Ultra-rare NES Gold Nintendo World Championships cartridge auction sits at $77,000 — one of only 26 ever made

A highly anticipated auction of an extremely rare piece of console gaming history is underway. Goldin features one of the rarest Nintendo Entertainment System cartridges in existence. Produced in 1990, the auction for one of only 26 copies of the Gold Nintendo World Championships cartridges opened for bidding on July 22. These cartridges are so scarce one sold for over $100,000 on eBay in 2014.

The 26 Gold cartridges were presented as exclusive prizes for Nintendo Power magazine readers. In what is considered the grandfather of today’s eSports, the 1990 Nintendo World Challenge visited 29 cities from March 8, 1990, to December 9, 1990. The goal was to discover America’s top gamers, and Nintendo produced 350 copies of the original gray gaming cartridge.

There’s no disputing that rare copies of Nintendo game cartridges fetch a hefty sum on auction sites. A sealed copy of Super Mario Bros sold for $660,000 in 2021. A rare original run copy of Legend of Zelda went for $870,000. The last time one of the gold 1990 Nintendo World Challenge went up for auction, it fetched $100,088.

During the competition, competitors played timed versions of Super Mario Bros, Tetris, and Rad Racer, all combined onto these cartridges equipped with physical switches to adjust the time limits for each game. Nintendo took 26 cartridges, upgraded them with shiny gold shells, and gave them away in a sweepstakes to winners of Nintendo Power magazine’s “Player’s Poll Contest” that same year.

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Goldin states that the particular gold cartridge for auction was initially awarded to Patrick King of Cheyenne, Wyoming. His name and the other contest winners appeared in Nintendo Power, volume 18.

These cartridges were never sold with packaging, contributing to their rarity and value. This cartridge’s wear and missing label resulted in a modest 4.0 grade from CGC Grading (with 10 indicating mint condition). Goldin believes only 13 copies of the gold gaming cartridge remain in circulation.

Despite its condition, bidding for this cartridge started at $10,000. At the time of this writing, bidding was up to $77,000, and the auction was set to end on August 17. Goldin’s auction house has implemented a prescreening process for potential buyers to ensure they can cover the costs, providing some security for the seller.

To offer a bit of context, some collectors go on treasure-hunting trips worldwide looking for one of the remaining copies of this cartridge. Some have even tracked down the original winners and tried to trace the “footsteps” of the game cartridges after the contest ended.