A copy of Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64 set a new record yesterday by selling at auction for $1.56 million.
As Kotaku reports, it’s the first video game to ever sell at auction for north of a million dollars, with the condition of the game leaving Heritage Auctions “a bit speechless.” The winning bidder’s identity hasn’t been revealed, but in return for spending such a large amount of money they will receive what Heritage Auctions describes as the “Highest Graded Copy of Super Mario 64,” with a Wata Scale rating of 9.8 A++ Sealed. For comparison, a 9.4 A+ sealed copy of Super Mario 64 listed back in January received a highest bid of just $38,400.
It’s turning out to be a good month for selling sealed copies of old Nintendo games. Last week also saw the sale of a 1987 unopened copy of The Legend of Zelda for the NES, which went for $870,000. Back in April, $660,000 was spent acquiring Super Mario Bros. on the NES, which was also unopened.
With video games today increasingly being distributed digitally, it seems unlikely we’ll see the same level of interest from titles released on PS5, Xbox Series X, and Switch 30 years from now. However, the price of mint condition, unopened games from the 1980’s and 1990’s will surely continue to rise with their age.
