This cartridge was one of the first and rarest copies of Super Mario Bros. It has become the most expensive video game ever after being sold at an auction for a whopping $660,000.
It has a Wata score of 9.6/A+, which made this cartridge the “finest copy known to have been professionally graded for auction,” according to Heritage Auctions. This is only the fourth version of Super Mario Bros. ever produced.
The auctioned copy was released in 1986 and bought as a Christmas gift, but ended up being placed inside a desk drawer. According to the seller, it stayed there for almost 35 years until it was found earlier this year.
#HERITAGELIVE #WORLDRECORD!! Super Mario Bros. – Wata 9.6 A+ Sealed [Hangtab, 1 Code, Mid-Production], NES Nintendo 1985 USA obliterates the record for the most ever paid for a video game when it sells for $660,000 in HA’s Comics Auction! #SuperMario https://t.co/mxT0c6zdK5 pic.twitter.com/nPuMQtpsfP
— Heritage Auctions (@HeritageAuction) April 2, 2021
“Since the production window for this copy and others like it was so short, finding another copy from this same production run in similar condition would be akin to looking for single drop of water in an ocean,” Heritage Auctions video games director Valarie McLeckie explained.
This copy broke the previous record set by an unopened copy of Super Mario Bros., with a score of 9.4/A+, that was sold for $114,000 in July 2020.