I hope you’ve got your bank cards at the ready, because we’re about to check out the best rare Nintendo DS games of all time!
Is there anything more exciting than a rare games list? 12 games that, after seeing them in all their glory for the very first time, you’ll spend all day thinking about until you add them to your games pile.
I know the feeling all too well; I had to pick a career as a games writer just to feed my addiction!
The Nintendo DS has 2047 games under it’s dual-screen belt. Yes, we all love the Mario titles and the classic Zelda games, but what about the hidden gems, those limited releases and little-known titles and carts that slipped under the radar.
Show us where the money is!
Well, I’m here to reveal 12 rare Nintendo DS games that are worth a small fortune.
Get ready to either spend a lot of dollars or make a boatload of cash!
Table of Contents
1. The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess Trailer Preview Cartridge: $2,299
If you worry about spending money, then look away now, because The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess Trailer Preview Cartridge can sell for anywhere around $2,299!
How crazy is this; this cartridge doesn’t even have a game on it and it’s selling for thousands of dollars!
What you do get is just footage from the game in a literal advert of what people could expect to see when Twilight Princess dropped.
This recorded sale of $2,299 didn’t have any other promotional material with it either; it was just the cartridge. At the time of writing there are a couple of listing that come complete with a cardboard sign and a game pouch, and we’ll be monitoring them closely to see how much they sell for!
2. Solatorobo: Red The Hunter: $127 – $1,200
Next up on our list of rare Nintendo DS games is Solatorobo: Red The Hunter. It’s a Final Fantasy-esque game with a Zelda-ish twist, and boy is it bizarre.
How does playing a game with kitten pirates, ginormous crabs, and dog robots sound to you?
Yeah; there’s no wonder it costs a bomb to buy; that’s the description of the greatest game ever!
Once you’ve got over the crackers plot and character list, it’s time to take Red and his Robot around the stunning islands of the Shepard Republic.
There’s no time for a holiday though; there are lots of evil plots to thwart as you try to take down the dangerous Kurvaz gang!
This is a real immersive game to play, which is good considering prices start at $127! Expect to pay around $1,200 for a game box in mint graded condition.
3. Pokemon HeartGold with PokeWalker: $74 – $1,149
Pokemon HeartGold with PokeWalker is up next. So, HeartGold isn’t a rare Nintendo DS game by any stretch of the imagination, but this combo certainly is.
HeartGold is a remake of the original 1999 Gold game for the GBC, arguably one of the best Gameboy Color games ever made.
Updated for a dual-screen world and with better graphics, HeartGold brought more Pokemon to the table and changed some clunky mechanics for smoother gameplay.
HeartGold also brought the PokeWalker to our hips. It’s essentially a pedometer that counts your steps as you walk around.
Still, it does more than just count…
Players can use their Pokeball shaped pedometer to catch Pokemon, up skills, and collect Watts, the currency many of you possibly first came across in Sword and Shield.
The PokeWalker is now a sought after collector’s item, and some boxed bundles in mint condition sell for over $1,149!
4. Pokemon Distribution Cartridge: $72 – $499
The elusive Pokemon Distribution Cartridge takes the 3rd spot in this list of rare Nintendo DS games!
Like other promotional carts that were supposed to be sent back to Nintendo after use, these little beauties are worth a fortune.
Of course, sometimes little carts happen to fall into pockets or special sealed boxes for safe keeping…
… hey, it happens!
These cartridges went to shops and gave visitors the chance to obtain Pokemon at promotional events.
There are several different carts on second-hand sites, so if you’ve got money burning a hole in your pocket, then this could be a great way of beefing up your Pokemon army!
5. Veggy World: $449
It’s not just potatoes that are expensive in the handheld gaming resale market; it turns out all vegetables tend to fetch a pretty penny in Nintendo’s world!
If you’re wondering what I’m on about, check out our list of rare Gameboy games too!
We’ve already learned that vegetables and gaming make for expensive purchases back in our list of rare Gameboy games. Veggy World continues the trend, brining a price tag of $241 for a used copy.
Apparently the vegetables and the plants are at war with each other, and it’s up to our veggy pals to stop the plants from taking over the world.
I feel bad for eating all that broccoli when I should have been out stamping on roses and tulips instead!
There’s no boiling or frying in this game. Instead, players need to work through colourful levels as they stick it to the advancing plants trying to literally take over their turf.
Strawberry missiles, mushroom torpedos; they’re not weird sounding cocktails, but weaons that players can wield in this bizarre game.
Customise your veggy warriors as the game progresses and become victorious, all for the measly cost of $449…
I guess you’ve really got to like your veg to pay that amount, right?
6. Little Red Riding Hood’s Zombie BBQ: $57 – $399
Little Red Riding Hood’s Zombie BBQ runs screaming into the 4th spot on our list of the best rare Nintendo DS games of all time. It also wins the prize for the weirdest ever name, cover, and game premise of all time too.
No wonder it’s racked up a price tag of $399 for a boxed copy!
Teaming up with a lad that came out of a peach, Little Red Riding Hood (who looks more like a Virtua Fighter character than I remembered…) must take down citizens of her Fairytale land that have turned into zombies.
So it’s not the usual type of BBQ that I normally go to, but it’s definitely a lot of fun!
This is a forward scrolling shooting game in which the player continually walks towards waves of enemies. Tap the screen to shoot and move out of the way of projectiles and Zombie teeth.
It gets weirder, however.
Play through seven chapters each with three levels. As it’s Fairytale land, some of the zombie bosses at the end of each chapter are (get ready) Santa, Pinocchio, and other well known nursery rhyme and fantasy figures.
Yeah, it’s messed up… but a cartridge only costs $57 if you fancy giving it a try!
7. Commando: Steel Disaster: $43 – $320
Commando: Steel Disaster takes the 8th spot in our rare Nintendo DS games list.
This little-known classic has a very heavy Metal Slug feel to it. It’s classic run-n-gun Arcade shooting action in the palm of your hands, and at $43 for a cartridge only, it’s practically a bargain!
Players take a soldier with more bravery than sense through a mission to blow up as much stuff as possible. Take down the evil villain Rattlesnake and lay waste to the entire criminal empire along the way.
While the game looks like a NeoGeo classic, it plays a little like a huge tyre rolling down a hill. It can be frustrating at times, so make sure you play in a padded room in case you throw your DS in rage.
Collect insane weaponry and battle against memorable goons. Fire projectiles, blast fighters out of the sky, and have an explosively good time through each of the seven levels.
$320 might be steep for a boxed copy of a game that you’ve never played before, but it’s certainly a talking point and would make a great piece in your collection!
8. Super Robot Taisen OG Saga: Endless Frontier: $40 – $318
Last, but by no means least, is Super Robot Taisen OG Saga: Endless Frontier! It’s another RPG that received a limited run in the west, which means collector’s are now scrambling with cash in their hands to get their grubby little mitts on a copy.
In other words, it’s hard to get hold of.
The collectible copies are the ones that come with a Music CD bundled in with the game. I guess you’ve got to remember that podcasts weren’t as big a deal back in the day!
So what’s the deal in Endless Frontier then?
Well, this sci-fi adventure sees players taking control of Haken Browning. That’s not the kind of name you’d give to a person that asks questions first; he’s a bounty hunter who kicks ass and takes names never, making his way through war-torn worlds and into the depths of space through portals to different realms.
Yep, sounds like an RPG alright!
Grab a cartridge only copy for $40, or splash out on a boxed copy for $318!
9. Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation: $41 – $296
If Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation had been a little more readily available, it might have made our list of the best Dragon Quest games as well as this compendium of rare Nintendo DS games.
Still, at least it’s getting it’s time to shine now!
Realms of Revelation is, in fact, a brilliant game. Yes, it costs way more than a Nintendo DS title ever should have, but if you’ve got the money and love your RPGs, then you couldn’t make a better investment.
DGVI on the DS is a remake of the SNES title released back in 1995. If you’re a fan of the canon as a whole and especially for the DS, then you’ll notice similarities in style and gameplay mechanics to the other handheld titles.
The premise; stop monsters and demons from causing havoc. Work through parallel worlds as you meet NPCs, build a team of fighters, and improve skills for battles further on in the game.
Yes; it’s handheld RPG action at its finest. $296 isn’t an extortionate amount if you’re a fan of the other games, and it’s certainly a title you’ll find hard to put down.
I’m just glad we got hold of a copy back in the day; we’re never selling ours!
10. Dokapon Journey: $99 – $267
RPGs always tend to make these lists of rare games. Like many of them, Dokapon Journey never saw a release in every region around the globe, which is why the price has rocketed up to $267 for a boxed copy.
Collectors will pay mega money to get their hands on new games!
Can you defeat monsters and save a kingdom? There’s a crown and a princess waiting for you if you can, and you’ve got to beat your friends to do it!
If you ever wished that Mario Party felt more like Fire Emblem, then this is the game for you. Use strategic moves twinned with some downright dirty tactics to win, playing against friends or the computer in the greatest fight of all time.
Conquer towns, lay waste to armies, and snatch prizes right from under your opposition’s nose.
Yeah, this is my kind of game!
11. Power Bike: $51 – $209
Power Bike is a bona fide racing game with attitude. Think SSX Tricky meets Need for Speed on bikes, and you’ll get the idea.
Players find themselves thrust into the world of street racing on fast bikes, taking on courses that only people with a death wish would tackle.
Still, there’s cash to be won, and someone’s gotta show the other punks in the city how to ride like a pro.
Why is Power Bike so expensive? Well, it’s one of the only Motorcycle racing games on the DS and the only one not to feature Motocross riders.
This is the kind of Motorcycle racing you see the guys from Motley Crüe doing in their videos, although there’s probably less leather in Power Bike.
Earn cash, upgrade your bike, and pull off epic tricks to earn more points.
You can even jump trains and bridges! It’s madness, and there’s a multiplayer mode too!
12. Shepherd’s Crossing 2: $169 – $203
Shepherd’s Crossing 2 brings the question ‘how many farming simulators does the world really need?’
Well, apparently Harvest Moon isn’t the only popular title that people want to get their hands on.
Shepherd’s Crossing 2, which I can only assume was named to entice both Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing fans to the table, is a farming sim that still brings a pretty penny on auction sites.
We’re talking $203 for a boxed copy!
But how similar is this game to Harvest Moon?
Well, players look after animals (and raise them for food), tend to crops, meet people, grow vegetables, and eventually get married.
Ok, so it’s exactly the same…
Still, the story has different elements to it. There are 25 different animals to raise to adulthood (or the dinner table). Players walk around with a little duck beside them, and they can dine with friends and develop friendships.
Seb Santabarbara has bought every Nintendo console that has ever been released in his 33 years on Planet Earth. His favourite game franchise is Zelda, and he’s patiently waiting for Banjo-Kazooie to come back to the fold. When he’s not playing games, he’s travelling the world in his self-converted camper van.
