The Rarest and Most Valuable Sega Saturn Games

Presented by Racketboy and G to the Next Level

The Sega Saturn is definitely one of the leading consoles among hardcore classic gamers. Its strong selection of unique and engaging 2D games keeps it relevant a decade after its premature demise. While many of the Saturn’s best games were not adequately appreciated at the time of their release, word-of-mouth discussions online have boosted many of these games to underground stardom.

Prices Current As of May 2023

Three factors can be attributed to much of the rise in Saturn game values:

  • The large jewel cases and artwork are fragile and getting harder to find in pristine condition.
  • Dedicated collectors are also ensuring that all inserts are included with the manual.  Auctions that make this clear will also fetch a premium price.
  • Many of the Saturn’s best games have still not been ported to other consoles.
  • A new generation of retro gamers are just now discovering what the Saturn has to offer.
  • While emulation of the console has improved a lot over the last decade, fast and accurate emulation can still be challenging.

In stark contrast to the Cheapest Games series, this Rare and Valuable series will give you insights into the top collectibles for the platform. Armed with this guide, you’ll know what to look for whether you are buying or selling. Below you will see two prices beside each title. The first is the selling price for a bare disc (or disc, case and artwork for PAL and JP games). The second price is the highest price in the past three months which is usually a pristine, complete copy. In some cases, you’ll also see a higher dollar value for the average sealed copy. The list is ordered by the balance of the two main prices.

RECENT GROWTH OF NORTH AMERICAN RETAIL GAMES

With four full years since our last guide revision, it was easy to notice a lot of ranking shifting with the North American retail releases.   I decided to chart out the major movers.  In the chart below I compared the average pricing between the different average loose/rough price levels for a game and their highest mint copy sale during the time frame.  I compared those averages between our 2019 guide and this 2023 guide to calculate the value growth percentage.  If you’d like to see the full 2019 guide for comparison, I have made it available to my Patreon members. (Only $1 of support or more is needed to access)

After the chart, we will dig into the details of the top North American, Japanese, and PAL Saturn games — we have a lot to cover!

Most Valuable North American Saturn Games

Daytona USA CCE Net Link Edition: $2,500 – $4,800

Although commonly thought to be Panzer Dragoon Saga, this NetLink version of Daytona USA: CCE is in fact the rarest North American Sega Saturn game. Only available for sale through Sega’s online store, its almost total indistinguishability from the regular version of Daytona USA: CCE makes the title even more rare.

The only notable differences are found only when opening the case up, which features a black and white NetLink booklet underneath the standard booklet, and the disc has a NetLink logo and “Not for Resale” markings. (See here for photos)

For those of you that don’t know, the Netlink was Sega’s modem-based add-on for the Sega Saturn that allowed for online multiplayer gaming. Daytona CCE was one out of only five games released that are compatible with the add-on, which also includes Sega Rally Championship Plus, Virtual On, Duke Nukem 3D, and Saturn Bomberman.

A decade ago in 2008, this variant’s legend was beginning to grow and overtaking Saga in the rankings, but could still be scored in the $250 to $300 range.  By 2019, however, it was hitting 5X to 6X that mark.  But post-2020 collecting rush, it has more than doubled again since then.

Check for Daytona USA CCE Net Link Edition on eBay

Panzer Dragoon Saga: $550 – $2,150 ($2,500 sealed)

Panzer Dragoon was an iconic, yet under-appreciated franchise of on-rails shooters, yet the third game in the series actually was a deep role-playing game that is loved by critics and has a very devoted following. Many experienced gamers even consider it one of the very best RPGs of all time and it was one of the definitive games in the Saturn library.

Over time the game has become a legendary treasure, not purely in terms of collector’s value, but its true status as a game. It would be ideal for Sega to republish the game, but there is tragically a rumored backstory of the game’s source code being lost forever. Between this potential mishap and a small initial print run, too many people missed out on playing this gem of an RPG. Perhaps someday the game will be remade from scratch for more gamers to experience.

It’s a shame that Panzer Dragoon Saga came out at the end of the Saturn’s short life. It was one of the last five games released in North America with an initial production run was 6,000 (not even enough to fill pre-orders) but by the end of the game’s run, only 30,000 copies were produced by Sega.

Panzer Dragoon Saga has always been one of the most valuable games in the Saturn’s library. With four discs and many owners never wanting to part with it, you’ve always had to save up for it (unless you found it in clearance bins after the Saturn’s demise). I’m pretty sure back in 2000 — just a few years after the Saturn died, the game usually sold for $100 to $120. In 2008, it weighed in at $200 to $240. Bare discs actually have only gradually increased since then, but mint copies have gradually climbed to dramatic heights.

Check for Panzer Dragoon Saga on eBay
Check for Panzer Dragoon Saga on Amazon

Burning Rangers: $500 – $1,000

Opting out of making a 3D Sonic the Hedgehog game, Yuji Naka and Sonic Team created a 3D engine to use for the cult favorite, NiGHTS into Dreams, and then using that game engine to develop the outer space firefighting epic Burning Rangers.

This late Saturn title is a sci-fi style game that focuses on extinguishing flames and rescuing civilians as the future’s primary heroic pursuit. Its colorful, not-quite-so-serious atmosphere combined with one of the catchiest soundtracks of the era, over the years Burning Rangers rose from the obscurity of being a cult favorite throughout recent years. Sega has even plugged in subtle nods and easter eggs to the it in current games such as Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed.

Burning Rangers remains one of the most interesting and innovative Saturn exclusives despite having awkward controls. The game was well-received by those that played it at the time, but it was one of the final five games released for the Saturn in North America, with only 5,000 copies produced. It can be imported from Japan for much cheaper, but since the game uses English voiceovers for in-game directions, it may not be import-friendly.

Since the Saturn’s afterlife, Burning Rangers has remained to be one of the most valuable and collectible titles in the library and was considered a definitive part of the Saturn library. Back in 2008, you could get a copy for $70 to $90. Over the decade that followed, bare discs increased in value about 40% while pristine copies jumped 3X to 4X their 2008 values.  However, in just last 5 years since 2018, Burning Rangers has had one of the largest surges — going up another 400% from already-lofty values.

Check for Burning Rangers on eBay
Check for Burning Rangers on Amazon

Magic Knight Rayearth: $450 – $1,000 ($1,400 sealed)

In the 32-Bit era, Working Designs as a publisher is always the sign of a gem, and throughout the years their titles have developed a cult following and normally have a higher value attached to them.

Developed and published by Sega in Japan but published by Working Designs in North America, Magic Knight Rayearth is an Action-RPG that is an adaptation of the popular anime and manga of the same name. For fans of the series, the game does an outstanding job of being faithful to the source material.

According to the manual of the US version, some of the original Japanese source code was lost and was completely rebuilt during the localization. Many of the development team behind Rayearth would go on to become part of Sega’s Overworks, and would later work on other iconic Sega games such as Skies of Arcadia.

Rayearth was supposedly limited to about 15,000 units upon its release. It was released at the very end of 1998, making it the very last game released for the Sega Saturn in the United States.

While it’s never really been cheap, it’s easy been one of the fastest-growing Working Designs titles among collectors.

Check for Magic Knight Rayearth on eBay
Check for Magic Knight Rayearth on Amazon

Sega Ages: $220 – $1,000

The Sega Ages franchise began on the Sega Saturn as a way of sharing some of the company’s classic games (mostly arcade titles, but there were console title instances like Phantasy Star Collection). Sega actually released a handful of individual titles under the Sega Ages moniker in Japan. However, there was a compilation that was released in North America and Europe that contains arcade-perfect ports of Space Harrier, OutRun, and After Burner II.

While Sega published the compilation in Europe, Working Designs published the North American piece with the special printing treatments the publisher is famous for, under its “SPAZ” publishing tier. The logos on the cover have a holographic foil that just can’t be fully appreciated in photos. Working Designs typically handled Japanese RPGs that would typically never make it to the US, but this is probably one of their least-known productions as one would assume Sega published it themselves. It also didn’t have much publicity or word-of-mouth.

This compilation has never been easy to find, but if you could track one down, you used to be able to score it for $20 to $40 up until 2014. Because many collectors still weren’t aware of it, you could still sometimes find it for $50 complete back in the 2010s. However, in 2016 it became more well-known and rose to the higher realms of collectability.

Check for Sega Ages on eBay
Check for Sega Ages on Amazon

Mega Man 8: $300 – $890

Mega Man 8 served as the 10th Anniversary of the legendary Capcom platforming series and was its first entry in the 32-bit era. Though it came after the Mega Man X series which took the series in a different direction, Mega Man 8 served as a throwback to the original style of games from the NES collection.

Anyone who has played a Mega Man game before will feel right at home with the Mega Man 8, with gorgeous hand-drawn graphics and anime FMV cutscenes, complete with infamously bad voice acting. You take on Dr “Wiwy” and a new slew of robot masters to conquer.

Classic Mega Man games always tend to command a higher price but the Saturn version of Mega Man 8 has risen to a much higher amount than the Playstation version and is one of the most sought-after games on the Sega Saturn.

Being a solid, mainline Mega Man title, 8 commanded a reasonable $33 to $60 range in 2008. It has since seen steady, compounding growth in recent in the recent decade. This is especially impressive when you consider the PlayStation version of Mega Man 8 can easily be found for $30 or less and you have modern compilation options that include the game.

Check for Mega Man 8 on eBay
Check for Mega Man 8 on Amazon

The House of the Dead: $280 – $900

A port of the cult-classic light gun arcade game, House of the Dead was one of the last games released on the Saturn and didn’t sell many copies despite its success in the arcades. The series has received many sequels in arcades and consoles, but the original is the hardest to find in its original console form.

The Saturn version has all the arcade areas, plus some new branching levels. You can also play with some additional characters. Unfortunately, the graphics have lower resolution and frame rates.

Much like most of the other last Sega games released for the Saturn (Shining Force III, Burning Rangers, and House of the Dead) there were only about 5000 units produced of the game. It held a solid $60 to $80 range a decade ago, but those complete copies have been really taking off in recent years.

In the 2020s, in particular, The House of the Dead has climbed higher into the top rankings for Saturn collectors.  Complete copies have nearly tripled just since their 2019 levels.

Check for House of the Dead on eBay
Check for House of the Dead on Amazon

Battlesport: $160 – $855

This is one of those games that I didn’t even know existed until recent years. Even though the Sega Saturn is one of the console libraries I explored the most, I must have just skimmed over the generic-sounding title and never heard anyone recommend it over the years. It turns out, that diehard fans of the 3DO will probably be more familiar with Battlesport.

For those of you that are familiar with the console wars of the mid-90s, Battlesport will quickly remind you of the type of game that showed up on the 3DO console. American developers were often experimenting with how to use the new 3D capabilities and evolving traditional game genres into new experiences. Battlesport was one such example that attempted to merge a futuristic sports concept (similar to hockey or soccer) with hovercraft mechanics. It actually ends with the feel of an area shooter game with a fast 3D engine but with some intentional limitations. It’s actually an interesting gameplay experience that uses those limitations as a way to focus the gameplay.

The Sega Saturn version is much harder to come by than either the original 3DO release or the Playstation port (there was also a Windows PC version). Both of the other versions can easily be found for between $15 and $30 but the Saturn version has drastically increased in value. Just in the last few years, more Saturn collectors have been trying to round out their collections and are discovering how truly hard to find this particular port is. Up until the end of 2014, you could find the Saturn version for $20 or less, but quickly jumped to the $70 range the next couple of years before spiking to a $200 to $300 range at the end of 2017.  The 2020s, have seen it more than double in value since then.

Check for Battlesport on eBay
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Lunacy: $180 – $630 ($900 Sealed)

You may have thought that FMV games lived and died on the Sega CD, but the Sega Saturn still saw some games that carried on some of the techniques used in the adolescent eras of video game consoles.

Instead of using video of actors like many Sega CD games, Lunacy is an interactive movie adventure the utilizes CGI animation for characters and environments. The presentation also gives off some serious Myst vibes as well. The game was developed by System Sacom, which previously developed Mansion of Hidden Souls (which was on the Sega CD and Sega Saturn).

The game was known as Torico in Japan and was localized by Sega’s staff and published in North America by Atlus. Even though it had clearly improved on many of the weaknesses of the Sega CD era of FMV games and had some redeeming qualities, it was enough to garner widespread appeal.

Less than a decade ago, you could find a copy of Lunacy for $20 to $60 — about what you would expect for an uncommon/obscure Saturn title. However, at the end of 2015 we really started seeing a spike into the $100 to $150 range — and it’s just been increasing since then.

Check for Lunacy on eBay
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Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean: $105 – $650

Albert Odyssey: Legend of Eldean is an RPG that was originally developed for the Super Famicom in Japan but was ported to the Saturn by Working Designs as the SNES was losing ground in retail. This title was the first in the series to receive an English localization and the first to feature traditional turn-based role-playing elements as opposed to tactical, strategy-based gameplay. The presentation was pure 2D, but the sprite artwork was beautiful and wonderfully complemented the classic gameplay.

Legend of Eldean sold well during its original release in Japan, enough to warrant Sega’s “Saturn Collection” distinction and budget re-release in 1997 as the localized version was issued by Working Designs in the States. t’s not surprising that the game didn’t sell quite as well in North America and Working Designs typically kept their print runs modest. However, their attention to detail in localization and their beautiful foiled packaging artwork always made each of their productions feel like a collectable work of art.

Much like most other Working Designs games, Albert Odyssey has held its value quite well since it’s original release, gradually appreciating in value along the way. For perspective, it could be found in the $40 to $100 range back in 2008 depending on condition but has compounded nicely over the last decade.

Check for Albert Odyssey on eBay
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Saturn Bomberman: $190 – $560

The most well-known out of the three Bomberman games released on the Saturn (as the other two were never released outside of Japan), this version of the popular multiplayer blast-a-thon became known to fans as a definitive edition of Bomberman through being the only game in the series with support for 10 characters on screen at once and the first in the series with online play via Sega’s Netlink service.

Hudson Soft even added in some easter eggs in this release such as including other Hudson characters such as Bonk (Bonk’s Adventure) and Higgins (Adventure Island), as well as releasing special Bomberman-themed Saturn controllers and multitaps.

A late release for the system and limited print run aside, Saturn Bomberman became a wanted item on many Saturn collectors’ want list for being one of the most memorable additions to a classic franchise that is still going on today.

From 2000 to 2014, Saturn Bomberman remained moderately priced. In 2008 we had it pegged at a $52 to $79 range, but starting in 2015, it really gained a lot of steam and ramped up to its current levels.

Check for Saturn Bomberman on eBay
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Mega Man X4: $125 – $510

Though it is the Blue Bomber’s second addition to the ‘X’ series on the Saturn (the first being Mega Man X3 which was not released in North America), Mega Man X4 was the first in the series for the 32-bit generation.

This biggest addition to Mega Man X4 is the ability to play as Mega Man’s partner, the sword-wielding Zero, as a playable character from the start, as opposed to him just being on the side. Aside from that, X4 stays true to the traditions of the series: pick any stage you want in any order, defeat the bosses (known as “Mavericks” in this series instead of the Master Robots), gain their abilities, and take on Sigma yet again.

Though an offshoot of the main titles, the Mega Man X games have gained a following for its deeper and more serious tone, and X4 includes new FMV cutscenes and the lengthy dialog sequences between characters that the series is known for.

Much like the above-mentioned Mega Man 8, X4 has steadily increased from its modest 2008 pricing ($15 to $61 range for X4) to where it is now. And like MM8, this seems to be a pure Saturn collecting (or completist Mega Man) play as the Playstation version can be found $15 or less, plus the modern compilation releases.

Check for Mega Man X4 on eBay
Check for Mega Man X4 on Amazon

Shining Force III: $135 – $475

Sega’s iconic strategy RPG trilogy began on the Sega Genesis/Megadrive, but ended as the Sega Saturn’s retail life drew to a close. The third major Shining Force installment actually was designed as three scenario releases, but with the Sega Saturn’s life being cut short, Shining Force III Parts 2 and 3 never made it outside of Japan.

Shining Force III joined Burning Rangers, Panzer Dragoon Saga, Magic Knight Rayearth, and House of the Dead as the final five Saturn games released in North America. Since Sega knew there was waning demand at the time, they only produced about 5000 copies of this first Scenario.

Much like most of these iconic final releases, we’ve never seen a re-release of this cult classic (and the community has depended on fan translations to play Parts 2 and 3 in English). With this in mind, it is actually surprising that we have seen loose discs decrease just a bit from their $89 price points in 2008. However, a pristine copy used to be able to be tracked down for $100 to $115 a little over a decade ago.

Check for Shining Force III on eBay
Check for Shining Force III on Amazon

Herc’s Adventures: $185 – $400

This overhead action adventure game from LucasArts was released on both the Playstation and Saturn, but focused on the 2D animation the studio was known for instead of joining the 3D crowd in the 32-bit era. With its style of gameplay, animation and humor, some have considered Herc’s Adventures to be a spiritual successor to Zombies Ate My Neighbors (and its sequel, Ghoul Patrol).

Herc’s Adventure had some unfortunate timing, however. It came out literally a month after the Disney animated film, Hercules, so in the general retail scene a lot of gamers might have thought it was cheap licensed/knockoff and got lost in the shuffle. If the Hercules movie had been a huge hit, maybe it would have helped, but it didn’t really appeal to the game’s target market. Neither version of the game is especially easy to find, but the Saturn version can command 2 to 3 times the value of the PS1 version — mostly likely because of the collectibility of the system and the difficulty of keeping those Saturn games pristine.

Back in our 2008 guide, we had Herc’s Adventure down on our “Additional Games of Value” section while being in the $33 to $57 range. This interesting game was still pretty under the radar even a decade after its release. It didn’t really get much of a bump in value until 2016/2017 as collectors were circulating around interesting rarities.

Check for Herc’s Adventures on eBay
Check for Herc’s Adventures on Amazon

Street Fighter Collection: $160 – $400 ($270 Sealed)

The Saturn was always one of the very best consoles for 2D fighters and Capcom put out a great showing for the sprite powerhouse. Among a lot of excellent stand-alone titles, they also published one of their first Street Fighter compilations in the form of the Street Fighter Collection.

The disc includes direct CPS II arcade ports of Super Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, and an enhanced version of Street Fighter Alpha 2 titled Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold, which is exclusive to this compilation. To top things off, the beautiful cover art displays nicely in the fragile, but treasured Saturn cases.

Despite Capcom putting out more excellent Street Fighter compilations in recent years, the Saturn’s Street Fighter Collection has still appreciated nicely in value. Back in 2008, the compilation didn’t even make our “Additional Games of Value” section — weighing in at about $30 for a copy. It’s been a very gradual but steady rise since then, but getting a jump to about $100 – $120 range in 2016.

Check for Street Fighter Collection on eBay
Check for Street Fighter Collection on Amazon

Virtua Fighter Remix (Longbox): $220 – $320

When the Saturn launched, Sega fans were especially excited to see many of the company’s cutting-edge arcade titles recieve near-perfect ports on a powerful new console. While Virtua Fighter (and Virtua Racing) did receive impressive ports to the 32X, most gamers held out for the Saturn.

Under pressure to release the console promptly to fend off the Playstation, Sega kept tight deadlines and the Virtua Fighter port, while relatively solid, had some graphical imperfections. After learning on how to better utilize the Saturn hardware, Sega quietly released Virtua Fighter Remix as a pack-in title. It was also available as a free mail-in title for those that registered their Saturn console by a certain date.

However, Sega did end up producing a full retail version of Virtua Fighter Remix that was packaged in the more typical North American long box jewel cases as opposed to the CD-sized jewel case packaging for free versions. A lot Saturn collectors over the years didn’t even realize the longbox variant existed, but it’s starting to become a treasured collector’s piece — especially for those that like a consistent shelf presentation.

Check for Virtua Fighter Remix (Longbox) on eBay

Shining Wisdom: $120 – $400

The first of the “Shining” series to step away from first-person dungeon crawler or strategy RPG traditions, Shining Wisdom shares more with The Legend of Zelda than its more well-known titles. Using pre-rendered CG sprites rather than 3D models and a top-down free-moving environment, it took a vast detour from the anime grid-based combat style that the series is known for.

Just like Magic Knight Rayearth, Shining Wisdom was not published by Sega in America and Working Designs would take the publishing rights as part of their “Working Designs Ultra Series,” which also includes Popful Mail and Lunar on Sega CD, as well as the aforementioned Albert Odyssey, resulting in the game fetching a rather high amount of value throughout the years.

Working Designs made quite a few changes to the US version which were met with mixed responses from the audience. Though originally a follow-up to the Mega Drive’s Shining Force II, Working Designs removed any traces of backstory to the previous Shining games in the franchise as nearly all the character names were changed, as well as adding their trademark flair for pop-culture references.

Check for Shining Wisdom: on eBay
Check for Shining Wisdom: on Amazon

Resident Evil: $102 – $360

As one of the Defining Games in the Survival Horror genre, it would be an understatement to say that Resident Evil has been one of the most influential games/series in the game industry over the last few decades.  While the Playstation may have seen the original release of the game, there has been growing interest from collectors for this harder-to-find port.

Despite it being tricky to find a mint copy in the wild these days, the Saturn version of Resident Evil wasn’t especially difficult to afford in the 2010s and prior.  Through most of the decade, you could score the game for $20 to $40, depending on the condition.

Later in the decade, collectors started paying a bit more of a premium for complete copies, but even then, it was mostly around the $80 mark.  However, with retro game collecting kicking into gear in the 2020s, this early example of a landmark game became more of a showpiece for certain collectors.

Check for Resident Evil on eBay
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Shining The Holy Ark: $90 – $350

Throughout most of the Shining series’ history, the games have been strategy-based RPGs, but Shining The Holy Ark was the first Shining game to be a pure Japanese RPG but ties nicely into the rest of the series.

The game utilizes first-person perspective for dungeons and battles. The gameplay is most similar to the Genesis classic, Shining in the Darkness as the player explores towns and dungeons in the first-person view, with battles almost exclusively taking place in dungeons.

Check for Shining The Holy Ark on eBay
Check for Shining The Holy Ark on Amazon

Guardian Heroes: $100 – $335

One of the original cult classics on the Sega Saturn, Guardian Heroes is a beat-em-up from fan-favorite developer Treasure with a unique control scheme, branching paths, and role-playing elements (giving you the ability to level up and focus the skills that you choose). It arrived on the Saturn fairly late in the console’s lifespan but always came recommended after the machine’s death because of its unique gameplay and interesting 2D graphical techniques.

Given Treasure’s pedigree and the general lack of beat-em-ups on the Saturn, Guardian Heroes often comes up in the conversation of both system superfans and those just dipping their toes in Saturn collecting. A sequel was made for the Game Boy Advance in Advance Guardian Heroes but unfortunately was not well-received by fans (and was not even published by Sega themselves).

Guardian Heroes has always been one of the more in-demand and pricey games for the system. However, after a high-quality remake on Xbox Live Arcade, a bare disc has actually calmed down 25% from the $80 level a decade ago. However, with mint, complete copies of Saturn games showing a premium, the high price range doubles from 2008’s $100 level to today’s $200 mark. You could even go back to 2006’s $40 to $50 level (see the affordability section in this review)) for a complete copy.

Check for Guardian Heroes on eBay

Dragon Force: $85 – $325

Among the impressive RPGs that Working Designs brought to North America, Dragon Force is one of the biggest standouts — especially for those that enjoy strategy.

Dragon Force’s gameplay system feels more like Ogre Battle than the likes of Shining Force or Fire Emblem. Instead of managing individual units on a grid, you manage the entire army down to the last general. These generals can control up to 100 troops each and each set of troops feature different classes such as basic infantry, cavalry, archers, monks, and more. Watching the battles play out is fascinating. Watching up to 200 sprite-based characters battle it out without slowdown is not only mesmerizing but an impressive technical feat on the Saturn’s hardware.

Throughout your campaigns, you capture, fortify, and defend castles and you live through eight finely crafted, but connected storylines. Each of the scenarios are quite long and rewarding, but it makes for a seemingly endless amount of deployability. If you are a strategy enthusiast, this depth is what makes it worth the steep price tag. Overall, the game holds up very well to this day and is a cornerstone piece of the Saturn small but impressive RPG library.

The game had a Japan-only re-release on the PS2 and also received a sequel that was left in Japan, but otherwise remains a great exclusive. Much like its Working Designs brethren, it has held good resale value since the Saturn’s demise. In 2008, Dragon Force could be found in the $65 to $97 range. Bare discs have become just a bit more affordable since then, but those pristine copies have doubled in value over the decade.

Check for Dragon Force on eBay
Check for Dragon Force on Amazon

Additional North American Games of Value

  • Sonic Jam: $140 – $280 (eBay)
  • Contra Legacy of War: $90 – $315 (eBay)
  • Batman Forver Arcade: $117 – $280 (eBay)
  • In the Hunt: $125 – $270 (eBay)
  • Powerslave: $179 – $185 (eBay)
  • Mortal Kombat Trilogy: $95 – $270 (eBay)
  • Bust a Move 3: $60 – $300 (eBay)
  • Winning Post: $100 – $255 (eBay)
  • Norse by Norsewest: The Return of Lost Vikings: $60 – $275 (eBay)
  • Winter Heat: $100 – $235 (eBay)
  • Die Hard Arcade: $75 – $257 (eBay)
  • Marvel Super Heroes: $100 – $230 (eBay)
  • Enemy Zero: $85 – $225 (eBay)
  • Crypt Killer: $94 – $210 (eBay)
  • Three Dirty Dwarves: $75 – $225 (eBay)
  • Legend of Oasis: $60 – $227 (eBay)
  • Shinobi Legions: $65 – $190 (eBay)
  • Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo: $40 – $197 (eBay)
  • Quake: $43 – $ 185 (eBay)
  • Mr. Bones: $60 – $163 (eBay)
  • Christmas Nights into Dreams: $60 – $ 160 (eBay)
  • Night Warriors: Darkstalkers: $45 – $155 (eBay)
  • X-Men: Children of the Atom : $60 – $140 (eBay)
  • Astal: $65 – $150 (eBay)
  • Galaxy Fight: $55 – $150 (eBay)
  • Golden Axe The Duel: $65 – $140 (eBay)
  • Clockwork Knight 2: $47 – $140 (eBay)
  • Tempest 2000: $40 – $140 (eBay)
  • Vallora Valley Golf: $60 – $115 (eBay)
  • NIGHTS into Dreams (Long Box): $30 – $140 (eBay)
  • Darius Gaiden: $46 – $120 (eBay)
  • Iron Storm: $38 – $125 (eBay)
  • Rampage World Tour: $35 – $112 (eBay)
  • Virtual-On Netlink Edition: $45 – $100 (eBay)

Valuable PAL Region Games

Panzer Dragoon Saga: $400 – $1000

While it might not be at the levels of the American version, the PAL version of Panzer Dragoon Saga has been climbing quite a bit and still weighs in as the main treasure of the PAL Saturn library.

An interesting piece of information: the PAL release of Panzer Dragoon Saga is actually just the Amercian version with the region code changed.  Since the game isn’t PAL-optimized, it runs slower than the NTSC and JP versions of the game when played on the PAL console (and can have glitches in cutscenes).  However, if you play on an NTSC or JP console with an import device (such as Action Replay), it will play fine.

In terms of packaging: the PAL Saga, the four discs fit inside two normal-sized Saturn game cases, each of which has a large piece of Panzer Dragoon Saga artwork on its back, and these two cases slot into a separate cardboard box. (Rivan, mentioned below, is the same way)

Check for Panzer Dragoon Saga on eBay

Deep Fear: $250 – $650

Deep Fear was pitched to many gamers as an “Underwater Resident Evil”. Developed by Sega’s AM7 division and System Sacom, the game showed some great innovations for the genre such as buttons that allow the player to use items in real-time, aiming while moving, and falling oxygen levels.

Deep Fear happened to be the very last game released on the Saturn in PAL regions and although it received a Japanese Saturn release a month later, North America would never get a release. The end result was a game that had a smaller print run than the likes of Panzer Dragoon Saga in the survival horror genre that is becoming a driving force of collector values on systems like the Playstation 2 and Dreamcast.

One of the things that has probably kept the PAL version somewhat “reasonable” in price compared to its rarity and demand is that the Japanese version is both affordable (between $17 and $30 currently) and import-friendly for English players. All of the spoken dialogue is in English along with a good portion of the menus, text and visual clues.

Check for Deep Fear on eBay

Street Fighter Collection: $250 – $600

Not much is different here from the North American release, but the PAL version is much harder to find in the wild (or online)

Much like the other regions, Disc one of the collection includes direct CPS II arcade ports of Super Street Fighter II, Super Street Fighter II Turbo.  The second disc is an enhanced version of Street Fighter Alpha 2 titled Street Fighter Alpha 2 Gold, which is exclusive to this compilation.

Regardless of region, this collection has been rising the charts over the last few years!

Check for Street Fighter Collection on eBay

Mega Man X3 : $250 – $400

Mega Man X3 is much better known as a Super Nintendo release (although still quite pricey in both North America and PAL regions).   The game received a port on both the Sega Saturn and Sony’s Playstation, but only in PAL regions and Japan (in Japan as Rockman X3).   As a result, these are the only English 32-bit versions of the game.

These disc-based versions were enhanced with new FMV sequences (being the first Mega Man game to include FMV) and a newly synthesized soundtrack.

Check for Mega Man X3 on eBay

Swagman: $65 – $600

Swagman is a top-down, Zelda-like adventure game with some dream world meets horror theme in the style of NiGHTS into Dreams. The Saturn version of the game was only released in PAL regions (despite being advertised in the US at one point) in very limited quantities.

The game has some interesting 2D sprite and animation work. It wasn’t compelling enough to warrant being an essential purchase, but at a decent price, it could be a worthwhile addition to those that enjoy the likes of NiGHTS, Zombies Ate My Neighbors and Zelda.

But here’s the thing: Swagman was also released on the Playstation and it can be found for less than $15. The Saturn version might have had a bit of an edge on sprites, but lacked some transparency effects. Not exactly worth paying $200 to $600 for a Saturn copy.

Check for Swagman on eBay

Keio Flying Squadron 2: $110 – $400

The original Keio Flying Squadron was a ultra cute and fun 2D shooter that has remained exclusive to the Sega CD/Mega CD and has topped the Sega add-on’s list of Rare and Valuable Games. However, in this Sega Saturn follow-up, the gameplay transitions into side-scrolling platforming adventure. Considering the original game looked great on the Sega CD, it shouldn’t be a big surprise that the artwork looks great on the Saturn’s powerful 2D hardware.

While the growing popularity of Keio’s shmup action on the Sega CD has obviously brought added attention to the Saturn’s follow-up, Saturn owners can still grab the Japanese version of the game for a discount in the $82 to $160 range. For those outside PAL territories that have to import either way, the Japanese version is a welcome option.

Check for Keio Flying Squadron 2 on eBay

Additional PAL Rarities

  • Mortal Kombat Trilogy: $ 200 – $430 (eBay)
  • Courier Crisis: $250 – $350 (eBay)
  • Burning Rangers: $190 – $320 (eBay)
  • Shining Force III: $200 – $300 (eBay)
  • Maximum Force: $180 – $300 (eBay)
  • Dragon Force: $180 – $280 (eBay)
  • Riven: $85 – $340 (eBay)
  • Three Dirty Dwarves: $180 – $230 (eBay)
  • Frankenstein Through The Eyes of the Monster: $90 – $290 (eBay)
  • Mr. Bones: $170 – $210 (eBay)
  • Shinobi X: $100 – $280 (eBay)
  • Hebereke’s Popoitto: $95 – $265 (eBay)
  • Torico: $100 – $220 (eBay)
  • Jewels of the Oracle: $80 – $225 (eBay)
  • The Story of Thor 2: $100 – $200 (eBay)
  • Rampage World Tour: $80 – $175 (eBay)
  • Enemy Zero: $100 – $150 (eBay)
  • Guardian Heroes: $100 – $150 (eBay)
  • Arcade’s Greatest Hits: The Atari Collection 1: $100 – $140 (eBay)
  • Pinball Graffiti: $70 – $120 (eBay)

Most Valuable Japan Imports

Delisoba Deluxe – $1400 – $2000

While not an official retail game, this extremely limited production is one of the holy grails for dedicated Sega Saturn collectors. In the mid 1990s, there was a Japanese game show, Tokyo Friend Park, that had celebrity guest play a motorcycle game to deliver soba (hence the name Delisoba) to the studio’s offices.

Cave worked on bringing this game to life on the Sega Saturn with additions of a time attack mode and track editor. The end result was handed out to guests of the show (specific details are unclear) and production was limited to a couple hundred copies.

As you might guess, these don’t go on sale very often. Back in 2008, you could often find a copy selling in Japanese stores for about $900. In recent years it seems that the game has doubled in value over the past decade.

Check for Delisoba Deluxe on eBay

Psychic Assassin Taromaru : $800 – $1340

Eventually stealing this place from the legendary, somewhat abundant, and now digitally re-released Radiant Silvergun, the Psychic Killer Taromaru is the most valuable standard Japanese Saturn game.

The game is a well drawn 2D action title, with a decidedly “Shinobi meets Castlevania” style. The publisher, Time Warner Interactive, shut down all production facilities after only 7,500 copies were made. There are also manual-art variations as well, all of which are included in the total production number, and each generally fetch the same price.

Back in 2008 when Psychic Killer Taromaru eclipsed Radiant Silvergun, it could be found for between $270 and $400. It’s more than doubled since then

Check for Psychic Assassin Taromaru on eBay

Hyper Duel: $490 – $1000

Technosoft is well-known for their wonderful Thunderforce shooter series, but Hyper Duel is a little-know shmup from Technosoft that was released in between Thunderforce 4 and 5 and shares many characteristics with the series.

The game was never released out of Japan on any platform and is one of the harder-to-find games in the Saturn library and a highly-desired addition to the already impressive Saturn shmup library. Because of all these factors, shooter fans are willing to pay a good chunk of change to score Hyper Duel.

Check for Hyper Duel on eBay

Super Tempo: $345 – $1010

Sega’s 32X may have been a commercial failure, but there were some interesting gems that were released on the system.  One such exclusive was a 2D platformer from Red Company by the name of Tempo.  The game also saw a portable follow-up on the Game Gear (in Tempo Jr.) and eventually, this Saturn sequel that remained exclusive in Japan.

Super Tempo improved on the past installments in multiple respects and holds up as the best game in the series.  The gameplay is well-designed, has a lot of quirky variety and features colorful vibes and a fun sense of humor.

The Japanese Saturn library is filled with so much 2D goodness, that it was actually easy to overlook this gem.  However, in the last handful of years, it has started gaining more attention and climbing the ranks of this guide.

Check for Super Tempo on eBay

Additional Japanese Valuables

  • Eyeful Home – $560 – $1000 (demo – estimated 50 copies) (See on eBay)
  • Heim Waltz – $350 – $800 (demo – estimated 50 copies) (eBay)
  • Steam Hearts: $300 – $620 (eBay)
  • Tryrush Deppy: $335 – $500 (eBay)
  • Mizubaku Daibouken / Liquid Kids: $270 – $545 (eBay)
  • Blast Wind: $270 – $520 (eBay)
  • Final Fight Revenge: $350 – $420 (eBay)
  • Street Fighter Zero 3: $178 – $490 (eBay)
  • Astra Superstars: $225 – $380 (eBay)
  • Arcade Gears: Image Fight & X-Multiply: $250 – $320 (eBay)
  • Crows: The Last Battle Action: $245 – $300 (eBay)
  • Cotton Boomerang: $225 – $304 (eBay)
  • Radiant Silvergun: $165 – $350 (eBay)
  • Elevator Action Returns: $175 – $320  (eBay)
  • Arcade Gears: 3 Wonders: $181 – $300 (eBay)
  • Guardian Force: $100 – $350 (eBay)
  • Dragon’s Dream: $100 – $350 (eBay)
  • G Vector: $150 – $300 (eBay)
  • Battle Garegga: $140 – $300 (eBay)
  • Castlevania Akumajo Dracula X: $150 – $290 (eBay)
  • Kyukyoku Tiger II Plus: $195 – $235 (eBay)
  • Langrisser Tribute: $170 – $230 (eBay)
  • Rabbit: $160 – $240 (eBay)
  • Time Gal & Ninja Hayate: $120 – $260
  • Batsugun: $135 – $240 (eBay)
  • Cotton 2: $110 – $265 (eBay)
  • Keio Yugekitai: $150 – $210
  • Shienryu: $130 – $220 (eBay)
  • Street Fighter Zero 2 [SegaSaturn Collection]: $150 – $200 (eBay)
  • Bulk Slash: $135 – $210 (eBay)
  • Nekketsu Oyako: $120 – $225 (eBay)
  • Bokan to Ippatsu! Doronbo Kanpekiban: $98 – $235 (eBay)
  • Twinkle Star Sprites: $100 – $210 (eBay)
  • Keriotosse: $120 – $180 (eBay)
  • Stellar Assault SS: $115 – $180 (eBay)
  • Sexy Parodius: $55 – $235 (eBay)
  • PuLiRuLa: $120 – $165 (eBay)


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21 Comments

Chris says:

How times have changed . Crazy seeing Radiant silvergun being demoted from the higher listing . I do have a good chunk of these , but I’m glad I got them for way cheaper back in the day . I think I paid like 30 for Mega Man 8 and like 50 for Saturn Bomberman. I still think the Saturn is the most fun console to collect for . Cheers

racketboy says:

Well, Radiant Silvergun was never especially rare to begin with. But the demand was super high before. Being brought to XBLA reach knocked down the demand for a disc that had to be played on a Saturn that could play Japanese games. Obviously, there’s still demand, but much more in balance with supply.

While Guardian Heroes got brought to XBLA as well, it actually had less supply and pristine copies in our clunky jewel cases is in even shorter supply.

While I really procrastinated too much on certain games, I did happen to score a good deal on Saturn Bomberman at probably one of best entry points post-2000.

And yeah, those Mega Man games used to be relatively cheap!

Chris says:

True. It’s reputation definitely preceded itself. I know what you mean on procrastinsting, I was focusing on the Saturn a lot during my collecting days so I missed out on other systems. However I am happy to gotten a lot of the games on i wanted. I appreciate this website I definitely wouldn’t know as much as I do without the information here .

racketboy says:

Thank you for the kind comments — always appreciated! And I’m always glad to know my work makes a difference for people 🙂

AngrySquirrel34 says:

To each their own, I suppose. At these prices, I’m again glad I got what I did when I was buying Saturn games.

But it also brings on the regrets; all the PDS auctions I just barely missed out on, refusing to pay over $50 for Burning Rangers, not buying RSG when I saw it at retail price at my local game shop, etc.

racketboy says:

Yeah at that time in my life, I just wasn’t ready to pay $70 to $100 for a game. My regret was more like 5 years ago when I actually had the money but before they got crazy. I just was focused on other things (even my writing was on hiatus then). Poor timing on my end.

AngrySquirrel34 says:

Haha same here re: paying over $80 for a game. I’m still in that boat, unless it’s a compilation of some kind (e.g.: the Fire Emblem Fates SE).

racketboy says:

I’m at the point where I feel comfortable paying $100-ish for a landmark game once or twice a year, but that’s about it. And that’s just with accepting that that’s what I’m going to have to pay if I’m going to own some titles. But when I was in my early 20s, that just wasn’t a reasonable thing.

Dan says:

According to this list my knowledge of the market is terrible. I sold Panzer Dragoon Saga in 2010 for $202, so I basically lost out on 50% more value if I had it today. The shocker is Battlesport which I sold for $5.50 in 2010!! The 3DO version (which I own) is way better so I never thought to keep my Saturn version.
Also:
Galaxy Fight in 2008 for $10
Enemy Zero in 2011 for $21
Resident Evil in 2011 for $30
Lunacy in 2010 for $52

Pretty short sighted I suppose

racketboy says:

Yeah, I know I sold some pretty good ones around that time as well. Not quite Saga, but life kinda dictates some things. You could say the same thing about some NES titles and such like Little Samson. Some of those rarities that takes a while before people realize they are both fun to play and hard to find.

I appreciate you sharing the story and more price history insight though!

Dan Wilson says:

Battlesport is now in the $500 range on eBay, I never saw that coming.

racketboy says:

Wow — no kidding! Thanks for the update

AngrySquirrel34 says:

In fairness, 2010 was eight years ago (and about a dozen years after those games came out); it was hard to foresee the prices doubling up like they have.

I have a hard time seeing myself letting go of any of my Saturn stuff (or n64 stuff, I suppose) at this point, despite the price explosion. Too much history with those games, and they offer unique experiences to this day.

Ps1 and Dreamcast games, on the other hand, I do probably need to sell off some stuff.

SkyBlue says:

Funnily enough, I got Cotton 2 for £65 (£80 with shipping on protective bubblewrap) via Zenmarket just last year! (includes the Calenders inserts).

Got Panzer Dragoon Saga for £96 in 2011, Burning Rangers for £40 and Story of Thor 2 for £35.

I think it is sometimes luck when you find them cheaper than what they are.

Also got Gotcha Force for £40 last year and Fire Emblem Radient Dawn for £5.96 on an Amazon error.

bubandbob says:

Where is Bubble Symphony?

KyleD says:

The Saturn version of Mega Man 8 had some secret bosses that the PS1 version did not. I think that’s the key difference. Also the graphics of the actual gameplay were considered better for the Saturn version. Hence, it’s the version that catches the higher price.

Matthew Woodroffe says:

@racketboy Thanks for the articles, they are all a value resource. I am just wondering if you could leave any links to references on where you got the information? I mean specifically on stuff like how many copies were produced etc.

racketboy says:

That’s a good question. I never did get a good practice of documenting sources along the way. But if you’re referring to some of those games that were at the end of the Saturn’s North American run, I think it may be this thread: https://forum.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?7321-The-truth-about-Panzer-Dragoon-Saga

Sure there is some speculation, but it’s probably some of the more reliable info we have on the subject.

Kingsudlow says:

Great article on one of the best retro gaming systems of all time. In the wild, the only CIB Saturn games I ever see these are Madden football titles. Collector’s used to pick them up for a couple of bucks just for the cases but even these Saturn “undesirables” are now often in the $15 to $20 range. At least there are a few companies making decent long box replacement cases…but they are not cheap!

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Chris says:

Great site always visited it over the years. Im glad im almost done the saturn library but regret taking a break the past few years when i was about 30 titles from finishing it off. Im about 5 away now all sports titles left and easy to find except Battle Sport which continues to elude me. When I do see a copy maybe once a year or two its over 800 dollars now. Looks like it will be the last title I will find and will be a remorseful purchase for sure. Thanks for the great writing!

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