Pokémon Red Version - Wata 9.0 A++ Sealed [Sandshrew] GB Nintendo 1998

An excellent example of sealed games being substantially rarer than their overall production runs. Despite selling more than an estimated fifteen million copies worldwide, it's possible that less than 1000 sealed copies of Pokemon Red remain in existence today across all variants. A look at the December 2022 WATA population report reveals that only 173 sealed copies have been graded by WATA up to this point.

A perfect A++ seal rating assigned by WATA highlights this superb first print copy of Pokemon Red. Difficult to acquire in all grades, first prints of Pokemon Red are often referred to as the "Sandshrew" variant due to Sandshrew's inclusion in the screenshots on the reverse of the game, as he was quickly replaced by a Rattata screenshot for reasons unknown.

About Pokemon Red Blue & Yellow

A mega franchise that spans across every pocket and crevice of popular culture including video games, trading cards, movies, and merchandise, the Pokemon series got its start domestically in 1998 with the dual release of Pokemon Red and Blue. Originally released in Japan as Pocket Monsters: Red and Green, this overhead perspective RPG challenged players to collect and do battle with 151 unique original Pokemon. Pokemon Yellow followed soon thereafter in North America in 1999 and included the ability to pick the lovable Pikachu as your starter Pokemon. Selling a staggering forty-six million copies worldwide, the original entries into the Pokemon franchise are without a doubt among the most popular video games of all time.

Collectors hoping to pick up graded copies of Pokemon Red, Blue, and Yellow have a multitude of options and price points due to each game having 3-4 different variants, which vary in scarcity and availability. An ideal starter set of Pokemon games means simply acquiring one of each of the three games, although many advanced collectors seek to collect every known major variant. Whether just getting into video game collecting or building an advanced collection, Pokemon games have universal appeal and are likely to remain some of the most sought after video games ever produced.