These 21 Rare Nintendo Games Are Worth A Fortune

Most video games depreciate after you buy them, but not these. If you have any of these cartridges sitting around in your mom's basement, good news: You're sitting on some cash money.

Taito released this beautiful Mega Man-like NES game in November 1992, well after most gamers had moved on to the Super Nintendo system. As a result, very few were made and sold. Little Samson is so rare, in fact, that complete-in-box versions running as high as $2,900 on eBay.

Image credit: Taito

The original Ducktales for NES is a beloved Capcom classic. As for the game's sequel, Ducktales 2 ... uh, let's be honest, did you even know this game exists?

Ducktales 2 regularly sells for as much as $350 when it's complete in box.

Image credit: Capcom

There wasn't a high demand for 16-bit fighting games crammed into 8-bit packages back in 1994. These days, however, the NES version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters is a collector's item worth anywhere between $125 and $200.

Image credit: Konami

This game was released for the NES in 1992, when most gamers were focused on 16-bit gaming systems like the Super Nintendo. Few people wound up picking up this game when it was new.

You can still find these for under $100, but prices rise to $250 when the original box and instruction booklet are included.

Image credit: Capcom

This 1987 Bandai game was recalled shortly after its launch so Nintendo could rebrand the "Bandai Family Fun Fitness" floor pad accessory as the "Power Pad."

Because of the recall, the original Stadium Events is one of the most collectible NES games of all time. It could be worth more than $1,000 to the right buyer.

Image credit: Bandai

This ultra-rare 1990 Nintendo World Championships cartridge houses time trials of Super Mario Bros., Rad Racer and Tetris. Only 26 copies were made available through a contest in Nintendo Power magazine.

In 2014, one of these gold carts sold for nearly $27,000 on eBay.

Image credit: Composite by Fox Van Allen, Nintendo, A&E Home Video

A pair of these cartridges, owned by YouTuber Pat the NES Punk, surfaced on Season 7 of Pawn Stars. Pat had bought the cartridge from its original owner, the winner of a Nintendo Power contest.

The show's expert, Toy Shack's Johnny Jimenez, estimated the value at $20,000 to $22,000.

Image credit: A&E Home Video

This numbered gray cartridge was used during the 1990 Nintendo World Championships. You can adjust the time each competitor gets to play using the physical switches at the top.

These cartridges are quite rare and collectible. Jimenez valued this cart between $5,000 and $8,000.

Image credit: A&E Home Video

Bonk was the mascot for NEC's ill-fated Turbografx-16 console. He also made his way to the NES, albeit with lower-quality graphics (grafx?).

The TurboGrafx-16 copies of Bonk's Adventure aren't worth much, but the NES version certainly is. It sells for up to $850 complete-in-box.

Image credit: Hudson Soft

Sometimes, some games go slippin' through the cracks. Especially this 1994 NES sequel, released well after Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers had fallen off the Disney TV schedule.

That rarity works in favor of collectors -- it's valued between $175 and $250.

Image credit: Capcom

We're noticing a pattern developing here -- the lesser-known sequels of popular, fun NES games are worth serious bank. Complete-in-box copies have sold for $600.

Image credit: Taito

This time-trial version of Donkey Kong Country was created for the Nintendo PowerFest '94 competition. It was later used in the Blockbuster World Video Game Championship II.

A highly limited number of cartridges were sold. It was a smart purchase: The cartridge is valued, these days, between $1,500 and $2,800.

Image credit: Nintendo

Another rare competition cartridge, this time-trial version of Star Fox was shipped to Nintendo dealers around the country for a weekend event in 1993. These cartridges wound up in the public's hands, again, as part of a Nintendo Power contest.

Expect to pay $1,000 to get your hands on one of these SNES cartridges on eBay.

Image credit: Gamespot/Bob Colayco

It's unclear if this 1994 Taito game was ever released to video game stores -- best we can tell, it was a direct-to-rent exclusive of Blockbuster Video.

Because of that limited availability, this game is one of the rarest NES cartridges in existence. Copies have sold for between $500 and $1,200 on eBay.

Image credit: Taito

This December 1992 release from Taito sold poorly at launch, again, because it was an 8-bit game in an increasingly 16-bit era.

If you owned The Jetsons: Cogswell's Caper as a kid and still have it, congratulations -- today this cartridge sells for up to $1,200 on eBay, with complete-in-box copies selling for even more.

Image credit: Taito

The Bomberman franchise is arguably Hudson Soft's best. But few people played the 1993 multiplayer sequel to the NES original, opting instead to wait for the Super Nintendo version.

As a result, this rare NES game is worth between $125 and $150 to collectors.

Image credit: Hudson Soft

The original Power Blade was a well-reviewed, if obscure, Mega Man-esque action game set in the dystopian future. The 1992 sequel is even more obscure -- which to collectors, means much, much more valuable.

Complete-in-box versions have sold for as much as $1,000.

Image credit: Taito

This notorious unlicensed cartridge got its name from the fact that it holds 52 different games. It was a massive flop due to its numerous glitches and a brutal $199 (!) price tag.

A mint copy of Action 52 today sells for roughly $500 on the collector's market.

Image credit: Active Enterprises

This rare Bubble Bobble-esque arcade port from Capcom has proved quite popular with retro gaming collectors. Complete-in-box versions sell for $400.

Image credit: Capcom

In this 1992 sidescroller from SOFEL, you play a warrior who can transform into a dragon. It was released in very short supply.

It is worth between $150 and $250 on eBay, depending on condition.

Image credit: SOFEL

This oddball Taito platformer from 1992 is remembered fondly by the few who remember playing it. You play chef Cookie, tasked with fighting your way through a gauntlet of angry apples, deadly pizzas, and a living microwave that shoots chickens at you.

Today, Panic Restaurant is a highly collectible game, selling anywhere between $300 and $600.

Image credit: Taito

In this quirky shooter from 1991, inanimate objects from an artificial solar system come to life and attack.

The cartridge sells for between $125 and $175 on the collector's market; complete-in-box versions can go as high as $300.

Image credit: Ascii

In this utterly bizarre Meldac shooter from 1990, you play a floating samurai head trying to save the United States from an alien who has turned the entire populace into zombies.

Zombie Nation cartridges are currently selling on eBay for between $200 and $350. Expect to pay an extra $100 if you want the game's manual, too.

Image credit: Meldac