After months of searching, charity shop fan Josh Wright finally came across a particular classic Waddingtons board game, which prompted him to identify two others that are also worth a sizeable sum
A charity shop customer has identified three board games that bargain hunters should always watch out for when browsing the shelves. Whilst some retro video games are renowned for their potentially enormous value, some of their cardboard counterparts can also fetch considerable sums.
Josh Wright turned to TikTok to share his excitement after discovering one such game during his charity shop hunting that he’d been seeking for a long period of time. “I can’t believe I have found this in a charity shop,” he teased in a video. Josh disclosed he’d been visiting his local St Elizabeth Hospice Retail centre “for months” before finally striking gold with the valuable find.
“It’s usually just the same stuff, but today something caught my eye,” he continued in his clip.
“At first I thought it was just another random donation, but when I looked closer I realised it’s something I’ve been looking for for years.”
Josh confessed he was initially “scared” to check the price, explaining the shop had a reputation for being pricey, but that worry quickly transformed into delight when he spotted a label reading ‘£2’.
“I have been collecting these Waddingtons games for a while,” he explained.
“They made some gameshow games like Blockbusters, but the ones I love are The Lost Valley of the Dinosaurs and Escape From Frankenstein – they go for crazy money.”
Indeed, Josh displayed previous eBay listings, which showed both titles routinely sell for “£50 upwards”. However, there was one game that had always escaped his grasp until now.
“I didn’t want to pay the crazy eBay prices,” Josh declared, adding a screenshot to illustrate a recent sale of more than £73.
The elusive game? “So here it is… the exact game I have been searching for all these years,” he said, triumphantly displaying the Escape From Atlantis Game.
“It’s from 1986 and in amazing condition for £2,” Josh enthused. “And before you ask, yes it is complete.”
In response, one TikTok user revealed he recently found the Escape From Atlantis Game too, writing: “You’re joking, I got the exact one a few weeks ago. I did a video on it, £1.50 into £42.50, was 100% complete as well.”
The Waddingtons brand was founded in Britain the 19th century as a printing company, before turning to board game production in 1922.
The company was purchased by Hasbro in 1994 after decades of classic releases including Monopoly, Cluedo and Risk, as well as table top football game, Subbuteo and playing card game, Top Trumps.