An empty box which used to contain a Super Mario video game has sold at auction for a staggering £8,000 - while five Pokémon trading cards have been auctioned for £12,000.The box, which originally held the 1996 Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64, had been expected to sell for £1,000 to £2,000 - but was purchased for a remarkable £8,450 as part of an auction of retro video games and memorabilia.According to Ewbank's Auctioneers, who were managing the sale on July 3, the 'success' of the empty box in particular was at least in part due to 'PlayStation's decision to stop selling physical products'.'Fans have been clamouring to get their hands on historic games and consoles that are now sought-after collectables,' added Andrew Ewbank.The empty box had also been signed by popular Japanese video game designer and Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto at an event on Oxford Street in London in February 2003.To date, it is the only public appearance and signing event Miyamoto has attended in Europe.The unexpectedly successful sale was part of multiple collections of trading cards and retro video games sold by Ewbank's Auctioneers, in Surrey, last week - which made a total of £200,000.In addition to the empty video game box, a collection of five Pokémon trading cards inspired by Edvard Munch's painting The Scream sold for £12,350.A first-print factory-sealed copy of the Game Boy Advance game Pokémon Emerald, launched in Europe in 2005, sold for £4,940 - while a sealed copy of 2000's Pokémon Yellow, released for the Game Boy, sold for £3,640. An empty box (pictured) which used to contain the 1996 Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64 has sold for a remarkable £8,450 as part of an auction of retro video games and memorabilia According to Ewbank's auctioneers, who were managing the sale on July 3, the 'success' of the empty box in particular was at least in part due to ' PlayStation's decision to stop selling physical product'. Pictured: Ewbank specialist James Spooner Ewbank's specialist James Spooner said: 'Pokémon are the most collectable of all gaming cards of this type, with a massive global following and collecting base worth tens of billions of dollars.'The majority of lots in this sale sold over estimate – some way over estimate – demonstrating the powerful attraction for both Pokémon, as well as other trading card series.'However, it is the boost in demand and prizes for retro video games here that has been most noticeable.'In addition to video games and memorabilia, a copy of 1963's The Amazing Spider-Man No.1 – which features the origin of Spider-Man retold, sold for £4,160.Earlier this month, Sony, which manufactures PlayStation consoles, announced it would be ending the production of physical game discs – meaning new games would only be available to download digitally.The auction house says it believes the decision may have helped boost demand for retro video games and consoles.A rare Japan-exclusive Panasonic Q – which could play Nintendo GameCube games and watch DVDs sold for £1,235.Earlier this year, experts from Protect Your Bubble scoured eBay listings to find the most valuable retro gaming consoles. A first-print factory-sealed copy of the Game Boy Advance game Pokémon Emerald (pictured), released in Europe in 2005, sold for £4,940 A sealed copy of 2000's Pokémon Yellow, released for the Game Boy, sold for £3,640 In addition to video games and memorabilia, a copy of 1963's The Amazing Spider-Man No.1 – which features the origin of Spider-Man retold, sold for £4,160Topping the list is the NTSC Limited Holiday Edition Xbox Original, which was just £299 when it was first released in 2001.If you were clever enough to hold on to yours for the last 25 years, it could now be 1,601 per cent more valuable – reaching £5,086 on eBay.According to James Brown, director at Protect Your Bubble, vintage games consoles are shooting up in price thanks to a wave of nostalgia.He said: 'Retro gaming isn't just having a moment. For many people across the UK, it starts as a nostalgic trip back to childhood, but the resale figures show these consoles can be worth a healthy sum, with many collectors on the lookout.'If you've got an old console tucked away, now might be the time to check what it's really worth, especially if it's just gathering dust in the loft.'Although retro game consoles are now more collectable than ever, it is the rare and limited edition versions which can fetch the highest price.Following closely behind the Xbox Original is the Nintendo DS, the wildly popular touch–screen handheld that was launched in 2004.Originally retailing for just £99.99, one of these highly sought–after devices recently sold on eBay for a staggering £1,816.Likewise, rare editions regularly fetch several hundred pounds at auction, with one Zelda Phantom Hourglass DS Lite selling for £991.Sony's PlayStation 1, meanwhile, came to Europe in 1995 and originally cost £299.Rounding out the top five most valuable consoles is the Nintendo Game Boy, which went for a staggering price of £1,562.If you do happen to have any of these rare editions, holding onto your old consoles might have been a great financial move.Protect Your Bubble found that several retro consoles actually grew in value faster than inflation.The strongest financial performer was the Nintendo DS, which can now sell for 904 per cent more than its inflation–adjusted cost.Likewise, the most valuable Xbox models can now be worth up to 795 per cent more than their 2025 inflation–adjusted cost of £568.The Nintendo Game Boy also posted impressive gains since, although its inflation–adjusted value would sit at £188 in 2025, one unit sold for £1,562 – a 733 per cent increase.It also proved to be the most popular retro console, grossing a whopping £302,417 in 2025.