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Writer's pictureSuper Nicktendo

How the SNES Classic Affects its Physical Prices

This is a companion article to a video that I posted here. If you haven’t seen the video, check it out. If you came here from the video, welcome! Consider becoming a Smasher and joining the 100+ users to talk about video games and other topics.




This article will outline each game of the Super Nintendo Classic minus Star Fox 2 since that’s not available officially in physical form. I show the 6 months after my video that I posted in November and a full set of data from the beginning of 2017. And I’ll provide a projection


Super Mario World:

Super Mario World has dropped about 2 dollars since November and appears to be trending downward. It had a spike in March but has dropped down and will probably stay around 15 dollars. Given that this game was a pack in title and the best selling game on the Super Nintendo, it will be hard to see it drop any lower than that. I do not think it will climb higher than 20 dollars in the next year.




Super Mario Kart.

The first ever Mario Kart game has dropped 4 dollars since November and continues to drop according to the short term projections. However, if you look at the full data this isn’t the lowest that it’s gone. 22 dollars in September which is 7 dollars less than November.

I’m sure we’ll see Super Mario Kart drop to 22 or maybe even 20 dollars this year but it probably won’t drop any lower. While Super Mario Kart is a fun game, it has shown its age and there are plenty of other Mario Karts that are more desirable.




Legend of Zelda: Link To the Past


My favorite Zelda game has been trending down since the beginning of 2017 losing about 10 dollars. I assume that the lowest it will ever get is 15 dollars but time will tell if that price will be seen this year. Most likely Link to the Past will remain around 20 dollars unless Nintendo announces a new Zelda which is unlikely given the recent release of Breath of the Wild. Given the commonness of this game, I don’t see it increasing in price any time soon.





F-Zero


This is one game that I expect to see a minor spike after E3 – rumors are rampant that we’ll see a new F-Zero or at least a space racer reminiscent of the dormant series. But don’t expect it to rise too much. F-Zero has been hovering around the 10 dollar range for a long time. It has risen 2 dollars since November, but given its history, that seems to be temporary. If it rises at all, it will peak at $15






Super Metroid


Super Metroid is a game that’s maintained its value for a while and with good cause. It’s one of the best games in the Metroid Series and the best 2D version (there really isn’t that many to choose from). The price has dropped 60 cents since November and you can expect this game to have a price bump if Nintendo releases more information about Metroid Prime 4. I do not think it will go any higher than $50 but if you were thinking of picking it up, now is a good time before interest increases.





Street Fighter 2 Turbo

Not really much to say about this game. Given the insane amount of Street fighter titles out there and fighting games in general, this really doesn’t have incredible swings in price. Dropping about a dollar since November, it will most likely hold steady for the foreseeable future.




Super Punchout


Super Punchout has dropped about 4 dollars since November and will continue to trend down. It’s not a very significant slope but I would assume that you’ll see a 15 dollar Punchout by the end of the year. That is of course assuming that Little Mac is left off the Super Smash Brothers roster. If He is on the roster expect that price to increase, but it probably won’t climb higher than 30 dollars. Smash 4 has been out for 4 years and fans of Little Mac have had plenty of time to get Punch Out.




Donkey Kong Country


The third best selling game on the Super Nintendo has remained steady since November only dropping 30 cents. Since this game is so common I don’t think it will climb higher than $20 in the next year and probably won’t drop lower than $15. This is not the best of the Donkey Kong Country series and I don’t think it’s possible that we’ll see a re-release since the games are made by Rare so I think the price will remain consistent.




Castlevania 4


Super CastleVania 4 has seen an increase of about 6 dollars since November and is trending up. However if you look at the full data, the price probably won’t climb too high. Expect this to max out at $40 within the year if it continues to increase. Since Konami hasn’t done anything with the series, I don’t think we’ll see an increased interest. But if a Belmont is a playable character in Smash 5, you might see a spike.

Super Castlevania 4 is one of the best games in the series so it will definitely hold its value. And maybe Bloodstained will help kickstart the series a gain.




Mega Man X


Mega Man X rose about 50 cents since November but don’t expect this game to climb much higher. There are plenty of compilations with this game and with Iam8bit coming out with limited editions of the game, saturation is pretty high. This is one of the better bargains on the Super Nintendo so scoop it up if you haven’t already.





Kirby’s Super Star


Kirby is an interesting character that’s seen more love in recent years. The latest game for the Nintendo Switch helped cement Kirby as a viable Nintendo IP. Kirby Super Star rose 5 dollars since November and has been holding steady according to the full data. Expect this game to keep its value in the next year but I don’t think it will climb higher than $45.





Final Fantasy 3


Final Fantasy 3 or Final Fantasy 6 everywhere else has risen about 7 dollars since November but has dropped in price since the beginning of 2017. I don’t think we’ll see a significant drop or increase since early Final Fantasy games hold their value but there are plenty of ways to play this game for a lot cheaper.




Kirby’s DreamCourse


Kirby’s Dreamcourse has seen a 3 dollar drop since November but that’s not before bottoming out at 21 dollars in February. Given that this isn’t a mainline Kirby game, interest tends to wane if there isn’t a new Kirby game for modern systems. Since it is a Kirby game I don’t think we’ll see it drop to below $20 but don’t expect this game to be super sought after.




Star Fox


Star Fox took the first leap for the Super Nintendo but hasn’t really aged well and it’s super common. Dropping about a dollar since November, it’s really hard to see this game climb any higher than $15. It’s still a significant game for the Super Nintendo and one that you should add to your collection, but it’s cheap and that’s a good thing.




Yoshi’s Island


The sequel (prequel?) to Super Mario World is a beloved game on the Super Nintendo. It came out towards the end of the Super Nintendo’s lifespan but is relatively inexpensive compared to other late titles. Increasing 3 dollars since November and a 1 dollar since the beginning of 2017, this game is sure to hold the value. The trend line is almost dead center since the beginning of 2017 with a slight trend down. Maybe we’ll see an increase when more Yoshi Switch information is announced.




Super Mario RPG


Super Mario RPG, the fabled venture between Nintendo and Square Enix has dropped almost 10 dollars since November. This game will probably bottom out at $40 since RPGS are sought after and Super Mario RPG being one of the most unique games. If they ever release an updated sequel, expect this game to spike up hard.




Contra 3


Contra 3, another Konami series that has seen better days has increased about 12 dollars since November and for good reason; it’s a good game. Contra in general is a staple in retro video game history and will probably continue to rise. But unless there’s another Contra game, it probably won’t go higher than $60 in the next year.





Secret of Mana


Secret of Mana would have dropped in value if it wasn’t for that Secret of Mana remake in February. The price peaked in March and has since dropped back down, but it’s holding steady. I don’t think this game will drop below $40 any time soon since it is an RPG and it’s made by Square.




Earthbound


Earthbound is another RPG and probably the most sought after RPG of the Super Nintendo. It came out late, was marketed poorly but still sold a lot of copies. When I did my first video in November I assumed we would see a sub $100 Earthbound but it has since risen $50 and will probably peak at $190 before dropping again. This game is a gem for most collectors so the price will remain high, but new people will have significantly cheaper options to play it which will keep the price steady.




Super Ghouls and Ghosts


The last game on the Super Nintendo Classic in physical form has dropped 2 dollars since November and 5 dollars since the beginning of 2017. This game is super difficult but visually appealing. A great deal if you’re a fan of button mashing shooting games. This is another game that probably won’t climb higher than $25 but will bottom out at $15 since it’s made by Capcom and an overall quality game.




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