Book Off! is a well known Japanese media and sculpture retailer. Recently it started opening stores in the US, and this Houston location off Dairy Ashford is one of the latest that made the jump.
As a part of their business model, they ship extra video game stock from their Japanese stores overseas. Most of these are former best sellers ranging from Famista to Derby Stallion to popular JRPGs like Dragon Quest VI or Final Fantasy V.
Naturally, the usual suspects are there. Pro Yakyuu 1, 2, and 3 are all there. Most of the Gameboy & Advance titles are there, and I'm sure if I was shopping for N64 games, 4, 5 and 6 could be found as well.
However, what I did NOT expect to see was a copy of Basic Ban '98. Those familiar with the series know that late console releases had stripped down Basic Ban (Edition) titles with minor roster and scenario mode updates. They were comparatively niche releases and had a smaller print run, particularly in instances for outdated consoles. While not high-end collectibles like Sunsoft's Gimmick, these are actually tricky to find compared to the mainline releases, and it's extremely unusual to see a copy in this good condition in a US retailer.
I would've bought it, but I already have a copy I picked up from Sendico a year back. And, as interesting as it is, it doesn't really make economic sense to try and flip a game that's hard to find but not actually worth more than $20-40 even if I could find a buyer.
So, yeah, any of you Houstonian Power Pro players, buy me! $9 for this game in this condition is too good to pass up. (...If you don't have it already, heh.)