To think they were worth 24000Ped once
On the other hand, the market value just when they stopped dropp I Think was around 6000 ped. The visit to 38k level was because because of the insane market value of pretty much Everything...
Then we got Rakzum's pouch (L) that unlocks ESL, which is what most wanted anyways for using a res chip. It requires more lvl's of bio. Yet for the ones with enough skill already that is another MU killer for it ;p
At that time, deathspeak was in some cases unlocked by a closed Group of players passed around a resurrection chip among them, and for the unlocks "ate" biotropic skill chip, did the unlock, and chipped it out again. At that time it wasn't fun for someone who skilled up naturally and then just lacked the PEDs to get the chip.
I Think it's good there now is an option that makes it possible to go the "hard way"; to get the time spent skilling rewarded. After all, Death speak is pretty much the only skill that requires (required) a high markup item to unlock - and that from using it *once*.
Nothing you invest in (or buy with intentions to use believing it will hold it's market value) here is guaranteed to be safe.
This is kind'a true for mid-level gear aswell. Ghost armor set after footguards were implemented, as one thing. I got the feeling the footguards were implemented just to push down the popularity of ghost...
In my experience, bigger things sold diretly by MA has been the one that has risen in value. Treasure Island probably was Worth quite a bit, the asteroid, CLDs and Medusa Islands - at least for the first-generation of buyers. Probably also most land areas sold by MA.
THen, as I mentioned, market value had a peak a couple of years ago, and I got the feeling lots of mid-level players seriously were going to leave, both because of lack of items at their level (most nice items had stopped dropping 2005), and for some also the "casino economy" (weekly ATHs, and less than 50% returns if you weren't lucky). Now there are affordable (L) weapons ingame (in terms of markup). Keep in mind, in the long run, even if it's more economical to pay a high % for an (L) weapon as compared to an oldschool weapon, the cost of using it can make it feel more dull, knowing there are heaps of people who are "above" the (L) system and doesn't have to Think about % of (L).
The other thing is that the economy has been divided into two parts: The ubers who have traded by swapping items (let's say an imp fap for a mod merc) making market values meaningless, and the rest who had fought over a few items that had "leaked" from uber-uber trades. The other is that there are less people around these says with hundreds k:s of PEDs on their card as "playmoney", competing with normal players who can play with the Money they deposit monthly from what's rest of their paycheck. If you see this came as leisurement, then taking a full months salary paycheck to buy an item ingame just feels bad, when you know for the people Selling the item it's just playmoney (thinking of the people who might have 10 resurrection chips, but sells them out very slowly to keep market value up).
Another thing, there was a VU/landgrab when the resurrection chip got useful; reviving people at landgrab faster than the (I Think) 10 minute countdown. Then it did have some value. Another thing was in beacon missions, but donno how it worked (if it was in some cases you were staying "up there" as dead or if you would be kicked down to ground immediately upon Death).