Jusco 30th Anniversary N64 – When Luck Prevails

Sometimes luck just seems to be on my side – actually it’s quite often now that I think about it. But in this case, even I have to say that my luck was extraordinarily good. 😀

I was doing my once a fortnight manic/obsessive search through the used places, and not much was coming up, until…. I head into CompOff (HardOff, but mainly focused on computers) and I see this Nintendo 64. Not knowing too much about N64s, I think to myself that the colour of this one seems a little different, and also that Jusco 30th anniversary symbol must mean it’s not overly common – yes, I was that naive!

clear-grey-jusco-anniversary-n64

So, I decide to ask the shop attendant to have a closer look (it was in a cabinet). Yes, the controller felt good, and yes, the condition was great (including the manual), but I was still undecided – sad to say that is no joke either. Did I want to pay the $25 (Yes, $25 measly dollars!!)? I seriously had no idea what I was looking at, and as I already own a pile of N64s I just wasn’t sure if I should bother. 😮

nintendo-64-jusco-clear-grey

Finally, I thought why not spend the $25 and I buy it – how much could I loose right? The guy asks if I want a bag, and I say “na it’ll be fine”. I carry it out wondering if the Jusco 30th anniversary mark actually means anything, and throw it into the back of the car – not on the back seat of the car mind you, in the hatch! For those of you that don’t know $25 is an insanely good deal for one of these rare N64s, but stupid me had no idea…

*Bellow you can see the Jusco 30th markings on the box:
n64-jusco-version jusco-clear-grey-n64

Completely oblivious to what was sitting in the back of the car, my family and I do some shopping. Everything we buy gets put on top of it in the back. I am sure some of you Nintendo 64 collectors out there are thinking that Hollo does not deserve this rare piece of gaming history – can’t say that I’d disagree with you honestly. Luckily I didn’t do any damage to the box or the console itself you’ll be happy to know – I’d hate to have the N64 police at my door!

*Bellow is the Jusco (in katakana) stamp on the instructions – definitely look for this if you’re in the market for one of these:
jusco-n64-how-to-tell

So, it seems that I am now the owner of one of the rarest N64s made. Of course, I didn’t know this until I also posted on Aussie Arcade to ask the guys if they knew any info about it. My mouth hung open like a total fool when Frank (AA member) gave me an approx value of the thing – had to slap myself pretty damn hard.

For those of you (like me earlier) who have no idea what this is, why $25 is an amazing deal, and why CompOff obviously didn’t know what they had, I guess now is the time I should fill you in. Basically the Jusco 30th Anniversary edition Nintendo 64 is a Japanese exclusive console that was released only for Jusco stores in Japan. They are very scarce, and there are many (maybe an understatement there) searching for this particular version.

jusco-30th-nintendo-64

jusco-30th-anniversary-n64

The value of these things has jumped in recent years, but loose ones can sell for approximately $400 at the time of writing. Boxed and complete sets can sell for $650 plus! Now you might have an idea how stupid I was with this thing. I had no idea about what this was, and as the HardOff group usually knows what they have, I kind of just trusted the pricing – even though it was slightly cheaper than you might find clean boxed N64s.

*While I was taking pictures of this one I decided to snap a pic of the other boxed N64s I have in my collection. Amazingly this Jusco one is by far in the best condition!

japanese-n64

I am not just lucky to find this particular machine, but also to actually buy it when I didn’t have any stinking idea what it was! Seriously, I am ashamed I didn’t know what it was. To quote Frank “Hollo, I don’t even collect for the N64 and even I knew that was a Jusco 30th Anniversary LE!”. That pretty much sums it up – dumb luck strikes again. 😀

Another Super Haul!

It seems as if all I am doing recently is posting about massive shopping sprees… I promise I will get back to indepth posts regarding retro gaming soon, but at the moment I have to use what little time I have to get out there and snap up these bargains before this plays runs dry! I cannot express in words the feeling when I walk in there, and even more stock is being added – this place is a gold mine at the moment!

So what did I get this time? Well, everything I could get my hands on within 20 minutes is the answer. 😀

Saturn Games:
saturn

PCE and PC-FX (click to enlarge):
hucards pcfx

Dreamcast:
dreamcast

Famicom, and Famicom DiskSystem (notice the DiskSystem titles are mostly complete packs as well? Lucky score indeed!):
disk-system famicom-nes

Playstation:
playstation-ps1

More Playstation and Xbox:
playstation-xbox-360

Gameboy (one of those is a unit that lets you connect a Gameboy up to a mobile phone for multiplayer action – I think :D):
gameboy

MegaDrive and SuFamicarts:
megadrive-superfami

Nintendo 64:
nintendo-64

Game&Watch Donkey Kong II in absolutely amazing condition:
game-watch-donkey-kong-ii

And finally Super Famicom:
super-famicom-snes

I cannot believe the bargains I am getting from this place!! They have workers putting gear out as fast as it’s going off the shelves though. In fact while I was there this time, there were guys just waiting with baskets as things were being put up. All those PCE HuCards were grabbed even before they hit the shelves – the woman putting them up was a little shocked as I didn’t even look at them carefully before throwing them in the basket.

Ahhh Japan, you’ve done it again. 😀