The Nintendo Wii has a vast library with lots of variety. There are some huge-selling games, but many other oddities and gems got easily lost in the shuffle. At the end of the Wii’s lifespan, video game collecting started hitting into high gear. Even back in 2012, our Racketboy community was trying to determine which games were going to be the hot collectables. Some of the hot titles are still running strong, but there were many oddities that have calmed down over recent years. Here’s the lineup of what games are toping the lists now.

The generation of the PS2/Xbox 360, and Wii  was when we started seeing an increase of limited edition collectors editions of games. I’ll list some of the big ones near the in this guide, but I really want to focus on games that were standard editions that made their way to traditional store shelves.

Valuable North American Releases

Dokapon Kingdom: $75-$170 ($190 sealed)

This hybrid of a RPG and Board Game published by Altus. Altus is known to have good taste in the RPGs they bring to North America, but at the same time, are usually published in relatively low numbers.

Interestingly enough, Dokapon Kingdom actually had two print runs. However, the second run was commissioned by Gamestop, who either didn’t have cases and manuals produced, threw many of them away, or sold them off. These Gamestop reprints had color disc artwork compared as opposed to the monochrome artwork of the original run’s discs.

Dokapon Kingdom has a cute anime style to it, is party-friendly, and has a variety of game modes varying from story mode to battle royale in which four players are assigned a mission. This interesting setup makes for a great hidden gem on the Wii. However, Dokapon Kingdom actually originated on the PS2 before being ported over. While the PS2 isn’t dirt cheap (at a $30 to $40 range), it is much easier to find and affordable. The Wii version had just a slight (maybe $10) premium over the PS2 version up until the beginning of 2016 when it started taking off.

Check for Dokapon Kingdom on eBay
Check for Dokapon Kingdom on Amazon

American Mensa Academy: $106-$150 ($180 Sealed)

Riding on the tails of the popularity of the Brain Age games on the DS, the Wii also saw a handful of “Brain Games” including Nintendo’s own Big Brain Academy. Obviously some of the third-party brain games ended up not selling real well and American Mensa Academy is one of the hardest of the bunch to find. The games was known for solid content, but didn’t have the enjoyable presentation and user interface as Nintendo’s own work. There’s also a DS version of the game that’s rather affordable.

The Wii version saw itself primarily in bargain bins (sometimes selling in the $10 to $30 range) up until 2014. It slowly increased in value before spiking in 2016 once people started hunting down Wii rarities.

Check for American Mensa Academy on eBay
Check for American Mensa Academy on Amazon

2 for 1 Power Packs: $50 – $140

Winter Blast & Summer Sports 2: $60-$140
Kawasaki Jet Ski & Summer Sports 2: $60-$140
WWII Aces & Indianapolis 500 Legends: $50-$90

It’s easy to forget even now, but the Nintendo Wii was one of the best-selling game consoles of all time. Riding on the popularity of Wii Sports, if nothing else, the Wii had a HUGE install base — many of which were families that might not otherwise purchase game consoles. This situation made the Wii ripe for budget game releases that tried to be impulse buys at department stores or stocking stuffers for the holiday season.

One publisher, but the name of Destineer produced a handful of game releases that were pitched as “2 For 1 Power Packs” — although also mentioned something like “21 Games for One Low Price!”. (Because more makes it a better value, right?) The releases had two game discs included but could often have multiple mini games.

Anyway, as many of you can probably guess, these didn’t exactly fly off the shelves. I’m sure some parents or grandparents occasionally picked them up on a whim, but they were mostly ignored as most people were either content with Wii Sports or wanted first-party Nintendo games for their collection.

Check for 2 for 1 Power Packs on eBay
Check for 2 for 1 Power Packs on Amazon

Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn: $55-$85 ($85-$160 Sealed)

Now here’s a solid examples of a rock-solid first party Nintendo game that has a niche genre (Strategy RPG) but strong following and has pretty much climbed casually from its initial retail value.

The Fire Emblem series has built a cult following after having strong Japanese releases on the Famicom and Super Famicom and then finally being released in North America on the Game Boy Advance. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance later made its way to the Gamecube (and held a strong position on the GC’s Rare and Valuable list)

Radiant Dawn is Path of Radiance’s direct sequel and won many praises from critic — only to be criticized much for it’s intense challenge. For those that enjoy great strategic battles, it’s hard to ignore this Wii exclusive.

Check for Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn on eBay
Check for Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn on Amazon

Cyberbike Cycling Sports (Not Including Bike): $30-$123

In addition to Wii Sports, Nintendo’s Wii Fit was another huge success for the innovative console. Nintendo had started the “personal wellness” trend with their Brain Age games on the DS and the motion controls and Wii Fit balance board was geared for getting people active. BigBen Interactive wanted to take this another step further by selling a Wii game along with a full exercise bike for a $200 price tag. This was obviously a tough sell when you can get some quality equipment for about the same price range without the cartoon-like encouragement.

It’s hard to get a real good price on the the full bike package due to shipping costs, but the game itself still sells for a healthy amount due to its rarity. For a little while in late 2016, the game actually saw some higher values, but has calmed down just a bit.

Check for Cyberbike Cycling Sports on eBay

Metroid Prime Trilogy + Steelbook Limited: $45-$70 ($100 Sealed)

Metroid Prime was a fresh, first-person take on the iconic series that began on the Gamecube. It obviously ruffled some feathers among die-hard Metroid fans, but admittedly did a good job translating the Metroid world and gameplay style to full 3D and the first-person perspective. The third installment of the Metroid Prime series arrived on the Wii and added motion controls with the hopes of making a more intuitive shooting experience.

As many people enjoyed not only the series, but also the addition of motion controls, Nintendo decided to port the first two Metroid Prime games to the Wii with the additional motion controls as well. The compilation was released a couple years after Metroid Prime 3: Corruption’s initial release and sold the three games for essentially Corruption’s initial retail price. It was essentially a solid value in 2009. For die-hard collectors, there was also a Steelbook Limited Edition sold that commands a slight premium. After it left retail shelves, the Trilogy it just gradually increased in value over the years.

For what it’s worth, the compilation was also released on the Wii U’s eShop for $20, but that didn’t curb collector’s appetites too much.
Check for Metroid Prime Trilogy on eBay
Check for Metroid Prime Trilogy on Amazon

Data East Arcade Classics: $40-$70 ($80 Sealed)

As you can tell from the sampling on this list, the Wii became many things to many people. It even received a lot of arcade port compilations — some of which were fairly interesting.

Data East wasn’t known for being the very best in arcade gaming, but there were some titles of which some people have fond memories. Within the 15 games included, there are some classics like Burgertime, Bad Dudes, and one of my personally puzzler favorites, Magical Drop 3. Unfortunately, the publisher, Majesco wasn’t going for exquisite presentation for this compilation. It was other apparent that it was intended for a budget release. A budget title that also has limited commercial appeal didn’t make for a good sales equation, so this is simply hard to find a decade after its release. It mostly lingered in it’s original $20 price point until starting to grab collector attention in 2014.

Check for Data East Arcade Classics on eBay
Check for Data East Arcade Classics on Amazon

The Last Story + Limited Edition: $35-$70

This Japanese RPG is the first directing role for Final Fantasy creator, Sakaguchi Hironobu since his work on Final Fantasy V. His studio, Mistwalker was created after leaving Square in 2004 and is known for their Xbox 360 RPGs, Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey. It was a bold move to choose the Wii over the PS3, but The Last Story was one of a few strong Japanese RPGs to hit the Wii in its later years (Xenoblade Chronicles and Pandora’s Tower being the other big players).

The game ended up winning a handful of awards and was Xseed Games’s best-selling title to date, beating out Xenoblade Chronicles. Due to strong demand, that game hasn’t really changed in value much since its release. It also has a limited edition that has about a 30% premium.

Check for The Last Story on eBay
Check for The Last Story on Amazon

Dragon’s Lair Trilogy: $33-$75 ($85 Sealed)

Many of us 80s kids remember how amazing it was to see Don Bluth’s Dragon’s Lair in the arcades – especially when the original game was released in 1983. It looked just like a real cartoon in which you could control your adventure. It wasn’t until you put in your money and gave it a try that you realized how limited and challenging that control was. Despite its limitations, the Dragon’s Lair games hold a sweet spot in many gamers’ hearts. This “Trilogy” release includes the two Dragon’s Lair arcade games in addition to their spiritual successor, Space Ace. Unlike some ports like on the Sega CD, this is a faithful recreation using the same cleaned up footage used for the DVD and Blu Ray releases.

This quality made for this to be a great console collectable releases that gradually increased in value since its release. This Wii release had a bit more clout at the beginning of 2018, but it’s starting to cool down as the Trilogy made it to download services and even PS4 physical copies thanks to Limited Run Games.
Check for Dragon’s Lair Trilogy on eBay
Check for Dragon’s Lair Trilogy on Amazon

Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus $48 – $56

You wouldn’t think that the Nintendo Wii would be a significant platform for 2D fighting games, but the combination of a wide install base and a semi-official Hori arcade joystick and the joystick that came alongside Tatsunoko vs. Capcom some publishers saw an opportunity to cater to some fans of retro style games.

Arc System Works’s Guilty Gear series got in on the action fairly early on with releasing Guilty Gear XX Accent Core in 2007. It had a pretty respectable distribution and sold relatively well for a 2D fighter that wasn’t Street Fighter. Two years later, they pushed out a Wii port of Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus, which was another enhanced version with some returning characters, additional game modes, and some minor balance tweaks. With the popularity of the Wii slowing down a bunch by 2009 (and the revision showing up on the PS2, PS3’s PSN and 360’s XBLA) this particular version didn’t get much sales action. It probably also didn’t help that to all but dedicated Guilty Gear fans, that it was even a different game than the first Wii release.

There hasn’t been much dramatic activity on pricing for this release yet. I just has just gradually increased in value since its retail debut.

Check for Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus on eBay
Check for Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus on Amazon

Additional North American Wii Games of Value

• Maximum Racing: Super Truck Racer: $43-$56 (eBay)
• Gunblade NY & LA Machineguns Arcade Hits Pack: $39-$65 ($70 Sealed) (eBay)
• JU-ON: The Grudge: $35-$60 ($96 Sealed) (eBay)
• Oregon Trail: $40-$53 (eBay)
• Xenoblade Chronicles: $30-$65 ($86 Sealed) (eBay)
• Fritz Chess: $30-$60 ($100 Sealed) (eBay)
• Fishing Resort: $35-$55 ($85 Sealed) (eBay)
• Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of The Moon: $27-$66 (eBay)
• Pikmin 2: Nintendo Selects: $35-$57 ($70 Sealed) (eBay)
• Shiren the Wanderer: $28-$57 ($59 Sealed) (eBay)
• Mario Party 9: $26-$50 ($55 Sealed) (eBay)
• Ivy the Kiwi: $30-$45 ($50 Sealed) (eBay)
• My Horse & Me: Riding for Gold: $29-$45 (eBay)
• No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle: $28-$45 ($50 Sealed) (eBay)
• Silent Hill: Shattered Memories: $26-$40 ($60 Sealed) (eBay)
• Klonoa: $22-$50 ($65-$100 Sealed) (eBay)
• Ultimate Shooting Collection: $25-$43 ($60 Sealed) (eBay)
• Castle of Shikigami III: $22-$45 ($50 Sealed) (eBay)
• Kirby’s Return to Dream Land: $23-$40 ($43 Sealed) (eBay)

PAL Releases of Value

• Legend of Sayuki (Heavenly Guardian) $180 – $228  (eBay)
  This scrolling shooter was originally developed as a sequel to Taito’s Kiki KaiKai series (better known as Pocky & Rocky outside Japan) before the game was cancelled and the the developer lost the license. The game was finished and released in all regions on both the Wii and PS2. It went under the name Heavenly Guardian in North America and both the PS2 and Wii versions are quite affordable there.
• Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn: $75 – $170 (eBay)

Japanese Wii Imports of Value

• Fatal Frame: Mask Lunar Eclipse: $50 – $72 (eBay)

The post The Rarest and Most Valuable Nintendo Wii Games appeared first on RetroGaming with Racketboy.