If you’re like me, then you grew up spending countless hours playing some of the best Nintendo 64 games of all time. While it certainly didn’t dominate the console wars in the late ‘90’s and early 2000’s (that would of course go to Sony’s PlayStation), it did leave its mark on console gaming nonetheless. The last console to use cartridges and one of the wildest controllers ever designed, the Nintendo 64 holds a special place in the hearts of many.
Unfortunately, many of us also sold our Nintendo 64 games when the next console generation rolled around. Regretfully, I have made it my mission to start hunting down my favorite games that I unfortunately sold over a decade ago, yet to my surprise, a ton of my favorites are a little more expensive. Not only that, but a few of the games I remember seeing on store shelves 10+ years ago are now selling for hundreds of dollars!
But it shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Nintendo 64 is a dinosaur at this point, and alas, a few of its games are becoming harder to find all the time. Here are some of the rarest (and expensive) Nintendo 64 games money can buy. So if you want to play Conker’s Bad Fur Day all over again? You better start saving.
[promo title=”Yoshi’s Story International Version”][/promo]
Call me crazy, but I was pretty annoyed that Yoshi’s Story opted for a more 3D look rather than the gorgeous 2D appearance of Yoshi’s Island. Nevertheless, Yoshi’s Story was a fairly fun game, and although you won’t have to spend much to enjoy it all over again, if for some reason you want to buy the International version of Yoshi’s Story, expect to pay a pretty penny.
Yoshi’s Story International Version is nothing more than a demo cartridge that was made for a few kiosks in North America before the game was released. Every bit of text in the demo is in Japanese, yet the cartridge only works on North American Nintendo 64 consoles. There is no word on how many of these bad boys were produced, but nevertheless, it’s by far one of the rarest Nintendo 64 games out there. A mint copy of the game will cost you roughly $400, and judging by the statistics of the game, that price is only going to increase. In 2013, only a few of these games were sold online, so if you spot the International Version of Yoshi’s Story and have a few hundred bucks lying around, consider buying it.
[promo title=”Mario Party 3″][/promo]
While not quite as rare as the International Version of Yoshi’s Story, Mario Party 3 is still one of the rarest Nintendo 64 games in existence. The very last game in the series for the Nintendo 64, Mario Party 3 didn’t sell nearly as well as the first two entries in the series (mostly because the Nintendo 64 was winding down), but even so, it is still quite easy to find. So why is it so expensive? Because everybody wants to play the game!
Mario Party 3 is also the rarest Mario Party game out there, and while Mario Party games are not typically rare to begin with, this one isn’t as readily available as the rest. Add to the fact that tons of people out there want to own every Mario Party game in existence, and you can expect to pay at least $30 on a copy that is in the poorest of conditions.
And if you want to purchase a new, sealed copy of Mario Party 3? Expect to pay upwards of around $152. Sealed copies don’t come around but a few times a year (on average), so if you spot one, grab it.
[promo title=”Clay Fighter Sculptors Cut”][/promo]
This game was absolutely terrible, but nevertheless, Clay Fighter Sculptors Cut is one of the most expensive Nintendo 64 games available. What makes it so rare? Because it was a Blockbuster exclusive game, meaning it was only available for rental. An update to the original Clay Fighter 63 1/3 released in 1997, Clay Fighter Sculptors Cut also added a few extra fighters into the game. With only 20,000 copies manufactured, you will need some deep pockets to afford this game. Copies with the instructions and box in pristine condition typically run for nearly $2,0000, and because most Blockbuster stores threw out the box and instructions, the box/instruction combo can sometimes cost more than the actual game itself!
[promo title=”Turok Rage Wars (Gray Cartridge)”][/promo]
Here’s a fun story about the mess that was Turok Rage Wars. When the game was originally released, Acclaim released it in a black cartridge. Unfortunately, the game had a bug in it that did not allow players to beat one of the game’s levels on 2-play mode. To fix the problem, Acclaim released a small amount of gray cartridges, thus allowing those affected by the bug to mail their black cartridge to them in exchange for a bug-free gray cartridge.
The program wasn’t well known so only a few people took part in it. In fact, so few people took advantage of the program that few people knew the ‘gray cartridge’ edition of Turok Rage Wars even existed. Some of the gray cartridge editions are being sold for up to $400 with the cartridge alone, so expect this price to climb even higher as the years roll on.