Heritage Auctions (World's Largest Collectibles Auctioneer) has held auctions that see many classics collectable games fetching higher and higher prices by collectors.
Just last Sunday, on June 11, one particular game has broken the record for the most expensive videogame sold at an online auction with a shocking $1.56 million winning bid! That game is none other than Nintendo's 1996 Super Mario 64.
When it comes to classic video games, who can forget the moustachioed Italian going on his Mushroom Kingdom adventures with a red hat and blue coveralls? The Super Mario's legacy goes all the way back to its first release in 1985.
Image source via The Economist
Many have spent their childhood years playing the Super Mario Bros game series. It is widely considered the most iconic video game character ever to be created in the history of the gaming industry. More than just a game, Super Mario has established itself as a pop culture icon.
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To this day, the earlier game series of Super Mario is still highly sought after for their value as physical memorabilia especially. The Heritage Auctions had 16 bids on the unopened copy of Super Mario 64 last Sunday. When it was sold at a record-breaking price of $1.56 million (RM6,552,780), even the auction house's video games specialist Valarie McLeckie did not see it coming.
"“I was blindsided, to be quite honest with you. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect the price that was realized would become a reality.”" McLeckie (The Washington Post)
Watch the historical moment when the sealed unit of Super Mario 64 cartridge was sold for $1.56 million!
Only two days prior to the unprecedented million-dollar bid on a video game, the rare and critically acclaimed 1988 cartridge of "The Legend of Zelda" had just set a new record fetching $870,000 (RM3,654,435) in the same auction. Who would have known that it would only hold the world record for two days?
The Million-Dollar Mario Game Cartridge Explained
"Super Mario 64 has a lot of appeals. It features one of the most iconic characters. It was the first in the Super Mario franchise to feature a three-dimensional world instead of its side-scrolling predecessors. For some, it was their first 3-D game ever. That is their Beatles, their beloved game," Chris Kohler, a video game historian and collector.
Image source via Heritage Auctions
In 1996, the Nintendo 64 (N64) video game console was launched with the first Super Mario game that features 3D gameplay. It was the first time players got to experience Mario's world in three dimensions. Unlike its 2D platform predecessors, Super Mario 64 has new gameplay and introduces a dynamic virtual camera system. It became N64's bestselling game and a major influence on 3D platformers.
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The value of the Super Mario 64 cartridge also lies in its near-perfect physical condition. Video game collectable firm Wata has graded the game at a 9.8 A++ rating. Though it was released more than two decades ago, the seal is still intact, in a 'condition as it was when it left the factory.'
Apart from that, it is a matter of how much the rare retro game cartridge means to the game enthusiast or hardcore collector bidding for it. It is shocking and unreal for anyone to bid over a million dollars for a game cartridge. However, McLeckie said that pure nostalgia is indeed part of the reason it was such a high-value sale.
"Mario has become such a cornerstone in our collective global culture. He's basically the Mickey Mouse of video games." - McLeckie (NPR)
Another game that was in the same auction is one of my personal favourites -"The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim". Released in 2011, the auctioned Xbox 360 copy of Skyrim is still in a pristine condition with a 9.2 Wata rating. Considering that it is a much newer game still selling in stores, the game also fetched a higher-than-expected price tag of $600USD (RM2520) at the auction.
Image source via Heritage Auctions
The enhanced version of the same game - "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Legendary Edition" 2013 has all the extra DLC, and currently costs about $15USD (RM64) in the market.
Other games that also received high bidders on the same historical day that Super Mario 64 was sold for $1.5 million are Final Fantasy VII (1997), Pokemon Blue Version (1998), and Tomb Raider (1996).
Is there a collectable item that you will be willing to spend a hefty sum on? How far will you go to bid for sentimental values?
As time goes by, more and more nostalgic collectables from the '90s are increasing in value. You might want to go through the boxes of old items you have put aside. If you find rare Pokémon cards, toy figures, vintage comic books or Super Mario games, they could mean a lot for someone and be worth a fortune!
We sure hope that the anonymous Super Mario 64 bidder is happy feeling like a million bucks with his latest purchase! STAY SAFE!!!
