Storing Game Boy games in a three-ring binder

[opa]

I'm interested in looking for a Game Boy cart storage solution that's a little more elegant than a box to throw games in. I've heard of people using trading card storage sheets and a binder to organize their collections. Is there a certain size sleeve I should look for or do the generic card sizes work?

I know there's the whole cassette-case solution but that's a bit overkill for my needs. The ability to quickly flip through pages of games seems a bit more space-friendly and cheaper. Anyone use this method to store their games?

[o.pwuaioc]

I used to do this, but I found that the sleeves will tear too easily. I switched to this instead:



It will hold 12 Game Boy games in a row (and a 13th can be fit in the side). I also use it for Game Boy Advance, Neo Geo Pocket Color, and Turbografx-16/PC Engine games (those without cases), too.

For Turbo/PC Engine games, I stick them in some Fantasy Flight sleeves to protect them.

[marurun]

Are those sleeves static free? Though really, I think TG-16 games are more likely to fail these days to bit rot.

[o.pwuaioc]

Are those sleeves static free? Though really, I think TG-16 games are more likely to fail these days to bit rot.

You know, I hadn't thought of that. In the five years since I've been using them, I never had an issue with my cards before.

Maybe something like these would be better?

[marurun]

I’m not sure sleeves would necessarily be an issue, but remember that the original sleeves are that weird rubbery plastic that gets gummy when it ages. I wonder if that was static free. I wouldn’t be too worried about static, really. Tons of people keep the games in binder card holders and I’m pretty sure those aren’t static-free, but I’ve never heard of a problem arising from them. I guess my question was more out of curiosity and an instinctual sense of caution than actual meaningful worry.

[Ziggy]

If I was going to have a card-only TG16 collection, I would just use CD jewel case. If you punch out the center disc holder, the HuCards fit nicely.

As for GB/C/A carts, I had thought about cassette tape cases but I couldn't seem to find the empty cases. I had thought about using generic DS cases, you can get them off eBay and Amazon for about $1 each. They're very cheap and don't snap together all that great, but they get the job done. You'd have to hog out the center DS holder though, and that might be annoying.

MLiG has a nice video on this subject. They suggest nail polish racks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oreOa_rIUj0

[opa]

Is there any reason to really worry about static for GB games? The exposed contacts are mostly protected from direct contact (unlike a hucard where they're on the face of the game). I've kept my Game Boy carts in a cool, dry location out of direct sunlight for over 20 years and they're all still working fine.

It will hold 12 Game Boy games in a row (and a 13th can be fit in the side). I also use it for Game Boy Advance, Neo Geo Pocket Color, and Turbografx-16/PC Engine games (those without cases), too.

Huh, kinda neat. I didn't know ultra pro made a clear box. Seems pretty affordable. May seriously consider this.

As for GB/C/A carts, I had thought about cassette tape cases but I couldn't seem to find the empty cases. I had thought about using generic DS cases, you can get them off eBay and Amazon for about $1 each. They're very cheap and don't snap together all that great, but they get the job done. You'd have to hog out the center DS holder though, and that might be annoying.

MLiG has a nice video on this subject. They suggest nail polish racks.

Cassette tape cases are kinda hard to source now; especially if you're looking for uniformity. On a whim I bought a couple of cheap cassettes from walmart the other day to test out their recording quality (not expecting much but we'll see). The cassette cases are pretty solid; it'd be nice if they sold them empty. But then again, you have to tear out the tabs that hold the tape spindles and that's a pain (same with empty DS cases).

The nail polish rack looks pretty neat but not really what I'm after (plus the labels could fade more quickly if you had it in a sunny room).

[o.pwuaioc]

Is there any reason to really worry about static for GB games? The exposed contacts are mostly protected from direct contact (unlike a hucard where they're on the face of the game). I've kept my Game Boy carts in a cool, dry location out of direct sunlight for over 20 years and they're all still working fine.

The sleeves I mentioned were for my Hueys. I think that's why marurun mentioned static.

And I've been using those boxes for years. They're great, and everything fits nicely (so long as you have that 13th on the side).

[Nemoide]

For Gameboy Advance games, Unikeep made a pretty great storage case within the past year.

It's not perfect. The aesthetic on the outside is ugly and games can pop out of the foam insert a little too easily for some folks. Some folks on Amazon report getting a case without the foam insert, but that might be a problem from a third party seller. But other than that, it's pretty great to have a way to FINALLY store a bunch of GBA games on a shelf.

[marurun]

That looks like a pretty cool way to store loose carts. I wonder if there's a good solution for when you have cart and manual.

It's also a bit hilarious that the example carts in the case are all the cheapest licensed junk they could fine find. (Monday fingers strike again!)