Summary
Out of all the eras ofYu-Gi-Oh!, theoriginal remains the most expensive, but in terms of the difficulty of getting what you want and the loss you can incur when buying a sealed box, that value has to be higher in the GX era. This was the era of Yu-Gi-Oh! dominated by the ultimate rares, as secrets were absent for much of GX.
Not only are ultimates harder to grade, but with so many in a set compared to the ultras and supers, the odds of acquiring the one you want are significantly worse. Luckily, it’s not as bad as the 5Ds era, but still not great.
All values are based onTCGPlayer’sfirst edition market price at the time of writing. All cards are from core sets, and misprints won’t be factored in.
10Rainbow Dragon (Ghost Rare) - $390.37
The Very First Ghost Rare Card
Today, we have starlights in Yu-Gi-Oh!, but before then, the ridiculously hard card to get was the ghost rare. Usually, there’s only one in a given set, and so rare you were only guaranteed one in a 12-box case; these are highly desirable for collectors.
It all started with Rainbow Dragon in Tactical Evolution, the first ghost rare card printed in the TCG. The historical significance of this card cannot be understated, and is probably why it trumps the other three ghost rares of the GX era.
9Raviel, Lord Of Phantasms (Ultimate Rare) - $441.94 And Hamon, Lord Of Striking Thunder (Ultimate Rare) - $449.90
The GX God Cards
These two cards are lumped together because they’re essentially cut from the cloth. Debuting at the end of season one of GX was the Sacred Beasts, a more evil version of the god cards in Yu-Gi-Oh! Despite their more fiendish design, these cards didn’t catch on like the regular god cards.
Nevertheless, they’re still the god cards of GX and the big chase cards of Shadow of Infinity. With Raviel having the most iconic design of the three and Hamon looking sick as well, it’s understandable why they would be so expensive. Keep in mind that the Sacred Beasts ultimate rares are only in hobby boxes, and in fact, all of the most valuable GX cards come from hobby instead of retail.
8Cyberdark Dragon (Ultimate Rare) - $499.95
Witness The True Power Of Hell Kaiser
One of the most memorable parts of the entire GX anime had to be Zane Truesdale’s transformation into Hell Kaiser. After going on a losing streak, Zanebecomes vicious as a duelist, winning by any means necessary. His new Cyber Dragon cards during this period were of the Cyberdark variety, with the big boss monster fusion being Cyberdark Dragon.
Unlike the initial Cyber Dragon cards, these weren’t competitive, but nevertheless, Cyberdark Dragon was the cover card of Cyberdark Impact and looks sick in ultimate rare foiling. Considering the two best cards in the set were commons, it makes sense why this one would be the most valuable, unlike another late-era GX set.
7Ancient Gear Golem (Ultimate Rare) - $529.98
The First Cover Card Of GX
A no-brainer valuable card in the GX era has to be Ancient Gear Golem. Appearing as a boss monster in the very first episode of the GX series, it has a lot of nostalgia value attached to it. Plus, its design looks great, especially in the extremely rare ultimate you can get in The Lost Millennium.
This set was the first to feature GX cards and the last set of Goat format, one of the most popular older formats still played today. Brain Control, the most competitive card of Lost Millennium, is also valuable at around $315, but sometimes nostalgia will win out in the price war.
6Necroface (Secret Rare) - $540
A Competitive Card That Actually Tops The Set
Most of the time, a nostalgic card will trump a competitive one in terms of value, but not in Gladiator’s Assault. Secrets just recently returned at the time, and with 15 total in the set, pulling a Necroface is tough, to say the least.
With a unique effect that puts every banished card right back into the deck and then adds to the monster’s ATK, it was a great card that was either limited or semi-limited for much of the game’s life until fairly recently. What’s also important is that Necroface is limited in Edison format, and many of those cards are some of the only ones in Yu-Gi-Oh! that are actively rising in price. All of this makes Necroface a highly valuable card.
5Elemental Hero Tempest (Ultimate Rare) - $699.99
The Ultimate GX Season One Hero
The biggest Elemental Hero of Yu-Gi-Oh! GX season one was Elemental Hero Electrum. However, that was printed in a McDonald’s pack as a rare and not in any core set. As such, the ultimate hero before Neos was Elemental Hero Tempest from Elemental Energy.
By far one of the most iconic fusion hero designs in the game, the card looks great with its dynamic heroic pose, and that goes double for the ultimate rare. It may surprise you, though, that there’s another card from this set that’s even more expensive.
4Cyber Dragon (Ultimate Rare) - $729.80
The Blue-Eyes White Dragon Of GX
When Cybernetic Revolution released, it changed the entire landscape of Yu-Gi-Oh!, leaving Goat format in its dust, and it was primarily due to one new archetype: the Cyber Dragons. Not only were these cards wildly powerful in the show, but in the TCG as well, with the normal Cyber Dragon having the effect of being able to special summon itself if you have no monsters on the field but your opponent does.
This makes for a great going second strategy, especially since you needed it back then, as you still drew a card going first. Both the nostalgia factor and historical significance play a big part in why Cyber Dragon’s ultimate rare is that expensive.
3Cyber End Dragon (Ultimate Rare) - $974.95
The Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon Of GX
There’s a lot of cool cards in the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX anime, but one that blew everyone away as a kid had to be Cyber End Dragon. Using Power Bond to summon it, leading to a one-turn kill, couldn’t have been a better marketing tactic to pick up some Cybernetic Revolution packs.
Who cares about Elemental Heroes when you have this one-turn kill machine? Interestingly enough, Cyber Twin Dragon had far more competitive play back then due to its ability to attack twice, but nevertheless, Cyber End Dragon has to be in the top three most iconic GX cards and easily earns its nearly $1,000 price.
2Elemental Hero Air Neos (Ultimate Rare) - $1,049.65
The Forbidden Yu-Gi-Oh! Card
Unlike most valuable cards, Elemental Hero Air Neos isn’t expensive due to nostalgia or its competitive significance. The fact is Elemental Hero Air Neos hasn’t been printed since its 2007 debut in Strike of Neos, and nobody knows why. There were dozens of times Konami could have reprinted it in various GX-themed products, but it just hasn’t happened.
People have speculated that it’s due to legal issues or artist issues, but Konami has not confirmed the exact reason why this card’s been seemingly erased from Yu-Gi-Oh! history. There’s just an undeniable mystique around Air Neos, and when the company behind the TCG just refuses to reprint it, the price obviously skyrockets up.
1Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman (Ultimate Rare) - $1,899.98
The Biggest Hero In All Of GX
The Dark Magician equivalent of Yu-Gi-Oh! GX would be Elemental Hero Neos, but there’s a problem. That card was printed as a common in its original core set, so the next best thing would be Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman in Elemental Energy.
An upgraded version of the already iconic Flame Wingman, Shining Flare Wingman has to be either the first or second most iconic hero in the game. Its shining bright artwork pops so well in ultimate rare form, and with it being the Dark Magician equivalent that actually has a high rarity, it’s undeniably the most valuable GX card ever and one of themost valuable cards in all of Yu-Gi-Oh!
