In tech-nerd land the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) game STADIUM EVENTS has long been a Holy Grail among Nintendo die hards.

Why? Not the console itself, but one of the games bundled with it — a deeply obscure 1987 release called Stadium Events, a highly sought-after collectors’ item. But it wasn’t even the game itself that was worth the bulk of the money — it was the original cardboard box, which collectors value at a breathtaking $10,000. Fewer than 10 complete copies of the game are thought to exist, and retro gaming aficionados consider it one of the hardest-to-find NES games ever made.

Just this past week lace_thongs35 (great eBay name btw, what’s her #?) put an original NES game system along with five games on eBay for auction.  She was hoping to get maybe $50 bucks, but she was quickly surprised when bidding escalated over $6,000 within an hour and closed at over $13,000.

The reason, of course being, that one of the five included games was the sacred STADIUM EVENTS.

I think my good friend Justin Page had this game growing up. I remember playing this game, or something very similar, over at his parent’s house back in the day. I might ask him, and if he still has it, see if I can trade him Excite Bike and Commando for it.