The Rarest PS3 Game Isn't What You'd Expect

Sometimes the simple fact of a game's rarity pushes its price into the higher end. Avid Nintendo fans certainly know a few of the games that are hard to find out in the wild. Plus there's one super rare NES cartridge that found itself traded into a used game store. There are instances of those types of rare games popping up in your local game shop or even in your closet. These days, however, you're more likely to find the rarest games of all time through an online retailer.

Sony's PlayStation 3 console certainly has its fair share of titles that are far from easy to procure. Some of the games that fit that classification include Uncharted 2: Fortune Hunter Collector's Edition, Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Wizard's Edition, and the full bundle for The Beatles Rock Band. These titles are difficult to find and can fetch a pretty hefty price.

Another one of those super rare PS3 games is one that didn't even get to see the light of day. This status is even more surprising when you consider the fact that it's a basketball simulator that was set to be published by EA Sports. You may be shocked to hear that NBA Elite 11 may be the rarest PS3 game ever made. Here's why.

NBA Elite 11 was slated to launch on PS3 back in 2010. Sadly, the basketball sim saw a cancellation before it ever got the chance to enter mass circulation. A demo for the game was slammed by gamers for several reasons: its abundance of bugs/glitches, hard to understand controls, and awkward player animations were among the most common complaints. After several delays, EA Sports made the tough decision to cancel NBA Elite 11 altogether. EA Sports' Alan Wilson told IGN, "Ultimately, it was just going to be a bad game," if it had been released.

But after the game's cancellation, a few physical copies of it actually got out. And to this day, the game is considered a valuable item that's definitely worth more than its actual quality. Back in 2016, a sealed copy of NBA Elite 11 ended up on eBay for $10,000. And in 2017, a story emerged about five copies of the game selling for a combined price of $30,000.

Price Charting lists various prices for the game, depending on its condition. A graded copy of the game has sold as high as $2,250, while the lowest price comes in at around $822 for a loose copy.