Why It's Rare #3 - Jade Cocoon: Story of the Tamamay

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

Today we are looking at the original Jade Cocoon for the PS1. 

What is it?

Jade Cocoon is a classic role-playing game that was released for the PlayStation 1 console in 1998. Despite receiving positive reviews from critics and fans alike, the game was relatively rare and had limited sales.

Why Its Rare:

Like many games, scarcity is a huge consideration for why a game ends up rare.  According to reports, only 100,000 copies of the game were sold in North America, and around 15,000 copies in Australia making it a relatively rare title for the console. 

Jade Cocoon was well-received by critics and fans alike. The game received positive reviews for its unique monster-collecting system (with an ability to fuse together monsters), beautiful graphics, and engaging storyline, however the game's soundtrack is what people really love about the title with some saying it’s the best game soundtrack of the era.

Increased Rarity The combination of limited production runs, and low sales numbers has led to Jade Cocoon on PS1 becoming increasingly rare over time. As the game becomes scarcer, it has become more sought after by collectors and fans of the genre. This increased rarity has also driven up the price of the game on the second-hand market, making it a highly coveted item for collectors.

Unlikely to be remade or released. The game was made by Genki a company that mainly focuses on racing games now days and publisher Ubisoft is more focused on maintaining their many many long running series that they are unlikely to pay this game any attention. Still, you never know.

How much does it cost? 

At the time of writing, a copy of Jade Cocoon will set you back around $120 depending on condition and which cover art you purchase.