Surprise! These 25 Retro Video Games Are Crazy Expensive

This was the only NCAA Basketball title released for the Nintendo Gamecube, and it did not sell well. Used copies are highly valuable, and "new" copies are valued in the thousands.

This art piece, sourced from designer Hiroko Nishikawa's real-life dream diary, is like playing your way through an (occasionally psychedelic) dream.

In December 1990, Nintendo held its first ever World Championships at Universal Studios Hollywood. Each competitor recieved one of 90 individually numbered cartridges featuring the same three minigames that they played during the contest: Super Mario Bros., Rad Racer and Tetris.

The few that survived are pretty much the holy grail of video game collectibles.

Robotic Operating Buddy (R.O.B.), the short-lived NES accessory, was a huge gimmick: It only worked with two games, neither of which were especially fun. Few sealed bundles have survived since its 1985 release, making them exceptionally valuable.

A demo version of this EA Sports game was mocked so heavily online that the game was cancelled just prior to its launch... just not soon enough to prevent a small handful of copies to make their way out into the public's hands.

Shortly after its release in September 1987, Nintendo recalled all copies of Bandai's Stadium Events so the game could be rebranded as World Class Track Meet and bundled with the Power Pad fitness accessory. As a result, the few Stadium Events cartridges that survived are worth more than five figures today.

This cartridge is a true oddity: It's a Japanese-language version of Yoshi's Story that was sent to stores in the U.S. to give games a sneak peek at the game before its release.

This 52-games-in-1 title for the NES is infamous for its numerous glitches, poor design and ridiculously high retail price ($199). These days, it's a sought-after rarity.

This incredibly weird Atlus adventure stars a hat-wearing potato on a quest to save a tomato princess from the devil. It was released in short supply, making it highly collectible -- especially in its original box.

This simplistic puzzler game (1992) from Atlus is also incredibly rare and collectible.

This 2002 Game Boy Color platformer/puzzler was released after the next-generation Game Boy Advance had already come out, so very few copies were sold. It's sequels earned plenty of critical acclaim and built up quite a passionate fan following, making this first game in the series highly collectible.

This title may not be the most expensive game on the list, but it's a cherished Squaresoft RPG released near the end of the Super Nintendo's life cycle.

Nintendo had Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!. Sega had James 'Buster' Douglas Knockout Boxing, named after the fighter who scored a massive February 1990 upset over Tyson for the heavyweight title.

This 1994 NES game was released solely to Blockbuster Video as a rental title, and never sold in retail stores.

The original Ducktales from Capcom was a beloved NES classic. This sequel, released in 1993 after the TV series had ended and after most gamers had moved on to the Super Nintendo, sold very few copies.

Originally released as a Mickey Mouse title in Japan, this 1993 Kemco platformer was forced to get a clownish makeover for its U.S. release due to licensing issues.

This surprisingly good Taito platformer sold very poorly in 1992, making it one of the most rare NES games in existence.

Publisher Imagic held a contest in 1982 for purchasers of its game Atlantis where the highest score would win a $10,000 prize. But multiple people maxed out their score, so Imagic created special Atlantis II cartridges (with harder gameplay) and sent them to contestants to break the tie.

This Zelda-esque title from Atlus (1994) is, arguably, the best adventure-RPG title for the console.

Many of the NES Mega Man titles were huge sellers, but not this one -- its December 1992 release date was a bit too late in the Nintendo Entertainment System's lifecycle.

This rare-though-beloved Taito platformer pits you, a chef, against angry grills and microwaves, among other bizarre fiends.

Like many of the rare NES games on the list, this title was released very late in the console's life cycle. Copies can sell for hundreds of dollars online.

This quirky Squaresoft RPG is so beloved by fans that complete box sets can sell for hundreds of dollars on eBay and Amazon.

This time-trial version of Starfox was made exclusively for use during a 1993 competition held at Nintendo retailers nationwide. Only a few thousand cartridges were made, making them very valuable.

This survival horror game for the PlayStation 2 was almost banned in Europe over false rumors about its content, but the controversy didn't help boost sales. Today, that low distribution means it has a high resale value.