Rare (?) Clamshell Variant of John Madden Football for Sega Genesis

 


I was running an errand one day in a town that I don't normally drive to, as it is out of the way. I happened upon a Half Price Books store, and figured, why not check it out. This one was larger than the HPB store closest to me, and had a larger inventory of retro games. Despite the larger selection, nothing remotely stood out to me. To be fair, at this point in my collection I have honed my tastes and curated pretty much all that I am interested in. As I was walking out, something caught my eye. It was a copy of John Madden Football for the Sega Genesis, but it looked different. It had a shiny veneer to it, and as I walked closer I realized that it was in a Genesis clamshell case. To the uninitiated, there doesn't appear to be anything special about this at all, but having been a Genesis fan since launch, I knew that this was released in a cardboard box. The first generation Electronic Arts games were all released in cardboard boxes, it wasn't until the second wave of EA games that they switched to clamshell boxes. Realizing that there could be something special about this copy, I gladly paid the $5.99 asking price.

The spine design is slightly different

As far as authenticity, a natural question to ask is if it is an official copy, or if it was reproduced in anyway. I know that some people cut up the cardboard box and stuff it into a clamshell case to better match the rest of the collection. My copy of The Adventure of Batman and Robin has this.  I examined the game to my own copy, and the physical game is a one to one match, Besides, who would bother to reproduce one of the most common games in existence? The printed artwork is of high quality, and printed on slightly heavier paper that my other EA clamshell games have. The clincher is the clamshell case itself, which has the EA logo imprinted into the plastic above the game slot. I can confidently say that this is an official product. 

The imprinted EA logo is plain to see

When I got home, I googled the game. In this day and age where you can look up practically anything, I thought surely someone would have a copy of it, or at least information on it. Initially, I only found information about the cardboard boxed copy. 

I did find an article on Nintendo Age about a proto-European release clamshell Lakers vs. Celtics, of which the author of the states only 13 copies have ever surfaced. This is relevant because that was an EA game also released in a cardboard box, and perhaps they had a similar backstory. A Nintendo Age forum user by the name of Supergamboy posted a discussion, in the comments and revealed a picture of the same clamshell variant of John Madden Football!  I was unable to contact the author, as I am not a member of Nintendo Age and their registration link appears to be closed. So now I know that my copy is not alone.

I reached out to several prominently-known Sega enthusiasts, people who know Sega through and through, and only one, Sega-16 founder and author Ken Horowitz, knew of its existence. He told me that it was this was either the first iteration of the transition to clamshell cases, or leftover European stock, which used clamshell cases.  The lack of UPC code on the case leads one to presume it must have been a sticker on the shrink wrap. 

The back of the packaging is totally different

So after all there are little nuggets of information out there, but it's definitely not common knowledge. I can find no record of the on eBay, so I cannot directly gauge its value. According to the Nintendo Age article, the aforementioned European Lakers vs. Celtics garnering bids for around 8000 British Pounds. I'm not suggesting that is what this copy of John Madden Football is worth. That was a different situation where the release almost happened and a few copies squeaked out. 

I am very curious to see how many people have a copy. It is definitely the most interesting retro find I've ever stumbled upon. Who knows, it could be an ultra rare collectors piece that would pay for my kids' tuition. If you do have this same copy, please get in contact with me.



26 comments:

  1. I just saw your article and I happen to own one the clamshell versions too. I never thought much of it since I've owned it for so long. Wonder what it's worth.

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    1. Well that makes three copies that I know of! Thanks for sharing. There is no mention of value for this anywhere that I can find. I take that as a good thing.

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  2. Was trying to Google info about this game and found your article. I have a clamshell copy as well, but cannot find any listed or sold on ebay, really no info about it.

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    1. I know! It makes you wonder how rare it is if no record of a sale can be found on ebay. I have interacted with a few individuals on FB that also have a copy, but still. Hang on to it, maybe it will be worth something someday.

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  3. hey there! got a sealed copy here and I'm also trying to find some info about it. No sticker nor any clue. I am in the EU.

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    1. Wow, that's a rare find. I have hit dead ends on finding more information on it as well. All I can tell you is to hang on to it for now, until more light is shed on it. If you do find out more please share!

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  4. This guy seems to have one as well: https://connect.gocollect.com/discussion/186955/rare-new-find-clamshell-release-of-lakers-versus-celtics

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  5. Is this also yours or is this a different person who has the rare clamshell version? https://connect.gocollect.com/discussion/186955/rare-new-find-clamshell-release-of-lakers-versus-celtics

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    1. That is a different person. Hmm. Maybe the clamshell is not as rare as I thought. Still, it is something that most have never encountered. It's nice to see others that have it.

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  6. There is one copy in Russia. I know a person who has it, he offered me to buy it. Stumbled upon your article while looking for information on a plastic box for Madden.

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  7. Hey! I'm from Russia. There is at least one copy here. I am offered to buy it. I was also surprised when I found out that there is Madden in a plastic box. In addition to your chat, I did not find anything.

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    1. Wow, that's interesting to hear that a copy made its way to Russia. Perhaps someone imported it? Information on this variant is hard to come by, but I do hear more and more that some people remember it. Thanks for reading.

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    2. As a result, he sold it for $ 105, we have to transfer our money at the current exchange rate.

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  8. I have a Madden plastic box version too. The game art insert is definitely not a copy or scan. It's exactly like your picture. It has the gold Sega seal and the spine graphic is missing the helmet which is shown on the cardboard version. The only difference is the clamshell. I don't have the EA logo like yours. I have a bunch of other official EA clamshells and it is consistent with those boxes just doesn't have the EA writing. Now that Madden has passed, these games has worth. The cardboard box version is 300+ on ebay...the ones I've seen have terrible condition boxes too. I wonder what the value of a plastic clamshell Madden is.

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    1. Someone is selling the clamshell version on eBay for $30K! Obviously it won't sell for that, but who knows. In this WATA age of hyping and auctioning games, someone with crazy money might swoop in on this. That's weird about the case difference. There's definitely not a large enough of these around to gauge accurate value and its not even listed in collection tracking websites. If you find out more let me know!

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  9. Anonymous6/11/2022

    Anyone interested in selling a clamshell version? I have the cardboard version and would like to replace it.

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    1. Hey, I have a clamshell version (UK Based) and am looking to sell. Still trying to gauge value like the guys here. Reply back if you're interested and we can find a more suitable way of communicating.

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    2. Hey, I have a clamshell version (UK based) that I am looking to sell but I am still trying to gauge a price range. If you are interested reply here and we can find a more suitable way of communicating.

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    3. Thanks for the offer, but I'm not in the market to buy another one. If you do end up selling, I'd like to know what it sold for!

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    4. Anonymous5/12/2023

      @Nanaki: I am the one who posted in June of last year. I am still interested in buying. How can we connect?

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    5. Anonymous5/12/2023

      @Nanaka: Hello. I am the one who posted in June of last year. I am still interested in purchasing a copy. How can we get in touch?

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    6. there is now a contact me link on the front page

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  10. Anonymous2/10/2024

    I was just cleaning my closet. I'm not a gamer but I had a Sega maybe 20 or 30 years ago. Not sure when but I found 2 unopened still sealed games. One is the John Madden it looks just identical to the picture and NHL all -star hockey 95 still in a cardboard box sealed and wrapped. Any ideas what I can do too find out what they would be worth.

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    1. So the Madden copy you have is the plastic clamshell version? That is a rare find. There are so few of them in circulation that there is no record of sales for that variant specifically on eBay or Pricecharting. I wish I knew how to direct you, I don't know myself where to go at this point. If you ever do find out, please let me know!

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  11. Anonymous2/14/2024

    there seem to be another copy on ebay: 3k.. idk about that!
    https://www.ebay.es/itm/156009601114

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  12. Anonymous2/14/2024

    there is a new copy on ebay https://www.ebay.com/itm/156061130921

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