NHL'94 Sega Genesis Limited Edition 1st Round Serial Numbers

[kingraph]

When NHL'94 was released (Sega Genesis), the first editions came with a sticker that said "Limited Edition 1st Round" and had a serial number.  Mark Lesser actually has "00001" in his basement, which was seen as part of @McMikey's documentary "Pixelated Heroes".  Here's an example of what the stickers look like:

 

I have been looking at these numbers for a while and recently decided to start documenting them because it was bugging me.  From the small sample size I gathered (mostly eBay listings), my guess is there were 30,000 Limited Edition copies, however I don't know what the letters represent.  Factory seems doubtful given the scattered nature of the numbers.  My guess is the letter was some kind of lot size, or shipping destination, etc. 

So far I have found EDIT: A,B,C,D, (no E), F, G, (no H) FOUND H, thanks Smozoma, I, J, K & L  A - L!. 

UPDATE (Oct'24): I'm still Not sure what the letters represent, but the current thinking is each of the letters (A-L) have 28,750 copies to them, and the non-letter has 5,000 for a total of 350,000 1st round edition copies.  

Below is the running tally, sorted on the left by number and then by letter on right.  

If you happen to own a copy or find a number that is not listed, please feel free to reply to this thread!  I frequently search eBay listings, so as other 1st editions come up there I will incorporate as well.  

As of October 7, 2024

Lowest number (aside from 00001) - 20
Highest number - 28,270

[smozoma]

L00159 (!!)

B07616 (my original one)

H12546

[smozoma]

CoachMac has a cart with different banner colours for NJ. I wonder if that could be traced toa particular letter or number series

[kingraph]

4 hours ago, smozoma said:

L00159 (!!)

B07616 (my original one)

H12546

We gave an "H"!  So the only letter I haven't seen from A - L is E.  

[clockwise]

How many of each exist? 

I have first run copy of NHL'95 with a Waffen SS logo; is that worth anything?

[Sedge]

See, that was something that always bugged me about this place. Why do some of y'all have such intense loathing towards 95?

[DSgamby]

 

[kingraph]

10 hours ago, DeterminedApathy said:

See, that was something that always bugged me about this place. Why do some of y'all have such intense loathing towards 95?

Mainly because '95 was completely remade and was terrible compared to '94.

At the same time, it's more making fun than "intense loathing".  At least for me.

[smozoma]

Found this one on eBay. C16111 (I think it's "C" anyway)

[segathon]

On 12/30/2019 at 9:16 PM, DeterminedApathy said:

See, that was something that always bugged me about this place. Why do some of y'all have such intense loathing towards 95?

They are scared because NHL 95 is the FUTURE

[crazygoalie33]

Hey Raph,

 

I had D02565

Edited January 2, 2020 by crazygoalie33

[Sedge]

Alright, maybe "loathing" was too strong but then "dislike" didn't feel strong enough after that SS emblem comment.

I'm biased though, since 95 was my introduction to EA's series. YMMV, agree to disagree, and other cliches.

[clockwise]

5 hours ago, DeterminedApathy said:

Alright, maybe "loathing" was too strong but then "dislike" didn't feel strong enough after that SS emblem comment.

I'm biased though, since 95 was my introduction to EA's series. YMMV, agree to disagree, and other cliches.

I just wanted to see what it's worth, man. I don't hate the game or anything. 

[kingraph]

Update - Found all letters A-L.  Also, 2 other early edition copies with no letter.  Now at 79 identified copies, which if there are at least 28,270 represents a solid 0.28%.

I am still not sure what the letters represent.  I don't see a pattern by letter.  My guess is the letter represents what region they were shipped to and that the letters may have been stamped after the numbers.  

Those with no letter may have been to the employees at EA or something (like Lesser has 00001) and never shipped.  

 

 

[ac3100]

Never noticed the sticker!

 

Here's Mine:

[philt80]

Here is mine:

K00336

[kingraph]

1 minute ago, philt80 said:

Here is mine:

K00336

Thanks!  Early one!

[illegalsmileIV:XX]

I have a copy of Donkey Kong Country with a sticker of Snap, (of Snap, Crackle and Pop fame), on it, if anyone is interested... Guys...?

 

Guys??

[Gretzky]

No letter on mine, and not an EA employee. Just noticed I still have all the inserts in the box...trading cards are not even opened...lol!

[Votaw]

I found one at an antique mall. Came here to report it but B09687 is already here

[kingraph]

10 hours ago, Votaw said:

I found one at an antique mall. Came here to report it but B09687 is already here

If it's reported here, they must have posted it on eBay!

[smozoma]

Some more seen on ebay.ca. Prices are getting high!

01743
04244
A24615
B01322
B06347
b26834
C23944
F05397
G09048
G12624
H18125 ?? blurry
J19857
K20295
L09129

[kingraph]

17 minutes ago, smozoma said:

Some more seen on ebay.ca. Prices are getting high!

01743
04244
A24615
B01322
B06347
b26834
C23944
F05397
G09048
G12624
H18125 ?? blurry
J19857
K20295
L09129

Added!

[smozoma]

The unlettered numbers, so far the highest is 04244. So I suspect it was a limited run of 5000.

Also, the counts of each letter so far:

A-L is 12 letters. 12x29,000 = 348,000

I suspect that at some point we'll see a duplicate number (we still don't have a 1-apart, though we have a bunch of 8-aparts)

 

[kingraph]

1 hour ago, smozoma said:

The unlettered numbers, so far the highest is 04244. So I suspect it was a limited run of 5000.

Also, the counts of each letter so far:

A-L is 12 letters. 12x29,000 = 348,000

I suspect that at some point we'll see a duplicate number (we still don't have a 1-apart, though we have a bunch of 8-aparts)

 

Interesting.  I was thinking the serial numbers are sequential and the letters were not a separate batch.  So I'm about 1/12th the size you're thinking (0001 - 29000).

Let's keep our eyes peeled.  We have 193 numbers as of today, which is 0.67% of 29,000 and .055% of 348,000.  

[kingraph]

@Tickenest, perhaps you can help answer this question?  If we assume 12 batches of 29000 copies of A-L, what are the chances/probability that we would find a duplicate serial number at some point if we kept picking one at a time?

 

[smozoma]

1 hour ago, kingraph said:

Interesting.  I was thinking the serial numbers are sequential and the letters were not a separate batch.  So I'm about 1/12th the size you're thinking (0001 - 29000).

Let's keep our eyes peeled.  We have 193 numbers as of today, which is 0.67% of 29,000 and .055% of 348,000.  

It seems like more than half the boxes I see have the sticker, so 348k (~500k total in circulation) seems a lot more likely than 29k (~50k total in circulation).

[kingraph]

1 hour ago, smozoma said:

It seems like more than half the boxes I see have the sticker, so 348k (~500k total in circulation) seems a lot more likely than 29k (~50k total in circulation).

Hmm, that's also an interesting way to estimate total sales.  If we track 1st round/regular ratio, we can have a reasonable assumption of total production.  I feel like it's less than 50/50, but will track.  

[smozoma]

A couple more:

B09345
i20835

[smozoma]

H22749

I figure we should include pictures otherwise we could just be making these up! These are a few mentioned yesterday, already in the list: