The World's most expensive games ( kotaku.com)

[7th lutz]

http://kotaku.com/gaming/collectors/the-worlds-most-expensive-games-bring-money-320708.php

10. Blockbuster World Video Game Championships II (Sega Genesis) $2000+
9. Ultima: Escape from Mt. Drash (Vic-20) $2500+
8. Air Raid (Atari 2600) $3000+
7. Mr Boston (Vectrex) $3000+
6. Nintendo World Championship (Nintendo NES) $5000+
5. Kizuna Encounter (PAL Neo Geo) $10000+
4. Nintendo Campus Challenge (Super Nintendo) $10,000+
3. Nintendo Campus Challenge (Nintendo NES) $10,000+
2. Nintendo Powerfest 94 (Super Nintendo) $10,000+
1. 1990 Nintendo World Championships: Gold Edition (Nintnedo NES) est $20,000

Discuss what mistakes were made by this website in worth and what should be the real top.

[otaku]

I dunno but good lord! the most I've spent on a game was 170 (bought a few games up to that price also) and will do so again when rock band comes out but no way I would pay more than a few hundred for a game I mean paying more than what the machine to play costs is kinda nuts let alone the price of a car or something!

[Gapporin]

I don't keep on top of this stuff like some people, but has a gold NWC ever gone for $20,000?

[Adol]

1) Kizuna Encounter has been sold for A FACT twice for 10000 EUROS.
That makes $14800, not $10000

2) Maybe i'm wrong, but i confirm that i never saw a Gold NWC going for $20000...

[gepeto]

the sad part is I have none of these.....:(

[boatofcar]

According to Wikipedia, there is only one Nintendo Powerfest '94 cartridge in existence. Wouldn't that make it more valuable than a gold NWC?

[jajaja]

According to Wikipedia, there is only one Nintendo Powerfest '94 cartridge in existence. Wouldn't that make it more valuable than a gold NWC?

Not necessarily, it depends on how big the demand is. You do have many prototypes where only 1-2 copies are known to excist that doesnt even hit $1000, eventho they are rarer than a gold NWC. The demand for a gold NWC is so high and the supply is so low, therefor its damn expencive. I'm sure there are some high demand for the Powerfest 94 too of course, but not a $10.000 demand from alot of people.

I dont think it should be listed as the most expencive item there. The last 2-3 gold NWCs has been sold for something like $6000 - $8000. I think Buyatari was the one who listed it for $20.000, but afaik it didnt get sold for that price.

[gepeto]

how about a finish retail copy of half life for the dreamcast. Does one exist?

[Gamingking]

Well, these are some high prices. I've never heard of some of these.

[punkoffgirl]

This link is better. It provides some information regarding the actual prices, reasons for rarity, etc (and credits DP with helping!).

http://www.gamesniped.com/2007/11/08/worlds-most-expensive-video-games/

[dlopez9069]

yeah i mean the only time i've seen NWC go for 20,000 is that time where the man auctioned off his sons games and that was a lot, not by itself.

[tom]

I believe there should be a seperation between 'games that were for sale' and 'games created for tournaments, championships, etc...', as the latter only ever features existing games anyway and those carts weren't available to buy in shops to start off with. Those tournament carts should be of little value.

[Kitsune Sniper]

how about a finish retail copy of half life for the dreamcast. Does one exist?

I don't think they do. Wasn't this game canned -before- it went to print?

[gepeto]

I don't think they do. Wasn't this game canned -before- it went to print?


I don't know but the iso was out there so I thought that someone had a finished but unreleased copy. I could have swore reading something that someone did along time ago but I am not sure.

[norkusa]

Someone please tell me that there's a less expensive version of Mt. Drash for another system out there, or at least another Ultima with boxart that resembled Mt. Drash. A few years ago at a junk store, I passed on a boxed Ultima game with artwork that looked *a lot* like Mt. Drash. I remember checking Ebay at the time to see if I passed on something big but I could have sworn I saw a complete copy on there that only ended at around $50 (and the one I saw was missing a map I think).

[Mayhem]

It uses the same artwork as the Apple II release of Ultima 1, so you may be able to rest easy there ;)

I, of course, on the other hand... erm... woot de hoot?! :p

http://www.mayhem64.co.uk/photos/photos46.jpg

[PapaStu]

I don't know but the iso was out there so I thought that someone had a finished but unreleased copy. I could have swore reading something that someone did along time ago but I am not sure.

The game was made and destroyed. There are numerous rumors as to what made them destroy it, Sony paying money for the HL rights, DC dying a combination of the two. But the game was done, completed and had gone gold.

There is no way that a legitimate complete copy of Half Life DC would pull 2k for it. With the ISO being out there, its value is purely in the packaging and disc and since there are numerous versions of the game out there to play you've got to really find a DC nut to spend that on it and I don't think that there are any. Even the Propeller Arena and Flinstones stuff didn't move for that much.

There are complete packaging setups out there. I've seen pics on DCH of a user who did get the retail packaging for it so those do exist, but numbers out there would be incredibly small.

[sidnotcrazy]

This link is better. It provides some information regarding the actual prices, reasons for rarity, etc (and credits DP with helping!).

http://www.gamesniped.com/2007/11/08/worlds-most-expensive-video-games/

Thanks, this is a much better article. Did Kotaku just copy down this same list from Gamesnipe, and put different prices? Because the article from Gamesnipe is dated earlier than the Kotaku news post.

[gepeto]

The game was made and destroyed. There are numerous rumors as to what made them destroy it, Sony paying money for the HL rights, DC dying a combination of the two. But the game was done, completed and had gone gold.

There is no way that a legitimate complete copy of Half Life DC would pull 2k for it. With the ISO being out there, its value is purely in the packaging and disc and since there are numerous versions of the game out there to play you've got to really find a DC nut to spend that on it and I don't think that there are any. Even the Propeller Arena and Flinstones stuff didn't move for that much.

There are complete packaging setups out there. I've seen pics on DCH of a user who did get the retail packaging for it so those do exist, but numbers out there would be incredibly small.


That is a shame because it would have made a nice dc swan song. I remember first hearing about it I didn't believe it for a long time and then I by chance came across a copy of it. For the dreamcast it was very well done. I was surprised and to include the other game I think it was blue shift. Thanks for the info:)

[Nimrodil]

Thanks, this is a much better article. Did Kotaku just copy down this same list from Gamesnipe, and put different prices? Because the article from Gamesnipe is dated earlier than the Kotaku news post.

Gamesniped list i some days ago, Kotaku find it and did a news/reference to it. But I think the prices are the same on both lists (but not in the first post here, guess it was just a little 10000 mistake;-)

Edit; sometimes I read as an ape...guess Kotaku did the mistake...

[snes_collector]

How much does that UK Neo Geo AES soccergame (the one that is about as rare as Kizuna)pull these days?

[Speedy_NES]

The list says that only 90 grey NWCs were produced, but there's obviously more produced. I don't see why people, especially people in the know, keep spreading the number 90 around when it's been verified that more than 90 were "produced" as there have been Nintendo employees selling copies that were given to them (that, and the highest numbered cart found has a number above 400, so there's likely between 400-500 produced IMO).

[portnoyd]

The list says that only 90 grey NWCs were produced, but there's obviously more produced. I don't see why people, especially people in the know, keep spreading the number 90 around when it's been verified that more than 90 were "produced" as there have been Nintendo employees selling copies that were given to them (that, and the highest numbered cart found has a number above 400, so there's likely between 400-500 produced IMO).

It's the same line everyone repeats. Annoying but what can you do. The line should be 'at least 90 in circulation, at the most 500 in existence'. Anyway, the novelty of the cart commands the price moreso than the number.

[tom]

There are so far about 10 Magnavox Odyssey 1973 range of games found (Interplanetary Voyage, W.I.N., Brainwave, Basketball) and even less (about 5 or less?) blue Apex-Magnavox Odyssey double-ender cartridges (games 7&8 (Handball, Volleyball)), so those games should be in there with a high valuation.

The Magnavox Odyssey 1973 range should be higher in value than that Neo Geo game Kizuna Encounter and the 1990 Nintendo World Championships: Gold Edition (Nintendo NES) for sure. The 1990 Nintendo World Championships: Gold Edition (Nintendo NES) is mass produced when compared to the Magnavox 1973 titles.

The blue Apex-Magnavox double-ender is more rare than the Kizuna Encounter and 1990 Nintendo World Championships: Gold Edition (Nintendo NES) combined, with about 5 (or less) in the whole world, that is one of the rarest carts and should be valued accordingly, it should be in the number one spot without question.


...

[bunnyboy]

It's the same line everyone repeats. Annoying but what can you do. The line should be 'at least 90 in circulation, at the most 500 in existence'. Anyway, the novelty of the cart commands the price moreso than the number.

Even more correct would be "at least 90 grays distributed, up to 400 more fabricated but destroyed". I believe the highest number found is 343 so a run of 400 total is most likely. I think there have been about 20-40 of the 90 actually found. The $6k price is way inflated, actually $2-3k depending on condition.

The gold NWC price is also inflated. $10k has been confirmed, since then there was a private sale that may have been in the $11-12k range. The Campus Challenge and Powerfest carts are also inflated. ~$3-5k is what they were actually sold for by jollyrancher. It is very obvious the people at kotaku did absolutely no research!

The NWC carts absolutely show that rarity does not equal value. There are more of them, but the demand is far higher, so the price is higher. It is pretty easy to find carts where only one is known to exist for many systems. Just because there is one doesn't mean anyone will pay tons of money for it.

[PingvinBlueJeans]

Those tournament carts should be of little value.

The list is about the most expensive (in-demand) collectable games, not what you think should be (or should not be) the most expensive games. A lot of things "should be of little value"...but there are a lot of people who want them.


There are so far about 10 Magnavox Odyssey 1973 range of games found...so those games should be in there with a high valuation....The Magnavox Odyssey 1973 range should be higher in value than that Neo Geo game Kizuna Encounter and the 1990 Nintendo World Championships: Gold Edition (Nintendo NES) for sure...The blue Apex-Magnavox double-ender is...one of the rarest carts and should be valued accordingly, it should be in the number one spot without question.

It doesn't matter how rare those titles you mention are...price is determined not only by rarity but demand as well, and unfortunately very few people care about the Odyssey.

[punkoffgirl]

Even more correct would be "at least 90 grays distributed, up to 400 more fabricated but destroyed". I believe the highest number found is 343 so a run of 400 total is most likely. I think there have been about 20-40 of the 90 actually found. The $6k price is way inflated, actually $2-3k depending on condition.


I don't think $6k is TOO inflated, because it's been paid. Doesn't anyone else remember.. what's his name, Captain Falcon or something like that? Didn't he pay 6 grand for his copy?

[Buyatari]

I'm pretty sure DreamTR sold a grey for 6500 but I would still say the NWC prices are inflated.

[udisi]

Most of those prices are a bit high. NWC greys have gone that high, but they're more in the 2500-3k range and the last Gold sold for 10k and the 2 before that were for 7100 and 7800, so you're talking 7.5-10k or so for the NWC Gold. Those powerfest things. I believe one did sell for 10k and another for 4k, With those 2 being the only ones known, I'd say it's hard to set a price on them. Most of these games are so rares that time, circumstance, and who's buying/selling has a lot to do with the price. Last Kizuna Encounter I saw sold went for 12.5k which is the most I know for any one game.

[diskoboy]

Half Life was mentioned.... But I guarantee theres an NTSC RETAIL copy of Propeller Arena for the Dreamcast.

Somewhere.....


It wen't gold prior to September 11, 2001... So I guarantee you there are legitimate copies, floating around out there. I even posted a thread about this simialr topic, but only asking about PA.

[The 1 2 P]

That is a shame because it would have made a nice dc swan song. I remember first hearing about it I didn't believe it for a long time and then I by chance came across a copy of it. For the dreamcast it was very well done. I was surprised and to include the other game I think it was blue shift. Thanks for the info:)

There are definitely complete copies out there, but ones with full retail packaging is another story. On a related note, the full retail Official Prima Half Life Dreamcast strategy guides did get released before word of the games cancellation spread. Then these too were pulled and presumeably destroyed, but quite a few exist--such as the one in my collection.

[cyberfluxor]

1) Kizuna Encounter has been sold for A FACT twice for 10000 EUROS.
That makes $14800, not $10000

I was actually talking to Chris on the Neo-Geo forums yesterday at his place and we brought that game up. Something like 8 copies are known to exist and it has gone for over $18,000 USD before... The only thing more expensive than that I can think of would be an arcade or insane VR machine.

From Neo-Geo.com AES price guide:
Kizuna Encounter euro (4 known copies) last sold for $12,500 EER²

[ProfJimbo]

There is something I find in almost all "extremely rare" games....they SUCK !

Truly, from a collectors standpoint, they are great to come by. But if you actually play most of them, they are truly awful.

[Jorpho]

Truly, from a collectors standpoint, they are great to come by. But if you actually play most of them, they are truly awful.

Do you speak from personal experience, sir? It would seem that most people have not actually played any of the games on this list at all. Actually, though, people are sufficiently fond of the NWC experience that they pay good money for even just a reproduction.

Now, the likes of Chase the Chuck Wagon would be different, but that's not on this particular list.

[Bojay1997]

Do you speak from personal experience, sir? It would seem that most people have not actually played any of the games on this list at all. Actually, though, people are sufficiently fond of the NWC experience that they pay good money for even just a reproduction.

Now, the likes of Chase the Chuck Wagon would be different, but that's not on this particular list.

Actually, I think many of those games have been played by a lot of the people on here. Well, at least in the case of the various competition carts which are just timer controlled versions of very common games. I guess the timing adds a new dimension, but I'm not sure it's worth much to the average gamer or collector. Kizuna is not that hard to find as an MVS cartridge nor is it among the best the Neo has to offer. I've played the 2600 game at a collector's gathering many years ago and was unimpressed. I guess the only thing I've never really played is Mt. Drash. So, I won't agree 100% with the previous poster, but I do agree that many of these ultra expensive games are mediocre at best.

[Mayhem]

Actually Mount Drash isn't too bad as a game... and that's not saying it to justify buying it either ;)

[Adol]

I was actually talking to Chris on the Neo-Geo forums yesterday at his place and we brought that game up. Something like 8 copies are known to exist and it has gone for over $18,000 USD before... The only thing more expensive than that I can think of would be an arcade or insane VR machine.

From Neo-Geo.com AES price guide:
Kizuna Encounter euro (4 known copies) last sold for $12,500 EER²

I know,i used to own 3 Kizuna Encounter, as well as 3 Ultimate 11 English AES carts.

[rbudrick]

There have been 4 NWC carts found outside the known 116. So, the "known to have existed" total is 120, not that all have been accounted for.

The highst number known is indeed 343.

In an interview I did with Steve Grossman, former Executive VP of Mega, Inc, the company that booked the venues (they do top booking for big-name acts), he said he believed there were 500-1000 made, but I may be remembering it wrong...I'd have to look up the interview in my archived emails. He may have said "under 500," but he didn't have a definite answer.

The only way we are ever going to find out is to interview Howard Phillips, Minoru Arakawa, or Gail Tilden, according to Steve. It's even possible that Terry Lee Torok, the host dude of the event may know, but his paper trail runs cold, though Mega, Inc is still listed as his agent. He's done a number of things in the last few years, but whatever I've found online seems to have been past gigs.

If anyone can get their contact info, I'll gladly interview them too.

-Rob

[cyberfluxor]

I know,i used to own 3 Kizuna Encounter, as well as 3 Ultimate 11 English AES carts.
Wha?! How did you accomplish this? That would be amazing if they were the real thing, not that I'm debating your credibility but it is crazy. :)

[Geddon_jt]

Wha?! How did you accomplish this? That would be amazing if they were the real thing, not that I'm debating your credibility but it is crazy. :)

No, Adol is absolutely correct and truthful. 2 reasons.

1. Adol is one of the largest collectors/game resellers in Europe;
2. U11 and KE Euro versions were exclusively released in Europe, and finally
3. He was one of the premier traders of elite Neo gear during the collecting boom circa 98-01 (when the Neo market blew the roof off).

I recall very well having a phone conversation with another unnamed large Neo collector (maybe 1999)? who couldn't believe that he had "spent so much on a single game." I told him I thought he was crazy!
The game? Kizuna Encounter euro version.
The price? $600 shipped from Europe.
He still has that cartridge. Shows you what a nearsighted dolt I am.

:)

[Bojay1997]

Not to debate the value of the various competition carts, but I definitely think they appeal to a niche group of collectors. Even if they were significantly less valuable, I don't really believe that most collectors would be actively trying to collect them. I know for me, I never really subscribed to Nintendo Power and we never had a Blockbuster where I lived until I was in college, so the only thing I know about the competitions themselves are what I have picked up in bits and pieces over the years. I kind of feel like it would be a waste to spend all the money on these promo games when I don't even have a complete NES or Genesis collection yet. The fact is, there are enough collectors with enough interest and enough cash to keep the values high which is good for people that want to sell them or someone lucky enough to find one, but really, I can't imagine myself ever seeking them out, even if I had unlimited resources to devote to collecting.

[ProgrammingAce]

Half-Life DC went gold and went to print. 12 copies survived, i can only vouch for 2 copies remaining. The rest went to sierra, you'd do better talking to Jay Smith.

The leaked copy of propeller arena isn't the final build and has an "identifying mark" as a byproduct from the dumping process. An original GD-R would be of better quality, mainly because the guy who dumped it was a moron.

[cyberfluxor]

No, Adol is absolutely correct and truthful. 2 reasons.

1. Adol is one of the largest collectors/game resellers in Europe;
2. U11 and KE Euro versions were exclusively released in Europe, and finally
3. He was one of the premier traders of elite Neo gear during the collecting boom circa 98-01 (when the Neo market blew the roof off).

I recall very well having a phone conversation with another unnamed large Neo collector (maybe 1999)? who couldn't believe that he had "spent so much on a single game." I told him I thought he was crazy!
The game? Kizuna Encounter euro version.
The price? $600 shipped from Europe.
He still has that cartridge. Shows you what a nearsighted dolt I am.

:)
Well once again, I wasn't debating his credibility just really currious how he came across them. I know he's apart of some amazing stuff and I was laughing earlier just with the thought he owned half the worlds supply of that particular print.

[Adol]

No, Adol is absolutely correct and truthful. 2 reasons.

1. Adol is one of the largest collectors/game resellers in Europe;
2. U11 and KE Euro versions were exclusively released in Europe, and finally
3. He was one of the premier traders of elite Neo gear during the collecting boom circa 98-01 (when the Neo market blew the roof off).

I recall very well having a phone conversation with another unnamed large Neo collector (maybe 1999)? who couldn't believe that he had "spent so much on a single game." I told him I thought he was crazy!
The game? Kizuna Encounter euro version.
The price? $600 shipped from Europe.
He still has that cartridge. Shows you what a nearsighted dolt I am.

:)


Correct and i can still tell you name of the 2 collectors who STILL have now Kizuna Encounter AND Ultimate 11 from me.
1 is www.neo-geo.com owner, the other one is a BASF then AstraZeneca engineer, initials L.B.
The 3rd Kizuna Encounter got sold in France in a store i let the game in (then can't trace it),the 3rd U11 wa ssold to an american guy,but that copy was without manual (got it from Australia, while all the other 5 games came from Austria or Germany)

[Geddon_jt]

Well once again, I wasn't debating his credibility just really currious how he came across them. I know he's apart of some amazing stuff and I was laughing earlier just with the thought he owned half the worlds supply of that particular print.

Oh, I knew you weren't debating, just explaining how it happened :)

As for the world's supply, though, I'm sure there are more copies out there that just havent "revealed themselves" to the greater online Neo community. For example, the last KE that was "found" was some guy who bought it in 1996 for retail and just happened to find the community years later, and posted asking whether or not his game was one of the rare ones. People laughed at him or called him a troll, and he followed up with a photo of himself holding a copy of the cartridge (which he later sold for 5 figures).

[DreamTR]

To the guy talking about Odyssey rarities, this list is about VALUE, not RARITY. If it was by rarity, I am sure unreleased protos would be all over the place. I can't begin to tell you how many of those I have, but it does not mean they would fetch anywhere near that much.

Kizuna Encounter Neo Geo last went on eBay for $17,500 to zcamaro28 a few years back (at least on eBay).

Last Gold NWC was sold for $10,000 privately

Powerfest 94 was sold for $10,000 privately

Campus Challenge SNES was sold for $4,000 privately

Campus Challenge NES was sold for $4,800 privately

Most I sold a gold NWC for was $6500 to Captain Falcon MANY years ago.
Most I sold a grey NWC for was $5350 with a ripped label.

I traded to get my Blockbuster cart, but there are at least 2-3 others willing to pay about $2K for it.

That list should have Video Life on it. Last boxed copy went for $5000. Air Raid is a freaking pirate.

[gepeto]

Most I sold a gold NWC for was $6500 to Captain Falcon MANY years ago.
Most I sold a grey NWC for was $5350 with a ripped label.
.


How much was the shipping via armored car? HA HA HA I just had to throw that one in,

[DreamTR]

LOL! Imagine if Fedex lost them

[cyberfluxor]

As for the world's supply, though, I'm sure there are more copies out there that just havent "revealed themselves" to the greater online Neo community. For example, the last KE that was "found" was some guy who bought it in 1996 for retail and just happened to find the community years later, and posted asking whether or not his game was one of the rare ones. People laughed at him or called him a troll, and he followed up with a photo of himself holding a copy of the cartridge (which he later sold for 5 figures).
I didn't respond the other day but I was looking around the NG forum for that topic and all I found was an auf deutsche thread which I don't know quite enough German to decipher it. Seems like an intriguing tale though what would happen if even a small stash were found of say 100 carts? Would the market value dimish to nearly $5k or less? Obviously it's available on other systems so its effects could be devastating.

[Buyatari]

Most I sold a gold NWC for was $6500 to Captain Falcon MANY years ago.


Seemed like alot at the time didn't it?

[ProgrammingAce]

LOL! Imagine if Fedex lost them

Out of curiosity, how do you ship something like that?

I had a $2,000 item sent to me and was absolutely furious when it came damaged.

How do you handle something like a gold NWC? I guess at those prices, i would just fly and pick it up.

And on that note, you *did* put insurance on that stack of discs i just bought, right?
= P