The 5 rarest Xbox 360 games you'll never own

Gamers have vivid memories of the Xbox 360 launch. It was a follow-up to Microsoft's first Xbox console and began things with a great lineup of titles. Major sequels to beloved Xbox series like Halo and fresh new IPs like Gears of War kicked things off in a grand fashion. On top of an already solid foundation with online gaming through Xbox Live, the Xbox 360 was among the best home consoles for a generation of gamers. Despite some controversy over technical malfunctions during its lifetime, the Xbox 360 managed to remain relevant from 2005 to 2016, up to when Microsoft stopped manufacturing it.

During its time on the market, the Xbox 360 had many game releases beyond the iconic titles that people have come to love. Some of the games for the console eventually became highly sought-after gems of the 360 library, increasing their value over time. But what are the rarest Xbox 360 games that someone could get? Not every game that became elusive was a hit, but they are valuable to retro game collectors with a soft spot for Microsoft's second big console. Here are the 5 rarest Xbox 360 games that you may never get to own.

5 Guitar Hero World Tour (Band Kit)

A trend of rock bands

The music genre was invigorated by a high dose of caffeine when the Guitar Hero series took off in the early 2000s. The dream of becoming a rock star and playing some of the greatest music hits of all-time was possible through the game, as well as the spin-offs and other series that were inspired by it. One entry in the series took things further than just playing guitar, adopting other instruments into the mix to bring together the whole band. Guitar Hero World Tour gives players more classic rock music to enjoy, while also letting them pair up with friends to play the whole ensemble of instruments. While the genre was hot for a time, things eventually faded away and the series became dormant.

As the relevance of music games like Guitar Hero began to dwindle, most of the box sets for releases like Guitar Hero World Tour became more scarce. Often, people would throw away their bundles when they lost interest or didn't find anyone else to play with. This has made some of the bundles for various entries in the series more valuable to collectors. A loose and incomplete copy of Guitar Hero World Tour is valued around $290 to $300. But a complete copy of the game, with all of its contents included, is worth more than $350, with some auctions selling the game for more than $700.

4 Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning (Signature Edition)

A signature fantasy RPG

Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning has an interesting development history, but also garners value from collectors on various platforms. The game was available on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 at the time of release, but it also received an enhanced edition years later. That version, called Kingdoms of Amalur Re-Reckoning, was released on most platforms in 2020 and added new content to the game, along with changes to improve quality-of-life features and more. As an action-RPG, Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning is decent in its own right, despite some people criticizing the game for some of its shortcomings in comparison to other bigger titles in the genre.

The standard edition of Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning is easy enough to find for most people. The much rarer Signature Edition is a lot more coveted by collectors. This edition of the game was limited to around 300 copies, and was quickly sold out around the time of its release. The bundle comes with a statue and a signed sketch by artist Todd McFarlane. Incomplete and loose copies of this version of Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning can go for around $250 online, but complete and boxed copies of it are much more expensive. You can find the Signature Edition often being sold for around $350 when completed-in-box, with a few auctions online known to have sold the bundle for more than $600. A lot of the value comes from the signed items and the statue being unique and limited.

3 Madden 09 (Breast Cancer Slip Cover Version)

The Madden NFL Football series is no stranger to expensive releases and frequent updates. People love to watch NFL Football games, and they really love to play Madden because of it. But for a time in the 2000s, most sports organizations celebrated and highlighted causes in various ways. Breast cancer awareness was one of the big issues that organizations would highlight, usually with a pink color scheme or pink-themed event that spotlighted the issue. Money raised from this would be donated to a charity or breast cancer research organization. Madden 09 did this at the time with a special slip case cover for its release, with proceeds from sales going to Deanna Favre Hope Foundation, a group that supports breast cancer research and helpful tools for women in relation to breast cancer.

Although this version of the game is exactly the same as the standard release, the special slip case with it makes it a valuable item for Xbox 360 collectors. Loose copies of this Madden 2009 variant are valued at nearly $300 alone. A complete copy of the Breast Cancer Edition of Madden 09 is worth more, usually hitting the $400 price tag when being sold online. Unfortunately, none of the secondhand sales of the game go to the organizations which it supported during its original release, but hopefully enough money was raised back then for a very good cause.

2 Call of Duty: World at War (Box Set)

A pricey COD release

For many Call of Duty fans, the release of Call of Duty: World at War in 2008 is an important part of the franchise's history. This was the first entry in the series to introduce the infamous Zombies mode that became very popular in future releases. However, the game was still a solid addition to the franchise with its single-player campaign set during World War II, and its multiplayer continued upon the success of its predecessors. Many people played Call of Duty games over Xbox Live, and some would argue that it was one of the series that made the service what it was. But Call of Duty: World at War kept the momentum going with more of the same things that people loved about the franchise back then, even with the new addition of the cooperative Zombies mode.

The series has always seen different entries receive special editions upon their original release, with many being easy to find nowadays. But the boxed set for Call of Duty: World at War was different from other games, particularly with what it contained. The set includes a copy of the movie Behind Enemy Lines on DVD, with a standard edition of the game itself. That's about it, nothing else special about it. However, the boxed set has become an expensive pickup for Xbox 360 collectors, as only a few sales have happened for it online since 2022. Loose and incomplete copies of the box set are worth $372, but a complete version of it skyrockets in value to around $500.

1 Fallout 3 (Survival Edition)

Surviving the wasteland

Fans of western role-playing games love the Fallout series, especially Fallout 3. The game was released in 2008 by Bethesda Game Studios, and became a critical and commercial success across multiple platforms. Set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland following a nuclear incident, Fallout 3 lets players explore wide environments and complete quests tied to very intricate and detailed stories. The level of customization through equipment and weapons is just as detailed as the many dialogue options with many permutations of outcomes. When it comes to truly taking on a role that can influence a world, there are few games that could complete with the Fallout series. The game also received multiple pieces of downloadable content, all of which were big hits with everyone. The success of Fallout 3 eventually led to the releases of more Fallout titles, including Fallout New Vegas and Fallout 4 in the years that followed.

One edition of Fallout 3 that is still highly sought after is the Survival Edition. This version of the game comes with multiple items that Fallout fans are eager to go after. There's a Pip Boy 3000 clock that is a replica of the equipment seen in-game, a Vault-Tech lunch box, a Vault Boy bobble head, an art book, and a DVD for "The Making of Fallout 3" special feature. Loose and incomplete copies of this edition of Fallout 3 is worth around $550. If you manage to have a complete-in-box version of this edition of Fallout 3, then it can be worth up to $1,000. Many find value in this edition of the game because of the replica Pip Boy 3000, but the rest of the items included are often sought after as well.

Xbox 360 gems you may never have

The Xbox 360 had many popular and amazing games that helped make the console a big deal. It was a point in time for the gaming industry where many things were changing, including the frontrunners for what many saw as a new kind of console war. Most of the big games for the Xbox 360 are easily found, but the rarest titles from its library are incredibly difficult to obtain. Chances are, you won't be able to add any of these gems to your Xbox 360 collection, even if you're a big fan of Microsoft's second console.