Gamer could be sitting on a goldmine after they discover rare controller worth thousands

Our love of all things retro continues, and as the second-hand gaming market continues to boom, you might be sitting on a not-so-small fortune without knowing it.

If you've ever let your mom go up into the attic and clear out your old video game collection, we suggest you don't take a look at what some of your catalog could be worth, because you'll likely end up kicking yourself.

While we're yet to top a rare copy of Super Mario 64 being sold for $1.56 million, some beloved and widespread games most of us have played could fetch hundreds at auction.

It seems that nostalgic tech is becoming a lucrative market quicker than ever, with even some Blu-Rays being worth thousands.

Even though we're not convinced anyone is going to be paying $21,000 for a Nintendo 64, one gamer was shocked to remember they owned an especially rare piece of Nintendo kit that could fetch a handsome sum.

Posting on the r/gamecollecting Reddit, u/jpark3r113 showed off an ultra-rare N64 Millennium 2000 controller.

Saying they won the controller back in 5th grade, they explained: "I always imagined it might be worth something someday and never used it and packed it away. “Upon recently getting it out of storage I hopped on eBay and saw one listed for a ridiculous amount ~$8,000."

Admitting they don't know much about gaming, they asked for advice on how to sell the controller somewhere other than eBay.

As the name suggests, the silver-themed controller was released as an accessory for the beloved N64 to celebrate the year 2000. Only 1,000 units were ever made and were awarded to subscribers of the defunct Nintendo Power magazine who entered a contest.

Similar to the classic N64 controller, the Millennium 2000 featured a silver colorway with black buttons (aside from the start button being red) and a Millennium 2000 logo.

According to PriceCharting, a Millennium 2000 controller was sold for $2,199.00 back in December 2024. Other sales included another one going for $1,439.96 in December 2024 and one fetching $1,526.00 in June.

More than this, the site suggests that if you manage to get a graded controller, it could fetch a whopping $9,900.

Then again, Heritage Auctions listed a Millennium 2000 controller with a metal stand in August 2024, with the lot going unsold.

Even though the Redditor doesn't confirm what they did next with their rare controller, the comments exploded with others who couldn't believe the lucky find.

One person said: "I sold one at my work for 1000. I was hesitant about putting it that high at the time… looks like someone got a decent deal 😅 it sold pretty quickly too, so I’d say the other comments are right that it could go for at least 2 grand."

Another added: "One sold at a store about an hour away from me a couple of years ago for $4000. I could see it bringing anywhere from $2000-$5000 depending on the selling platform/auction and who is interested at that time."

A third simply concluded: "Holy sh*t that is beautiful."

While this isn't quite finding the Holy Grail of gaming like the Super NES CD-ROM, an N64 Millennium 2000 controller could be worth an eye-watering amount.