A rare copy of Super Mario Bros. has sold at auction for $2 million, breaking the previous $1.56 million record set by the sale of a mint condition copy of Super Mario 64. That’s also a lot more than what a rare boxed copy of Super Mario Bros. 3 got at auction, as that NES game sold for $156,000 last year.
According to Rob Petrozzo, one of the founders of the collectibles site Rally, the sealed 1985 game was purchased by an anonymous buyer and is just one of several items that prove that you can put a price on childhood nostalgia.
“I think that we’re starting to see the natural progression of ‘What else? What are the things that have appreciated in value from my childhood that have that nostalgia?'” Petrozzo said to the New York Times.
The origin of the game itself is an interesting story, as Rally originally purchased it for $140,000 last year and sold 3000 shares of ownership of the game to investors. When offers were made it for, investors were informed and voted on whether or not to accept a deal.
The game itself is a rare and sealed 1987 “hangtab” edition that was rated at a near-perfect 9.8 A+ by Wata Games, making it only one of14 factory-sealed copies in existence according to the video game grading company.
According to Petrozzo a $300,000 offer was made last year, with shareholders declining and holding out for a better deal. With the $2 million sale, that patience has paid off for everyone who invested in the game. For example, graduate law student Ed Converse invested $100 last year and has walked away with $950 thanks to the sale.
Deals like this are just the tip of the gaming collectibles investment iceberg according to Petrozzo, who believes that the idea of valuable video games hasn’t yet hit the mainstream. “In my opinion, it hasn’t reached the masses,” Petrozzo said. “You’ll start to see a lot more people paying attention and doing research.”
Another example of this search for rare and valuable video games was when one Goodwill employee discovered a copy of Atari Air Raid that had been thrown out. The game was auctioned off for the cool price of $10,500 by the organization.
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