. I forgot that Amazon Japan was an option. Thanks for reminding me!
My ex-wife used Yahoo auctions to buy Japanese Sailor Moon toys and re-sell them in the US. She made a killing.
This days I just buy directly from Japanese sellers on eBay, I can't believe how cheap some of the games are and how great of a condition they're in.
I went there a month ago. Lots of cheap games. You can get North American Vita games for 150 Yen. Since there isn't much use for english games, they discount them to clearance price. I picked up Zelda BOTW Wii U for 400 Yen (Around $3.50 USD)
Just to agree with the video, for used stuff ordering off eBay is easy. For new stuff get an Amazon JP account. Note that I have never bought anything from a Japanese eBay seller that wasn’t in beautiful condition. I actually now seek out Japanese sellers... you just have to be patient with slow shipping. As mentioned in the video, stuff from Amazon ships fast. Highly recommended
Morning from Texas ✌😎 OMG dude you're going to Japan! man you're so lucky have a safe trip and don't forget to take lots of footage LOL 😁🤘
Is everything REALLY big in Texas?
@@TheRetroWorld yeah you can say that lol I've seen some Good size things here they call it Texas size lol
I love getting Game Boy consoles to fix up from Japan along with SNES games that don't require you read Japanese! There are some real bargains out there and 9/10 times the games are VERY well cared for and arrive in lovely condition. Great guide here chaps!
I went to Japan last summer and picked up a few cheap video games. The best places I went to were Nakano Broadway, which is a massive multi-floored mall that sells ANYTHING you can think of, and the other were stores called Book Off or Hard Off (depending where you go). They sell used video games, DVDs, Blu-Rays, music CDs, all sorts of cool things, so look out for those places on your travels.
Sweet now import prices will go up
I've purchased probably 20 games from Japan using eBay. My experience has been uniformly _excellent_: everything comes neatly packaged, often with a friendly note and once even with origami packaged. Don't think twice about it.
The only time I used a Proxy service was to get my copy of Bayonetta Climax Edition on the Switch. I used CD Japan (my go-to website for importing) and the entire process was smooth. CD Japan always packages their items really well too; when I bought something heavy from them they securely taped it down to the inside of the box so it wouldn't slip around during shipping. If you're in the market for newer releases, or figures, anime Blu-rays, etc, I can't recommend them enough.
Would love to see the same sort of video focused around PAL (Europe) game buying options.
Greetings from Japan. I am a big fan of your channel. I'll be happy to meet you in Akihabara and give you a quick tour.
Come on, when will you starts collecting *my* consoles
🤣🤣
Hows that Nintendo Lawsuit workin' for ya?
@@danerd8978 lets nkt talk about that right now. It's irrelevant
@@shuntarofurukawa5577 Just like your career.
@@shuntarofurukawa5577 the soulja boy memes are dead bro, what are you doing? lol hahaha
Thanks for the video. I'm glad you did this, I look forward to trying this advice.
Thanks for the tips guys this was very helpful. A tip from me is if you’re going to japan to buy games you need to go to akihabara. That place is literally their pop culture capital and they have hundreds of shops full of games, anime, manga, clothing and so much more.
I love how I recently became obsessed with Game Dave’s “FAMICORNER” series. Now I want to important games for the Famicom like crazy. Thanks MJR for giving cheaper ways of getting these import games.
Not no more
Next 2 videos: Region Free Hidden Gems on the Nintendo Switch and PS4
Every time I used to listen to Chris Kohler on his old podcast I could never shake out the image of the little brother from Orange County Choppers off my head (Michael). They have the same exact voice, pitch and tone. Nice to put a face to the voice.
I recently bought a ps4 exclusive that was released digital only in the US but has an english released physical copy in South Korea, Japan and china. I ordered from south korea and was surprised how quick it came and packaged very nicely, arrived mint condition.
I hope you’ll do a meetup while you’re here!! You have a bunch of fans (like me!) in Japan, too! 🤗
got some DS games from Japan on AMAZON and everything was easy! like Chris said it was excellently packaged.
Definitely a cool video, I really want a few of the Japanese exclusive OG Xbox games. Probably will never happen, but one can dream.
Loving the Sega Genesis t-shirt MJR!!
Hit Japan is a good ebay seller. They have a ton of stuff and shipping usually only takes about a week. Ryoplanshop is pretty good, sometimes better prices, shipping is pretty fast, but not quite as fast as Hit Japan. Japan4U is usually a lot cheaper and also has faster shipping, maybe the quality is quite as good as the other two.
The conversation with this video’s guest was awesome. I learned a few things today. Thanks for sharing the information. You had me at “Chun-Li’s eye.”
I don't even use amazon for second hand items, but last time I checked, especially for newer video games, you can't just hop on amazon Japan and buy whatever you want. It's definitely far from cheap and easy. Amazon Japan won't allow shipping worldwide on video games, especially from Nintendo, that is, from third-party sellers. All the true bargains that are at the 100-yen level or less are from third party sellers and you can't get those shipped to you outside of the Kanto region unless you use some sort of in-between buyer program like Buyee...which isn't risky but IS expensive. You may be able to buy certain video games shipped by Amazon themselves, but even then, the price is most likely cheaper elsewhere.
Then, there's the fact that systems do have region-locks, you'd need a power converter to even play any Japanese console outside of North American and Japan and shipping overall is off-putting in the long run. Import gaming is not something that should be bandwagoned and everyone should attempt to jump onto. It isn't for everyone. Some of you out there who might think that it is easy to do this are either gonna end up wasting time and money or end up getting scammed.
The prices have been going up dramatically latly here, in Japan. I have been collecting games, living here, for more than 10 years and everything seems to go crazy, price-wise. I am pretty sure that Surugaya, discovering the potential of abroad buyers, decided to focus on them and put the prices up following ebay lines. One downside buying from them is also that you never know in what condition the game will be when you buy it: sometimes, you'll get lucky and get the Obi and the Postal card, but sometimes the condition can be on the edge of B Rank (Surugaya always tells if the game is B Rank, or if something is missing, though). Yahoo Auction is also pretty dead now. The prices are high and those proxies are easily recongnized. To be honnest, I delete any proxy entering the games I put out on auction. Collectors use a new service now, where the prices are closer to the Japanese reality. There is a few proxy buyers there, as well, but it is not that bad.
In the end, I think the influence of people buying from abroad is a natural process. The Ebay prices are really high for most of the rare Japanese games and these prices are influencing Japanese prices as well. What made me kind of laugh (and kind of sad at the same time) is seeing that a game like Kiki Kaikai 奇々怪界, hard to find nowadays in Japan, is available by the dozens on Ebay. I don't know what will happen next, but if you really want to collect from Japan, you better be quick. The situation gets worse month after month.
yeah...
although with a good will..these kind of videos don't really help. YHJ is dead, Surugaya is adjusting their prices more and more.
and even Hard Off and Book Off are now swarming with resellers basically.
wonder how long it will take for M***ka** to go the same road...then again they ban proxies from what I heard.
@@retrogames_jp1404 Not only that but they forbid buying from abroad. I was surprised when I tried during one of my trip for work. Anyway, the prices will probably rise close to those on Ebay and then, the only place to buy games from Japan will probably be... on Ebay :D I have noticed some Japanese sellers on Auctions offering 1.5 the usual price with a direct link to proxy sites. I never thought it would happen.
Sometimes Ebay is cheaper, I have scored hard before on MD stuff. I have been looking for a good recommended proxy service so I will use this one. Thanks for the video, this was awesome dude!!!
I bought off Amazon Japan but at checkout I buy in yen not use their conversation rate may be worse then your bank, check first. It was for me. Got some hori let's go pickachu eevee stuff that only available in Japan like the PC case for the pokeball.
Finally, the answers to the questions I have. Thank you!
More videos with Chris! Love his passion for video games, would be great to hear his opinion on other topics
In EU / Finland you have to pay duties for products that cost over a certain amount. Well when ordering stuff from China they always put a receipt with a false price on it just below the price in the package :D Pretty clever... If the customs open the package and notice the price is below 50€ or whatever the limit was, then they cant charge customs from you no matter what the product actually is.
Thank you so much! Just ordered a 3DO off of zenmarket and I will keep you all updated on it all
Received it today and it works perfectly!!
I am a huge Japanese importer. Most of my consoles are Japanese. So many great exclusives and the artwork is nearly always better. Using the proxy services really helps if you are able to bulk buy. Great video and glad you covered this topic to highlight how great importing Japanese games is.
If i recall, tourists in Japan do not have to pay tax on anything and most stores will have a sign up stating this so you should be able to get things even cheaper with just a flash of a passport and a form to fill out.
Have to fill out a bunch of paperwork and then show it to immigration later. I think there is a limit though.
One of your best video!!!
I'm just so worried about tariffs or extra charges because I have no idea what they might be. Can't find info on it.
I’ve purchased 100’s of famicom superfamicom games and you can save so much money. Example Ducktales 2 is expensive on the Nes but the famicom version I got for 20 bucks with shipping. Shipping takes about 2 to 3 weeks unless you pay for faster options.
Ordered some things from japan. It's true how they package their things. I was truly impressed when when I got my first package from japan.
Hey dude! If you're coming to Japan I live in Tokyo and I'd love to hang out. I can even show you some of the cooler shops that are off the beaten path.
Japanese imports are the new meta for me and are much cheaper if you're willing to hunt. Great video!
Great info. Am sure this video will help out a lot of people.
Good luck getting a discount any more. Thanks MJ.
14:44 Wow, must be an original first-run copy of Nights Into Dreams.. tag says *Jan 1st, 1911*
No lie! I got my first Japan import from my state's local record shop and at about 12 bucks. The game? Jump Super Stars.
I wanna play some of those games. Especially on PSVita.
So the prices will go up again thank you metal jesus 🙄🙄🤣
Yea, its all his fault not the 9 million other similar videos on UA-cam. These over reactions are bit funny too me.
@@vivisect53 i was being sarcastic dude,i really dont care if the prices go up or down i buy what i like, and i love this channel fyi mate
lmao this guy
chris is definitely the expert. great seeing him on here
The first time I ordered some famicom games from Japan they sent my games with a handwritten note and a little gachapon toy I thought that was really cool :)
Love for the LOVE for Japanese Sega Saturn games!💞🎮
The challenge for MJ will not be going to Japan but coming back with all the stuff he'll buy :p very nice and useful video as always!
I bought my physical copies of Loco Roco on Amazon.... the US site. They were shipped from Hong Kong.
I want MJR footage of the trip to Japan but I also want MJ to live his life and enjoy his vacation!
what stops me from buying bulk is the customs lol I really dont wanna pay customs fee. But japanese treat their stuf a lot better. So the quality is very good most of the time.
I don't know too many games that came from Japan. But I would love to play em one day. But I strongly agree with you guys said about em being inexpensive. Lol
another great video, and something I had not seen before this. thanks.
I just went to Japan recently and hit just about every game shop in Tokyo and when it came to the better and more sought after Japan only releases for older systems like the Famicom and such, they were far cheaper there than importing them. I Shipped a box back with a Famicom Twin and about 40 Famicom, Super Famicom, Saturn and Wonder Swan games and even with shipping costs it was far cheaper. So if you happen to be going there or plan too, I would suggest buying the better stuff on the trip. Also...Flea market are awesome in Japan, I got a lot of cool shit for practically nothing. I was getting good games 50-100 yen each at those on top of finding other cool gaming related stuff cheap.
Great tips! Thank you!