Presented by Racketboy and G to the Next Level

The Sega Saturn is definitely one of the leading consoles among hardcore classic gamers. Its strong selection of unique and engaging 2D games keeps it relevant a decade after its premature demise. While many of the Saturn’s best games were not adequately appreciated at the time of their release, word of mouth discussions online have boosted many of these games to underground stardom.

Prices Current As of November 2018

Three factors can be attributed to much of the rise in Saturn game values:

• The large jewel cases and artwork are fragile and getting harder to find in pristine condition.
• Dedicated collectors are also ensuring that all inserts are included with the manual.  Auctions that make this clear will also fetch a premium price.
• Many of the Saturn’s best games have still not been ported to other consoles.
• A new generation of retro gamers are just now discovering what the Saturn has to offer.
• While emulation of the console has improved a lot over the last decade, fast and accurate emulation can still be challenging.

In stark contrast to the Cheapest Games series, this Rare and Valuable series will give you insights into the top collectables for the platform. Armed with this guide, you’ll know what to look for whether you are buying or selling. Below you will see two prices beside each title. The first is the selling price for a bare disc (or disc, case and artwork for PAL and JP games). The second price is the highest price in the past three months which is usually a pristine, complete copy. In some cases, you’ll also see a higher dollar value for the average sealed copy. The list is ordered by the balance of the two main prices.

Most Valuable North American Saturn Games

Daytona USA CCE Net Link Edition: $1200 – $1335

Although commonly thought to be Panzer Dragoon Saga, this NetLink version of Daytona USA: CCE is in fact the rarest North American Sega Saturn game. Only available for sale through Sega’s online store, its almost total indistinguishability from the regular version of Daytona USA: CCE makes the title even more rare.

The only notable differences are found only when opening the case up, which features a black and white NetLink booklet underneath the standard booklet, and the disc has a NetLink logo and “Not for Resale” markings. (See here for photos)

For those of you that don’t know, the Netlink was Sega’s modem-based add-on for the Sega Saturn that allowed for online multiplayer gaming. Daytona CCE was one out of only five games released that are compatible with the add-on, which also includes Sega Rally Championship Plus, Virtual On, Duke Nukem 3D, and Saturn Bomberman.

A decade ago in 2008, this variant’s legend was beginning to grow and overtaking Saga in the rankings, but could still be scored in the $250 to $300 range. Now it’s easy to see price tags that are 5X to 6X that mark.

Check for Daytona USA CCE Net Link Edition on eBay

Panzer Dragoon Saga: $400 – $735 ($1100 sealed)

Panzer Dragoon was an iconic, yet under-appreciated franchise of on-rails shooters, yet the third game in the series actually was a deep role-playing game that is loved by critics and has a very devoted following. Many experienced gamers even consider it one of the very best RPGs of all time and it was one of the definitive games in the Saturn library.

Over time the game has become a legendary treasure, not purely in terms of collector’s value, but its true status as a game. It would be ideal for Sega to republish the game, but there is tragically a rumored backstory of the game’s source code being lost forever. Between this potential mishap and a small initial print run, too many people missed out on playing this gem of an RPG. Perhaps someday the game will be remade from scratch for more gamers to experience.

It’s a shame that Panzer Dragoon Saga came out at the end of the Saturn’s short life. It was one of the last five games released in North America with an initial production run was 6,000 (not even enough to fill pre-orders) but by the end of the game’s run, only 30,000 copies were produced by Sega.

Panzer Dragoon Saga has always been one of the most valuable games in the Saturn’s library. With four discs and many owners never wanting to part with it, you’ve always had to save up for it (unless you found it in clearance bins after the Saturn’s demise). I’m pretty sure back in 2000 — just a few years after the Saturn died, the game usually sold for $100 to $120. In 2008, it weighed in at $200 to $240. Bare discs actually haven’t increased in value too much, but mint copies have gradually climbed to triple over the last decade.

Check for Panzer Dragoon Saga on eBay
Check for Panzer Dragoon Saga on Amazon

Magic Knight Rayearth: $130 – $460 ($500 sealed)

In the 32-Bit era, Working Designs as a publisher is always the sign of a gem, and throughout the years their titles have developed a cult following and normally have a higher value attached to them.

Developed and published by Sega in Japan but published by Working Designs in North America, Magic Knight Rayearth is an Action-RPG that is an adaptation of the popular anime and manga of the same name. For fans of the series, the game does an outstanding job of being faithful to the source material.

According to the manual of the US version, some of the original Japanese source code was lost and was completely rebuilt during the localization. Many of the development team behind Rayearth would go on to become part of Sega’s Overworks, and would later work on other iconic Sega games such as Skies of Arcadia.

Rayearth was supposedly limited to about 15,000 units upon its release. It was released at the very end of 1998, making it the very last game released for the Sega Saturn in the United States.

Back in 2008, Magic Knight Rayearth could be found for about $40 to $100. While it’s never really been cheap, it’s easy been one of the fastest growing Working Designs titles.

Check for Magic Knight Rayearth on eBay
Check for Magic Knight Rayearth on Amazon

Saturn Bomberman: $140 – $350

The most well-known out of the three Bomberman games released on the Saturn (as the other two were never released outside of Japan), this version of the popular multiplayer blast-a-thon became known to fans as a definitive edition of Bomberman through being the only game in the series with support for 10 characters on screen at once and the first in the series with online play via Sega’s Netlink service.

Hudson Soft even added in some easter eggs in this release such as including other Hudson characters such as Bonk (Bonk’s Adventure) and Higgins (Adventure Island), as well as releasing special Bomberman themed Saturn controllers and multitaps.

A late release for the system and limited print run aside, Saturn Bomberman became a wanted item on many Saturn collectors’ want list for being one of the most memorable additions to a classic franchise that is still going today.

From 2000 to 2014, Saturn Bomberman remained moderately priced. In 2008 we had it pegged at a $52 to $79 range, but starting in 2015, it really gained a lot of steam and ramped up to its current levels. In the last 10 years, it went from #9 on our North American list to #4.

Check for Saturn Bomberman on eBay
Check for Saturn Bomberman on Amazon

Burning Rangers: $130 – $395

Opting out of making a 3D Sonic the Hedgehog game, Yuji Naka and Sonic Team created a 3D engine to use for the cult favorite, NiGHTS into Dreams, and then using that game engine to develop the outer space firefighting epic Burning Rangers.

This late Saturn title is a sci-fi style game that focuses on extinguishing flames and rescuing civilians as the future’s primary heroic pursuit. Its colorful, not-quite-so-serious atmosphere combined with one of the catchiest soundtracks of the era, over the years Burning Rangers rose from the obscurity of being a cult favorite throughout recent years. Sega has even plugged in subtle nods and easter eggs to the it in current games such as Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed.

Burning Rangers remains one of the most interesting and innovative Saturn exclusives despite having awkward controls. The game was well-received by those that played it at the time, but it was one of the final five games released for the Saturn in North America, with only 5,000 copies produced. It can be imported from Japan for much cheaper, but since the game uses English voiceovers for in-game directions, it may not be import-friendly.

Since the Saturn’s afterlife, Burning Rangers has remained to be one of the most valuable and collectable titles in the library and was considered a definitive part of the Saturn library. Back in 2008, you could get a copy for $70 to $90. Since then, bare discs have increased in value about 40% while pristine copies now are about 3X to 4X their 2008 values.

Check for Burning Rangers on eBay
Check for Burning Rangers on Amazon

Battlesport: $125 – $325

This is one of those games that I didn’t even know existed until recent years. Even though the Sega Saturn is one of the console libraries I explored the most, I must have just skimmed over the generic-sounding title and never heard anyone recommend it over the years. It turns out, that diehard fans of the 3DO will probably be more familiar with Battlesport.

For those of you that are familiar with the console wars of the mid 90s, Battlesport will quickly remind you of the type of game that showed up on the 3DO console. American developers were often experimenting with how to use the new 3D capabilities and evolving traditional game genres into new experiences. Battlesport was one such example that attempted to merge a futuristic sports concept (similar to hockey or soccer) with hovercraft mechanics. It actually ends with the feel of an area shooter game with a fast 3D engine but some intentional limitations. It’s actually an interesting gameplay experience that uses those limitations as a way to focus the gameplay.

The Sega Saturn version is much harder to come by than either the original 3DO release or the Playstation port (there was also a Windows PC version). Both of the other versions can easily be found for between $15 and $30 but the Saturn version has drastically increased in value. Just in the last few years, more Saturn collectors have been trying to round out their collections and are discovering how truly hard to find this particular port is. Up until the end of 2014, you could find the Saturn version for $20 or less, but quickly jumped to the $70 range the next couple years before spiking to a $200 to $300 range at the end of 2017.

Check for Battlesport on eBay
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Mega Man 8: $150 – $370

Mega Man 8 served as the 10th Anniversary of the legendary Capcom platforming series and was its first entry in the 32-bit era. Though it came after the Mega Man X series which took the series in a different direction, Mega Man 8 served as a throwback to the original style of games from the NES collection.

Anyone who has played a Mega Man game before will feel right at home with the Mega Man 8, with gorgeous hand-drawn graphics and anime FMV cutscenes, complete with infamously bad voice acting. You take on Dr “Wiwy” and a new slew of robot masters to conquer.

Classic Mega Man games always tend to command a higher price but the Saturn version of Mega Man 8 has risen to a much higher amount than the Playstation version and is one of the most sought after games on the Sega Saturn.

Being a solid, mainline Mega Man title, 8 commanded a reasonable $33 to $60 range in 2008. It has since seen a steady growth in recent year with a 3X to 5X increase since then. This is especially impressive when you consider the Playstation version of Mega Man 8 can easily be found for $20 or less and you have modern compilation options that include the game.

Check for Mega Man 8 on eBay
Check for Mega Man 8 on Amazon

Virtua Fighter Remix (Longbox): $180 – $278

When the Saturn launched, Sega fans were especially excited to see many of the company’s cutting-edge arcade titles recieve near-perfect ports on a powerful new console. While Virtua Fighter (and Virtua Racing) did receive impressive ports to the 32X, most gamers held out for the Saturn.

Under pressure to release the console promptly to fend off the Playstation, Sega kept tight deadlines and the Virtua Fighter port, while relatively solid, had some graphical imperfections. After learning on how to better utilize the Saturn hardware, Sega quietly released Virtua Fighter Remix as a pack-in title. It was also available as a free mail-in title for those that registered their Saturn console by a certain date.

However, Sega did end up producing a full retail version of Virtua Fighter Remix that was packaged in the more typical North American long box jewel cases as opposed to the CD-sized jewel case packaging for free versions. A lot Saturn collectors over the years didn’t even realize the longbox variant existed, but it’s starting to become a treasured collectors piece — especially for those that like a consistent shelf presentation.
Check for Virtua Fighter Remix (Longbox) on eBay

Sega Ages: $93 – $300

The Sega Ages franchise began on the Sega Saturn as a way of sharing some of the company’s classic games (mostly arcade titles, but there were console title instances like Phantasy Star Collection). Sega actually released a handful of individual titles under the Sega Ages moniker in Japan. However, there was a compilation that was released in North America and Europe that contains arcade-perfect ports of Space Harrier, OutRun, and After Burner II.

While Sega published the compilation in Europe, Working Designs published the North American piece with the special printing treatments the publisher is famous for, under its “SPAZ” publishing tier. The logos on the cover have holographic foil that just can’t be fully appreciated in photos. Working Designs typically handled Japanese RPGs that would typically never make it to the US, but this is probably one of their least known productions as one would assume Sega published it themselves. It also didn’t have much publicity or word-of-mouth.

This compilation has never been easy to find, but if you could track one down, you used to be able to score it for $20 to $40 up until 2014. Because many collectors still weren’t aware of it, you could still sometimes find it for $50 complete in recent years. However, in 2016 it became more well known and jumping to current levels.

Check for Sega Ages on eBay
Check for Sega Ages on Amazon

Herc’s Adventures: $80 – $263

This overhead action adventure game from LucasArts was released on both the Playstation and Saturn, but focused on the 2D animation the studio was known for instead of joining the 3D crowd in the 32-bit era. With its style of gameplay, animation and humor, some have considered Herc’s Adventures to be a spiritual successor to Zombies Ate My Neighbors (and its sequel, Ghoul Patrol).

Herc’s Adventure had some unfortunately timing, however. It came out literally a month after the Disney animated film, Hercules, so in the general retail scene a lot of gamers might have thought it was cheap licensed/knockoff and got lost in the shuffle. If the Hercules movie had been a huge hit, maybe it would have helped, but it didn’t really appeal to the game’s target market. Neither version of the game is especially easy to find, but the Saturn version can command 2 to 3 times the value of the PS1 version — mostly likely because of the collectibility of the system and difficulty of keeping those Saturn games pristine.

Back in our 2008 guide, we had Herc’s Adventure down on our “Additional Games of Value” section while being in the $33 to $57 range. Even a decade after its release, this interesting game was still pretty under the radar. It didn’t really get much of a bump in value until 2016/2017 as collectors were circulating around interesting rarities.

Check for Herc’s Adventures on eBay
Check for Herc’s Adventures on Amazon

Shining Force III: $100 – $285

Sega’s iconic strategy RPG trilogy began on the Sega Genesis/Megadrive, but ended as the Sega Saturn’s retail life drew to a close. The third major Shining Force installment actually was designed as three scenario releases, but with the Sega Saturn’s life being cut short, Shining Force III Parts 2 and 3 never made it outside of Japan.

Shining Force III joined Burning Rangers, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Magic Knight Rayearth, and House of the Dead as the final five Saturn games released in North America. Since Sega knew there was waning demand at the time, they only produced about 5000 copies of the this first Scenario.

Much like most of these iconic final releases, we’ve never seen a re-release of this cult classic (and the community has depended on fan translations to play Parts 2 and 3 in English). With this in mind, it actually surprising that we have seen loose discs decrease just a bit from their $89 price points in 2008. However, a pristine copy used to be able to be tracked down for $100 to $115 a decade ago.

Check for Shining Force III on eBay
Check for Shining Force III on Amazon

The House of the Dead: $100 – $270

A port of the cult-classic light gun arcade game, House of the Dead was one of the last games released on the Saturn and didn’t sell many copies despite its success in the arcades. The series has received many sequels in arcades and consoles, but the original is the hardest to find in its original console form.

The Saturn version has all the arcade areas, plus some new branching levels. You can also play with some additional characters. Unfortunately, the graphics have lower resolution and frame rates.

Much like most of the other last Sega games released for the Saturn (Shining Force III, Burning Rangers, and House of the Dead) there were only about 5000 units produced of the game. It held a solid $60 to $80 range a decade ago, but those complete copies have been really taking off in recent years.

Check for House of the Dead on eBay
Check for House of the Dead on Amazon

Lunacy: $89 – $279

You may have thought that FMV games lived and died on the Sega CD, but the Sega Saturn still saw some games that carried on some of the techniques used in this adolescent eras of video game consoles.

Instead of using video of actors like many Sega CD games, Lunacy is an interactive movie adventure the utilizes CGI animation for characters and environments. The presentation also gives off some serious Myst vibes as well. The game was developed by System Sacom, which previously developed Mansion of Hidden Souls (which was on the Sega CD and Sega Saturn).

The game was known as Torico in Japan and was localized by Sega’s staff and published in North America by Atlus. Even though it had clearly improved on many of the weakness of the Sega CD era of FMV games and had some redeeming qualities, it was enough to garner widespread appeal.

Five or more years ago, you could find a copy of Lunacy for $20 to $60 — about what you would expect for an uncommon/obscure Saturn title. However, at the end of 2015 we really started seeing a spike into the $100 to $150 range.

Check for Lunacy on eBay
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Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean: $90 – $265

Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean is an RPG that was originally developed for the Super Famicom in Japan but was ported to the Saturn by Working Designs as the SNES was losing ground in retail. This title was the first in the series to receive an English localization and the first to feature traditional turn-based role-playing elements as opposed to tactical, strategy-based gameplay. The presentation was pure 2D, but the sprite artwork was beautiful and wonderfully complemented the classic gameplay.

Legend of Eldean sold well during its original release in Japan, enough to warrant Sega’s “Saturn Collection” distinction and budget re-release in 1997 as the localized version was issued by Working Designs in the States. t’s not surprising that the game didn’t sell quite as well in North America and Working Designs typically kept their print runs modest. However, their attention to detail in localization and their beautiful foiled packaging artwork always made each of their productions feel like a collectable work of art.

Much like most other Working Designs games, Albert Odyssey has held its value quite well since it’s original release, gradually appreciating in value along the way. For perspective, it could be found in the $40 to $100 range back in 2008 depending on condition, but has more than doubled in the last decade.

Check for Albert Odyssey on eBay
Check for Albert Odyssey on Amazon

Mega Man X4: $80 – $240

Though it is the Blue Bomber’s second addition to the ‘X’ series on the Saturn (the first being Mega Man X3 which was not released in North America), Mega Man X4 was the first in the series for the 32-bit generation.

This biggest addition to Mega Man X4 is the ability to play as Mega Man’s partner, the sword-wielding Zero, as a playable character from the start, as opposed to him just being on the side. Aside from that, X4 stays true to the traditions of the series: pick any stage you want in any order, defeat the bosses (known as “Mavericks” in this series instead of the Master Robots), gain their abilities, and take on Sigma yet again.

Though an offshoot of the main titles, the Mega Man X games have gained a following for its deeper and more serious tone, and X4 includes new FMV cutscenes and the lengthy dialog sequences between characters that the series is known for.

Much like the above-mentioned Mega Man 8, X4 has steadily increased from its modest 2008 pricing ($15 to $61 range for X4) to where it is now. And like MM8, this seems to be a pure Saturn collecting (or completist Mega Man) play as the Playstation version can be found $15 or less, plus the modern compilation releases.

Check for Mega Man X4 on eBay
Check for Mega Man X4 on Amazon

Guardian Heroes: $75 – $275

One of the original cult classics on the Sega Saturn, Guardian Heroes is a beat-em-up from fan-favorite developer Treasure with a unique control scheme, branching paths, and role-playing elements (giving you the ability to level up and focus the skills that you choose). It arrived on the Saturn fairly late in the console’s lifespan, but always came recommended after the machine’s death because of its unique gameplay and interesting 2D graphical techniques.

Given Treasure’s pedigree and the general lack of beat-em-ups on the Saturn, Guardian Heroes often comes up in conversation of both system superfans and those just dipping their toes in Saturn collecting. A sequel was made for the Game Boy Advance in Advance Guardian Heroes but unfortunately was not well-received by fans (and was not even published by Sega themselves).

Guardian Heroes has always been one of the more in-demand and more pricey games for the system. However, after a high-quality remake on Xbox Live Arcade, a bare disc has actually calmed down 25% from the $80 level a decade ago. However, with mint, complete copies of Saturn games showing a premium, the high price range doubles from 2008’s $100 level to today’s $200 mark. You could even go back to 2006’s $40 to $50 level (see the affordability section in this review)) for a complete copy.

Check for Guardian Heroes on eBay

Winning Post: $65 – $200

This series of horse racing/betting games are actually rather popular in Japan and somehow this game got localized and published in North America by Koei. It’s especially surprising to see this game brought over when there were so many quality 2D shooters and fighters on the Saturn that remained Japan exclusives.

Anyway, as you can imagine, the game did not sell very well and is possibly one of the rarest North American releases. However, this is the first time Winning Post has reached this high on our list. For the longest time, you could typically find it in the $40 to $70 range as most people just weren’t interested in the game itself. However, as Saturn collectors are trying to expand their collections, complete copies have really started to take off.

Check for Winning Post on eBay
Check for Winning Post on Amazon

Shining Wisdom: $85 – $200

The first of the “Shining” series to step away from first-person dungeon crawler or strategy RPG traditions, Shining Wisdom shares more with The Legend of Zelda than its more well-known titles. Using pre-rendered CG sprites rather than 3D models and a top-down free-moving environment, it took a vast detour from the anime grid-based combat-style that the series is known for.

Just like Magic Knight Rayearth, Shining Wisdom was not published by Sega in America and Working Designs would take the publishing rights as part of their “Working Designs Ultra Series,” which also include Popful Mail and Lunar on Sega CD, as well as the aforementioned Albert Odyssey, resulting in the game fetching a rather high amount of value throughout the years.

Working Designs made quite a few changes to the US version which were met with mixed responses from the audience. Though originally a follow up to the Mega Drive’s Shining Force II, Working Designs removed any traces of backstory to the previous Shining games in the franchise as nearly all the character names were changed, as well as adding their trademark flair for pop-culture references.

This particular Working Design release has increased by a higher percentage than most — the bare discs doubling in value since 2008 and the pristine complete copies going for nearly 4X their $50 2008 values.

Check for Shining Wisdom: on eBay
Check for Shining Wisdom: on Amazon

Dragon Force: $60 – $200

Among the impressive RPGs that Working Designs brought to North America, Dragon Force is one of the biggest standouts — especially for those that enjoy strategy.

Dragon Force’s gameplay system feels more like Ogre Battle than the likes of Shining Force or Fire Emblem. Instead of managing individual units on a grid, you manage the entire army down to the last general. These generals can control up to 100 troops each and each set of troops feature different classes such as basic infantry, cavalry, archers, monks, and more. Watching the battles play out is fascinating. Watching up to 200 sprite-based characters battle it out without slowdown is not only mesmerizing but an impressive technical feat on the Saturn’s hardware.

Throughout your campaigns, you capture, fortify, and defend castles and you live through eight finely crafted, but connected storylines. Each of the scenarios are quite long and rewarding, but it makes for a seemingly endless amount of deployability. If you are a strategy enthusiast, this depth is what makes it worth the steep price tag. Overall, the game holds up very well to this day and is a cornerstone piece of the Saturn small but impressive RPG library.

The game had a Japan-only re-release on the PS2 and also received a sequel that was left in Japan, but otherwise remains a great exclusive. Much like its Working Designs brethren, it has held good resale value since the Saturn’s demise. In 2008, Dragon Force could be found in the $65 to $97 range. Bare discs have become just a bit more affordable since then, but those pristine copies have doubled in value over the decade.

Check for Dragon Force on eBay
Check for Dragon Force on Amazon

Street Fighter Collection: $60 – $200

The Saturn was always one of the very best consoles for 2D fighters and Capcom put out a great showing for the sprite powerhouse. Among a lot of excellent stand alone titles, they also published one of their first Street Fighter compilations in the form of the Street Fighter Collection.

The disc includes direct CPS II arcade ports of Super Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, and an enhanced version of Street Fighter Alpha 2 titled Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold, which is exclusive to this compilation. To top things off, the beautiful cover art displays nicely in the fragile, but treasured Saturn cases.

Despite Capcom putting out more excellent Street Fighter compilations in recent years, the Saturn’s Street Fighter Collection has still appreciated nicely in value. Back in 2008 the compilation didn’t even make our “Additional Games of Value” section — weighing in at about $30 for a copy. It’s been a very gradual but steady rise since then, but getting a jump to about $100 – $120 range in 2016.

Check for Street Fighter Collection on eBay
Check for Street Fighter Collection on Amazon

Additional North American Games of Value

• Contra Legacy of War: $47-$200 (eBay)
• Shining The Holy Ark: $60-$180 (eBay)
• Batman Forever Arcade: $70-$148 (eBay)
• Enemy Zero: $70-$154 (eBay)
• Sonic Jam: $50-$180 (eBay)
• Powerslave: $55-$130 (eBay)
• Astal: $49-$175 (eBay)
• Marvel Super Heroes: $58-$135 (eBay)
• Mortal Kombat Trilogy: $37-$140 (eBay)
• Galaxy Fight: $40-$100 (eBay)
• Golden Axe The Duel: $30-$150 (eBay)
• Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo: $50-$110 (eBay)
• In the Hunt: $45-$100 (eBay)
• Resident Evil: $47-$110 (eBay)
• Darius Gaiden: $40-$100 (eBay)
• Die Hard Arcade: $45-$100 (eBay)
• Legend of Oasis: $40-$100 (eBay)

The Rarest Saturn Games At Affordable Prices

Each of these games have been known to be hard to find in the wild, but routinely sell for less than $50 for a pristine copy and less than $30 for a disc. If you are a Saturn collector and see a boxed or sealed copy of any of these on eBay for a low price, you might want to snatch them up — you may never see them again.

• 3D Baseball – $15 -$38 (eBay)
• Worldwide Soccer 98: $15 – $40 (eBay)
• Virtual-On Netlink Edition: $23 – $45 (eBay)
• Vallora Valley Golf: $10 – $45 (eBay)
• Winter Heat: $29 – $30 (eBay)

Most Valuable Japan Imports

Delisoba Deluxe – $1500 – $2000

While not an official retail game, this extremely limited production is one of the holy grails for dedicated Sega Saturn collectors. In the mid 1990s, there was a Japanese game show, Tokyo Friend Park, that had celebrity guest play a motorcycle game to deliver soba (hence the name Delisoba) to the studio’s offices.

Cave worked on bringing this game to life on the Sega Saturn with additions of a time attack mode and track editor. The end result was handed out to guests of the show (specific details are unclear) and production was limited to a couple hundred copies.

As you might guess, these don’t go on sale very often. Back in 2008, you could often find a copy selling in Japanese stores for about $900. In recent years it seems that the game has doubled in value over the past decade.

Check for Delisoba Deluxe on eBay

Psychic Assassin Taromaru: $460 – $1000 ($1300 sealed)

Eventually stealing this place from the legendary, somewhat abundant, and now digitally re-released Radiant Silvergun, the Psychic Killer Taromaru is the most valuable standard Japanese Saturn game.

The game is a well drawn 2D action title, with a decidedly “Shinobi meets Castlevania” style. The publisher, Time Warner Interactive, shut down all production facilities after only 7,500 copies were made. There are also manual-art variations as well, all of which are included in the total production number, and each generally fetch the same price.

Back in 2008 when Psychic Killer Taromaru eclipsed Radiant Silvergun, it could be found for between $270 and $400. It’s more than doubl