Rare Nintendo 64 controller to sell for around $1,200

Nintendo 64 Foxdata Silver Leopard customised controller

(Image credit: Hansons)

A rare Nintendo 64 controller found in an attic is set to sell for up to £1,000 in the UK.

Liam Clousdale discovered that a controller gifted to him for his birthday back in 1998 was, in fact, a rare Foxdata gamepad. The controllers came in Desert Storm, Red Rain, Purple Forest, and Chrome Leopard varieties and are now highly sought after by collectors.

Hansons Auctioneers has valued Clousdale's Chrome Leopard customized controller between £700 and £1,000 ahead of an upcoming auction - for U.S. readers, that's between roughly $850 and $12,000 (via Eurogamer).

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David Wilson-Turner, head of Hansons’ Toys and Video Games Auction elaborated on the controller's value on Hansons' website, stating that the Foxdata series is "increasingly sought after in the video game market. Though information is limited, it’s believed Foxdata produced around 800 of these customized controllers across the four designs, meaning there could be less than 200 examples of Liam’s controller in the world."

Though it pales in comparison to modern-day hardware, Clousdale spoke fondly of his time using the controller: “I used it a fair amount and loved having the craziest-looking pad. Though the N64 has long since been packed away, I’m still an avid gamer.

"One of my friends spotted that a Foxdata pad had sold for a decent amount of money and remembered I had one. He asked me about it so I unpackaged my old pad from a box in the loft where it had been carefully stored away. I then contacted Hansons as I found an article about a previous gaming sale they held. I was very surprised by how much it was potentially worth. I’m happy to pass it on to a proper retro collector."

As the games industry continues to mature, the cultural cache afforded to retro memorabilia has only seemed to grow. Though there have been successful modern efforts to recreate the feel of retro gamepads, such as the 8BitDo NeoGeo Wireless Controller, there's no substitute for the original article.

The Chrome Leopard will be going up for auction on October 17, when collectors will bid on the controller.

Looking for something more modern? Check out our list of the best Nintendo Switch games and best Nintendo Switch controllers.

An editor and freelance journalist, Cat Bussell has been writing about video games for more than four years and, frankly, she’s developed a taste for it. As seen on TechRadar, Technopedia, The Gamer, Wargamer, and SUPERJUMP, Cat’s reviews, features, and guides are lovingly curated for your reading pleasure.

A Cambridge graduate, recovering bartender, and Cloud Strife enjoyer, Cat’s foremost mission is to bring you the best coverage she can, whether that’s through helpful guides, even-handed reviews, or thought-provoking features. She’s interviewed indie darlings, triple-A greats, and legendary voice actors, all to help you get closer to the action. When she’s not writing, Cat can be found sticking her neck into a fresh RPG or running yet another Dungeons & Dragons game.