A gold-placed Nintendo Wii console that was gifted to Queen Elizabeth II, after tabloid stories reported her fondness for gaming with her grandkids, is again in the news.
In 2008, a UK tabloid reported “the gadget-loving Queen has become hooked on Prince William’s new Nintendo Wii games console.”
Quoting the usual unverified palace source, Sunday People noted the Queen “showed all the signs of becoming a Nintendo addict” and had “hand-eye coordination as good as somebody half her age.”
The following year, now defunct gaming publisher THQ UK sent her a copy of its Big Family Games package, with a gold-plated Wii, because “we thought that Her Majesty the Queen wouldn’t want to play on any old console.”
The Wii was later returned to THQ, and ended up with a collector who had contacts at the company. It passed to another collector, who listed it on eBay last year, for a cool US$300,000. The seller noted the visible wearing of the gold-plating, adding, “My guess is that it was actually used at one point.”
Not surprisingly, it failed to sell, and eventually went for A$52,567 earlier this year, sold via Goldin Auctions as “the ultimate Wii collectible.”
The auction attracted 44 bids.
The above video explains the strange tale of the Queen’s console, should you wish to explore this rare piece of gaming history more.
