The 1.6 million-dollar video game cartridge
Although collectors are aghast at an auction for Super Mario 64, other outrageous price tags are likely to follow
I’m no stranger to buying a game several times for the dubious pleasure of playing it on several consoles. I must own Super Mario World on at least three systems, and that’s only the worst offender. But even I would balk at paying $1.56m for a copy of Super Mario 64.
The copy in question has been sealed since it came out in 1996, among fewer than five examples in such condition, if you believe the auctioneers. My own unboxed copy at my mum’s house might fetch £17 on eBay, while Nintendo have just re-released the game for the Switch alongside two other Mario games for £40. (Or you could pirate it for free.)
The sale has provoked astonishment among video game collectors, of which there is an inevitable online community. Shawn Surmick, who runs a YouTube channel on collectibles, compared it to the Tulip mania of the 17th century, as is obligatory whenever something weird sells for a lot of money, however unconvincing the analogy.
Tulips and video games are at least more normal things to sell than a tweet, as Twitter founder Jack Dorsey did earlier this year in the form of a non-fungible token, which proves a digital asset is unique. This sold for $2,915,835.47, or slightly less than two exquisite copies of Super Mario 64.
I was sceptical about the ‘sale’ of Dorsey’s tweet, but humans have claimed ownership of plenty of strange things since the concept of property was invented. This includes other people, to take a topical example, as well as the sound of a motorcycle or the “vibe” of a particular song.
Forking over thousands for old video games is nonetheless a recent trend. And the amounts that people are paying have prompted theories that people are artificially ‘pumping’ the game market, laundering money or at best pricing out ordinary gamers.
How, some fans ask, can these games be worth this much if there is no funny business going on? Sales of rare art might seem equally ridiculous, but at least old paintings are generally made by the original artist. It’s not as if game designer Shigeru Miyamoto made Nintendo’s video game cartridges with his bare hands.
My view is that if somebody is willing to pay then that is what the item is worth (the corollary being that if nobody is willing to pay the asking price then the seller has overvalued their asset). Valuation services may play a role, but ultimate value is what somebody somewhere will pay.
While rich people can be genuine collectors, rare stuff is also snapped up because it is likely to retain its value to others – or even increase. Such buyers may have no interest in the asset for its own sake. Their defenders say they make the market more ‘liquid’, giving others more opportunities to buy and sell; critics say they are just speculating to make money, to others’ cost.
It is speculation of another kind to assume that the new owner of that mint edition of Super Mario 64 is a well-heeled fanboy or a disinterested investor. Either way, to my eye those convinced these crazy prices are a blip are overconfident.
“I see a lot of people on here talking about how ridiculous the prices are on games and how eventually the bubble will pop and prices will tank,” as one redditor wrote. “I’m sorry, but that’s not going to happen.”
That was almost four years ago. “The bubble is never going to pop”, the author said, as classic games climbed above $80 in value – the kind of sum even a skinflint like me would pay. Never is a long time, but I expect this gravy train has some distance to travel before it dries up.