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In an effort to standardize video game grading, GOTCHA has worked with several
collectors to create a grading scale. Although the new scale is based on the old
GOTCHA scale, it is now called the "MobyScale" since it was Moby Games who
brought all of the collectors together. Since the GOTCHA Museum had already graded
over 1200 of its games before the MobyScale was finalized, there are some discrepancies
between GOTCHA and the MobyScale. However, these discrepancies are merely legacy
issues (described at the bottom of this page). Any new games obtained by GOTCHA
since the implementation of MobyScale (in November of 2000) will conform.
GOTCHA will be using the Abbreviated Form MobyScale, which means each game will
have two grades (i.e. NM/VG). The left grade represents the box and the right grade
represents the contents. However, for games graded before MobyScale, there is only
one grade, which represents the quality of the game's box and contents taken as a whole.
Condition Grades:
- Mint Sealed (MS): No noticable defects and sealed in original factory or store
shrinkwrap or sticker. The best grade possible.
- Near Mint (NM): No noticable defects, but not sealed.
- Fine (F): One or two slight defects (small scratch, slight worn corner on box,
etc.) that prevent a Near Mint rating.
- Very Good (VG): More than one or two slight defects (slight crease in manual, all
corners slightly worn, etc.). Still in acceptable condition.
- Good (G): More severe defects (box slightly torn or crushed; noticable wear on
media, manual, or other materials). Acceptable only if the item is hard to find or highly
desired by the collector.
- Excess Defects (ED): Excessive and/or unusable defects (crushed, ripped, or
sheared box; torn manual pages; box or manual written on in marker, etc.). Acceptable only
if the item is wanted for non-collectable purposes (like actually playing the game) or for
"parts".
Each grade can also have a modifier associated with it:
- Sealed (S): Sealed with original factory (or store) shrinkwrap or sticker.
Not to be confused with a re-wrapped previously-opened box.
- Compressed (C): Package has been crushed or compressed.
- Torn Wrap (T): Sealed package has tears in the shrinkwrap.
- Item Missing (IM): Package is incomplete, missing one or more items from the
original distribution that detract from its gameplay or collectable value. Examples
of missing items would include the wishstone from Wishbringer, the cloth map from Ultima
2, etc.
- Missing Minor Component (MMC): Package is missing a minor component. Minor
components are any included pieces that don't detract from the game playing experience.
Examples of minor components would include warranty or registration cards, product
catalogs, one of two identical items (like pens), a sheet of graph paper from an otherwise
complete pad, etc.
- Bad Media (BM): Media (disk, cassette, cartridge, etc.) is known to be bad or
defective.
The Official MobyGames Software Collectables
Condition Grading Scale
Version 1.04
The inevitable legal notice: This document and its contents is
Copyright 2000-2004, MobyGames.com. For a current copy of this
document, visit the MobyScale's permanent location at "http://www.oldskool.org/info/MobyScale".
It was authored by Jim Leonard (trixter@oldskool.org), based on a
scale created by Hugh Falk, which in turn was based on a record
album grading scale of unknown origin. Any questions, comments, or
suggestions should be directed to the author. You are free to copy,
translate, reformat, and retransmit this text as long as these
notices are included and the content is left unchanged.
Background:
The world of software collectables is an emerging hobby that is
slowly easing into the mainstream. However, being so new, there is
no standard scale for grading the condition of an item, which can
lead to the misrepresentation of an item's value. Before this
grading scale was formed, a multitude of other grading notations
were found: One list used a single rating for the entire item,
another used a numerical rating for quality grades, yet another
wildly overused the term "MINT!", etc. This lack of standardization
can lead to confusion when trying to assess an item's value based
solely on a textual description of the item. Which grading scale is
the right one?
MobyGames.com believes there's a better way to do this, and has
created a standard grading scale and specification for cataloging
software for collection lists. This system is officially in place at
MobyGames.com, but it is our hope that it is embraced by the
collector community and used universally to describe item condition.
Through widespread acceptance of this scale, we hope to eliminate
misconceptions and confusion in the software collectable community.
This document describes The Official MobyGames Software Collectables
Condition Grading Scale and its use and application. For brevity,
the condition grading scale will be abbreviated as "MobyGames
Grading Scale" throughout the remainder of this text. Also included
at the end of the document are some frequently-asked questions, and
an example collector's list to illustrate the system in use.
Item Breakdown:
Before describing the actual scale, it is important to define how
the scale itself is used. A common practice for new collectors is to
assess the overall quality of an item and give it a singular value.
This may save the collector time, but creates confusion for other
collectors attempting to view his list. This is because not everyone
values certain aspects of an item the same. For example, one
collector may value the condition of the box above all else, while
another may value the manual and included trinkets/props/feelies
higher than the box. Because of differing opinions of value, it is
usually inappropriate to give items one overall grade.
The solution to this is to apply a grade to as many pieces of the
item that are relevant. This creates more work, but is the only way
to ensure accuracy and avoid unintentionally misleading people who
read your lists. For example, the most common pieces of a software
collectable are:
 | Box/Packaging
|
| Original Media
|
| Manual
|
| Reference Sheet
|
| Catalog
|
| Registration Card
|
| Additional Items (listed individually) |
The more pieces that are graded, the better the representation of
the item. So while you can get away with a single grade for the
entire item, a suggested minimum would be two grades: One for the
Box/Packaging, and another for all other materials contained in that
item.
Note: You can still use and advertise the MobyScale if you only
list a single grade for the overall item -- but it is highly
recommended that you provide at least two grades (usually one grade
for the box, and another for its contents). Other collectors will
thank you for it.
Condition Grades:
The following are the official condition grades of the MobyGames
Grading Scale. The possible conditions an item can be in are:
| Mint Sealed (MS): No noticable defects and sealed in
original factory or store shrinkwrap or sticker. The best grade
possible.
|
| Near Mint (NM): No noticable defects, but not sealed.
|
| Fine (F): One or two slight defects (small scratch, slight
worn corner on box, etc.) that prevent a Near Mint rating.
|
| Very Good (VG): More than one or two slight defects (slight
crease in manual, all corners slightly worn, etc.). Still in
acceptable condition.
|
| Good (G): More severe defects (box slightly torn or crushed;
noticable wear on media, manual, or other materials). Acceptable
only if the item is hard to find or highly desired by the
collector.
|
| Excess Defects (ED): Excessive and/or unusable defects
(crushed, ripped, or sheared box; torn manual pages; box or
manual written on in marker, etc.). Acceptable only if the item
is wanted for non-collectable purposes (like actually playing
the game) or for "parts".
|
Each grade can also have a modifier associated with it:
| Sealed (S): Sealed with original factory (or store)
shrinkwrap or sticker. Not to be confused with a re-wrapped
previously-opened box.
|
| Compressed (C): Package has been crushed or compressed.
|
| Torn Wrap (T): Sealed package has tears in the shrinkwrap.
|
| Item Missing (IM): Package is incomplete, missing one or
more items from the original distribution that detract from its
gameplay or collectable value. Examples of missing items would
include the wishstone from Wishbringer, the cloth map from
Ultima 2, etc.
|
| Missing Minor Component (MMC): Package is missing a minor
component. Minor components are any included pieces that don't
detract from the game playing experience. Examples of minor
components would include warranty or registration cards, product
catalogs, one of two identical items (like pens), a sheet of
graph paper from an otherwise complete pad, etc.
|
| Bad Media (BM): Media (diskette, CDROM, tape, etc.) is known
to be bad or defective.
|
Modifier examples: An unopened copy of a title in Fine condition
would be called Fine, Sealed or F (S). A copy of
Ultima 6 in Very Good condition but missing the moonstone would be
called Very Good, Item Missing, or VG (IM). A package
that misses Mint Sealed condition because the wrap is torn would be
Near Mint, Torn Wrap or NM (T). A heavily-played,
slightly beat-up copy of MULE that is missing the registration card
and the diskettes have ceased to work would be Good, Missing
Minor Components and Bad Media or G (MMC, BM).
Examples:
Long form: Ultima Underworld, open and used item in good
condition:
Title: Ultima Underworld
Year: 1993
Platform: DOS
Box/Packaging: Very Good
Original Media: Fine
Manual: Very Good
Catalog: Near Mint
Reference Sheet: Very Good
Registration Card: Item Missing
Additional Items: Near Mint
Comments: Has "Best RPG of 1993" sticker on front box. Additional
items are a cloth bag with metal "runes".
Short form, multiple items:
Tass Times in Tonetown (PC): Box G, Media F, Manual G,
Registration Card ED (handwriting), "Newspaper" prop F
X-Car Experimental Racing (PC): Box MS
Ancient Land of Ys (PC): Box G, Media F, Manual G, Registration Card
IM
Archon (C64): Box NM, Media NM, Manual VG, Registration Card NM
Abbreviated form, multiple items: (Legend is Box/Inside
Materials)
Ancient Land of Ys: G/VG
Under a Killing Moon: VG/F
Pinball Construction Set: VG/G
Music Construction Set: VG/G
Dr. J and Larry Bird go One on One: NM/NM
Daemonsgate: MS
Abbreviated form, multiple items with modifiers:
Ancient Land of Ys: G (C, MMC)
Pinball Construction Set: VG (MMC, BM)
Music Construction Set: F
Dr. J and Larry Bird go One on One: NM (T)
These are just suggested list templates; you are free to use
whatever format you choose. The MobyGames Grading Scale is a
specification, but you can implement that specification any way you
like. Note that, for all forms suggested above, there was only one
grade listed for Sealed items. Since the item was never opened, the
condition of the contents cannot be determined (although you can
make some assumptions from the condition of the box).
Frequently-Asked Questions:
Q: Will the number of grades change?
A: No. Many hours of thought were put into what appreciable
differing grades of condition could be (as related to software
items). Unless an extremely strong and convincing argument is made,
they will never change.
Q: Why only six grades?
A: More (or less) grades wouldn't describe an item's condition any
better than the grades provided. We deliberately created granular
grades for the best conditions and coarse grades (only two) for poor
conditions. This was done to best serve the needs of collectors
without overwhelming them. Also, the more grades you have, the more
their implementation is subject to debate -- which is precisely what
the MobyGames Grading Scale is meant to eliminate.
Q: Why isn't "Rare" on the grading scale?
A: "Rare" isn't an indication of condition; it's an indication of
availability. If you'd like to help out with a new rarity guide,
visit
http://www.classicgaming.com/gotcha/ and follow the links to the
CURIOUS scale.
Q: Can I add my own grades using this system? I've been using
"Pristine" and "Good Plus" in my own lists and want to keep doing
so.
A: No! That goes against the whole idea of standardizing condition
grades; the purpose of the system is to map conditions to terms that
everyone can universally use and agree upon. Adding your own terms
deviates from the scale, and just confuses other collectors. If you
add your own terms, you cannot advertise that you're utilizing the
MobyGames Grading Scale.
Q: I have a few items where the box is okay but the shrinkwrap
is in really poor condition, and I want to document that. How can I
do that when the grades apply to the box?
A: The proper usage is to qualify the wrap after the main package
grade. For example, a Mint Sealed package with
dirty/yellowed/tattered/etc. wrap could be listed as "MS (wrap: G)".
Many thanks to Alexander Zöller for the suggestion.
Acknowledgements and Addendum:
This grading scale is officially released to the software
collectables community. Its use is highly encouraged, as long as
it's not altered. Strict adherence to the scale is what makes it
strong and useful; please don't deviate from or otherwise modify it.
Want to discuss software collectable issues with other
collectors? Join the Software Collectables Mailing List! To
subscribe, send email to "minordomo@oldskool.org" with a subject
line of "subscribe swcollect". After joining, you can send email to
the list by emailing "swcollect@oldskool.org". Replying to list
messages also sends your reply to everyone on the list. Mailing list
archives are kept on the web; the URL will be provided to you after
you receive your first message from the list.
"The Official MobyGames Software Collectables Condition Grading
Scale" is a mouthful, isn't it? :-) It's suggested that you merely
tell other collectors, "I'm using the MobyScale."
Many thanks to Hugh Falk, Tom Hlavendy, C. E. Forman, Lee Seitz,
and others who provided suggestions that helped shape this scale.
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GOTCHA Discrepancies
GOTCHA will be moving towards the Abbreviated Form MobyScale, which means each
game will have two grades (i.e. NM/VG). The left grade represents the box and the
right grade represents the contents. However, for games graded before MobyScale,
there is only one grade, which represents the quality of the game's box and contents taken
as a whole.
Also, for games graded prior to MobyScale, IM is used as a grade and not just a
Modifier. For example, a game missing the manual would simple say "IM"
instead of "VG (IM)".
Supplementary Notations -- There are some common
exceptions to the overall condition of an item that merit independent notation from the
overall grade assigned, rather than being "averaged in" as with standard wear.
These are usually after-production aberrations courtesy of the reseller or publisher such
as: writing on the cover, label, tape on seams or spine, applied
stickers (such as "Demo"), etc. These details are usually only noted on
rare items.
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