Goldin lists 1998 Pokémon Red prototype with one bid at $25,000
PSA verified the cartridge but could only read 32KB of data, leaving the rest of the ROM unverified.
By Thomas Rogers ·
A prototype cartridge for Pokémon Red on the Nintendo Game Boy is now listed on the Goldin auction platform. As of October 23, 2026, one bidder has placed a bid of $25,000. The item was initially identified by Retro Dodo, which described the hardware as incredibly rare.
Specialists at PSA authenticated the physical cartridge. They reported that they could not perform a full data read. Instead, they successfully read the first 32KB of the file contents. PSA labeled this specific data segment as technically unique. The company stated that the readable game data matches the U.S. retail version completely. It expressed confidence that the unreadable portion follows the same pattern.
The authentication report notes two discrepancies in the ROM header. Neither difference changes how the game plays. PSA identified a value at offset 0x014C that denotes the Mask ROM version. This value is set to 55, whereas the standard is 00. This error changes the calculated header checksum at offset 0x014D to CB instead of the expected 20.
Physical labels on the cartridge provide clues to its origin. A sticker reads DMB-MBC-16M-FLASH. The part number is DMG-(F)KGDB-01. The report suggests DMB refers to Dot Matrix Game, the original internal codename for the Game Boy. MBC stands for Memory Bank Controller, a chip that allowed games to exceed the console's 32KB ROM limit. The 16M designation likely indicates 16 megabits of flash-writable memory. Retro Dodo noted that the unit is physically longer than a standard Game Boy cartridge.
The auction listing calls the board previously undocumented. However, the Rare Gaming Dump wiki lists the same part number for a 2000 development cartridge. That entry also used a 16-megabit Sharp flash chip labeled U1 FLASH MEMORY. Close-up images in the Goldin listing show a design almost identical to the wiki entry. The wiki sticker reads DMG-MBC3-16M-FLASH, which differs slightly from the current item.
Pokémon Red launched in 1998 alongside Green and Blue. The combined sales of Red and Blue are reported to exceed 31 million copies. Several days remain before the auction closes. The current bidder may win the piece, though the final price could rise.
A commenter on the initial report provided context on the item's history. They claimed the copy is a master copy that powers on and plays normally. They also noted that Nintendo employee Pal rocks sold a batch of demo cartridges in 2015 that had been kept rather than destroyed. These details come from a reader comment and have not been independently verified.
Source: Tom's Hardware
