Rare Pokémon Fishing Contest DS cartridge listed on eBay for €7,999

A development‑test cartridge for the long‑lost Pokémon Fishing Contest DS, a minigame that was distributed via Nintendo DS Download Play at Japanese Pokémon Center events in 2005, has appeared on eBay. The German seller, known for dealing in Pokémon plush toys, listed the oversized cartridge for €7,999 (about $9,000). The cartridge bears a “Nintendo” imprint and a label reading “DS Flash Card 512M”, indicating it was intended for internal testing rather than public sale.

The seller claims the unit works, noting that when tested on a standard Nintendo DS it boots to a Japanese screen that “indicates a program for high‑score ranking communication”. It is unclear whether the cartridge contains a playable version of the game or merely the server software used to record scores during the original event. No offers have been placed yet, and the gaming preservation community is watching to see if the software can be salvaged.

The listing has sparked discussion among fans and archivists, who see the cartridge as a rare glimpse into a piece of lost media that vanished when the handheld was turned off, erasing the temporary download.