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[Sensei]

First off, I did some research, and no NES consoles were ever produced in or for North Korea. We can see it is an NES case, not the red top-loading Famicom¹, so that narrows it down to either the NES produced for the the western world (America/Europe/Australia), or the Comboy. The Comboy, like the NES, is a variant of the Famicom, for a specific market, in this case South Korea. Because all "Japanese cultural products" were outlawed in South Korea between WWII and 1998, Nintendo licensed their NES design to Hyundai Electronics², a South Korean company. Hyundai produced the only Korean NES consoles, in other words.

Here's a picture of a Korean Comboy console:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Notice the black text. As far as I'm aware, that's the only thing that distinguishes it from a western NES console, which has red text- it even says "Nintendo Entertainment Console - Korean version".

So, which is in the picture?

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

If you look very closely, you'll see black text. It's a Comboy, so, South Korean. Nothing North Korean about it, as far as I can tell, not even a Dear Leader sticker. So how much is a Comboy worth to collectors? I can't find anything on Ebay, so possibly a fair bit, but it's more likely nobody wants one. However, I did see some Comboy catridges, and they weren't more expensive than regular NES carts. So, yeah, I'd guess that those used consoles right there are worth the standard price for an NES in good condition, about $40-60.

<sub>1. The Famicom is the Japanese NES. The NES sold to the western world was designed not to look like a video game console due to the video game crash of 1983. However, it functions identically and can run Japanese Famicom cartridges, if you file the casing down to fit, so the only thing that distinguished it is its casing. The guts are the same.
2. Now SK Hynix, presumably so as not to conflict names with the car manufacturer. They make RAM and flash memory, a lot of which goes to US companies such as Apple, Google, Asus, HP, IBM and more. There's probably some as part of your motherboard, or in your other electronics like a DVD player.</sub>

[Owlbread]

You're missing the point, good sir. The fact that it came from North Korea is enough to make it North Korean, it doesn't matter if it is actually a Southern model, or if it was made in the South.

[Sensei]

Eh. I'd still bet it's not worth jack.

[Owlbread]

On what evidence sir? The price of the South Korean model, thereby completely disregarding the possibility that the price could go up because of its Northern heritage? It would be a one of a kind item, especially if you could throw in at least one Northern game.

[IronyOwl]

Thank you for that surprisingly in-depth research, Detective Sensei.

On what evidence sir? The price of the South Korean model, thereby completely disregarding the possibility that the price could go up because of its Northern heritage? It would be a one of a kind item, especially if you could throw in at least one Northern game.

Is there a market for that sort of thing, though? I don't doubt somebody would pay something, but I'm not sure there's that many people fanatically into NK artifacts, especially for something as weird as an SK-manufactured gaming console.

[Owlbread]

It's not that there's a lot of people that are fanatically into NK artifacts, but there are people who are fanatically into rare retro consoles. There's good money in that sort of thing if you have the right pieces, like one of those black Japanese dreamcasts that you had to write to Sega for and you could only get them in Japan, and even there the scheme wasn't that big. Or the dreamcast shaped like Sonic's head with a built in TV.

[Sensei]

If I were looking for NK paraphernalia, I'd judge that as pretty poor, considering that it has no traits at all that distinguish it as North Korean. It's merely something that has been handled by some north koreans, and probably more tourists than north koreans. It's on par, as a collectors item, with a chinese made shovel that a north korean farmer has been using, or a shirt a tourist wore while in north korea. I'm also sure there's no "north korean games"... just some games, that have been to north korea. Now, if there WERE crazy propaganda games, that would be pretty neat, but I can say with extreme confidence they haven't produced those. Given that their embassies where no expense is spared have "Anarchy in the U.K." on their karaoke machines, it's absurd to think they would have put up so much as the effort to make any censored versions of games.

Maybe if it was, like, Dear Leader's personal NES or something. But as it is, it's just some NES that's been in north korea.

Edit: Ninja'd, but exactly my point:

...like one of those black Japanese dreamcasts that you had to write to Sega for and you could only get them in Japan...

Like I said, it's not even got a Dear Leader sticker on it, nor does it look in any way different or north korean, compared to any other Comboy sold in the SK.

[Owlbread]

It's purely the history of the console that would matter. The fact that it is an object that is often collected (an antique games console) sets it apart from a shirt a tourist wore while in North Korea, or a shovel that a farmer was using. It has also been in North Korea for quite a long time, I would wager, which makes it North Korean. Again, when I said "North Korean games" I meant a game that was used in North Korea by North Koreans on a regular basis. Whether or not it came originally from the South and was merely bought by North Koreans doesn't stop it from being a North Korean game.

All this said though, you haven't actually gotten a good look at those consoles. You and I can just about make out some black writing on them and thus we have a hunch that they're actually Southern NES's. You have no way of knowing that there is no Dear Leader sticker on them.

[Sensei]

If there was a Dear Leader sticker, I bet it would be on the front.

Anyway, I looked on Ebay and there doesn't seem to be a significant market for north korean artifacts- a few high-priced items look like price gouging compared to the rest. I wasn't going to follow it up, but I had to because I found this. Click at own risk.

[NobodyPro]

How dare you suggest that they are not original consoles designed, tested and lovingly crafted by Glorious Leader's personal Imagination Engineers. How could you enjoy games like Glorious DPRK World and Heroic Patriot II Alpha on an inferior console like the NES.

[Another]

If there was a Dear Leader sticker, I bet it would be on the front.

Anyway, I looked on Ebay and there doesn't seem to be a significant market for north korean artifacts- a few high-priced items look like price gouging compared to the rest. I wasn't going to follow it up, but I had to because I found this. Click at own risk.

From you link:
"Artist:

Nadia Khuzina, MFA (St. Petersburg, Russia)"

[Owlbread]

If there was a Dear Leader sticker, I bet it would be on the front.

It could very well be on the front, but you and I can't see them properly. We're relying on a blurry image with some black writing that we can just about make out.

Anyway, I looked on Ebay and there doesn't seem to be a significant market for north korean artifacts- a few high-priced items look like price gouging compared to the rest. I wasn't going to follow it up, but I had to because I found this. Click at own risk.

I've said many times before that it's not the fact that it's a North Korean artifact that would give it a higher value, it's the fact that it is a North Korean NES i.e. an item that is collectable anyway. The genuine North Korean army surplus items that I have seen have often fetched quite a high price, such as junior officer's uniforms (just jacket and trousers) being worth over 450 dollars.

[Yannanth]

.

[Owlbread]

We actually discussed that in this thread, it is very true based on what we can tell, but that is the first time I've heard that spin put on it. It certainly makes you think.

[misko27]

I object to the Srebrenica comparison. It's nothing like that, this is execution of prisoners by the government, that was attacks on minorities by the military in a time of war.