Set Collecting Guide: Five Easy to Collect Sets for the NES
Five Easy to Collect Sets for the NES
Getting that nostalgic feeling when you look at graded video games online but don’t know where to start? Maybe you’ve bought a few games already but don’t know what direction to take your collection? Standard Gaming has you covered! Below are five different simple set ideas for the original Nintendo Entertainment System that can be catered to any collecting budget.
1. Super Mario Bros. Trilogy Three Game Set
SET DIFFICULTY
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
SET COST
$$$$$
$$$$$
SET SIZE
3 GAMES
3 GAMES
Assembling this Set
The holy trinity of original Super Mario titles, the first three Mario games for the NES require no introduction. Collecting these three games as a set is the perfect starter set if you’re just getting your feet wet collecting graded video games. With the original Super Mario Bros. you are acquiring the key game to a 30 piece black box set, and with the two sequels you’re getting two of the most iconic and liquid graded games on the market today. With all games having multiple variants and print runs you can easily acquire a mid-to-high grade CIB of each game for under $1000 each.
Raise the Difficulty
If looking for a greater challenge out of the gate we’d suggest acquiring a later print sealed Super Mario Bros 2 or 3 rather than a CIB copy. Additionally, you can opt for an earlier CIB print of the original Super Mario Bros., such as a hangtab or gloss sticker seal CIB.
The holy trinity of original Super Mario titles, the first three Mario games for the NES require no introduction. Collecting these three games as a set is the perfect starter set if you’re just getting your feet wet collecting graded video games. With the original Super Mario Bros. you are acquiring the key game to a 30 piece black box set, and with the two sequels you’re getting two of the most iconic and liquid graded games on the market today. With all games having multiple variants and print runs you can easily acquire a mid-to-high grade CIB of each game for under $1000 each.
Raise the Difficulty
If looking for a greater challenge out of the gate we’d suggest acquiring a later print sealed Super Mario Bros 2 or 3 rather than a CIB copy. Additionally, you can opt for an earlier CIB print of the original Super Mario Bros., such as a hangtab or gloss sticker seal CIB.
2. NES Best Seller Five Game Set
SET DIFFICULTY
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
SET COST
$$$$$
$$$$$
SET SIZE
5 GAMES
5 GAMES
Assembling this Set
Building off of the three game Super Mario set listed above, adding just two memorable games, Duck Hunt and Tetris, gives you a five game set of the best selling games for the original Nintendo console. Don’t let the term “best selling” be confused with easy to acquire as many of these games were also released as system pack-in’s. A system “pack-in” means the game also came packaged with consoles, leading to CIBs and sealed copies being markedly less common than just a stand alone cartridge for these titles. Mid-to-high grade CIBs can still be had at reasonable prices, making this an appealing set with plenty of different ways to improve the set down the line.
Raise the Difficulty
If looking to ramp up the difficulty we’d recommend acquiring a matte or gloss sticker Duck Hunt CIB and a sealed copy of Tetris. Acquiring the earlier, unlicensed Tengen version of Tetris instead of the officially licensed copy we’re all more familiar with is another intriguing “upgrade” angle as well.
Building off of the three game Super Mario set listed above, adding just two memorable games, Duck Hunt and Tetris, gives you a five game set of the best selling games for the original Nintendo console. Don’t let the term “best selling” be confused with easy to acquire as many of these games were also released as system pack-in’s. A system “pack-in” means the game also came packaged with consoles, leading to CIBs and sealed copies being markedly less common than just a stand alone cartridge for these titles. Mid-to-high grade CIBs can still be had at reasonable prices, making this an appealing set with plenty of different ways to improve the set down the line.
Raise the Difficulty
If looking to ramp up the difficulty we’d recommend acquiring a matte or gloss sticker Duck Hunt CIB and a sealed copy of Tetris. Acquiring the earlier, unlicensed Tengen version of Tetris instead of the officially licensed copy we’re all more familiar with is another intriguing “upgrade” angle as well.
3. The Legend of Zelda Two, Four, or Six Game Set
SET DIFFICULTY
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
SET COST
$$$$$
$$$$$
SET SIZE
2 TO 6 GAMES
2 TO 6 GAMES
Assembling this Set
Despite both The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link both having numerous nuanced variants, each game effectively has just three major variants: An early production which has a black round Nintendo Seal of Quality in the bottom right corner of the box front, a later production which instead has a white oval Nintendo Seal of Quality in its place, and a final print under the “Classic Series” marketing brand. Three major variants for both The Legend of Zelda and its sequel creates an opportunity to collect this as a two, four, or six game set depending on your level of Zelda fandom. Early prints of both games are very difficult to acquire in sealed condition but become progressively more attainable in their later and final production runs. We’d recommend acquiring early print CIBs if just starting out, and possibly stretching for sealed copies of later productions if the opportunity presents itself.
Raise the Difficulty
The earliest print runs of The Legend of Zelda feature a five screw cartridge and no “Rev A” designation in the lower right corner of the box front. Finding a high-grade original Zelda CIB with a five screw cartridge can present a nice additional challenge.
Despite both The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link both having numerous nuanced variants, each game effectively has just three major variants: An early production which has a black round Nintendo Seal of Quality in the bottom right corner of the box front, a later production which instead has a white oval Nintendo Seal of Quality in its place, and a final print under the “Classic Series” marketing brand. Three major variants for both The Legend of Zelda and its sequel creates an opportunity to collect this as a two, four, or six game set depending on your level of Zelda fandom. Early prints of both games are very difficult to acquire in sealed condition but become progressively more attainable in their later and final production runs. We’d recommend acquiring early print CIBs if just starting out, and possibly stretching for sealed copies of later productions if the opportunity presents itself.
Raise the Difficulty
The earliest print runs of The Legend of Zelda feature a five screw cartridge and no “Rev A” designation in the lower right corner of the box front. Finding a high-grade original Zelda CIB with a five screw cartridge can present a nice additional challenge.
4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Four Game Set
SET DIFFICULTY
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
SET COST
$$$$$
$$$$$
SET SIZE
4 GAMES
4 GAMES
Assembling this Set
Despite both The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles exploded in popularity in the late 1980’s and managed to stay in the American zeitgeist for nearly a decade. Despite arriving in the second half of the original Nintendo console’s life cycle, Konami managed to push out a total of four TMNT games for the NES in rapid succession in the early 1990’s. A popular trilogy of three titles was released from 1989 to 1993: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, TMNT II: The Arcade Game, and TMNT III: The Manhattan Project. Additionally, a fighting game, TMNT: Tournament Fighters was one of the last big releases for the NES and is an extremely challenging game to find in sealed condition. These four TMNT titles make for an perfect beginner video game collection and all have excellent and varying box art, making for a superb set to display.
Raise the Difficulty
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game has two notable print runs, the first having a Pizza Hut offer sticker on the box front and the later run being without this sticker. Collecting this earlier variant is a simple way to increase the challenge on this set. If looking to ramp down the difficulty a tad you may want to consider excluding TMNT: Tournament Fighters from this set altogether and instead just collect the initial trilogy.
Despite both The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles exploded in popularity in the late 1980’s and managed to stay in the American zeitgeist for nearly a decade. Despite arriving in the second half of the original Nintendo console’s life cycle, Konami managed to push out a total of four TMNT games for the NES in rapid succession in the early 1990’s. A popular trilogy of three titles was released from 1989 to 1993: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, TMNT II: The Arcade Game, and TMNT III: The Manhattan Project. Additionally, a fighting game, TMNT: Tournament Fighters was one of the last big releases for the NES and is an extremely challenging game to find in sealed condition. These four TMNT titles make for an perfect beginner video game collection and all have excellent and varying box art, making for a superb set to display.
Raise the Difficulty
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game has two notable print runs, the first having a Pizza Hut offer sticker on the box front and the later run being without this sticker. Collecting this earlier variant is a simple way to increase the challenge on this set. If looking to ramp down the difficulty a tad you may want to consider excluding TMNT: Tournament Fighters from this set altogether and instead just collect the initial trilogy.
5. Five Game Black Box Sports Set
SET DIFFICULTY
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
EASY · NORMAL · HARD
SET COST
$$$$$
$$$$$
SET SIZE
5 GAMES
5 GAMES
Assembling this Set
Acquiring one each of the thirty NES black box games is considered one of the holy grails of collecting in the video game hobby. Starting out with thirty game ambitions can be a tad daunting however, so instead we’d recommend this simple set which features the five titles Nintendo themselves labeled as sports games during their original seventeen game black box launch. Thankfully of the thirty black box NES games all of these titles are relatively more common and accessible, with the exception of Soccer. Completing this subset puts you well on your way to completing a 17 or 30 piece black box set. Or alternatively you can move on and assemble a “best of” NES sports game collection by adding some additional classic titles such as Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! and Super Tecmo Bowl.
Raise the Difficulty
When releasing their original seventeen titles Nintendo classified the popular Excitebike as an action game rather than a sports game. Seems like a sports game to us! Excitebike is a classic game and is easily accessible compared to some other black box titles. Excitebike would be a fitting sixth game in this set or a replacement for Soccer if you’re having difficulty acquiring a copy.
Acquiring one each of the thirty NES black box games is considered one of the holy grails of collecting in the video game hobby. Starting out with thirty game ambitions can be a tad daunting however, so instead we’d recommend this simple set which features the five titles Nintendo themselves labeled as sports games during their original seventeen game black box launch. Thankfully of the thirty black box NES games all of these titles are relatively more common and accessible, with the exception of Soccer. Completing this subset puts you well on your way to completing a 17 or 30 piece black box set. Or alternatively you can move on and assemble a “best of” NES sports game collection by adding some additional classic titles such as Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! and Super Tecmo Bowl.
Raise the Difficulty
When releasing their original seventeen titles Nintendo classified the popular Excitebike as an action game rather than a sports game. Seems like a sports game to us! Excitebike is a classic game and is easily accessible compared to some other black box titles. Excitebike would be a fitting sixth game in this set or a replacement for Soccer if you’re having difficulty acquiring a copy.
