'The thrill of the hunt': Regina retro gamers scour the aisles for nostalgic gems

Dan Sherven · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 28, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago

Chris Corbin's emotion of retro video games came from a relative helium mislaid arsenic a child. His older relative was a gamer with a fewer systems, and died astatine 15 erstwhile Corbin was 11.

"He near a large imprint connected my life," Corbin said. "I truly liked what helium had and benignant of ever wanted it for my own. So erstwhile I had my ain money, that's benignant of wherever I enactment my wealth toward. I [started] collecting my own."

Now Corbin, who lives successful Regina, is simply a full-on retro video crippled collector with astir 3,000 carnal games. He's portion of what galore accidental is simply a increasing assemblage successful the province.

"I person a fewer 100 Nintendo games," Corbin said. "A fewer 100 Super Nintendo games. Currently I person a implicit North American postulation of N64 [games]. So I prime distant astatine it. It's benignant of like, depending connected the temper I'm [in], I mightiness spell for a definite series."

Some of the games could fetch precocious prices. His astir costly portion is ClayFighter: Sculptor's Cut, which helium said is worth $1,400 to $1,500.

Corbin has a household of his ain now, with 4 children. He said his collecting provides a feeling of nostalgia.

"What truly resonates with maine close present is benignant of the memories of definite games that I have," helium said. "Sure the games are great, but what's truly almighty is the memories I person playing with definite household members connected a holiday. Or getting unneurotic with friends for a sleepover and playing the nighttime away."

Corbin said collectors similar him, who walk hours scouring stores and websites for the items their collections are misson, are "chasing this euphoria for years and years. A portion of it, too, is the thrill of the hunt."

"It's an addiction. It's hard to explicate it rationally."

'It's benignant of a large thing'

Secondhand Wonderland, a utilized goods store successful Regina, is simply a hub for section retro crippled collectors.

"Our biggest section astir apt for definite is gaming," co-owner Mike Wieclawski said. "Everyone's gaming nowadays and tons of guys are surviving that nostalgia — playing the aged games, collecting the aged games. It's what they grew up with, it's what they love."

Wieclawski said immoderate games tin get into the $200 to $400 range.

"There's astir apt a fewer twelve [collectors] that we spot regularly and cognize beauteous well," helium said. "There's a batch of gamers successful Regina."

Christian Crowthers, an worker astatine Secondhand Wonderland, said it's a increasing improvement each implicit the province.

"Saskatoon's got a batch of stores too. It's benignant of a large thing," Crowthers said. "I deliberation it's bigger than ever present due to the fact that everyone plays games nowadays."

Thomas Rath is co-owner of Cashopolis, another Regina store that sells utilized games. He said radical who grew up with older games are trying to spell backmost to erstwhile times were easier successful their lives.

Rath said that the section retro gaming assemblage is growing.

"I deliberation arsenic clip goes on, determination is simply a batch much of a speech astir video games successful Regina, wrong Saskatchewan — Saskatoon arsenic well," helium siad.

"I deliberation determination has been a batch much radical picking up video games than before."

WATCH | The emergence of retro gaming: 

'Just being entertained'

Paul Taylor is different section collector who has 22 video crippled consoles successful a postulation that extends backmost to the 1970s. He called himself "a regular haunter of their aisles" astatine Secondhand Wonderland and Cashopolis.

He said that gaming is "a mode to calm my encephalon astatine the extremity of the time erstwhile I get disconnected work."

"For maine it's decidedly a blessed place. I've got tons of games wherever I person circumstantial memories of radical that I played those games with done my life."

Most importantly, it's fun.

"It's thing that you tin bash whenever. You don't person to docket it. You don't person to marque definite that there's different radical available, you tin conscionable beryllium down — walk 5 minutes, oregon 5 hours — conscionable being entertained."