NBA Elite 11 Copies Do Exist

It is extremely rare that a game gets delayed as close to its scheduled release as happened with NBA Elite 11. The decision seemed to come down at the very last minute, just eight days before it was set to hit store shelves. Given that time frame it was likely that the game had gone gold and copies had been manufactured, though they were unlikely to have been sent on their way to retailers.

Even the cover athlete, Kevin Durant, didn’t have one in hand and both EA Sports and 2K Sports make an effort to send copies of their games out to athletes early in an attempt to create buzz. It was inevitable though that some copies would find their way out, particularly with the extremely rare nature of them suddenly making them very valuable. As a collectors item a copy of a game that never released could demand a lot of money right now, and much more years down the line.

There have been some unverified reports of copies being posted on Craigslist but the first seemingly credible one has just gone on Ebay. That copy went for $255 and I’ve been in contact with the winner who is hoping to provide some insight on the game once it arrives. $255 sounds crazy for a game that a company admitted would have been extremely damaging to its brand but given the very limited number of copies that will end up in circulation that rarity will make it highly sought after one day.

I’m looking forward to hearing what he thinks about it, and following any other cases of copies reaching the hands of gamers. Just as a side note a code for NBA Jam that was bundled with Elite would not produce the game via download as it will not have been added to the marketplace. If you know of any other copies out there feel free to drop the info in the comments!