A sealed copy of Super Mario Bros. from 1987 raised $ 114,000 at auction. That makes it the most expensive auction ever. The previous record was $ 100,150 for the same game, but that copy was in less good condition.
The copy that for the record amount has been auctioned at Heritage Auctions, received a Wata rating of 9.4. Wata Games is an organization that assesses the condition of an old game. The auctioned copy of Super Mario Bros. is still in the seal and is a so-called black box-variant right away hangtab. Such specimens are rare and loved by collectors.
Valarie McLeckie, who was involved in the sale on behalf of Heritage Auctions, says to Ars Technica that it is a copy from 1987. The game was first released in 1985. So there are even older versions, but the very first copies were not equipped with shrink wrap.
The auction house doesn’t reveal where exactly the game came from, but McLeckie describes the provenance as a find in an attic room. The copy is not from a collection, but may have been bought in 1987, put away and then forgotten.
A similarly sealed copy of Super Mario Bros. in lesser condition, with a Wata rating of 8.0, it previously sold for $ 40,200. A copy with also a rating of 9.4 was released last year sold for $ 100,150. This was a variant with a sticker as a seal instead of foil.
