An empty box that once contained the 1996 Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64 sold for £8,450 at a retro video game and memorabilia auction. The box, which had an estimated value of £1,000 to £2,000, was one of several items that exceeded expectations.
Ewbank's Auctioneers, which managed the sale on July 3, attributed some of the empty box's success to "PlayStation's decision to stop selling physical products," noting a high demand for historic games and consoles. The box was also signed by popular Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto in London in 2003, marking his only public appearance and signing event in Europe to date.
The auction, held in Surrey, featured multiple collections and raised a total of £200,000. Among the other notable sales, a collection of five Pokémon trading cards inspired by Edvard Munch's "The Scream" sold for £12,350. A first-print, factory-sealed copy of the 2005 Game Boy Advance game Pokémon Emerald fetched £4,940, while a sealed copy of the 2000 Game Boy game Pokémon Yellow sold for £3,640.
James Spooner, a specialist at Ewbank's, highlighted Pokémon cards as highly collectible with a significant global following. He also observed a notable increase in demand and prices for retro video games. In addition to gaming items, a copy of the 1963 comic "The Amazing Spider-Man No.1" sold for £4,160.
The trend of rising values for retro gaming items is supported by broader market observations. Sony's recent announcement to end the production of physical game discs for PlayStation consoles may be contributing to increased interest in physical retro games. Research from Protect Your Bubble earlier this year identified several retro consoles as valuable investments due to nostalgia and collector demand. The NTSC Limited Holiday Edition Xbox Original, initially released in 2001 for £299, was found to be potentially worth up to £5,086. The Nintendo DS, launched in 2004, saw its value increase by up to 904 percent compared to its inflation-adjusted cost, with one unit selling for £1,816. Other consoles like the original PlayStation and the Nintendo Game Boy also demonstrated significant value appreciation, with a Game Boy selling for £1,562, a 733 percent increase over its inflation-adjusted value.