Released alongside the Nintendo Entertainment System in late 1985, Super Mario Bros. helped launch the NES into the stratosphere and, by 1990, into an astonishing one third of American homes.  Designed by the famed Shigeru Miyamoto, who Time Magazine has called, “the Spielberg of video games,” Super Mario Bros., with over 500 million units sold, has gone on to become the best selling video game franchise of all time.

Despite being a Japanese creation, Mario quickly ascended to prominence in American popular culture.  In fact, one North American study suggested more children in the United States were familiar with Mario than they were with Mickey Mouse.  The New Yorker agreed, describing Mario as a folk hero with as much cultural influence as Disney’s most beloved character.

Only in the last few years have factory sealed video games became mainstream collectibles.  Instant nostalgia, beautiful display, and the extremely limited supply have boasted the vintage video game space into a white-hot market.  Much like Mario led the way with the emergence of Nintendo into American pop culture, he leads the way as the most desirable commodity amongst collectors.  Within the last few years, factory sealed high grade Super Mario Bros. games began to eclipse the six-figure mark at auction.  And just recently, a record was set on April 2, 2021 when a collector paid a jaw dropping $660,000 for the icon - a factory sealed copy of Super Mario Bros. in nearly pristine condition.

Offered here is considered the icon of icons: an original factory sealed copy of Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo Entertainment System.  Highly coveted, this particular version of the masterpiece is also quite distinctive.  The sole year date of 1985 adorns the reverse (as not to be confused with later released, lesser desirable copies that contain both “1985, 1989” year dates on back).   On the front, the NES white oval seal of quality (SOQ) is coupled with “TM” as seen in earlier releases (vs. “R” in the later releases).  Alas, this version of SMB was released in very short supply in 1988 before Nintendo converted to the ubiquitous release. 

This magnificent example exudes factory fresh shine and vibrant color.  It contains no creasing front or back and the only identifiable imperfection is typical corner wear.  It’s professionally encased, authenticated, and graded a solid “70” by Video Game Authority (VGA).

The scarcity, importance, and pop culture impact of Nintendo’s Mario cannot be overstated.  Perhaps no single imagery from the decade of the 1980’s is as recognizable.  It all started here with Super Mario Bros., a gem that would absolutely mark as a cornerstone of any collection.  Encapsulated by VGA (70), #79077870

VGA has since recased and relabeled this lot ,"1988 White Seal".