Super-Rare Nintendo PlayStation Prototype Controller Fetches $35K At Auction
A prototype of a Nintendo PlayStation SNES controller has sold at auction over the weekend, with the winning bid coming in at a whopping $35,000. Yes, controllers are expensive in general these days, but $35,000 could get you a decent vehicle (or at least a really nice down payment on one). So why would someone pay such an enormous sum for a controller that's over three decades old, and might not even still function? Because it falls into the 'ultra-rare collectible' category.
You may have seen or previously owned an original PlayStation 1 controller, and/or a Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) gamepad. But chances are high that you've never seen a Nintendo PlayStation SNES controller in the flesh. Heck, a lot of people don't even know it ever existed, and that's because it never graduated out of the prototype stage.
The controller was the result of a planned collaboration between Sony and Nintendo dating back to the late 1980s and early 1990s. Sony had partnered with Nintendo to develop both a CD-ROM add-on for the SNES, and a hybrid Super NES CD-ROM (SNES-CD) game console capable of playing SNES cartridges and CD-ROM games.
It was a short-lived collaboration that fell apart for various reasons, but not before some prototype hardware was made. The controller that's up for auction is one of the few surviving parts.
"This prototype, believed to be one of the last remaining from the original 200 units (most of which were reportedly destroyed), is designed with the familiar casing of a Super Nintendo controller but is branded with 'Sony PlayStation' in dark gray on the front and features much smaller "Sony PlayStation Controller" text on the back in the same color as the controller," Heritage Auctions explains on the listing page.
According to the auction site, there's no guarantee that the $35,000 controller actually functions, as it has no way of testing the controller. As such, it was sold as-is. Functionality aside, it's described as being in "very nice condition" with only a "few dings on the back." Additionally, the buttons show little sign of use.
While obviously expensive, this is a cool collectible for what could have been a interesting collaboration. Instead, Sony ended up venturing on its own with its PlayStation consoles over the years, so things still worked out in the end for gamers.
