Earlier today, our friends over at T3.com published a story titled “Made in Japan: the TRUTH about the retro gaming and technology market in Japan” – and it makes for some interesting reading.

The main point of the article is that while you might hear stories online of incredible bargains on rare games, the Japanese market is highly focused on item quality and that incredible premiums are often charged for items in the best condition. Prices shown include ¥150,000 ($1,315/£1,020) for a brand new PC Engine Duo-RX and ¥68,000 for a mint copy of Choutetsu Brikinger on the Neo Geo CD. Further, the article states that “on the internet and especially on eBay, it is grade C or less quality items (compared to Japanese shops) that are put up for sale and bought by westerners – essentially the products listed on eBay are the trash that struggles to sell in Japan.”

You can click here to take a look at the article, and tell us what you think in the forum and on social media – is this a bit hyperbolic, or have your own experiences in Japan lined up with T3’s feature?