There are many books and magazines showing off and detailing the various works of art Yoshitaka Amano produced for the Final Fantasy series, but this box contains more than I have ever seen in any other collection. Think about this; the box weighs about 16 pounds… you could spend an entire weekend looking through these books and extras. The collection covers every title from the first Final Fantasy through to and including Final Fantasy X.

Yoshitaka Amano “The Sky” Art of Final Fantasy - Inside you get three hardcover books that divide art for the series I to III, IV to VI, and VII to X. There’s a fourth softcover book called “All About Yoshitaka Amano” which is exactly that; a biography and more information about his work. Then you have an illustrated plastic sheet, two postcards, and a 96 page flip book which shows an example of Amano’s art in motion. The text in the books is Japanese unfortunately, but the collection of art here is staggering. Concerning the price… keep in mind this box is long sold out (2002) and is really hard to find. The release price (sold only in Japan) was about 28,000 Yen which converts to about $360 US. The auction’s buy now price is $1,000 with the option to make an offer. If the seller accepted an offer of $700, I would say you have a nice deal going. I envy the future buyer of this amazing set.

While we are on the subject of Final Fantasy, I would like to list one of my favorite Final Fantasy VII statues. I don’t own one of these (yet) but, damn… look at this…

Final Fantasy VII Aerith Gainsborough Polystone Statue - The design gives a sense of weightlessness that stops your heart for a moment. It also brings to mind one of the most important moments in FFVII (if not the most important). The statue stands over a foot tall and is simply pure awesome. The price set by the seller is quite high. The release price was something around $200 and I’ve seen this selling for $600 recently off eBay. You can try contacting the seller for a more reasonable price.

Next we have two homebrew games built off of Zelda Link to the Past and Super Mario World. You may have heard of or even played the ROMs, but these are well done reproduction carts.

The Legend of Zelda Parallel Worlds - For people who wished there was a sequel to Link to the Past (there are official semi sequels but let’s not get into that).

Super Mario World Return to Dinosaur Land - This is great because new Mario games are, for the most part, new level designs. Most Mario hacks are just made to test people with the most difficult levels possible but this game does well in making a fun experience.

I’ll end things today with a bunch of quick auctions for some great rare games. Not much to say about each individually but if you’re looking for a certain Neo Geo or Sega CD game that is hard to track down, it may be listed here.

King of the Monsters (Neo Geo)

King of the Monsters 2 (Neo Geo)

Last Resort (Neo Geo)

Shining Force CD (Sega CD)

Snatcher (Sega CD)

Keio: Flying Squadron (Sega CD)

Lunar: Eternal Blue (Sega CD)

Ebay seller mazoku has a ton of great promo pins up for grabs. Each auction began with very low bids. Pins are a category of collecting all it’s own and is often overlooked. I think they’re great when they are hand outs to promote a game before it’s release because it’s a cool look at the past. So, take a close look here today pin collectors. You may find something you want which has been mixed in with a bunch of unrelated pins.

Final Fantasy VI Pin - Very classy pin here. They didn’t clutter it up with the title or anything. You can be sure the final bid on this pin will be quite high.

Sega Pins - Here’s a nice selection of Sega pins. There’s a couple Saturn pins, Sega Sports, Dreamcast, and a few Sonic pins. 11 pins in this auction.

Working Designs Pins - They may not be very well known in North America, but Working Designs had some great games. 6 pins here.

Virtual Boy Pin - Here’s a sad reminder of the disappointing days of Virtual Boy.

Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time Pin - This pin shows up on eBay often and I’m sure we listed it more than a few times. The auctions that never sold had this pin up for a crazy buy now amount. This pin however is taking bids.

Legend of Zelda Majora’s Mask Pin - You can tell at first glance that this pin was made out of plastic or rubber. I prefer metal pins, but hey… it still looks good.

10 Mixed Pins - This auction for 10 pins has a bit of everything including 3DO, Sonic, Mega Man X, and Atari Jaguar. The one that stands out the most to me is the Pac-Man pin.

Mortal Kombat, Area 51, and Sports Pins - Not sure why such a nice Mortal Kombat pin was mixed in with a bunch of sports pins. Still, it’s only a few bucks if everyone else keeps away from this auction.

Playstation Pins - Hey check that out. One of the four pins is a Playsation VIP pin. Try putting that on and walk around a Sony booth at a convention answering questions and taking interviews lol.

Mario and Wario Pins - These are some great early pins. Mario is Missing? Hmm, there can’t be too many of those out there.

Nintendo Gamecube Pin - It looks to me like this is a very cheap quality of metal, but it’s very clean and in great shape.

Capcom Pins - Here’s a mix of Mega Man and Street Fighter pins. 8 pins in total.

The majority of today’s auctions are for promo items, but I’ve included a few other gems that everyone may want to check out. The Club Nintendo item you will find below is very interesting because it’s not the typical Mario figure, pin, statue, etc. You’ll see what I mean…

Metal Gear Solid 2 Poster - The title on the poster is printed in stylish silver foil. The seller has it framed in the picture, but the frame is not included in the buy.

Tomb Raider Pewter Figure - This sloppy rushed looking blister pack contains a pewter figurine of Lara Croft. Keep in mind that this is a very early item in the Tomb Raider series.

Crash Bandicoot Plush - The Playstation mascot (once upon a time) in plush form! It’s a great addition to any Playstation collection.

Zelda Twillight Princess Coin - This promo was given out at ComicCon 2005. The seller mentions only 5,000 were made. The quality is amazing.

Sweet Tooth Mask - Likely due to the upcoming new entry in the Twisted Metal series, this auction has been getting some attention. The bids are stacking up.

Pac-Man Bed Sheets - Very interesting to see the color on these sheets last so long. Oddly, there’s no buy now price.

Invasion of Nintendo VHS - Ok, yes… the price is beyond crazy. The tape is rare and normally found in poor condition. You can make an offer and hope the seller will realize that they aren’t holding the holy grail of promos lol. If you just want to watch it, you can find it on YouTube.

Pac-Man Flying Disk - A great unused Pac-Man frisbee still in it’s original packaging! The price is good too.

Nintendo Banner - Here’s something to add to most any game room. The banner is four feet long and is in great shape.

Centipede Original Promos - Wow, it’s very rare to see related promos this old being sold together like this. This is an instant buy for many classic arcade gamers.

Pac-Man Plush - This plush is an official Namco item but it’s not from the easy years of Pac-Man. The tag shows it’s from 1991. Also, it looks like it’s been through the washer and dryer a couple times. The price isn’t terrible, but still too high.

Club Nintendo Star Tenbillion - Here is a unique hand held puzzle from Nintendo that turns the idea of a Rubik’s cube inside out. The goal is to get all of the matching colored beads in the same tube. Check it out…

We have a lot of video game auctions to show you today. I’m actually excited for this post because there’s a lot of auctions that are priced decently, and a lot of these items are on my “want-list” like this Original Super Mario 64 95 Gold Grade Factory Sealed! I say original because this has the “N64″ logo on the top right of the box, not the “Player’s Choice” logo. Now I don’t know about you, but ever since Video Game Authority started to grade games I always wanted to get my hands on a Super Mario 64 95 grade. I mean sure I would love to have a grade of 100, but I can say I’ve never seen a 100 grade. Supposdely resellers who order bulks of these have 100 grades stored in their collection. Nevertheless, the auction I’m talking about already hit the $500 and already passed the magic number I had off the top of my head. What I wanted to do with this 95 SM64 grade was eventually go to a Nintendo  convention that Mr.Martinet is attending to and get this autographed by him. That would make this the ultimate Super Mario 64 collectible! To have the voice of Mario sign it! But that’s just me.

Other Video Game Auctions:

Castlevania Koji Igarashi Autographed Dracula X – “You are bidding on a promo sell sheet that was given out by konami to promote the release of Dracula X on PSP. It’s double side with screen shots and facts on the back. This was autographed by Koji Igarashi in silver sharpie on the front. I got the this when I worked for GameStop and was in Vegas for their yearly conference. Konami had Koji flown in to sign autographs and promote the game. Koji carried a whip to sign autographs. I was never a castlevania fan. So I pass this on to you. It in great shape no bends or tears. Small dent at the bottom but did not rip through you can see it in the picture. It has been in a plastic case in my closet since I got it. It’s the size of a standard sheet of paper.”
1992 Super Nintendo Super Scope T-Shirt – When you do you ever see Super Scope t-shirts? This is an awesome vintage SNES shirt thats in used shape, but still looks great. The start bid is $6.99 so check it out!
Sega Mega CD Promotional Tin – This is a really cool auction. This is a Sega Mega Cd Promotional Tin with Upcoming Game Release Cards. It came with Mean Machines Magazine in the early 1990′s.
Final Fantasy III (JP) signed by Nobuo Uematsu – A near mint condition copy of the Famicom edition of Final Fantasy 3 signed by the composer himself, Nobuo Uematsu. Seller says: “I had the pleasure of meeting him and the rest of his band, the Earthbound Papas, at the gaming convention MAGFest X and they were kind enough to sign and donate a few items to help support the charirty I work with here in Japan called Japan Cat Network (JCN)JCN goes into the nuclear disaster area of Fukushima to feed and rescue the many animals that have been left behind all these months. It is not just cats and dogs either, we have helped save chickens, pigs, cows and even some tamed boar.”
Earthbound Papas bag & drumstick signed Nobuo Uematsu – Same seller as above. He says hat both his auctions are going to charity. You might want to check that out, but in the end you are probably trying to win the auction so you both win.
Legend Of Zelda Ocarina Of Time 1997 E3 Promotional – I bet by the end of this week this auction will be sold. The seller has a “best-offer” option on top of his decent price. I’ve seen this priced high in the past.
Sonic 3 – Special Edition Enamel Pin Set in Box – I always love to see vintage sonic the hedgehog items on eBay, even if they happen to be pins.
Space Channel 5 Complete Figure Set Palisades Ulala Pudding Evila Statue – I cannot stress how rare these are. Seller says: “Scroll down for larger pics! This is a complete set of every Space Channel 5 figure released by Palisades. The large Ulala & Morolians statue has been opened, however, the five smaller figures are all factory sealed and in flawless mint condition. The Ulala statue is in nearly perfect condition, but there is one flaw. The blue Morolian’s antennas are slightly bent. This is the only flaw on the entire statue. This is an incredibly rare find, to have all of these figures in one place. Just so you know exactly what you’re bidding on, I have gone into complete overkill mode on the photos! I have taken photos of the entire set from every possible angle, 29 pics in all. Yes. 29 PICS. As a collector myself, I just like to let people know what they’re getting. Check out my other auctions as I’m selling off the bulk of my game memorabilia collection from back in the 90’s when I worked at Electronics Boutique. All sales are final, no returns. Payment due within 48 hours of auction’s close.”

Also:
Xenogears Playstation promo poster
Nike 2007 Playstation Sony Air Force 1 AF-1 Size 9
Hungry For You Pac-Man
Limited Edition Uncharted Poster Autographed By Naughty Dog Developers

Good luck!

Before we get to today’s auctions, I would just like to mention that one lucky VGA reader has made a video about their recent buy! On January 12, Kenji listed a Starfox Competition cart which was selling with the score card. The final bid of $450 was made by TheJuice401 and he posted a comment which showed how ecstatic he was about the buy. You can view his video showing off the rare cart here on his YouTube channel. It’s always nice to see an item like that go to a true collector.

Here are today’s auctions…

Prototype Pokemon Hat - Any Pokemon fan will recognize this hat instantly. This hat was not meant for sale however. There’s a tog on the inside showing that it’s only a sample version of the hat. Only one day left on the auction and the current bid is very low.

Shigesato Itoi Autograph Board - For those who don’t know, Shigesato Itoi is the creator of the Mother (Earthbound) series. This autograph board appears to be dated 1985 which would mean he signed it for being known in something other than video games. This doesn’t come as a shock since Itoi is known for a large variety of work including writing and voice acting.

Legend of Zelda Majora’s Mask E3 Promo Pin - A simple pin that would be difficult to find if you were targeting it for a pin collection. There’s a mini bid war started on this auction.

Front Mission Pin Set - This set of pins was limited to 10,000 but, unfortunately, there’s a very clear crack in the front display of this set. Still, the price isn’t terrible.

Metroid Prime 2 Store Kiosk Display - You may have seen this in game stores back in 2004 framing the screen on Gamecube kiosks. The price is simply ridiculous and it may be tough to talk the seller down to something reasonable. Maybe offer a trade for a different item of similar value.

Sega Saturn Launch Promo Pin - This is a cool pin. I remember the early days of the Sega Saturn, the console’s ads were very mysterious. This pin captures that mood perfectly.

Twin Galaxies 1999 Poster - Here’s a poster that’s also a cool read. There are several dollar prizes for playing well at various games back in 1999. The seller has two of these.

Twin Galaxies 2001 Poster - Another Twin Galaxies poster but this one is from a festival in 2001. Same seller and once again, they have two.

After watching the Earthbound anthology book end for a staggering price of $810 I thought I’d do a quick search to see if there’s anything else to post for Earthbound. Little did I know this Earthbound Sealed Gold Grade of 85+ is currently running. If you think $800 for a book is expensive, wait till you see the price tag on this baby. Nothing surprises me anymore when it comes to Earthbound. I’ve seen a ruler go for $700+, a ripped poster go for $500+, and now this anthology book for $800+. Although these don’t compare really with the current price for the Gold sealed, it’s still a very competitive group of collectors. A word of advise; if you tend to enter the Earthbound collectible market, be sure to work those extra long shifts at work just to pay for some of the Earthbound items that pop up. For those who never played the game and are wondering what’s the whole deal behind expensive Earthbound collectibles; all I can say is play the game and you’ll understand what the hype is about. They don’t make games like that anymore (but I can really say about most SNES RPG games). My opinion is also biased since I was raised up with these type of games myself, but the charm will always be strong with old SNES RPG titles.

Seller says:

“This opportunity rarely comes around. This is your chance to get a VGA Gold Level copy of EarthBound for the Super Nintendo. This is THE game for this system. This game has a massive following that speaks for itself. This game has NEVER been on eBay for a No Reserve auction on a VGA Qualified Gold Level grade. This game never came Factory Sealed however it has been authenticated and verified by VGA that it was never played and received their incredibly exclusive Gold Level Grade which can be looked up and verified through their website at www.vggrader.com using serial number 73590267. Please feel free to ask questions. I have been selling games for more than 10 years on eBay. This may never happen again. The last Gold Level EarthBound went for SEVERAL thousand dollars. I have 100% positive feedback, am PayPal and ID Verified so bid with confidence.”

By the way, check out the bidders list!

Other Video Game Auctions:

Video Arcade Game 7-11 Slurpee Cup Collection – This is a really cool auction, but nevertheless very pricey. Seller says: “The first set ( 1982 ) comes in a original cardboard box made just for these cups! The second set ( 1983 ) never had a box and was just sent to the stores the following year with all its paperwork for Point Of Sale! The second set does have a plastic bag over each cup to protect it from damage. Again thats how they where shipped.”

Elder Scrolls V Skyrim Limited Edition Alduin Dragon 12″ Statue – Alduin Statue. Created in conjunction with the IP Factory, this collector’s only statue stands 12″ tall and is made of high quality PVC. Modeled from actual in-game 3D digital files, it showcases Alduin, the World Eater. He stands perched atop one the game’s many dragon walls that teach the player the lethal language of dragons
PANZER DRAGOON Sega Saturn Moebius POSTER – Quite rare to see a Panzer Dragoon poster. A copy of the game is quite exepensive and was fetching $400+ a few years back.
PANZER DRAGOON Sega Saturn POSTER – same as above
Gameline Master Module Atari 2600 – This was a cool idea back in the day. Imagine, you could download Atari games via the phone line. Seller says: “This module was intended to be used to download games to a Atari 2600 via a phone line. The games were available for a fee and were limited to only a few uses per download. There is not a whole lot of information available regarding these units.”

Also:
Gameboy Advance SP GBASP Donkey Kong Yellow Japan Complete
Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess RARE Promo Metal Commemorative Coin SDCC 2005
Pac-Man Bell Alarm Battery Clock
Autographed Minecraft Mousepad – wow.

Good luck!

You’ll find that a large portion of the auctions found below are related to action figures. I’ve always appreciated the world of collectible figures and the most valuable finds in that corner of collecting are almost always prototypes. We’ve got a few of those listed as well as some other figures of value. Most of what is listed here is quite expensive, but it’s worth the money if you simply must have it. Also, I’ve added some more affordable auctions which are pretty cool buys.

Halo 3 The Rookie Sculpt Prototype - A very rough sculpt from early development. Possibly only three is the world.

Halo 2 White Spartan Green Stripes Prototype - An unreleased version of the White Spartan Halo 2 figure.

Halo 1 Gold Elite Prototype - The seller seems to confirm that there were only three of these made.

Halo 2 Mini White Grunt Prototype - This prototype is more affordable because more were made than the above figures. They were never officially released, but the seller has three of them.

Gears of War Marcus Fenix Figure Gold Lancer Vaniant - Many collectors want to get their hands on this figure and this may be your moment to buy. The reason being that %25 of buy will go to American Red Cross.

Gears of War 3 Trashball Cole Statue - Only 100 of these out there people. This auction has been around for some time and we have actually featured it before… maybe the seller should take a hint and go down to maybe $250.

M. Bison and Dimitri Figures - Not terribly valuable, but they are up for a very nice price. Good buy for fans.

Zelda Twilight Princess Link & Epona Club Nintendo Gold Statue - This statue has sold for several times more than the current bid in the past. Keep your eye on this one guys…

Blizzard 5 Years of Service Sword - Blizzard is known for giving employees gifts for the number of years of service. This sword was given for 5 years of work.

Good afternoon VGA readers, it’s snowing like crazy where I am, where was this during the holidays? Would have been nice to see this during Christmas… oh well. We have some nice auction submissions by some of our readers which we always appreciate, it helps other collector’s see what is out there. With that said we shall begin:

First auction is for a Wii Promo Countdown Wrist Watch which was submitted by Diana (Thanks!). According to the seller it was a watch given to employees upon the Nintendo Wii’s launch. She says she bought it from a Nintendo Employee and has not worn it.

Other Video Game Auctions:

- Nintendo Bobblehead Collectibles – You`ve got a tone of great bobbleheads here including a new Link, Metroid and so on. Very pricey though and the seller only ships to the U.S.A. It`s still a nice lot.

- Final Fantasy 7 VII Crisis Core PSP - Only 7777 were made. This auction does come with other cool stuff, but when I took a look the PSP has been opened.

- Pokemon Yellow GAMEBOY collectors edition – Sure this is rare and it`s in flawless condition, but imagine if it was sealed!?! The auction is currently at $300+ with 9 hours left.

- Starfox Super Weekend official Competition Cartridge - Nice auction! comes with the rate score card. These are always in demand from collectors. Currently at $255.

- Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Launch Kit - These don`t pop up often, but it`s the launch kit for COD MW2. Has a ton of goodies in it. Auction is at $200.

- Dreamcast Game lot – 74 Games – Rare fighting titles - Seller has great titles in this lot. 74 dreamcast games and tons of great fighting titles. There’s only 14 bids at $200 which is extremely low.

- Gears of War 3 Retro Lancer Replica – These were going for $300+ when the game first came out. I actually almost bought myself one. Now they seem to be going for around $200. A nice piece of GOW 3 memorabillia.

- Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Standee New – An awesome standee to have and best of all it’s new! I seem to have been hitting the $200 auctions here.  The seller ships world wide.

- Mega Man 9 Press Kit  NEW – The story behind this is well documented on our site. Simply go to the top bar and search within the site to find more info. It’s at $200 (again!).

- Skylanders CHOP CHOP Gold Statue - This is the rarer version which is the gold version. Currently has 8 bids at $137!

- Allan Alcorn Signed Index Card – Signed by the creator of Pong! Comes with COA. Very nice auction boys and girls. (Thanks Stefan!)

- Magicard Atari 2600 Commavid Computer magic – There are apparently only two in existence. It`s at $3000 or best offer. You can read more about it as the seller gives a link. (Thanks Troy!)

- Alexey Pajitnov Signed Index Card - Same as above but signed by the creator of Tetris. Also has a COA! (Thanks Stefan!)