The Rarest Pokemon Games (& How Much They’re Worth)

Since making its debut more than a quarter of a century ago, the Pokemon series has sold more than 480 million units worldwide, making it one of the best-selling video game franchises of all time. Despite how common these games are though, they regularly sell for high prices due to how popular they are with both video game collectors and nostalgic series fans alike.

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In the right condition, the rarest Pokemon games can sell for thousands of dollars, with even some of the more common ones worth a few hundred bucks to the right buyer. Of course, there are console bundles and non-retail releases that are worth even more than that, but, for most collectors, getting hold of a complete set of mainline and spin-off games is usually the primary goal.

Updated April 16, 2024, by Tom Bowen: The demand for retro video games is increasing all the time, while the supply continues to grow smaller. This can lead to massive fluctuations in prices, with the value of certain games swelling suddenly from time to time. This is particularly true of the rarest Pokemon games, with many collectors keen to add these fan-favorite creature-collecting titles to their shelves. Below, they’ll be able to find the most up-to-date prices for the most expensive Pokemon games on the market.

10 Pokemon HeartGold (Nintendo DS) – $273

To many, the second-generation Pokemon games are the best that the series has to offer. Not only do they allow players to explore the brand-new region of Johto, but also provide players with an opportunity to revisit Kanto after beating the Johtonian gym leaders and defeating the region’s Elite Four.

With this in mind, it came as no surprise when Nintendo announced that the second-gen games would be remade for the DS, nor did the fact that the games outsold the Gen 1 remakes for the GBA. Certain versions even came bundled with a special accessory known as the Pokewalker, and it’s these that appeal most to collectors.

Pokémon Heart Gold

Released

March 14, 2010

Metascore

87

9 Pokemon SoulSilver (Nintendo DS) – $295

The Kanto region was a lot of fun to explore, but Johto took things to a whole other level, as too did the addition of color graphics to the series. For those unsatisfied with Johto, the Gen 2 games allow players to return to the setting of the first-gen titles after defeating the Elite Four, granting access to a ton of new Pokemon and plenty of additional battles in the process.

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More than a decade later, players would be given a chance to return to Johto (and, by extension, Kanto) thanks to the release of Pokemon SoulSilver and HeartGold. Ranking highly among the best Pokemon remakes, these 2010 titles serve as faithful recreations of the Gen 2 games and were warmly received by fans. Their popularity is a big part of what makes them so rare these days and why so many people are willing to spend top dollar just to add them to their collections.

Pokémon SoulSilver

Released

March 14, 2010

Metascore

87

8 Pokemon Stadium 2 (N64) – $300

The first Pokemon Stadium game sold remarkably well, meaning that it’s fairly easy to find copies of it floating around online these days. Its sequel, though, is a lot harder to come by, due in large to the fact that the game was released so close to the end of the N64’s life cycle and offered very little in the way of new features besides support for the Gen 2 games.

Still, for Pokemon collectors, Pokemon Stadium 2 remains something of a holy grail and as a game, can still be enjoyable even today. Because of this, it regularly sells online for hundreds of dollars, with new copies typically going for significantly more. In fact, when it comes to sealed prices, it ranks among the most expensive N64 games.

Pokemon Stadium 2

Released

March 28, 2001

Metascore

78

7 Pokemon Red (Game Boy) – $300

Despite selling more than 30 million units worldwide, first gen Pokemon games are still pretty rare. Loose copies, not so much, but, thanks both to the fragility of the cardboard boxes that games for the original Game Boy came in and the eagerness of young kids everywhere wishing to tear them open and start their very first Pokemon adventure, finding a complete copy of one of these games can be a little tricky.

Collectors should be prepared to pay around $300 for a complete copy of Red, or $250 for a copy of Blue. Sealed copies of both games typically sell for considerably more than that though, with nostalgia driving prices well into the four-figure range. Again, Blue provides a slightly cheaper option than its Red counterpart, but not by much.

Pokemon Red

Released

February 27, 1996

GameRankings Rating

88%

6 Pokemon Yellow (Game Boy) – $302

Released in late ’99, Pokemon Yellow aimed to capitalize on the success of the Pokemon anime by combining characters and ideas from the show with the first-generation formula. Rather than Bulbasaur, Squirtle, or Charmander, players received a Pikachu as their starter Pokemon and saw it follow them around on the overworld screen just like Ash’s Pikachu used to in the anime.

Pokemon Yellow also features Jessie, James, and Meowth, much to the delight of many anime fans. It’s perhaps for these reasons that the game fetches such a high price these days, though the fact that it’s now more than two decades old also adds to its value quite a bit. Collectors can expect to pay a few hundred dollars for a complete-in-box copy, making this one of the rarest Pokemon games around.

Pokemon Yellow

Released

October 18, 1999

GameRankings Rating

85

5 Pokemon Puzzle Challenge (Game Boy Color) – $317

There have been plenty of Pokemon spin-off games over the years, several of which were released for the Game Boy Color. One such title was Pokemon Puzzle Challenge: a Tetris Attack clone that allows players to control Pikachu and a bunch of second-gen Pokemon like Chikorita, Cyndaquil, and Totodile.

It was a fairly solid puzzle game that reviewed surprisingly well for what it was. Its GameRankings average once sat above 90%, making it one of the ten best Game Boy Color games of all time on the now-defunct site. Its rarity comes not from its critical acclaim though, but due to how few copies are in circulation when compared to some of the mainline Pokemon games.

Pokemon Puzzle Challenge

Platform(s)

Game Boy Color

Released

September 21, 2000

GameRankings Rating

4 Pokemon FireRed (Game Boy Advance) – $379

For a lot of people, the Gen 1 Pokemon games will always be the best. After all, it was they that launched a multi-billion dollar franchise and helped turn the likes of Pikachu and Charizard into some of the most recognizable pop culture characters of all time. With that in mind, the fact the games have been remade multiple times shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, nor should the fact that these remakes are pretty popular.

Released in 2004 for the Game Boy Advance, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen were the first such remakes, bringing the fan-favorite titles to a brand-new audience. Though some may prefer the Let’s Go! games and others the grittiness of the originals, most see FireRed and LeafGreen as the definitive way to experience the Kanto region, which is why the former now sells for hundreds of dollars.

Pokemon FireRed

Released

September 7, 2004

Metascore

81

3 Pokemon Emerald (Game Boy Advance) – $450

As far as third installments go, Pokemon Emerald is arguably one of the best. It introduces new story content and several new areas, while also allowing players to get their hands on a bunch of additional Mythical and Legendary Pokemon; some natively and others through special time-limited events.

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This, together with nostalgia and the game’s rarity, is why so many collectors are willing to pay top dollar to add Pokemon Emerald to their shelves. Those wishing to do so can expect to pay around $420 for a complete copy, with brand-new and sealed copies regularly selling for around four or five times that amount.

Pokemon Emerald

Released

May 1, 2005

Metascore

76

2 Pokemon Crystal (Game Boy Color) – $663

Much like Pokemon Yellow before it, Pokemon Crystal served as an expanded third installment, building upon the foundations laid down by the excellent Gold & Silver. It brought with it a few notable changes that would go on to influence future titles, including the ability to select the playable protagonist’s gender, the Battle Tower, and animated Pokemon sprites.

Other than that, Crystal plays a lot like the original second gen games, albeit with box Pokemon Suicune playing a much bigger role in proceedings. It’s perhaps due to how little was changed that Crystal failed to sell as well as other third installments like Yellow and Platinum, making new and complete copies much rarer and thus a lot more expensive to pick up.

Pokémon Crystal

Platform(s)

Game Boy Color

Released

December 14, 2000

GameRankings Rating

80%

1 Pokemon Box (GameCube) – $1,748

Back in the day, players didn’t have too many options when it came to how they stored their Pokemon. The release of Pokemon Stadium did make it so that first and second-generation Pokemon could be transferred onto a Nintendo 64 cartridge, but this didn’t really help those looking for a way to store creatures from later Pokemon games.

Thankfully, a proper Pokemon storage system was eventually released in the form of Pokemon Box. Unfortunately, in North America, at least, it was only available through the New York Pokemon Center and its online store, making it incredibly difficult to come by. This is why even loose copies of the game regularly sell for over a thousand bucks, making it the rarest and the most expensive Pokemon game around by some margin.

Pokemon Box

Released

May 30, 2003

Metascore

50

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