Super Mario Bros. game cartridge rated 9.4 on the condition scale that sold for $100,150 at auction in 2019.
Super Mario Bros. game cartridge rated 9.4 on the condition scale that sold for $100,150 at auction in 2019.
The copy of Super Mario Bros. that sold for $660,000.
The copy that sold for $660,000 in April 2021.
The 1996 copy of "Super Mario 64" that sold for $1.56 million at Heritage Auctions in July 2021.
The 1996 copy of "Super Mario 64" that sold for $1.56 million at Heritage Auctions in July 2021.
Detail map of Kamihonnōjimaechō, Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan Overview map of Kamihonnōjimaechō, Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan

A: Kamihonnōjimaechō, Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan

Nintendo Introduces "Super Mario Bros."

1985 to 4/2/2021 to 7/13/2021

In 1985 Nintendo, Kyoto, Japan, introduced the Nintendo Entertainment System, and 8-bit game console. It was accompanied by Super Mario Bros., the best-selling video game as of 2008 with 40,000,000 copies sold.

On February 6, 2019 an extremely rare Super Mario Bros. game cartridge sold for $100,150 at auction, establishing a price record for a game cartridge, according to 01net.

"The colossal amount is primarily explained by the rating given to the game by the company Wata Games, a strong reference for those with expertise on video games. The game, in an astonishing state of conservation, was awarded a score of 9.4 out of 10.  

"Between 1985 and 1986, the cartridges of Super Mario Bros ... were dispersed in 11 variants.

Two of them were distributed only in New York and Los Angeles, in order to test the market. The distinctive sign of these two variants is a small sticker to seal the box. The lot sold at auction was the last remaining copy of the two test versions known to date" (https://www.barnebys.com/blog/the-little-italian-plumber-raises-prices-and-heads-nintendo, accessed 1-2021).

On April 2, 2021 a completely unopened copy of the original game cartridge in its original shrinkwrap sold for $660,000 at Heritage Auctions, according to an article published in The New York Times on April 3, 2021. Notably, the overall condition of this cartridge was rated somewhat less than the example sold in February 2019, based on the number 8.0 for the 2021 example versus 9.4 for the 2019 example.

On July 13, 2021 "an extraordinary copy of Super Mario 64 - Wata 9.8 A++ Sealed, N64 Nintendo 1996 USA" sold for $1,560,000 at Heritage Auctions  becoming the first video game ever sold for more than $1 million. The result smashed the world record for a video game – a mark that was set Friday, when Heritage sold The Legend of Zelda – Wata 9.0 A Sealed [No Rev-A, Round SOQ, Early Production], NES Nintendo 1987 for $870,000 in the auction's first session, then the most ever paid for a video game at auction.

Super Mario 64 was the first Mario game to feature three-dimensional environments. The copy of Super Mario 64 that achieved the auction record received a rating of 9.8 or A++ on the Wata Scale.




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