Super Nintendo Game Collecting: 5 Most Expensive Games

Whether your in it for nostalgia, as an investment in the future or just want to play them one more time, collecting retro video games has become a popular past time for many people. Believe it or not video game collecting can be a very expensive hobby. The prices for a factory sealed video game can range into the hundreds or thousands of dollars. So before you clean out your closet or start giving away those games to your nephew, you might take a moment to consider the hidden gems you've been holding onto all these years.

If you happen to have one of the super Nintendo games below, your in great luck. These are some of the rarest, and most sought after games currently on the market in good condition.

Donkey Kong Country Competition Cartridge: $300 - $850

This game was used exclusively in a promotion with the Blockbuster Video rental chain. Blockbuster held video game tournaments in their store, similar to the old Tetris tournaments that were held years before that on regular Nintendo. Since the tournaments were held in the rental stores, they were never actually released to the general public. Some of these cartridges did end up being sold by the stores, typically in the junk bins for a reduced price and there was a brief promotion in Nintendo Power magazine where the game could be purchased. With an estimated cartridge run of just two thousand five hundred copies, Donkey Kong Country Competition is one of the rarest super Nintendo cartridges out there.

Starfox: Super Weekend Cartridge: $250 - $400

Just like the Donkey Kong Country cartridge above, Star Fox Super Weekend was also a Blockbuster tournament game. Similarly the game was shortly available in Nintendo Power. The game itself is fairly short, and did not appeal well to mass audiences, which is just as well since it was never published for general commercial release. Like Donkey Kong Country, Starfox Super Weekend had a very limited production run of about 2,000. Despite it's increased rarity, this game fetches less money online due and seems to be traded more frequently at auction Websites such as eBay.

Entertainment Mountain Bike Rally/Speed Racer Combo: $200 - $350

Buyer beware. There are two versions of this game available, one of which fetches considerably more money then the other. The first version includes Extertainment Mountain Bike Rally, while the second version contains two games, Speed Racer included. This game may infact be the rarest super Nintendo game of all time, originally created for use with the super Nintendo accessory Life Fitness Bike. The game itself never saw wide commercial release and it's rumored that the majority of the copies of this game never actually made it to distribution to stores.

Earthbound: $100- $250

Earthbound is a game that while not hard to find or rare by any means still brings big money on the collectors market. With a huge following of fans, this game is actively played by many and highly sought after. Thus with such high demand it's difficult to find this game in good condition, especially factory sealed in the box.

Chrono Trigger: $120 - $1,200

While this isn't a rare game, it falls into a similar category as Earthbound above. Chrono Trigger is one of the most highly regarded games on the super Nintendo system, and tops many hardcore gamers list of favorite RPG games. The games story line, gameplay and graphics were second to none and many of its elements set the bar for role playing games made today. Taking a look on auction Websites, you can find a lose copy of Chrono Trigger for under $100 but expect to pay more for a boxed version with manual and inserts. Factory sealed copies of this game are however extremely rare, and bring well over a thousand dollars. That is of course if their owners dare to part with them.

Additional Video Game Collector Resources:

Rarity Scores for Video Games

Video Game Price Lists

eBay Video Games Auction