Washington man’s $100K Nintendo collection stolen — just 3 games shy of the complete NES library. How thieves pulled off the devastating crime

Holler and his family were out of town when a burglar broke into their house and stole the collection of more than 860 classic games, a collection that was just three short of completing the gaming system’s complete library of titles and has a value of as much as $100,000.

“To me, this week, it feels like losing my mom again,” Holler told KARE 11. “Similar, but it’s different — your parents and your loved ones. But this is my other love. This is my other child. I have three boys, but this was my other child. I started this before they were even born.”

A Nintendo family

Nintendo not only connected Holler to his late mother, it was something he shared with his children. For the past four decades, as he searched stores and attended gaming conventions, he was joined by his son, Chris Sterling.

Ultimately, Holler said, the plan was to use the collection to help benefit his grandchildren.

“It was going to go to the grandkids. It was ultimately going to be for them, for their college education,” he said. “That was what the end goal was going to be for. Not for my kids. They’re going to be mad now that they know that.”

It’s unclear if the burglars stole anything other than the Nintendo collection.

Strong demand

Interest in classic Nintendo games among collectors has been on the rise lately, especially for rare titles.

In June, a sealed copy of Super Mario Bros. sold for $3 million at Heritage Auctions, and five years ago, an unopened copy of Super Mario Bros. sold for $2 million.