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Sealed Super Mario Bros. sells for a record $3 million

Sealed Super Mario Bros. NES game.
You know this came for free bundle with the console for $150, right? | Image: Heritage Auctions

A copy of Super Mario Bros., still in the box and sealed with its original sticker, just sold at Heritage Auctions for $3 million. That absolutely crushes the previous record of $2 million, also for a copy of Super Mario Bros., in 2021. That sale also came hot on the heels of a controversial auction of Super Mario 64 for $1.56 million.

Part of what drove the price of this particular copy so high is that, according to Heritage Auctions, instead of shrink-wrap, this 19895 second run was sealed with a glossy sticker, which was discontinued shortly after. The site claims it's the earliest known sealed copy of the game in existence. It's also gr …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Microsoft hasn’t ruled out spinning off Xbox

Asha Sharma on a background of green Xbox logos.
Asha Sharma. | Image: The Verge, Microsoft

Microsoft is preparing to lay off a significant chunk of its Xbox division and is reevaluating the plans for its next-generation Project Helix console. It's apparently also considering dramatically restructuring its relationship with Xbox, and hasn't ruled out spinning it off into a separate company.

A new report from The Information suggests that Microsoft has considered some dramatic measures to make its Xbox unit more sustainable. That includes turning it into a wholly owned subsidiary, a joint venture, or even spinning it off entirely, with the possibility of selling the business. The report doesn't suggest anything is imminent, but it …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Echo Isle is a pint-sized adventure inspired by classic Zelda

13 June 2026 at 13:00

Echo Isle is heavily inspired by The Legend of Zelda, and it's not afraid to show it: The retro graphics bear a striking resemblance to Link's Awakening, the main character wears a blue tunic and wields a sword, and he navigates dungeons to collect items and keys to fight bosses and gather magical MacGuffins. But where Echo Isle shines is how it takes the best parts of a Zelda adventure and shrinks them down to their essence - I finished the game in a little more than an hour.

The game starts with the main character falling from the sky onto Echo Isle, an island protected by a magical lighthouse that has mysteriously gone dark. While you d …

Read the full story at The Verge.

Valve just imported 13 tons of VR headsets in one day

13 June 2026 at 02:32
The Verge’s Jay Peters wearing Valve’s Steam Frame VR headset, from the side.

On June 10th, the German container ship Posen docked in Los Angeles after a two-week voyage from Shanghai. As Valve watcher Brad Lynch notes, it was almost certainly carrying the first mass production shipments of the Steam Frame, Valve's new gaming headset.

Import records show that Valve's distribution partner Ceva offloaded nearly 32 metric tons of "Virtual Reality Devices" on Valve's behalf - or roughly 13 tons of actual product, after you subtract the roughly 3,700 kilogram weight of five 40-foot shipping containers.

That's the same math we used to estimate that Valve imported 50 tons of game consoles in two days last month - and sin …

Read the full story at The Verge.

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