A new study by tech retailer Currys has compiled a list of the ten most valuable retro games of all time. The rankings show that games made in the 80s and 90s hold the most value with the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) being the console which boasts the most valuable games on the list.
The research took the top retro gaming consoles and calculated the prices of 108 retro games from release to current day open market price on GameValueNow to find which games are worth the most and which have increased in value the most since they came out.
Cash in the attic? These are the 10 most valuable retro games
At the top of the list is the 1987 game Sqoon, a Japanese first person shooter produced by Irem for the NES. This game originally retailed at just £15.24 but a new copy today would set you back £7663.93, a 50196% increase in value.
In second place, based on current worth, is Soccer. This sports game was also released in Europe in 1987 but was released in ’85 In Japan. It was produced by Intelligent Systems and Nintendo as part of its Sports Series for the Nintendo Entertainment System. At its time of release it retailed at £27.44 and a new copy today would cost £5409.84, which is a 19616% increase.
In third is Clu Clu Land, the 1985 Japanese puzzle game by Nintendo themselves also for the NES. This game was £27.44 on release but today would fetch £5021.31 new, a 14406% uplift in value.
| Game | Console | Release year | Original price* (£) | Current worth (£) | % difference GBP |
| Sqoon | Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1987 | £15.24 | £7,663.93 | 50196% |
| Soccer | Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1987 | £27.44 | £5,409.84 | 19616% |
| Clu Clu Land | Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1985 | £34.62 | £5,021.31 | 14406% |
| Spy Hunter [5 Screw] | Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1987 | £27.44 | £4,922.94 | 17841% |
| Super Mario Bros | Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1985 | £26.92 | £4,800.54 | 17731% |
| Pocky & Rocky 2 | Super Nintendo | 1994 | £37.97 | £4,534.18 | 11842% |
| Music Machine | Atari 2600 | 1983 | £26.32 | £4,511.48 | 17044% |
| 6 in 1: Myriad | Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) | 1992 | £38.98 | £3,780.77 | 9598% |
| Gargoyle’s Quest | Game Boy | 1990 | £16.85 | £3,730.34 | 22033% |
| Hagane: The Final Conflict | Super Nintendo | 1995 | £37.97 | £3,696.33 | 9635% |
Out of the top 10 most valuable retro games, nine were created for Nintendo, and of that, six were for the NES.
Roy Raftrey, trading card and video game specialist at Ewbank said: “The NES revitalized gaming – many thought the industry was dead after the great video game crash of the late 70s and early 80s, but Nintendo literally revived the medium with titles such as The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario Bros, Mega Man, Metroid and Final Fantasy – all unique titles at the time and the first time these characters debuted.”
Nostalgia sells: the 80s revival and noughties boom!
The study revealed that 50% of the 110 most valuable games across 11 of the biggest consoles were produced in the eighties. The noughties – an era that began with the launch of the PS2 and saw no less than six new consoles hit the market – came in close second, accounting for 32% of the most valuable games.
Roy Raftrey said: “These eras dominate because they are the start of the retro age, the video game boom/revival and the start of the console wars between Nintendo and Sega. Another overlooked reason that greatly differentiates the eras is the number of copies made. If you compare the number of games made for the NES to any game made in the mid-2000s, the games from the later years were heavily over printed and games coming out almost weekly. You’ll find the expensive games developed in the mid-2000s are either universally acclaimed games from popular franchises or games that had an incredibly low print run, like Kuon for the PlayStation 2.”