A 1987 unopened copy of The Legend of Zelda for Nintendo’s NES system has just been auctioned off for a stunning $870,000.
An unnamed bidder won the item on Friday through Heritage Auctions after the starting bid began at $100,000.
Obviously, the $870,000 figure is shocking, but it’s not entirely a surprise either. In April, someone spent an unprecedented $660,000 to own a rare Super Mario Bros. game for the NES that had been left unopened for the past 36 years.
According to Heritage Auction, the Zelda title that was up for auction is an especially rare copy produced during a second, but limited production run for the game in late 1987. The game copy was only preceded by one other variant: the “NES TM” series, which marked the first production run for the game. “But it is widely believed that a single additional sealed ‘NES TM’ copy exists, and may or may not ever get brought to market, making this copy the earliest sealed copy anyone can realistically hope to obtain,” the auction house said.
“This is the only copy from this production run we’ve ever offered in sealed condition, and may very well be the only one we ever offer in this elite level of preservation for many years,” added Heritage Auctions Video Games Director Valarie McLeckie in a statement.
The game itself originally debuted in 1986, first in Japan before coming to the US, and kicked off one of the most famous franchises in video game history. How Heritage Auction came across the still-sealed copy remains unclear. It declined to comment on the seller. But in the past, the auction house has said some of the rarest video game copies were uncovered after being forgotten in someone’s closet or desk drawer.
