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A rare near-mint sealed copy of Super Mario 64 is up for auction, having been set at a 6-figure price and likely to climb further as the auction continues.
The copy of the iconic game was given a 9.8 rating on the Wata Scale, which auctioneer Heritage Auctions says makes it just one of fewer than five known sealed copies in such good condition. The auction is currently set at $100,000, with the next acceptable bid to be in increments of $5,000. The grand total due will be 20% above the final bid price to pay the Buyer’s Premium.
Heritage has experience listing rare video games, having sold a sealed, hang-tab copy of the original Super Mario Bros. (Wata rating 9.6) for $660,000 in April. That beat the previous record for a copy of SMB by more than $100,000.
“It seems impossible to overstate the importance of this title, not only to the history of Mario and Nintendo, but to video games as a whole,” said Heritage video game specialist Valarie McLeckie, in the announcement. “This is Mario’s debut appearance in a 3D world, and it was the most popular–best-selling–video game for the N64. Considering this, and the fact that there are fewer than five sealed in this grade according to Wata, this copy is a true prize for any serious collector.”
If you simply want to play Super Mario 64, you have much cheaper options. Despite having been delisted on the Nintendo eshop, Super Mario 3D All-Stars is still available in many retail stores, and it includes Mario 64, along with Mario Sunshine and Galaxy.
