Most collectors of old games do not understand why it was sold that much. Super Mario 64 in mint condition and wrapped is rare, but clearly not often to justify this price.

One thing I've noticed though if that people buying a auctions do not always seem aware of the actual prices on the market. I attended an auction recently and bought nothing, as all people in the community I know. Everything was sold for far too mych. We were laughing about it, wondering why people were buying those games at those prices, as we know we could easily get them for far less.

I'd be really interested to know more about the dynamics making people spending far too much money like that (misinformation? excitation during the auction?).