The highest-graded copy of the earliest sealed edition of Super Mario Bros., the iconic game whose popularity established Nintendos dominance in home console gaming in the 1980s, sold for $3 million on day one of Heritage Auctions two-day Video Games Signature Auction, held June 12 and 13, hammering the previous $2 million record set in a 2021 private sale. It is only appropriate that the most significant video game in the world should bring the more impressive result in the history of the hobby, according to Evan Masingill, Heritages consignment director for video games. The remarkable backstory - it was just discovered a few months ago inside a brand-new Control Deck NES console bundle, meaning it has not been touched for nearly 40 years - makes the result even more impressive, continued Masingill. Bearing the coveted gloss sticker adopted in early 1986, it is the earliest confirmed sealed copy of the most important game cartridge in history. It is one of only three known sealed copies from this second-production run,a variant that has never appeared in a public auction in sealed condition. Of the three known sealed copies, this is the finest, with a PSA 9.6 A++ grade. The others are VGA 80 and Wata 9.4 A++. Images and information about all lots in the auction can be found at www.HA.com/7453.