Sealed copies of the original Legend of Zelda for the Nintendo are few and far between, and copies rating 9.0 or higher by WATA are even harder to come by. This 9.2 B+ WATA graded sealed copy of Zelda is visually brilliant and clean and is approaches grail-level quality and grade for this legendary title. A tear in the seal along the upper right corner of the side of the box explains the fair B+ seal rating assigned by WATA. The box itself is incredibly crisp and fully warrants its assigned 9.2 grade.
A pitch-perfect example of sealed video game survivorship being infinitesimally small compared to print runs. Despite selling more than six million copies worldwide, it's doubtful that even 1000 sealed copies of this popular title exist today. WATA's December 2022 Population report reveals just a scant 186 sealed copies of the original Legend of Zelda handled by them so far across all variants.
About The Legend of Zelda
In working to develop franchise-worthy games to sustain the breakout success of the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America, Nintendo struck gold when it released The Legend of Zelda stateside in 1987. Controlling the hero Link from a top-down perspective as he navigates through various dungeons and forests was a revelation for audiences worldwide and launched decades of commercial success that Nintendo had so aspired to capture.
One of the most popular games for the NES and also the first entry in the Zelda franchise, the original NES Zelda is always in high demand across all grades and types including sealed, CIBs, and even cartridges. With high-grade early print sealed copies routinely selling for mid six-figure prices it’s a wonder that moderately priced sealed copies and CIBs still exist today. The original Legend of Zelda for NES is so universally appealing it’s almost a waste to attempt to mention all of the sets it can be included in. But for the sake of completion a few popular sets this title can appear in are a Zelda master set, a classic RPG set, and a top-tier NES set.