In a sea of goldmines, the Pokemon video game franchise numbers are among Nintendo's most golden. Despite not owning the rights directly, the Big N profits from the sky-high sales figures of every new title in the series of monster-catching adventure games.
Over the years support for the franchise has not dwindled, and the games continue to hold their value. More than that, as copies of the older games have become increasingly hard to come by, factory-sealed units are known to fetch a pretty penny on auction sites.
Here, we're taking a look at the most expensive games in the Pokemon franchise and how much they're worth. All headlined estimates are for factory-sealed copies, sourced via PriceCharting, with individual notations per entry on how much they'd fetch in varying less-than-perfect conditions.
Updated June 29, 2023 by Andrew Scariati: With each passing year, new Pokemon games hit the market, as older titles increase in rarity and value. From rare bundles to sought-after early versions, the most expensive Pokemon games and their values are always in flux.
If you've managed to keep your old cartridges in mint condition, or you have an unopened box, then read on to see if you're sitting on the most expensive Pokemon game out there.
11 Pokemon Snap ($500)
- Graded copies range from $500-$2000, with the upper limit increasing if in perfect condition.
- "Not For Resale" demo copies can sell for between $250-$700.
- Boxed, fresh copies sell for about $350.
- Loose copies of the game alone go for about $20.
Few predicted that Pokemon Snap would become an all-time favorite title among the wide variety of Pokemon games. This on-the-rails photo-capturing adventure lets you travel to different locations to document Pokemon in their natural habitats.
The original Nintendo 64 title became a cult classic that was later remade in April 2021 as New Pokemon Snap, reigniting interest and obsession with this classic. Since then, the original has made its way into the upper echelon of expensive Pokemon games, rivaling the Let's Go Bundles in value.
10 Nintendo Switch Pokemon: Let's Go Bundles ($750)
- Let's Go Pikachu tends to outperform Let's Go Eevee, hovering around the $700 mark to Let's Go Eevee's $550.
- "Graded" Switch bundles don't change the needle much, coming in at around $750.
- Open-box bundles linger for around $400.
- Loose copies of either game are commonly purchased for $25 or less.
For obvious reasons, the majority of these titles are far older Pokemon games than anything on the Nintendo Switch. So, why do these Switch console bundles manage to hit the $700 mark?
It's probably a combination of the appealing (well, subjectively speaking) Joy-Con designs, the unique Switch dock aesthetic, and the fact that there's an entire Switch in there most of all. This one crosses over with folks who collect limited-time console packages, so the interest is there, if not outrageously high.
9 Pokemon FireRed ($1100)
For $320 on average, you can get the game with its box and manual in an iffier state.
- Loose copies cost only around $80.
- Grade-10 sealed Pokemon FireRed will make any seller happy to the tune of $4500.
Pokemon FireRed still outsells LeafGreen as Red used to overshadow Blue — FireRed's resale value is a few hundred higher. That means sealed copies of LeafGreen will fetch about as much as those Let's Go bundles, but it's Charizard's timeless mug that roars for more.
Once again, loose carts aren't all that spectacular, but collectors will need to save up. Or be born into money, we guess. That works, too.
8 Pokemon Gold & Silver ($1100)
- Complete (opened) copies of Pokemon Gold & Silver net around $275.
- Loose is the way to go for bargain hunters, at $50. Beware that loose Game Boy fakes are nearly as prevalent as DS fakes!
- Collectors can expect to drop over $1600 for graded copies.
There was a brief period of time in which some analysts predicted that Pokemon would be a fad. A huge fad, but a fad nonetheless.
The arrival of the second-generation games, Gold & Silver, helped to secure that as plain falsehood. While they didn't sell quite as many copies — nor have any subsequent titles! — they still lit the sales charts on fire. And for good reason, as their quality is superb.
Of note, Gold's companion game — Silver — hasn't tended to attract quite so lofty a sum. At least, not in North America and Europe. Japanese copies can easily rival Pokemon Gold here, but that's a separate matter.
7 Pokemon Emerald With Carrying Case Bundle ($1800)
- Even loose, you're looking at spending around $530 here. The carrying case is that big a deal.
- You can slash a few hundred and spend $1150 or so for open-box units.
- Grading doesn't change things much with merchandise like this, as can be seen with the $1900 tag.
Snugly unopened copies of Pokemon Emerald sell for several hundred, but this limited-availability bundle complete with a neat carrying case is on another level. As we note, even loose ones are costly, since keeping the carrying case in prime condition for all these years is no small task.
Emerald, as the successor version to Ruby & Sapphire, inevitably sold fewer units. It's a vastly better iteration of the Hoenn region, per plenty of fans, and well worth adding to the catalog. Maybe just the game, though.
6 Pokemon Red & Blue ($2000)
- Complete, but opened/used, copies fetch around $250
- Loose copies will only set you back about $50
- Grade-10 Pokemon Red & Blue versions sell for as high as $2600
A bit of trivia: in the past, Pokemon Red has demanded far higher market value than Pokemon Blue. This is despite more copies of Red having been sold through the years; no doubt, Charizard on the cover and protagonist Red's canon name have had something to do with that.
Presently, however, we've lumped both versions together thanks to their relatively equal value. Red's just not hitting the home runs like he used to, though that can (and in all likelihood will) change in the years to come.
In any case, the original Pokemon games can be purchased on the cheap, or you can spend big bucks for guaranteed authentic copies all nicely sealed.
5 Nintendo 64 Pokemon Stadium Battle Set ($2400)*
- Graded gets even wilder, at $3600 or more.
- Want everything but don't mind buying used? You can save a ton and spend $1050.
- Given the above, we wouldn't necessarily recommend purchasing just the Nintendo 64 console and game separately, as it doesn't save you much. $930 is the average right now.
This one gets a price bump thanks to the fact that it includes a Nintendo 64 console but the price for a "new-in-box" version is still quite high. In fact, the included Nintendo 64 isn't even a Special Edition and doesn't contain any unique art.
This set included everything you needed to boot up Pokemon Stadium, including a console with a standard controller, an extra Atomic Purple controller, an Expansion Pack, Trainer's Manual, and even a game printing with a special holographic trading card. It's highly sought after by collectors and fetches a high price.
4 Pokemon Crystal ($3000)
- Complete opened packages still need you to part with a sum to the tune of $640.
- Graded copies kick this up to $3800, where it competes with the top sellers on our list.
- Loose copies go for about $120.
Pokemon Crystal, for the uninitiated, is Pokemon Gold & Silver, except cooler. For the first time in the series, you could choose a female identity. But more than that, many aspects of the original Johto journey are expanded meaningfully.
It sold well, but as with Yellow, Emerald, Platinum, and Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon, it was never going to push as many parents into forking over the coin, because so many kids (and adults) already owned Gold & Silver. Whereas Yellow doesn't hit the price tags that Red & Blue do, Crystal eclipses its progenitors tidily.
3 Pokemon SoulSilver Lugia Figure Bundle ($3100)
- Most of us drool over the prospect of landing a copy of SoulSilver (or HeartGold) sealed with a Poke Walker accessory, but the figurine variations go the extra mile.
- Speaking of going the extra mile, if you're already doling out this much cash, maybe get the graded bundle if you can find it for $3300.
- Complete copies demand about $1500 and loose ones are $$1100.
Gold & Silver were great, balancing many of Red & Blue's wonkier aspects (Psychic-types were basically gods, for example) whilst improving upon them in virtually every way.
The 2010 remakes, HeartGold & SoulSilver had a steep Mount Moon to climb if they were to earn as much contemporary praise. They succeeded, and then some, and in the eyes of millions of Pokemon veterans, "HGSS" remains the franchise's peak.
This bundle contains not only the original Pokemon SoulSilver game for Nintendo DS but packages it with a Lugia figurine and a special Poke Walker jacket. Its astronomical price can't be denied, but it trails its counterpart enough to get a separate entry.
2 Pokemon HeartGold Ho-Oh Figure Bundle ($3100)
- Opened copies are still about $2000.
- Loose ones hover around $1150.
- Graded? $4700. That's a lot.
Which Johto legendary is cooler, Ho-Oh or Lugia? Your answer doesn't matter to the ruthless wheels of capitalism; to the Pokemon market, the answer was once Ho-Oh to the tune of a $1200 difference.
However, the price of both the Lugia and Ho-Oh versions has since evened out considerably.
If you're deciding between this game and more practical purchases, just remember $3,100 could also pay rent for a few months in many parts of North America. Do with that knowledge what you will.
1 Pokemon Box Ruby & Sapphire ($5200)
- Want it graded? You'll need to spend over $7600. Yeah.
- Even opened copies command $2400.
- Loose copies can cost in excess of $1150.
There were three ways to trade Pokemon with your friends back when Ruby & Sapphire were the hotness. You could do what most of us did by linking two Game Boy Advances together via Link Cable or instead purchase the Game Boy Player accessory to hook it up to a GameCube.
Or, if you lived near enough to the New York City Pokemon Center here in North America (or snagged a one-run GameCube bundle in PAL territories), you could buy Pokemon Box Ruby & Sapphire, a snazzy little thing that echoed the Game Boy Player functionality with enhanced features.
The rarity, of course, has spiked the price to truly wild levels over the past 20 years and counting. We're clearly in "only if you're rich" territory now.