Toy collecting can be lucrative, with vintage toys and games commanding high prices. McDonald's Happy Meal toys from the 1990s can be rare and valuable, notably the 1990 Super Mario toys released with Super Mario 3. The first Super Mario toys appeared in 1988 in Japan, and Nintendo's Happy Meal toys were likely the first Mario toys in North America. A set of four Mario figures in original packaging can sell for over $40, while a complete set of four themed Happy Meal boxes with Super Mario art and puzzles can fetch over $175. The McDonald's Mario figures were simple designs, such as a spring-loaded Goomba and a Luigi on a cloud.
You do not have to go all the way back to the 1960s or 1970s to find rare and potentially valuable toys, though. McDonald's Happy Meal toys from as recently as the 1990s are no different. Some of the rarest and most memorable collectibles are the 1990 Super Mario toys released alongside Nintendo's Super Mario 3 game - so much so that their worth has significantly mushroomed over the years.
While Mario and Luigi are hugely popular today, that wasn't always the case. In 1990, when McDonald's included Mario, Luigi, a Goomba, and a Koopa paratrooper in Happy Meals, there were almost no Mario toys on the market. In fact, the first Super Mario toys ever produced only came out in 1988 in Japan. Nintendo's Happy Meal toys appear to be the very first Mario toys available in North America. Today, a set of four in the original packaging may cost you over $40.
And if you want to get into some bigger money, it's not just the Mario toys, but the Mario boxes that the toys came in. The Happy Meal boxes were designed with Super Mario art and puzzles on the sides. There were four different boxes produced, and a complete set of those - just the boxes with no toys inside - can cost over $175 today.
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