Why Its Rare #1: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Welcome to Why Its Rare where we take a look at video game history and discuss why a game may be expensive or rare.

Today we are taking a look at the wizarding world of Harry Potter and where it all started with Harry Potter and the Philosophers stone. 

What is It?

The first thing to note about HPPS (Harry Potter & the Philosopher's stone) is that there were 2 versions of the game. The first came out in 2001 and was released on the PS1 & Windows/Mac and whilst this game was not received well by critics, is not the rare title in question. 

In fact, 2 years after the original HPPS released, A new, separate game carrying the same title was released for the PS2, Xbox & Gamecube. This version was created by Warthog Games and was different from the original in following the plot of the movie more closely.

So Why is it Rare?

As this game was released after the Chamber of Secrets which was released on the same consoles customers mistook this for a port of the PS1 version.

Warthog games shut down in 2006 making any chance of a remaster or release of this game nearly impossible. 

Its Low sales make this game quite scarce and its high profile fandom makes this game desirable leading to higher than normal prices for an Original Xbox game.

How Much is It?

At the time of writing, according to pricecharting.com, the PS2 version will set you back $110, the Gamecube version at $94, and the Original Xbox at $87