A rare piece of video game history is making waves in the collector’s market. A 1990 Nintendo World Championships cartridge, one of only 26 produced, is currently up for auction on Goldwin, with the current bid exceeding a staggering $130,000. This gold-colored cartridge holds a legendary status among video game enthusiasts, and its current owner, Patrick King, can be seen holding it in a 1990 issue of Nintendo Power magazine.
The cartridge was created by Nintendo America to commemorate the 1990 Nintendo World Championships and features special time-limited versions of classic NES games like Super Mario Bros., Rad Racer, and Tetris. The noticeable dip switch on the front allows players to adjust the game’s timer. While Nintendo also produced 350 gray-colored cartridges for the speedrunning competition, these limited gold versions are highly sought after by collectors, making this a truly rare piece of video game history.
The last time a Nintendo World Championships cartridge was sold, a decade ago on eBay, it fetched a hefty $100,088. While the current auction listing notes a 4.0 CGC grade (out of 10.0) for the cartridge, this is expected considering its history. Nintendo originally sent the cartridges to winners by attaching them to copies of Nintendo Power, damaging the label in the process. Additionally, the auctioned cartridge lacks a box, cover, or official case.
The timing of this auction is particularly interesting as Nintendo recently released ‘Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition’ for the Nintendo Switch. This new retro game pays homage to the 1990 event, featuring over 150 time-trial speed-running challenges across classic NES titles like Super Mario Bros. 3, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, and Metroid.
