The Most Expensive Famicom Games at Super Potato

I made a trek out to Super Potato in Nagoya the other day.  I love Super Potato even though I don't buy a lot there, its just such a beautiful shop to stroll around in and gawk at the amazing stuff they have.  If I ever opened a game shop, I don't think I would do anything differently from what Super Potato has done with theirs.

I brought my camera along and in addition to the obligatory pictures of rows of Famicom games on shelves:

And stacks of Famicom consoles:

I also took some pictures of the glass case in which they store their most valuable Famicom games and thought I'd share with you the most valuable stuff they have.

The CIB stuff is, predictably, the most expensive.  Some of the highlights here include:

Battle Formula: 128,000 Yen
Over Horizon: 49,800 Yen
Gimmick!: 69,800 Yen
Adventure Island IV: 49,800 Yen
Metal Storm: 29,800 Yen

Also visible in the foreground is an oddity - the Gradius Archimendes version, which was limited to 4000 copies given out to consumers of ramen back in the day.  They want 59,800 Yen for it, which is in the ballpark, but its odd because the box is a regular Gradius box.  The Archimendes version has a distinctive label across the upper right corner which is missing on that one (otherwise it would be much more expensive).

Right next to them is the most expensive thing in the store, though I think it is a pricing error.  A CIB copy of Recca Summer Carnival 92 for 778,000 Yen (that is about $7,000 US).  That is definitely a valuable and rare game, but CIB copies usually go for about 100,000 Yen on Yahoo Auctions (and in fact there is one there now at that price).  Super Potato's price tend towards the high side, but not THAT much, so I think this must be a mistake and maybe somebody accidentally added an extra zero to the price tag.  

More goodies here, including Moon Crystal (64,800 Yen):

Battletoads (21,800 Yen) and some Rockmans with prices falling into reach of mere mortals:

A few more beauties in the 10,000-20,000 Yen or so range:

The cart only selection is also pretty impressive. Tailor Made by Bridgestone (49,800 Yen, the one with the cyclists on it) is one of the holy grails of Famicom collecting.  It was distributed only to bicycle shops and allowed customers to choose custom parts for their bicycles, thus making it one of the rarest games out there (though also one of the boringest).  Recca Summer Carnival 92 is available for the same price and is a lot more well known, though it seems to be a lot easier to find.

One of the more surprising things I noticed was actually that, impressive as this selection is, its nowhere near as awe-inspiring as it once was.  A few years ago a trip to Super Potato would inevitably turn up some hyper rarities - like my visit to the Osaka branch a few years ago where I found copies of the gold Rockman 4 (only 8 ever made) and the gold Binary Land (only about 200).  The hyper-rarities like those ones seem to have disappeared from the market as they never turn up on Yahoo Auctions anymore either.  Games like Tailor Made and Recca are certainly impressive, but they don't really feel up to the task of headlining a Super Potato glass case.

Famicom Rarity Find! Battle Formula!

I did a little retro game shopping at an actual store yesterday and made an amazing discovery:  Battle Formula!  And cheap!

I have been on a quest to find this game for years now.  I have only come close on two occasions.  The first time was a couple of years ago when I visited the Mandarake in Kitakyushu, which had a copy in their glass case for I think 12,000 yen or so if I remember.  I couldn`t afford it so passed, but oh how I wanted it.

The second time was about 3 months ago when I bit on a copy on Yahoo Auctions.  The copy in question was pretty beat up, with a bit of damage on the front and a completely messed up back.  I dropped out when the bidding got up to about 8,000 yen or so, I don`t know how much it ended up going for.

There are a few reasons I have wanted this game so bad.  First, it is one that I need for my full Famicom set.  Second, look at that cover art - it is totally awesome.  Third, it is a pretty cool game.

So when I found it there - a copy in perfect condition no less - for a mind blowing 3000 yen (about 30$) tears of joy came to my eyes:

I don`t know why they were selling it so cheap, the game is easily worth 5 times that.  I think this was just another case of me lucking into a really cheap find - the first time this has happened since good old Omocha Souko closed down almost 2 years ago. 



I think Battle Formula might be the hardest regular game in the Famicom catalogue to find if you exclude all the limited edition, gold version, not-sold-in-stores rarities.  There is only one copy of it on Ebay, compared to three copies of Recca and about a billion copies of Gimmick!  On Yahoo Auctions there is also only one copy, going for 15,000 yen.  So I am super happy to be able to cross this off my want list without having to take a bank loan or anything.

I am however left with the problem of not having a suitable display case or anything for this beauty, which I think is now the highlight of my Famicom collection.  My apartment is so crowded I just can`t do my carts justice display-wise.

I think I need to get some sort of special case to keep it in that will properly reflect the high regard I hold this baby in.  I am currently leaning towards something along the lines of this:

I would need to hire 4 full time Ark-bearers with this option though, not to mention the cost of supplying them with the proper outfits and accoutrements.  This is a bit out of my price range now, so my copy of Battle Formula will temporarily be stored in a box on a shelf until I figure out what to do with it. 

Anyway, I`m so happy about this!  My goal of collecting all the Famicom carts has passed another milestone!