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Trading cards have seen a massive increase in secondary market interest over the last year, and rare cards have gone for big bucks. We’ve seen this a lot with Pokemon cards, but one rare Nintendo card just sold for a stunning $10,600 on eBay! The card in question is a Kirby “first prize” card compatible with the Game Boy Advance e-Reader. At E3 2002, Nintendo gave away these Kirby cards inside packs that included Pokemon and Game & Watch e-Reader cards. Scanning the Kirby card told the user if they had won first prize, second prize, or no prize. Winning cards were mostly destroyed, making these the rarest cards ever made for the peripheral.
Three packs of the cards were discovered by Twitter user @robertjanderson. Anderson opened the packs and scanned each card using the GBA e-Reader device. One of these cards was a first prize winner, and while it’s far too late to redeem the card, @robertjanderson got a very nice prize when they put the winning card on eBay! An image of the card can be seen in the Tweet embedded below.
2 weeks ago, I opened a box and it changed my weekend… @hitsaveorg @Kotaku @nintendolife @IGN @destructoid #2002e3KirbyeReader pic.twitter.com/Ys3fZdCVAe
— ÅndersonCentral (@robertjanderson) July 20, 2021
For those unfamiliar with Nintendo’s e-Reader, the device was a short-lived accessory for the Game Boy Advance. Released in 2002, users could swipe bar-codes through the device for various reasons. Some unlocked games (as in the Manhole Game & Watch card above), and some even unlocked content in games like Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire and Super Mario Advance 4. In the days before DLC was a common thing, the cards actually served as a crude way for Nintendo to release extra content for some games.
While this Kirby card’s purpose has long past, its rarity clearly makes it a very cool collector’s item. It’s impossible to say whether this item landed in the hands of a big Kirby fan, or maybe just someone that loves rare video game merchandise. Still, it’s amazing to see that this item exists and was able to generate such massive demand!
Did you own the Game Boy Advance e-Reader? Are you surprised this card sold for so much money? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!
[H/T: Nintendo Life]