Donkey Kong Country 3
Console: SNES
Price: $300 – $1,500
While boxed versions are worth a pretty penny, sealed copies will net you around $1,500.
World of Warcraft: Collector’s Edition
Console: PC
Price: $300 – $2,600
This one commands such a high price mainly because of the extremely rare in-game “pets” that it came with, which can go for up to $1,800 on their own.
Myriad 6 in 1
Console: NES
Price: $700 – $3,000
Because it was unlicensed, this game featured clones of other popular video games and really didn’t sell much, making it a rare find nowadays.
Karate
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $2,500 – $4,000
Widely considered one of the worst Atari games of all time, it’s actually quite a common title. The publisher Froggo’s version of it is at least. The original publisher was Ultravision, and these versions are much harder to find.
Gauntlet
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $3,000 – $5,000
What makes this game so rare and valuable is that it was only available through a mail order, and it came as just a cartridge and manual, without a box. Not many of these have stood the test of time.
Wrecking Crew
Console: NES
Price: $200 – $5,500
It’s not one of the most well-known Mario games, but it’s one of the most valuable. A sealed version will easily bring in $5,000 or more.
The King of Fighters 2000 (English version)
Console: Neo Geo
Price: $3,500 – $6,000
This game was available on several systems, like Neo Geo, Dreamcast and PlayStation 2, as well as in arcades, but only 100 copies have been confirmed worldwide. With such low sales, the North American version is one of the most sought-after titles for the Neo Geo.
Outback Joey
Console: Sega Genesis
Price: $2,000 – $7,000
Nintendo cashed in on healthy living and exercise driven games with the Wii, but back in 1993, Sega tried to do the same thing with this game. It included a heartbeat sensor which monitored the player’s heartbeat, and either sped up or slowed down the game’s titular character Joey. It’s estimated that only about 1,000 units ever sold, and most of the ones you’ll see now don’t include that sensor.
The Ultimate 11 (European version)
Console: Neo Geo
Price: $5,000 – $10,000
The European version of this game is the money maker, which is actually pretty strange since it was such a popular game, and soccer… I mean football is Europe’s favourite sport.
Uncharted 2: Fortune Hunter Edition
Console: PlayStation 3
Price: $9,500 – $12,000
Even though this game is not very old, only 200 were ever made, and the only way to get them was by winning a competition held by Sony. This edition came with an incredible artwork book and an intricately modelled dagger replica.
Nintendo PowerFest 1994
Console: SNES
Price: $12,000
Created solely for a gaming tournament, only 33 were ever made. Once the tournament was over, 31 were sent back to Nintendo to use for parts, making those 2 survivors the most valuable SNES games ever.
Kizuna Encounter (European version)
Console: Neo Geo
Price: $5,400 – $13,500
Hugely popular at the arcades, this game was a flop when it was brought to the Neo Geo and PlayStation 2. It doesn’t normally carry a heavy asking price, but if you have one of the 12 known copies of the European version, you’re sitting on a nice chunk of change.
Red Sea Crossing
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $13,800 at auction
Not much is known about this biblical game about Moses and the crossing of the Red Sea, other than that it came with a colouring book and an audio tape when it was released. Only about 500 copies were produced due to extremely low sales, and of those, only 2 have surfaced online, and neither came with the colouring book or audio tape. So a complete set should easily fetch more than $13,800.
Tetris
Console: Sega Genesis
Price: $3,000 – $16,000
You might be surprised to see a game like Tetris on this list, considering it’s the best-selling game of all time, but because Nintendo owned the exclusive rights to the game, its Sega counterpart never saw the light of day. Somehow though, 10 copies made it out. So ya, it’s pretty rare.
Atlantis II
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $5,000 – $18,000
Don’t confuse this as a sequel to Atari’s popular fixed-shooter game Atlantis, it was actually a rewarded copy of the original game with faster gameplay. 10 of these were given out during a competition that required Atlantis players to take photos of their high score screens and send them in.
Nintendo Campus Challenge 1991
Console: NES
Price: $20,100 at auction
Like Nintendo PowerFest 1994, this game was also only made for a gaming tournament, but the cartridges were supposed to be destroyed after the event. However, one turned up at an ex-Nintendo employee’s garage sale in 2006.
Superman (picture label with yellow text)
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $1,000 – $30,000
If you had Atari, chances are you had this game too. The standard text label version is only worth about $10, but the picture label with red text goes for up to $200. If you somehow have the picture labelled version with yellow text, you’re looking at about $1,000, all the way up to $30,000 if it’s sealed.
Super Mario Bros. (Asian version)
Console: NES
Price: $30,000 at auction
There are several different versions of this massively popular game, and all of them hold different values, but the cream of the crop is the Asian release. A sealed version sold at auction for $30,000.
Air Raid
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $33,400 at auction
This game is unique not just because of its rarity, but also for its baby blue cartridge and t-shaped handle design. 12 copies of it have appeared online over the years, so if you’re looking for it, there’s some hope, but it’ll cost you.
Birthday Mania
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $15,000 – $35,000
Don’t bother checking the attic for this one, only one copy is known to exist today.
Gamma Attack
Console: Atari 2600
Price: $20,000 – $50,000
Only one copy of the game was ever made, so it really doesn’t get much rarer than that. When the owner of it listed it on eBay for an astonishing $500,000, developer Gammation re-released 100 more copies, significantly decreasing its value.
Stadium Events
Console: NES
Price: $42,000 at auction
Nintendo World Championships 1990: Gold Edition
Console: NES
Price: $15,000 – $100,000
The holy grail of Nintendo games, this was released as part of a yet another gaming tournament. 90 copies of it were produced in grey and given out to the gamers after the championships concluded. Another 26 were made in gold and awarded as prizes for a separate contest, with one recently selling on eBay for $100,000… without a front label.
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