The State of Retro Gaming in Japan: Halfway through 2025 – Nintendo

With 2025 halfway over, it seemed like a good time to revisit my article about the state of Retro gaming in Japan. A lot can change in a year, so 6 months seemed like a good point to see how the hobby and the market has been changing.

Ever since retro gaming got big in western countries and prices got out of control, I’ve liked to compare the prices and inventory to those in Japan. For a while it didn’t seem like the retro boom was going to have any if much impact at all here in Japan, however slowly but surely tourists visiting Japan have had an impact. People that grew tired of paying exorbitant prices for retro games and gaming things came to Japan and picked up many things for pennies on the dollar thanks to the Yen exchange rate. This is why inventory in Akihabara in Tokyo is a shadow of what it once was in years past. The majority of tourists who game go there, and due to the lower inventories, prices have either doubled or tripled and the quality of other things has become much worse (as the stores will buy anything traded in just to have stock on their shelves). But is this true of all Japan or is it just a Tokyo thing?

In this article I hope to give my readers some insight on retro gaming as a whole in Japan. Having been part of the retro gaming scene in Japan since 2021 and having visited close to 100 stores in more than 5 prefectures, I’d like to comment on my experiences. People coming to buy retro games in Japan, or those living in Japan that want to get into the hobby would be better served if there was some information out there to help them with their choices. I’ll be covering a number of topics that I hope will be helpful:

• Quantity = How much is available as a whole for each game system
• Quality = What level of quality buyers can expect of goods
• Price = How much buyers can expect to pay for goods

I will then be going into more depth on each of these topics by covering the quantity, quality, and price (QQP) of hardware (consoles), software (games), and accessories. After that I’ll comment on the health for each category with high, moderate, or low. For example, Something could be in High Quantity (large number) but Low Quality (many loose games, not many with boxes) and moderate price (affordable but not a deal). For a full description of each meaning please check below.

• High Quantity = Large number of products, very easy to find
• Moderate Quantity = Medium number of products, popular products harder to find
• Low Quantity = small number of products, popular products very hard to find

• High Quality = Most products will have boxes and be complete, not damaged
• Moderate Quality = Half of the products might be without box/manuals, some scratches or damage on things
• Low Quality = very few products have manuals/boxes, bad batteries, many products with damage

• High Price = You can expect to pay close to the western price for these products
• Moderate Price = Some good deals if you look around, very affordable compared to outside of Japan
• Low Price = Very cheap, easy to buy, amazing deals

I can’t honestly say I’ve been following ALL of the inventory, the prices, and the quality of products for EVERY platform but I will do my best to comment on how I’ve seen these products change from the start of 2025 to the middle of the year.

Nintendo Products

Famicom (NES)

• Hardware(Console): Moderate quantity, Low Quality, moderate price
• Software(Games): High quantity, low quality, low price
• Accessories: low quantity (high for clones), low quality, moderate price

There hasn’t been much of a change with Famicom things. The number of games, though unboxed, is still rather high, and the prices haven’t really changed. It’s not usually that popular with tourists so you don’t see products flying off the shelves like you do with other consoles. The majority of buyers for these types of games are probably going to be Japanese collectors. Due to its high inventory and low cost, lots of video game bars/cafes use this system. Still seems like it’s for the casual crowd in my opinion.

Super Famicom (SNES)

• Hardware (Console): moderate quantity, low/moderate quality, low price
• Software (Games): High quantity, moderate quality, moderate price
• Accessories: moderate quantity, moderate quality, moderate price

There have been a few changes with the Super Famicom since January. Boxed games from popular series such as Metroid, Final Fantasy, or other Squaresoft games have been going up in price. It seems to have become popular with tourists to pick up the boxed Japanese version of these games and put them on their shelves as a souvenir, which has pushed some of the prices up. Games like Final Fantasy 6, which used to be around 2000 yen at the highest have doubled or tripled in price in some areas. While the majority of games and the system itself is still rather affordable, rarer games might cause you to pause before opening up your wallet.

I’ve also noticed more Super Famicom accessories showing up than before for some reason. Mario Paint is much easier to find now, as well as the occasional Super Scope. There have also been some storage containers/shelves for Super Famicoms and their games at some stores I’ve visited, and even plastic storage cases for the games themselves.

Gameboy/Gameboy Color

• Hardware (Console): Moderate quantity, moderate/low quality, Moderate/high price
• Software (Games): high quantity, moderate quality, moderate/high price
• Accessories: low quantity, low quality, moderate price

For some reason I feel like there are more Gameboy systems for sale in Japan now than before. I think the reason for this is the increased price foreigners are willing to pay for them, and because of this they’ve raised their buylists at stores to get more in stock. It’s not a huge price increase, but it is noticeable. You used to be able to get Gameboy Colors for under 10,000 yen, but now the average price seems be hovering around 10k-12k yen. It is much harder to find cheaper ones now in or near bigger cities.

It also seems like stores are selling more boxed games than before (or it could just be that the stock of loose games is lower now). You’ll still see a lot of loose games, but I think that stores are giving more shelf space to boxed Gameboy games these days. I’ve seen a large increase in the prices of Kirby, Zelda, and Pokemon games, as well as other first party software. Pokemon games especially have almost doubled in price since last year and I only see them going up as long as tourists keep buying them.

Nintendo 64

• Hardware (Console): moderate quantity, moderate quality, moderate price
• Software (Games): high quantity, moderate quality, low/moderate price
• Accessories: moderate quantity, moderate quality, low/moderate price

Nintendo 64 games and systems seem to be picking up in popularity lately, but not enough to move prices upward that much. It is still pretty easy to find consoles, boxed games, and containers full of loose games at retro stores as well. Just as with the other Nintendo systems, the more popular games are inching upwards, but there aren’t too many on people’s radars at the moment.

Gameboy Advance

• Hardware (Console): moderate quantity, moderate/low quality, high price
• Software (Games): moderate quantity, moderate quality, moderate/high price
• Accessories: low quantity, moderate quality, low/moderate price

Gameboy Advance consoles are as popular as they ever have been, with all models seeing in increase in price. You would be lucky to find anything under 10,000 yen these days. 12,000 seems to be the new average for unboxed systems, with boxed ones coming in at closer to 20,000 yen. If you`re buying them in big cities you can expect to pay about 20-30% higher than that.

It also seems like there are fewer Gameboy Advance games out there than last year as well. Don`t get me wrong, there are still a lot, but it does feel like there are less than Gameboy games these days. One reason for this is the popularity of the Pokemon games. Just like the Gameboy version, the GBA versions have gone up a lot as well, more than doubling in price from last year. They can get ridiculously expensive in places like Tokyo, and to be honest I haven’t seen a good price on them in a while. There hasn’t been too much movement at the high end of GBA software (like your Metroids or Castlevanias), but it does seem like the cheaper stuff is a few hundred yen more than before.

Gamecube

• Hardware (Console): moderate quantity, low/moderate quality, moderate price
• Software (Games): low/moderate quantity, low/moderate quality, moderate price
• Accessories: moderate quantity, low quality, moderate price

As somebody who is always looking for Gamecube grail games, I think it’s getting harder and harder to find good games on this system. Mario Kart Double Dash, Fire Emblem, Smash Bros. Melee, and even games that were remade like Metroid Prime are not only more expensive now but in shorter supply. Every store I’ve visited recently seems to have the same type of games again and again (party, puzzle, and sports games). The number of games you’ll find hasn’t decreased a lot, but it does feel like there is less variety. On the hardware front, boxed systems seem to be harder to find, but unboxed ones are still rather plentiful. Other than that I haven’t seen too many other changes with the Gamecube. It has always been in rather short supply and most stores will have few games to none available now.

Nintendo DS

• Hardware (Console): Moderate quantity, low/moderate quality, low price
• Software (Games): moderate/high quantity, moderate quality, low/moderate price
• Accessories: low quantity, moderate quality, low price

The number of DS games in the wild is finally starting to go down after a few years. You used to always see shelves and shelves of them, so much so that the inventory would dwarf that of the 3DS, but these days they seem to be on par with each other. Instead of finding 2 DS games to 1 3DS game, it’s now about equal. I don’t think there is anything to worry about at the moment if you want to get some games, but I do think stock of the good games will be dwindling in another year or so. There are still a lot of DS games out there for good deals, but the Pokemon effect has started to push games upwards the on Nintendo DS as well. Pokemon Gold/Silver, Diamond/Pearl, and Platinum have all gone up about 20-30% in price, with complete Gold and Silver boxes with pedometer going for over 10,000 yen easily now in most places (if not more). Consoles are still pretty cheap, but you’ll have to be careful with quality when you pick them up. Check those hinges, look for screen discoloration, and work those buttons well. You can find a lot of the DS lites and DSi for around 4000-6000 yen still, but they aren’t always in great condition and coming with all of pieces.

Nintendo Wii

• Hardware (Console): high quantity, moderate/low quality, low price
• Software (Games): high quantity, high quality, low price
• Accessories: high quantity, moderate/low quality, low price

There hasn’t really been much change with Nintendo Wii stuff over the last half year. If anything, I would say the games and systems have gotten even cheaper. I’ve seen unboxed consoles with just the cables for less than 2000 yen in some places, and plenty of games can be picked up for less than 1000 yen. It’s a good system to start with if you are getting into retro gaming in Japan.

Nintendo Wii U

• Hardware (Console): Low/moderate quantity, moderate quality, moderate price
• Software (Games): moderate quantity, high quality, low/moderate price
• Accessories: moderate quantity, moderate/low quality, moderate/low prices

If Wii prices have been moving slowly, then I would say the Wii U prices are moving even slower. With Nintendo Gamecube going online on Switch 2, and a number of remakes already coming out on the Switch, there really isn’t a lot of demand for the Wii U. There are fans of the system, but I feel like the Wii U will end up being like the Gamecube in the future. There will probably be a popularity boom of young adults wanting to relive their childhood in a few years that will take inventory off the shelves and then the games will slowly dwindle to almost nothing. Still a long ways off from that though.

Nintendo 3DS

• Hardware (Console): moderate quantity, moderate quality, moderate/high prices
• Software (Games): moderate/high quantity, moderate/high quality, low/moderate prices
• Accessories: low/moderate quantity, low/moderate quality, low/moderate prices

The prices of the 3DS consoles have slowly been inching up, with the LL (XL) types being the most popular. The limited edition Nintendo 3DS have seen the biggest increase in prices. These handheld systems are still rather popular with people in Japan, more so than the Nintendo DS because of the backwards compatibility. Luckily the system is region locked so they aren’t flying off the shelves, but that might not stop people for long as prices overseas continue to go up for the handheld. It feels like the 3DS is in a sweet spot right now. It’s retro but not too old, it’s not prohibitively expensive, and there are still a lot of games available for it at thrift stores/used shops. If you’re thinking of grabbing a 3DS in Japan, keep an eye out for good deals because they might not be affordable for much longer.

To Be Continued

There hasn’t been a big change in Nintendo products since my last article but there is definitely a gradual upward trend happening. As long as tourists continue to visit and buy things I don’t see that trend abating or slowly down.

I’ll be moving on to Sony systems and games with my next article when I have the time so be sure to check that out once it’s posted. I also want to apologize for the lack of updates lately. A combination of my PC dying and having to be replaced coupled with a busy work schedule not only stopped me from blogging for a while but also visiting retro game shops for the last month or so. Hopefully I’ll be able to get back to regular postings over the next month or so.

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