Game & Console Verification

[shrewd trail]

Guess I should ask about the others

[molten pawn]

the ruby and DS games looked fine

it's just this leafgreen that is totally bogus dude

[shrewd trail]

I believe you

[grim raptor]

#off-topic

[fierce ridge]

Thats gotta be one of the worst LeafGreen fakes I've seen in a while

LG isn't even supposed to have a battery

[shrewd trail]

Yeah hence me saying I am confused

How am I off topic I am posting the games to make sure they’re real

[grim raptor]

this is for authenticating gameboy gmaes

[hybrid rover]

To clarify: you're under the [Game Boy] tab right now, so the DS games are #off-topic

[shrewd trail]

Oh poopy

My bad

It just says game & console I didn’t know

[hybrid rover]

No harm no foul

[formal dove]

I think it’s real i just want to make sure , and the eu version does have English ?

[formal dove]

appreciated boys

[molten pawn]

even with those not great photos, four strikes you're out

[shrewd trail]

I was concerned

Guy wants to trade them for pokemon cards

[hybrid rover]

They're all fakes, so pass

[shrewd trail]

He’s at least being cool about it and asking how I can tell, I just sent him the gameboy link from the game verifying sub

I am not an expert but I didn’t see the indent in the upper right which is why I posted here

[molten pawn]

the label was enough

[teal oxide]

for me it was the plastic colour that i locked onto

[shrewd trail]

Thanks folks

[grim raptor]

#off-topic

[dreamy siren]

Sorry

And Thanks 😊

[glossy patio]

Same photos with light on it, not behind, please

Just to confirm something, but it looks

[echo frost]

Oh its an ebay listing, just wanted to verify before i purchase

They sent this but I still can't make out thr grid thats meant to be in the top left, although it does have the code etched into the sticker

[glossy patio]

I'm fairly sure it is a cartridge - revision 1, if you must know

[echo frost]

Oh whats the tell?

[glossy patio]

There's a A on the label, stamped along the digits

[echo frost]

Oh I see, I did a bit of digging but couldnt figure our whats the difference between 1.1 and 1.2 (A and B?)

[glossy patio]

edit : didn't understand the question lol - see bellow 🙂

[naive tangle]

@echo frost
1.1 fixed a bunch of localisation + spelling errors, patched the "name change during evolution bug", patched the berry glitch, and fixed the text overflow on the "save failed" screen.

1.2 a tiny tweak to the code that handled date conversion (i.e. for the berry glitch patch), IIRC (I need to check again to confirm this). Pretty much identical to 1.1, otherwise except the header and version number obviously

[knotty ferry]

Need help figuring out what which GBA cartridge is fake

[hybrid rover]

The left one is fake, the right one is real

To understand why, check the pinned 📌 guides

[knotty ferry]

I was thinking the same thing

From a shop selling these gba games for $20 but something seem incredibly off

[grim raptor]

I recommend always being careful with gba games that are being sold with cartridge protectors

[vocal compass]

Hi hi, found this and I'm not 100% if it fits in this channel but I am very clueless with boxes

[karmic cairn]

Box shinyness is super sus

I'm no pro but that box does not look legit 😔

[echo frost]

Is this a genuine OEM shell?

[livid lotus]

it's pretty scuffed/well played to be a fake, it might as well be genuine, can't say for sure though

[echo frost]

I guess I'll take a deep dive into checking genuine stickers

[echo frost]

Seems genuine from research 🤷🏽‍♂️ if anyone has any objections lmk

[glossy patio]

Looks real

[echo frost]

It was sadly not but got the full refund 🤷🏽‍♂️

These were the best quality pictures the seller claimed he could with his crappy phone, but I have asked for some close follow ups of hopefully the etching in the sticker, but any immediate tells from this?

Actually now that i look at the complexity of the spiral on the sticker it does look pretty simple and fake

[molten pawn]

fonts are faked

top right of the sticker, the pokémon company logo

[echo frost]

Yeah thought so, I think the fonts are right but its too thin, even the CE in the bottom right

[molten pawn]

no it's just the wrong font, here's how it's meant to look

[echo frost]

Yeah, tbh the more i look at it the more obvious it is that its fake lmao

[molten pawn]

i haven't been able to tell what typeface it is specifically, but it's definitely not a windows default that nintendo pays for to use
and because of that, most bootleggers will say "eh, just use default sans serif, no one will notice"

[severe pagoda]

Hey guys, I came here because in here y'all seem much nicer than people from GameVerification lmao
I kinda know how to identify fakes, but I just wanted to ask in here as well..
Recently I found this bundle online. I messaged him and asked how much he'd like? He told me €325,-. Comes down to about €46,50 per game.
I don't have more pictures of the cartridges or the boxes so I'm meeting him this Friday to thoroughly check them out. He wanted to meet at a storage box, so I just have no clue if this is someone who bought a storage box and is selling what's inside, or if it's really fake...

To me, they don't have any glaring discrepancies, and I know what to check - I just wanted to know what more people thought and didn't know where else to go.

Clarification: these are boxes with games, but apparently no manuals.

[glossy patio]

Too good to be true : probably isn't
No manuals is a big red flag for me
Careful this all sounds like a trap to get you somewhere with 325$ in hand

[severe pagoda]

I know exactly what you mean, which is why I wanted to double check. I'm with you on the too good to be true thing. Personally, I'm just someone who wanted to originally replay the games, I'm not looking to make any profit on them.
Going there I won't have any cash or cards on hand.. which is in this day and age still not 100% safe but, hey. It's better than having my cards stolen.

[severe pagoda]

Update: All of them were reproductions and not real. I took none of them home.

The guy genuinely didn't know though, he deleted the listing and was going to tell his buddy who they were from. He was interested in how I could tell and apologized more than 4 times

[worthy arch]

yyyyyeah, when I tell a seller that they have fakes and the seller replies with "I didn't know" that just means they did and are trying to avoid being called out on it in front of other sellers.

I would be willing to bet money that the same items go up for sale again in a week or so.

[floral stag]

howdy

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/127490341585?_skw=sonic+advance+1+2+and+3+bundle&itmmeta=01KAKHBARM8PVZFH8CANBH7F66&hash=item1daf043ad1:g:XboAAeSwzoppFe0w&itmprp=enc%3AAQAKAAABAFkggFvd1GGDu0w3yXCmi1dGWKsk8QSrbCTidJHpP224Nh6dc8cJFfk6OB0zs66Skl0XxveXcHMqVsZvTzZrrRKE0rd1Z47UxSxvgw508lk%2BA%2BSV8ZZIIZybCRGDsRZ%2BeprPmPxIyqFWKCNH4ckY5ppfo%2BSdr%2FxB7EDGVNI35Nr4g6xHp4VGygjieei7EN%2FjyTP4tZCT2TcrMRGMzLQVk7QlH5wEPugNif0aunmF0ssQByfZqJPfcuGeBohnjxNsCsNM9vMGUw2U7tHkwl0l2AlcYCFbmooIW0k1EtDVi2p1G%2FwFpRqprMLPRN0JHzIXu2F7SQiOSvMD3Vt1Bg%2FkkFg%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR8ysrfHUZg

just wanted to quickly check

[wary yarrow]

Hi all, trying to verify if a GBC has been reshelled or not. Had a few people say its OEM but could always use more opinions on it

[molten pawn]

didn't see the lens decoration at first, nice promo copy,

https://consolevariations.com/collectibles/nintendo-game-boy-color-ana-console

[glossy patio]

Are you able to download these pictures instead of screenshooting them ?
If you're having trouble you can DM me the link and I'll see if I can extract them

Everything looks OK to me but I'm a bit suspicious of the label - it looks very clean, hence why I'd prefer to have better quality pics

[wary yarrow]

Went to grab better picks and the entire sellers profile was taken down so im guessing i dodge a bullet there 😅

[floral stag]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/316977293480?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D777008%26algo%3DPERSONAL.TOPIC%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20250528152629%26meid%3D346508b4c1f445c9905ab090bfcdb2f1%26pid%3D102795%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D3%26mehot%3Dnone%26itm%3D316977293480%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D4375194%26algv%3DWatchlistVariantWithPSItemDR_BP%26tu%3D01KB2G8GC01GCTQNQVH4FSDXD9

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/316977293480

[floral stag]

im pretty certain its real im just slightly unsure

and i just want to check before 100 £ are spent

[glossy patio]

Looks all good - great little bundle there

[floral stag]

ty

[safe swan]

What do we think? Real or nah?

[glossy patio]

I wanna see the inside cardboard and the flaps

Fake pokemon box got really good now.

[safe swan]

I'll have to ask him for more pics

[safe swan]

But from the outside you'd assume real or? Does the outside look right?

[livid lotus]

not an expert in cardboard but seems legit

[glossy patio]

It does look legit but fake pokemon boxes are crazy good now, to the point that you get the best verification from how the original boxes age up
In this case, the box is in a very good condition, so I want to check the flaps and the type of cardboard it's made of

Also this is a US version, which is the most faked and the one I'm used to the less... so... double triple checks

[azure cipher]

Hi guys can u help me out are these copy’s real

[glossy patio]

Everything looks good to me, but what made you think you should double check with us ?

[glossy patio]

What could I look out for on the circuit board to say it’s real or not?
You can compare your circuits with what's archived online such as on Gekkio's website : https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/AGB-AX4E-1/

[azure cipher]

I got them for too good of a deal it made me question it

[robust bobcat]

Fake?

[bleak talon]

Most likely yes. Shell is aftermarket and lens is for sure aftermarket. Motherboard is real however

[robust bobcat]

How could you tell, for future reference?

Oh, I think I saw it. I see the little circles (for mold injection?) on these images but not on the consolevariations one

[bleak talon]

Lettering on the lens is a bit thick and some of the font doesn’t match

As for the shell, I’m pretty confident it’s a CGS shell since it’s way clearer than a real one

[alpine edge]

thanks so much for any help !!:D

[glossy patio]

Looks all good - very clean, maybe too clean but everything seems to be in order - So I guess just a very nice unit 🙂
The serial is in the range of the series also

[alpine edge]

thank you so much!! 😆
hope you have an amazing day or night:))))

[solar junco]

was alttp/4swords assembled on AGB-E03-21? My childhood copy is -20

[glossy patio]

https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/gba.html

This will answer your question and help you with future verifications 🙂

[solar junco]

excellent. Thank you!

[glossy patio]

@solar junco In your case it looks like the -21 is not listed but your picture look like a legit cart
It's probably a version that was not yet listed
If you end up buying it, please submit some pictures so we can archive it 🙂

[solar junco]

Nice! I'll go ahead and get in on the auction, it's relatively cheap right now. So, worth the "risk" of it being fake for me. Should know more when it ends in a few days.

[robust bobcat]

I went through every single gba game cartridge once to look for emerald replacement boards and didn't know about it 😂

[glossy patio]

This is also a good source to just CTRL+F a model
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mamedev/mame/master/hash/gba.xml
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mamedev/mame/master/hash/gbcolor.xml
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mamedev/mame/master/hash/gamepock.xml
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mamedev/mame/master/hash/gameboy.xml

[robust bobcat]

Wow, that's amazing

[solar junco]

Btw, it’ll be in my hands by Saturday. I’ll get some pics up

[azure cipher]

Is this authentic?

[solar junco]

It showed up earlier than expected!
ALTTP/4Sword on AGB-E03-21

[little cargo]

on the back i can see "for china only" which i think checks out with the White PiL dmgs, what do yall think?

[grim raptor]

Real

And the more uncommon Mani version lol

I was considering jokingly saying in #gameboy that all original gameboys say MANI on them and you actually posted a mani one

That's crazy

[little cargo]

oh so it's like double uncommon then?

[grim raptor]

yea

i have one too

[tall anchor]

Could anyone help me to determine if this cartridge is authentic?

[hybrid rover]

I don't see any red flags, looks good to me

[tall anchor]

The green around the board seems badly cut but that might just be me 😭

[molten pawn]

no i think that's just the quality of the PCB

i have some genesis carts that are pretty roughly cut as well
they make Q-tip cleaning a little annoying

[livid lotus]

[livid lotus]

also check pinned messages so you can do your own appraising

[trim timber]

The gold squares?

[livid lotus]

pinned messages, at the top right of this very same Discord window, looks like a pin, between the bell and the little people

[knotty ferry]

Are these fake?

[worthy arch]

hard to tell when they're in a case. got any pics outside of them?

[glossy patio]

super fake

[knotty ferry]

It was an eBay auction. Selling very low. Just fishy to me

[knotty ferry]

It’s subtle but I can see it. The loop around the G

[glossy patio]

subtle ?

[knotty ferry]

Should probably look for the Japanese version. Way cheaper and less likely to be faked

[knotty ferry]

I don’t see many fakes.

[glossy patio]

This is a real cart
The logo is way way more indented in the plastic on many fakes

[worthy arch]

the "G" in GAMEBOY look so thin in comparison

[molten pawn]

thicker font as well

thin font logo is only really seen on DMG stuff (cartridge indent and front-writing on the system)

[whole phoenix]

Gold squares have been known to be faked. You want to match the pcb layout if you're going off just the pcb. (Sorry for ping but late reply)

[wise grove]

Hi all hoping for an authenticity check.
I have a Pokémon Sapphire cartridge and would appreciate confirmation on whether the PCB is a legitimate Nintendo board/revision.
I’ve heard there are multiple authentic revisions, so I want to be sure.
Not looking to sell here, just verifying. Thanks!

[molten pawn]

they didn't even try with that cartridge

[blissful shadow]

if you ever see this black glob on the board then it's not official

[wise grove]

Okay thank you

[blissful shadow]

good fakes won't have it either so be careful

[wise grove]

Will do i know a little more now and have tools to open things. Good thing is it came in a bundle with a gba mod that I was actually after so I didnt lose anything.

[glossy patio]

There are exeptions 😄

[blissful shadow]

my mistake! what game is this?

[oak moon]

It's also not the only example of legitimate Gameboy games with black blobs. I think that one might be Super Marioland 2 released in China?

[livid lotus]

battery is from 1995 so this is really late in the DMG lifecycle, when blobs made their appearance in DMGs as well. A dark time indeed

[glossy patio]

Metroid II ! These blobs are mostly found on -CHN games but iirc there's a few exeptions to that rule also
Overall your indication is a correct rule of thumb, I'm being a bit silly 😄

FAH version, by comparison
https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/DMG-MEA-0/3615retro-1.html

[grim raptor]

yes, a lot of mani games are blob tops

[glossy patio]

Tetris is probably the most famous legit blob - there are several variants
https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/DMG-TRA-1/3615retro-1.html
https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/DMG-TRA-1/gekkio-1.html

[paper sluice]

Someone should make a replacement board

[blissful shadow]

for tetris?

[normal furnace]

I assume for any non-MBC 32 KiB game/program, not just Tetris.

[glossy patio]

I don't know any other but possibly
For now you can browse this section : https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/no-mapper.html

[raven seal]

Is this gb pocket legit? Just bought it off facebook in person, it won’t turn on but seller is nice and will help me.

[worthy arch]

I doubt anyone would make a fake Pocket, dirty it up, leave disintegrating labels on it and then try to scam someone into buying it.

[fierce ridge]

Thats where I come in

[paper sluice]

I’d buy that for about $20 though

[raven seal]

I spent $50 for it and a gameboy sp in working condition but shell is pretty rough and display doesn’t seem that bright considering its back lit

[worthy arch]

you sure it's backlit? SPs had two models.

001 was frontlit, 101 was backlit.

[worthy arch]

001

001s have one brightness and then off.

also if there's a label on the back, the top left corner should say if it's a 001 or 101

[raven seal]

Came with pokemon arcoiris

[worthy arch]

that's getting off-topic for verification. head to #modding for info and suggestions

[agile sage]

Hi, Are all these games 100% real and authentic? I would appreciate the help, here’s the proper post

I made sure to get the proper pictures

[agile sage]

If anyone can help, that would be super helpful

[normal furnace]

GBA Fire Emblem is real. [22]
Not sure about the NDS ones, but they look pretty authentic to me.

[agile sage]

I bought all three from Japan

If anyone knows the DS ones that would be appreciated

[glossy patio]

This is not the right channel for that
Make a #1006386432065155083 post 👍

[agile sage]

Anyone have experience on DS games?

These 2 DS games are special to me

[glossy patio]

https://discord.gg/9HpDCsFHPm
Bring it over the DS server

[agile sage]

Posted it there

Cuz this is really urgent

[raven seal]

Does this look legit? I noticed it was switching languages on me from english (mine) and spanish. Any ideas? Sometimes it would be in english but not making any sense lol. I’m seeing “sprihack inc” now on startup screen.

Another one

[vagrant rock]

it didn't cross your mind to do a web search on "Pokemon Arcoiris"? it's a ROM hack, there's no legit Pokemon game with that name

[livid lotus]

lol that mix of broken Spanish and English cracks me up

[normal furnace]

I always single the strong Trainers. (for EXP)

[raven seal]

Yeah no, because I thought it was a legit game. I don't know the pokemon games beyond the originals well

partly why I'm getting into this

[eager granite]

Then you have a lot to learn about original carts (pricey), bootlegs (so, so many), rombacks that are high quality (few (only meaning software quality here)), and ones that are very dubious (also so many), and the ones that can legally be sold on aftermarket cartridges (trick question (!); none can).
Welcome though. You'll have it figured out in no time.

[cedar kindle]

Real or fake

@cedar kindle so I get the message

[livid lotus]

I think it's fake but the image quality is not good enough

[delicate shore]

I second this

99.9% sure it’s fake

[thorny cave]

Sorry for poor quality but are these legit?

[hoary ruin]

I can ask for em to unscrew if needed

[livid lotus]

pics are not the best but imo

[hoary ruin]

How about this?

[livid lotus]

same as before, pics are not the best but it looks at a first glance. I am not an expert, check the pinned messages for some tips on how to distinguish repros

[grim raptor]

Fake

[glossy patio]

It's OK to ask for help but please do your homework, and check with us when you have a doubt
You can check the pins from this thread to have a good base understanding of what makes a real or a fake cart

oh well, elrichard said it before me - I should finish backlogging before answering

[hoary ruin]

Yep i m trying my best to learn and identify fakes, the pins really help me

Ty

[trim timber]

Fake, the picture of the back, you don't see the 4 gold squares, nor the test pads

[whole phoenix]

The four squares are known to be faked.

[worthy arch]

the label alone should have been enough

[hushed flame]

I'm assuming all of these are fake, right?

[molten pawn]

can't tell from that far away

[hushed flame]

Oh I was just assuming from the art

Any better?

[glossy patio]

Did you check the guides ? (pinned message)
Mario Bros Deluxe is real, the others are not

[floral stag]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/168064659902?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D777008%26algo%3DPERSONAL.TOPIC%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20250417133222%26meid%3D3da00f8510ab4ac68526b40cad5ab9dd%26pid%3D102727%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D1%26mehot%3Dnone%26itm%3D168064659902%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D4375194%26algv%3DWatchlistVariantWithPSItemDR_BP%26brand%3DNintendo&_trksid=p4375194.c102727.m162921

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/168064659902

[floral stag]

would you say this is real or a reshell?

bc im almost certain its real

[trim timber]

Yeah, they can be faked. But i was saying that if it's missing, it's fake. If it's present, search for other clues.

[hoary ruin]

found those, seems legit to me. Can you guys give an opinion?

[hoary ruin]

leafgreen 40$ ruby 45$ idk if i should buy em or negotiate for a lower price

[glossy patio]

That's not the line of this channel, but take a look at sold ads on eBay and such, it will give you a range
Also, pricecharting can help, but know they are usually lagging behind a bit

[hoary ruin]

Thanks a lot i literally forgot about pricecharting

damn the listing went unavailable rn

[grim raptor]

id buy the LG

[hoary ruin]

i buy both rn and a nemo game for 100$ bro wanna get rid of that nemo

mostly buying them to avoid shipping fees from another country

[trim timber]

I don't have access to the screwdriver on me rn:

[livid lotus]

seems legit

[trim timber]

Also for some reason, there was pokemon yellow's manual in the box

Or well, i assume it's yellow because it shows screenshots of pokemon yellow for the start menu

I'll post some pictures of the pcb in 4 or 5 hours

[grim raptor]

finding nemo on gba sucks

[grim raptor]

its fr*nch

[trim timber]

also, sorry for the blur, my camera's kinda bad. I'll take the next one with the gameboy camera

Just missing Ruby, and mayby FRLG if i want the remakes

and then, i'll have almost all gen 3 games (if counting only mainlines)

[dusty iris]

In facebook marketplace

[fierce ridge]

This looks good to me, rip label though

[dusty iris]

Yeah, oh well. An aftermarket lable isn't as big of a deal to me as long as its on original hardware

[somber birch]

Is this an actual AGS 101? The screen seems to be too dim

And with the brightness button on it just becomes almost completely dark

[molten pawn]

that's a resticker

it's a 001

[somber birch]

Ahhh shit thanks

[molten pawn]

presumably a reshell and definitely a rebutton, that's not the OEM lettering and that B-button is VERY offset

[somber birch]

Ahhhh thank you heaps!

Explains it

[misty carbon]

Hi guys im trying to buy a Pokémon emerald versión, anyone have the mother board for give me an idea to know if my buys are real or no?

[worthy arch]

there's a verification thread for that.

if you mean a high quality scan so you can do your own comparisons...

https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/AGB-BPEE-0/

[floral stag]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/177748329417?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D777008%26algo%3DPERSONAL.TOPIC%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20250925143348%26meid%3Dd1fba77a182242b78305988d0484ff01%26pid%3D102674%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D9%26mehot%3Dnone%26itm%3D177748329417%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D4375194%26algv%3DPersonalizedTopicsV2WithPCatSup_BP%26brand%3DNintendo%26tu%3D01KF976H5QW6F3CXZD9RCHX3D1

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/177748329417

[livid lotus]

evidently a reshell

[floral stag]

alright thank you!

[misty carbon]

@worthy arch real or fake

IS a spanish Green leaf

[livid lotus]

don't ping the poor guy, he is most likely sleeping

also you have the pinned messages to help you

[grim raptor]

Not if we can’t help it

[misty carbon]

so you guys thinks it is real

[livid lotus]

no, we just say it's real to mess with you. Yes, it is real, check pinned messages to know how to identify them, also there is an extensive database of original boards here https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/gba.html

[misty carbon]

okaayyy thank you

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/257289990342

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226316006063

[floral stag]

again, sorry for the clutter with these ebay ones, its just whenever i take screenshots they look pretty bad from my laptop

[livid lotus]

I bought fakes from ebay by mistake in the past and every time it happened, I got my money back.
So if you are willing to buy those, and even with the pinned information on this channel, you can't ascertain whether they are you could just buy them and if they happen to be fakes, just return them...

[hoary ruin]

They cant open it

[livid lotus]

seems legit

[glossy patio]

Hello there @hoary ruin
What makes you doubt it's authenticity ?

[hoary ruin]

Missing this

BUT

I think some carts dont have that

Mostly eur versions

So i ask here for a double check

[glossy patio]

The ESRB is a USA certification system
It would not be present in other region

As you can see on your screenshot, there's -USA on the game code

[hoary ruin]

Thanks for clarifying

[edgy pecan]

Is this real?

[glossy patio]

What makes you doubt if it's real or not ?

[livid lotus]

Japanese is tricky, can't trust people who do not use the letter L or its sound

[edgy pecan]

Why doesnt it have seal of quality btw

.

?

[worthy arch]

because that was mostly a US thing.

[edgy pecan]

Oh ok

[hoary ruin]

I assume everything here is fake, thats the only pic bro had from my perspective this is fake if i m wrong please let me know

Pokemon red seems kinda okish

[glossy patio]

Super Mario Land 2, Pokemon Red and Zooo are real

[livid lotus]

Pokémon Red, SML 2 and the GBA games could be original, but need better pics

[daring flame]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/236233297549?_skw=pokemon+sapphire&epid=10658&itmmeta=01KFRMYTKVE6F5MM6R9CCEDX2V&hash=item37009a0e8d:g:vCEAAeSwABJoh6Pi&itmprp=enc%3AAQALAAAA0O7PUuNWmJ%2B%2BUShgI9tQz%2FpeILJVXb0cSjK0AaI2uzv%2FWwuxAVtQlwk%2FiLmaLDwYEWuU8zGMWqGZKhzHIvrJhd%2BeOeey%2FnB%2BjK04egBGljLFxyO%2BfYNwudxS3x8iiJrt3PaFGUx9hmxKxpinHDNQZOeV4sbB1HziXMKb%2B6p4Il2ycYliitAXKYrNhZmrjzINDsLC%2BTMvP%2B1CXjcHqgKNBIO7yz%2FIZNf5lbN4k1vQNPPf7EI%2BJInUo7pi0C7PM9EushIiBnxscAxSgcsoXpMVQbE%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR5Kq-5T-Zg

I just want to confirm if its original before spending 120 USD 🙂

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.com/itm/236233297549

[livid lotus]

You can try checking out the pinned messages for hints maybe? Seems to be but I don't see the engraved numbers in the label, maybe the label has been replaced

[daring flame]

oh thanks, let me check the link

[daring flame]

oh, its hard that one, I found one more for few dollars less, but I kinda can see the numbers on the label

https://www.ebay.com/itm/358151132622?_skw=pokemon+sapphire&epid=10658&itmmeta=01KFS0ZZYTTN627DEW9F37EWNZ&hash=item53637895ce:g:7-0AAeSw9zdpdSqY&itmprp=enc%3AAQALAAAA0O7PUuNWmJ%2B%2BUShgI9tQz%2Fpvj5Zon2AGBmilntGV4lnSd3xRk7fkWa5Qonbq5pWy3S5vwcBYFd1tmy9qXCPhViUZFE2SoeY5H7adKmikUTelb4qa8iHuAnCucqxuAmWZ0VDJOWolnKH6FBYk8mmddbdsOcc9ZldU5x1C8AtPDYdVLggL%2B5ZLx2wEBfILCf1nttpRwu6l3lvz9H0d2VrfX7K2XIKDE2l8sPDqDuxRcu08Uzk1Zv0%2B4Hc8FMTzs8ruRf%2BhArtSust4%2BZBvRuFodr0%3D|tkp%3ABk9SR8D__6D-Zg

[keen idol]

I've attempted to sanitize your url: https://www.ebay.com/itm/358151132622

[knotty birch]

if you zoom in on the nintendo seal bottom right corner you can make out an imprinted 2 and at least 1 other character

i had the same issue with my copy of leaf green, was convinced i had bought a fake until i noticed the imprint in that same location

[daring flame]

oh, I really cannot see

but looks so real

[knotty birch]

oh i was fully convinced mine was a repro also until i noticed the imprint under that other nintendo seal dont worry

[supple jackal]

Isn’t a verification method. Some legitimate cartridges omit the number stamp, and it’s very easy to add your own using a 3mm die kit.

Game Verifying has a verification guide dedicated to the GBA:

https://gameverifying.com/wiki/cart-based-systems/gameboy/advance

[daring flame]

Thanks guys, I'll keep checking until I found one

[daring flame]

damn, the vendor raised 9 dollars. lmao

[tall flare]

Ist this a legit copy. I want to buy it but i'm not fully convinced that it is an original european copy.

[edgy pecan]

Looks original

[lusty apex]

How’s it going guys, I want to start buying original games for my GBA but I’m not knowledgeable with it, I found a sapphire and wanted to ask if it is legit

[glossy patio]

Hey there
Check out the pinned comments on this channel and see if you can find out if it's real

[lusty apex]

Lowkey think I found a legit one guys

[glossy patio]

Looks to be a real one indeed
Be mindful of the battery : it has been replaced and they didn't do a great job
1 : lots of excess solder
2 : whatever this is - maybe left over flux, hopefully

I don't think it's a deal breaker, but let's double check
Ask for better pictures or send me the ad in DM if it has good quality pictures already

[real cliff]

Never seen but heard about yellowing on firered, and my childhood copies of gen 1 had stamped numbers that started with 0_ like 09, just double checking

[west chasm]

yeah all of that looks legit

yelowing is probably sun damage

[real cliff]

Ty

[worthy arch]

Pretty sure its real but I also never post here.

[west chasm]

sure looks real to me

what's the back of the board look like?

[worthy arch]

boring

[west chasm]

date stamp, circled letter(s)?

[worthy arch]

like i said, boring

like, I don't really care that much if it is, I'm not going to keep it, it's eitehr trade-in or selling to someone to cover the cost of the GBA it came with

[west chasm]

How much would you be selling it for

[worthy arch]

it's hovering arounf $15 cad at the moment.

[west chasm]

ah but it would probably be a ton to ship it to the US

[worthy arch]

not if I jsut throw it over the border and you come pick it up

[delicate shore]

ayo a brick seperator is a good idea

[dusky juniper]

trying to get a copy of the original tetris, can anyone help verifying if this is an original cart/sticker label or reproduction altogether please?

it looks way too good in condition so i was skeptical

[west chasm]

yep it looks original

it is in fantastic shape though

if you're looking for the absolute oldest north american release, look for a label that looks like this

[dusky juniper]

this is a lot for vibrant, amazing. thanks

[blazing dust]

Original Gameboy Color shell?

What is the giveaway?

[livid lotus]

The Nintendo logo in the front, the GAME BOY text at the back, the serial number sticker

[blazing dust]

oh i see

thank you very much!!!

[livid lotus]

and many others

[misty carbon]

Guys

Pokémon ruby versión have stack?

or It dosn't

Oh srry I saw right now a ruby versión 3 message Up, and It has

[livid lotus]

stack?

[trim timber]

Well, no.
The stack lives in the ram, from what i remember from my CS classes.

[agile sage]

Is this an authentic shell?

Found this listing

Does anyone know?

[knotty birch]

Pickups from today. Any obvious signs of fakes for these carts? Didnt notice until just now that the copy of Diamond doesnt have the same serial number on the back - not sure if thats a bad sign

[real cliff]

No front stamp, but every other indicator?

[misty carbon]

Thats what i wanted to said ejeje, which name It have?

[grim raptor]

it has a battery for the RTC

[livid lotus]

That is a battery.

[misty carbon]

Ok ok srry mates thought stack was the word for It jeje

Guys im gonna open a rubys spanish versión could yo help me to know if its real or fake 😁

[livid lotus]

you could also help yourself to the pinned messages

[keen trail]

Is this Gameboy Advance SP good?

[livid lotus]

does not look it's out there to cause you or others harm, so...

seems legit, properly scuffed and all

[misty carbon]

Lets see if It IS real

[glossy patio]

What makes you doubt ?

[misty carbon]

the sticker looks like a bit low quality

and the guy who sell it to me say the battery was ok but when i turn on it is was worned out

[misty carbon]

and it looks like the battery was replaced

[glossy patio]

See the numbers on the battery ? It's the production date
03-05 sounds like the time period of production - not that you should keep that obviously empty cell

As for the sticker, there is a slight misalignment on the black border of the text, but such things can happen
It looks real to me
Compare it to those : https://gbhwdb.gekkio.fi/cartridges/AGB-AXVF-0

[agile sage]

Japanese FE7 and FE8

1000% Real and Authentic?

I would really appreciate it

These are very important games

[hoary ruin]

Seems pretty real to me, asking to be sure

[glossy patio]

Are these your photos ?

[agile sage]

Yes

[agile sage]

These are mine

So they are real and authentic correct?

[glossy patio]

Can you take other pictures with light coming from above ?

[agile sage]

How?

I thought to be sure to make it the best lighting as possible

Hold on

[glossy patio]

How have light coming from above ?

[molten pawn]

you mean overhead lighting?

it just looks like a perfectly well-lit room to me

[glossy patio]

Your current pictures have a very raking light
It makes some shadows appear deeper - which in turn makes some key points looking like fakes
I think the games are real, but I'm not certain due to the light

[agile sage]

Here does this fix this?

Is this better?

[rapid mantle]

Appreciate your services!

[glossy patio]

Hey there, what makes you doubt ? Did you check the pinned message of this topic ? 🙂

[rapid mantle]

I asked because I didn't know the signs to verify. I have read the pinned messages now and am more confident.

[glossy patio]

Nice ! You'll also learn that this cartridge is a revision 1 of the game since it has a A stamp 🙂

[agile sage]

Looking to get this is this real and authentic

[west chasm]

that's a real'n

you can see the "cracked ice holo" pattern on the label, which is a dead giveaway, I've literally never seen a fake manage it, then there's the stamp, the details on the back of the board (test point size and location, trace patterns, pin size/alignment, date stamp), and the fact that it's Japanese. Japanese copies simply aren't worth as much as English copies and that makes them much less likely to be faked

[agile sage]

What would game verifying think

Since they are considered “the experts”

[west chasm]

...they would think it's real? since it's real? I'm not sure I understand what you mean

you could get into even finer details than what I've already mentioned, the color and transparency of the shell is correct, the font sizing and positioning on both the label and the shell are correct, the aging is consistent with an original cartridge and not a newer replica, the label corners and edges match the curvature and alignment of real carts

the production stamps on the interior of the shell are correct, you can see the cutout for the battery terminal, the edge cutouts near the lip, the B, >ABS< and 7 = 2 behind the pins, the depth of the indent for the Nintendo logo and model text, the print DPI and ink pattern on the label are correct

[agile sage]

Also another thing

What’s the point of having a dry battery

[grim raptor]

https://video.goofish.com/5f5c17f07688b327/9faacbef3e04350a/20241127_2be564d0b315ca44_495885531785_205036417833994_published_mp4_264_fs_0_xianyu_taobao.mp4

[grim raptor]

not everyone cares about the r tc

[west chasm]

just means it's likely original rather than replaced, it's not really a selling point unless someone wants an entirely OEM cart

[agile sage]

So… why do some people want a new battery?

I am just confused so I don’t mess up

[west chasm]

some in-game functions don't work without the battery - date/time progression, Eevee evolution, berries, trainer ID lottery, Mirage Island, a couple things I'm sure I'm forgetting

[agile sage]

So is it a deal breaker?

This listing has the battery run dry

So should I be worried?

[west chasm]

Are you about to drop like $200 on this?

[agile sage]

No?

Fuck no

It’s 70 bucks

Cuz it’s JP

[agile sage]

So let me ask

Should I be worried if it’s a dry battery

[west chasm]

Batteries can be replaced easily and cheaply

if you're buying the game to play it, and care about the battery-related functions, it's a very easily fixed issue

if you're buying it for collection purposes, there's no harm in having a dry battery

coin cells don't tend to leak or explode except in extremely rare circumstances, and only after abuse

[agile sage]

So a dry battery does nothing?

[west chasm]

some game features don't work, that's all

[agile sage]

Shit

[west chasm]

you can still save, get badges, catch pokemon, beat the elite 4

but you can't farm berries or visit mirage island or evolve eevee into espeon or umbreon

[agile sage]

Yea… I rather have the full experience

[west chasm]

if you can't replace the battery yourself, most people charge less than $20 to do it

it's a five-minute job and a replacement battery by itself is maybe $1.50

I replaced the rusty battery in this copy of US Ruby that I think went through a washing machine

it was my third attempt soldering anything, ever, and it turned out pretty nice

[agile sage]

Found this listing

It has a new battery

[west chasm]

that would probably work but I don't know what kind of battery that is, could be a less reliable brand

[compact rock]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/267156593870 hey yall is this listing legit? the cartridge box and inserts seem real. but the seller is only selling this one listing.

[compact rock]

like is selling only one thing from a seller fishy?

[urban thistle]

Without seeing the circuit board there's no way to confirm 100%. It looks real but I'm not sure if the other things there are also being bootlegged. For the money the seller is asking without seeing it in person I would pass.

[west chasm]

it looks real but the cart and the box are in pretty rough shape, I would not pay $600. pricecharting has CIB at $567, and that's going to be for stuff in better shape than this

[compact rock]

so then is it not worth buying any copy of emerald on ebay then? and is there a reason we would specifically have to check the circuit board? from real vs fake vids, this cartridge seems legit from the outside

[west chasm]

they do include a shot of the back, which does let you look at the obverse of the board. this is useful to determine authenticity. the date code, the test point locations, the trace pattern, the pins... all details point toward this being real

[compact rock]

true but the thing is im tryna buy it before pokemon presents this friday which couldshadow drop emerald on NSO, which will most definitely skyrocket emeralds price.

[compact rock]

ok ty

and what about those things point it to being real? im not rly knowledgeable ab this lol

[west chasm]

so here's the back of a real copy of Emerald. The gold rectangles are the date stamp, indicating that this board was produced in August of 2005

[west chasm]

this is a fake copy for comparison's sake

now, not all fakes are the same, so details will be different on everything

but that fake doesn't even have a date stamp or test points

the plastic is too clear and the wrong color

the vias (the little gold holes in the board) at the top of the pins are way too low

[compact rock]

oohh that makes it a lot easier to differentiate it ty

i never thought to actually look at specific things on the circuit board to differentiate them

[west chasm]

some fakes are a lot better and get pretty close

but generally you're looking at both details in every component - shell, screw, board, label - as well as the overall feel

high quality fake carts will still have tells, like the depth of the Nintendo logo, or the fonts, or the foil or printing on the label

it's always easier to tell in person than through a photo

[compact rock]

makes sense ty. im gonna be a detective from now on when i look at every one of them haha

[west chasm]

it also helps having a real one in your possession already so you can compare

[compact rock]

i actually do have a real cartridge

just wanted the box and inserts

[west chasm]

well, hunt around a little, I'm seeing listings with box and inserts for as low as $450, though the box in that listing is pretty banged up

[worthy arch]

as someone with boxes and inserts... I never even look at them.

it's not worth the money they go for.

[west chasm]

...yeah they're shelf candy

[compact rock]

im treating this a personal collection thing and as an investment so id want the inserts

[worthy arch]

a original cart, sure, maybe, if it's something you reall ylike. but a box and inserts? no

[compact rock]

its also a cool piece of history ijmo

[worthy arch]

don't go into buying old games as an investment. it won't end that gret for you

[compact rock]

oh its just me coping with the fact im dropping half a grand on this haha

[worthy arch]

ask Hereitage Auctions and Wata how that went for them

prices fell 98% or more within a few months

[compact rock]

im only buying this platinum soulsivler and black cz i always played them on emulators

[worthy arch]

people literally lost millions

[compact rock]

yikes

[worthy arch]

that 1.5 million dollar mario now goes for less than 50 000

[west chasm]

the problem with the investment angle is that we've either reached or are rapidly approaching peak retro gaming. prices can't go up much further without causing the whole hobby to collapse, and stuff like physical re-releases can tank value without warning like what happened with Super Mario RPG and The Thousand-Year Door

[worthy arch]

to be fair, they were also inflating prices and obstaifcating the buyers and sellers when the pries were going up so much... and they also own each others stock and share board members.

BUT ASIDE FROM THAT

[west chasm]

yeah no that was just fraud lol

[worthy arch]

you buy a $500 game now, it might stay at $500 for the next ten years. or go up to $1000. or drop down to $200.

it's better to jsut play them.

inest in something with actual regulation and history to back it up.

[compact rock]

true but pokemon has been that exception where prices have never gone down ever

[worthy arch]

exept when they were so cheap you could get them for $20 or less.

[compact rock]

too many fanatics (like me lol) who are willing to shell out hundreds for them

[worthy arch]

it's only been the last six or so years that pries went that high

[compact rock]

covid screwed it all

[worthy arch]

no, it was Wata and Heritage. they screwed it all.

and they were doing it before covid

[west chasm]

if you're buying investment pieces, you need to get into the whole rigamarole of getting your collection insured, which means getting things authenticated, which means graded, and then you have basically get the privilege of keeping them in a bank vault which is always a tremendously fun way to own and experience video games

[compact rock]

who r they?

[worthy arch]

Wata is a grading company. Heritae is an auction house

[compact rock]

no im only buying 4 pokemon games which i mentioned earlier. nothing else lol

[worthy arch]

they share board members and own stock in each other

they also deal almost exclusively with each other

[west chasm]

https://arstechnica.com/features/2021/07/collectors-are-as-confused-as-you-are-about-that-1-56m-super-mario-64-sale/

[compact rock]

thats just insider trading lmfao thats illegal

its the same thing happening with pokemon tcg with prices slowly starting to stabilize but its still pretty bad

[west chasm]

games, like fine art and bitcoin, are an unregulated asset, and not subject to insider trading laws

[compact rock]

oh yeah but they treated it like that, which is really scummy

[worthy arch]

no insider trading, that's giving a person or company advance notice about a sell or purchase before it happens.

what they did was price fixing.

which is only illegal if someone complains abou it enough

BUT ANY WAY

[compact rock]

oh they were private gotchu ur right

[worthy arch]

no, public. very public.

[compact rock]

like on stock exchange?

[worthy arch]

no, they graded, auctioned, bought and sold publicly. like with random people.

you and me level people

any way, not the channelf or this discussion, getting very off topic.

[compact rock]

ill talk on gameboy

[keen trail]

This real or fake?

[west chasm]

real

[hoary ruin]

cant really tell but i assume fake bcs i cant see the little block on the back right?

also seal of quality color seems more grayish

[west chasm]

it's a little hard to tell from these photos but I'm leaning toward real? I'm not an expert on PAL region labels, but the shell looks real, and you can kinda see the board in photos 2 and 3 - the little block as you put it is visible in photo 2, and the test points are visible in photo 3. the vias on the pins are also in the right place

[hoary ruin]

damn i might need glasses then xd

[west chasm]

Slight edit that might make it a little easier to see. It’s not prominent but it’s there if you know to look for it.

totally invisible in photo 3 though

it would be visible in photo 3 if the damn phone weren't casting a shadow right over it

compare against this authentic emerald from right above - in the edit I posted, you can see the same divot in the shell on the bottom left corner of the date mark (the little blocks) as on the shell of the sapphire you posted

the other shell details also match - the little indents about halfway up the board, slightly higher on the left side than the right, the mold injection point is perfectly centered, the texturing and depth of everything is right

also the seal color being grayish is indicative of aging more than anything

[hoary ruin]

I also have a ruby copy but saphire is so dark i can barely see anything as a beginner

ty for the clarification tho

[west chasm]

yeah emerald is definitely the easiest and sapphire the most difficult

[warm adder]

Is this legit?

[glossy patio]

Hey there - did you check the pinned message from this channel ?

You can learn about the basics, which will give you an obvious answer about this one

[worthy arch]

shell and label aren't, but it's possible that someone reshelled an original pcb.

but without any pictures of teh pcb itself, it's not likely.

[warm adder]

Wat Abt this one

Is it normal for it to say blaue and not blue on the intro?

[glossy patio]

This is a German version

[worthy arch]

so like, the seventh best version

[warm adder]

So it's not fake?

[worthy arch]

no, it's just vaguely angry-sounding when spoken

[west chasm]

this one's a little confusing, the label is obviously not real but the cart shell might be. the board could be anything - US Silver, JP Silver, fake, Tetris...

[worthy arch]

exactly. have the seller open it up and show the pcb inside. if tehy say they won't because it will harm the value, it's a fake.

if they have the abilty to do a shell swap, tehy can open itup without issue

[west chasm]

Japanese Silver was two-tone like that, grey front with navy back. Korean Silver too, but the Korean cart was the GBC-only shell design

[glossy patio]

I mean, it's not a pokemon silver shell of any kind

It may be a "real" gray shell
I wouldn't hope the PCB inside is a real one

[west chasm]

you sure about that?

[warm adder]

Are u talking Abt the silver version or the blue one I sent

[worthy arch]

the silver one

[glossy patio]

Unless the light is playing tricks, I'd say yes I'm sure

I'm aware of the other shells

[warm adder]

So I tell them to open it and show the inside to me?

[glossy patio]

(doesn't help that the two pictures are shot on different background + different light )

[eager granite]

the blue is real, but it's in German (and only in German), the label is faded.

you can ask about the Silver, but the chances are not good at all,

that someone set up a real PCB, with a Japan styled cartridge and a really low quality English label.

[glossy patio]

Why do you want to buy this cart ?
If you just want to play pokemon silver, there's a chance this is either not a real PCB (likely) or eventually a real PCB but then possibly not english

This is just my opinion here but to me there's only 3 options :

• Real cart with real label and real case : if I want to collect
• Good flashcart : if I just want to play
• Custom art cart : because I like nice things

We're getting off topic tho

[west chasm]

my guess, and this is based on nothing but a vibe, is that the silver is a legit JP copy with a fake label. worth $13

or slightly less

someone outside of Japan, with a copy of JP silver, got a replacement for the damaged label on it and it was not a high-quality replacement. seems the simplest explanation for what we're seeing here

you can concoct a million stories to explain something confusing, but at the end of the day, the simplest explanation is the most likely one

[eager granite]

hm. or the simplest explanation is: It's a bootleg label because the entire thing is a bootleg.

[west chasm]

if it were, why would the shell have that much wear on it? why would the screw have the right shape and finish? old bootlegs weren't using gamebit screws, that's a fairly modern bootleg phenomenon

[eager granite]

anyways: they can go ask to see what's inside. That'd be advisable.

[west chasm]

yep

[gloomy acorn]

Could you post a closer image of the label? One where we can see it better?

[west chasm]

that label is wack man the text "silver version" is in comic sans

[gloomy acorn]

It kinda looks like the label says "NinDendo" 💀

[west chasm]

NinDendy

[gloomy acorn]

I just want to see it in all it's glory

[warm adder]

Asked him and received this

[gloomy acorn]

Bruh whut the

The actual label is low res lmao

[warm adder]

So it's fake?

[gloomy acorn]

I wouldn't buy it

[warm adder]

God damn it

Ty tho

[gloomy acorn]

We can't tell if the PCB is fake or not but given that it's not a legit label or casing the odds are it's a bootleg

[delicate shore]

what on earth is that

[west chasm]

I'm still arguing for the shell being legit, just Japanese

that label is hilarious though

honestly if it's cheap I'd buy it lol. I'm curious what's inside, and I love how completely awful the label is

Here’s a legit copy of JP Silver I received in the mail about a week ago, haven’t had time to clean it up yet.

as you can see, the shell is identical to our mystery cart. I think it's a legit JP Silver with the worst replacement label ever

@warm adder have him send you a photo of it booted up on a game boy. It's Japanese, I'd put money on it

[blissful shadow]

so it's just a bad replacement sticker?

[west chasm]

I think so, yes. But it's only going to be in Japanese, and a Japanese copy of Silver is worth less than almost any other language

[west chasm]

so if they're asking more than about $14 USD, they're asking way too much. I'd probably only charge $10 since the sticker is a bad replacement

[gloomy acorn]

I know for some Pokemon GBC games you can solder on a different language chip, that would be crazy if someone put an English one on a JP board

[whole phoenix]

Iirc, it's an entire rom chip swap

[west chasm]

I personally doubt it in this case. If you look at the screw and the area around it, it looks clean and relatively untouched. Look at the rest of the cart and the quality of the replacement label. If someone did a ROM swap, I think they'd have been sloppy about everything and probably scuffed something opening the cart.

[whole phoenix]

Im not saying it is, im just letting them know its not just a language swap for that to work

[warm adder]

I asked him to run it on a gameboy

I'm also trying to buy a Gameboy advance SP, is this legit?

[west chasm]

yeah that looks legit

[warm adder]

Ty

[west chasm]

np!

[livid lotus]

rom swap is possible indeed

but there is no such thing as a "language chip" you just swap the entire game

[narrow quarry]

Don't know why anyone would swap ROM chip except for the JPN Crystal which have a unique silk screen art.

Easier to swap the entire board... everytime.

[livid lotus]

corrosion can kill boards, so there is that

[warm adder]

Is this real?

Why doesn't it have serial number

[vague sundial]

It's real, the sticker with the serial number just got peeled off -- along with the info sticker

[west chasm]

it looks real shiny, like someone played the absolute shit out of it. easy to demolish the stickers when you play that much on one system

and if they're already ruined, might think the system looks better without em

[snow oar]

chat is this real? i lowballed them and they accepted

[glossy patio]

What makes you doubt your purchase ? Did you check pinned comments ? 🙂

[snow oar]

It being from Vinted and the seller accepting kinda of a lowball offer

But I just saw a picture on the listing where it shows the battery being flat

So it kind of makes sense now

[trim timber]

Don't have what it takes to open it on me, so i can only send pictures of outside

[glossy patio]

The label looks a bit yellow but it's just the light
I can see the number stamp and everything seems right

[trim timber]

yeah, it's the light. You can see how yellow the light is on the second image

[grim raptor]

Looks good to me though

[eager granite]

girafe

[blissful shadow]

anyone seen fakes with this battery thing yet? always the first thing i look at

[trim timber]

Because i like to cut the throat of kings with guillotines?

[compact rock]

hey dude it's me i bought emerald from ebay and it arrived and it looks good. when i booted it up on my sp it worked once. then when i tried it again it froze on the game boy logo. i restarted it a few times and it did the same thing. i tried my other emerald cartridge the same thing happened. is it something wrong with the gba?

[west chasm]

probably just needs to be cleaned

[knotty birch]

🌬️

[grim raptor]

never blow on carts

[west chasm]

since the GBA is having trouble booting multiple carts, that’s what you’re going to want to clean

you can get a kit for that like the 1up card, or you can just fudge it with a clean cloth (like a white cotton t-shirt that was washed with detergent ONLY - no softener!), a credit card or similarly thin and rigid item, and some isopropyl alcohol

https://www.1upcard.com/products/game-boy-console-cleaner-1upcard-cartridge-new

you want to wrap the cloth around the credit card, put the rubbing alcohol on the cloth, and insert and remove it from the console

I can take a video here in a second

this should move to #1006386432065155083 though

[compact rock]

i saw a review of the 1up card and they said using a q-tip works just as well so ill probs just use that with some rubbing alcohol

it just feels anxiety-incuding to put alcohol on my expensive cartridges😭

[west chasm]

I'm suggesting cleaning the game boy, not the cartridge

if you're cleaning the cartridge you need to take it apart

[compact rock]

oh ok got it

the reviewer cleaned the gba with the alcohol and then put thecartridge in and out multiple times https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1_EKpx8v0k&t=298s

but ill just do what you did

[west chasm]

let me see if their technique is any good here

nah, this sucks, they're gonna get alcohol behind the board

I don't recommend the 1up cards for cartridges in the first place. Just get the right screwdriver, open up the cart so you can clean the board by itself away from the fragile plastic, and then use q-tips like that

same deal with the console cleaning technique in that video, gonna get alcohol into all the places you don't want it

might improve it in the short term but in the long term you're causing more damage

and you want the cloth to be lightly damp with alcohol, not dripping. so little that you can’t wring any out if you squeeze it.

you don't have to cut the cloth into a strip like I did, but it does make it easier

alcohol really screws with ABS, which is the plastic that cartridge and system shells are made of, so you want to avoid contact with it as much as possible

like if you just stick a q-tip into the cartridge, you could wind up with cloudy, powdery plastic on your expensive Emerald shell

open it up, remove the board

ah, later in the video he says he's impressed by the 1up card for the console

so it is pretty effective

[rugged copper]

Hello i would like help identifying real or fake cartridge of JetSetRadio

i bought a jet set radio gba cartridge from vinted today and i was wondering if you can already tell if it's a genuine or a fake
https://www.vinted.fr/items/7940635452-jet-set-radio-game-boy-advance
^ the post with the pictures i sent ^

i don't currently have it because i bought it today

[west chasm]

The photos make it difficult to tell but I think the shell and label look pretty sus

[zinc dune]

GBA logo plastic looks wrong to me. And when looking online, all the fakes I see have the same label. But on what looks like a real cart the label is different. No fade to white on the bottom of paint can (not my photo). So definitely sus.

[west chasm]

looks fake

[zinc dune]

Well, without better photos, it's difficult to tell.

And the back of the cart has no sign of being used, which is weird. It should be a bit scratched from inserting in the console.

[west chasm]

the back of the cart is the most fake looking part to me

the text is way too deep

[rugged copper]

i think you're right thanks, i'm trying to get a refund 🙏

vinted fucking sucks for refunding i can't find how to refund something i just bought before recieving it

[zinc dune]

Vinted is ridden with bootleg carts. I suggest you study the pinned messages of this channel to identify real ones.

[rugged copper]

thank you

i hope i can get a refund

[vagrant rock]

i mean, that's just how online shopping of any kind works... some places might let you cancel a purchase for some time period, but otherwise you will have to wait until you get the product, then you can verify it's not what the seller claimed it is and only then get your money back. i think it's only fair, regardless of the seller being scum or not.

[zinc dune]

At least is was cheap, imagine paying 200€ for a bootleg Pkmn Emerald.

[vagrant rock]

yeah. oh, i might also add that iirc i've seen some people on Vinted saying in the item description that they're selling repro carts, in which case if you bought it there's no refund unless it also doesn't work at all (and proving that might get difficult)

so be careful out there, kids

[rugged copper]

yeah it makes sense but i hope that i will be able to get a refund when i recieve it because the item description only said "Producto Nuevo!!" lol

[vagrant rock]

if someone advertizes a 25+ year old game as "new product", you can tell it's not the genuine article. but yeah, hope you can get your money back somehow.

i'd say if they didn't also say it's a legit Nintendo product, their ass might be kinda covered

[snow oar]

hello

i bought a pokemon sapphire cart off vinted and need to know if i got scammed or not

this is what i bought

this is my original for certain legit cart (ignore the missing battery)

[bleak talon]

It’s real

[snow oar]

thank you very much

did pretty well then for 40 eu

[livid lotus]

you had both cart boards side by side

[snow oar]

the look very slightly different. must be a different board revision then

just need to be sure because you only get 48h after delivery to open a case

thank you either way, not trying to act dumb or to be a nuisance, just want to be sure

[west chasm]

oh, yeah the FRAM footprint is different. that's normal, they just used whatever parts they could get

the AGB-E05-01 board was compatible with either footprint

[snow oar]

gotcha cheers

[west chasm]

...I still need to get a copy of Sapphire

[dusky juniper]

i feel like SML might be fake but pretty sure tetris is legit, can anyone confirm please?

[west chasm]

Doesn't look terribly off, what makes you suspect that it's fake?

Label is the right size with proper corners and sharp print, and the fonts are correct and sharp

The "Nintendo GAME BOY" text on the shell is a little weird, like maybe it's too tall? But that could just be the photo. Can you post photos of the back of the carts and the pins?

Is there anything stamped into the label of Super Mario Land? You can see "22A" stamped into Tetris above the Nintendo seal, anything like that?

[dusky juniper]

the seller doesn’t do a good job showing the pins, it’s super blurry, but it could be just the light angle

[west chasm]

My feeling is that it's not fake. Not much money in SML anyway

[oak moon]

All the weird overhang pieces of plastic on the shell leads me to believe that SML is a fake shell at least, but that's just my uneducated opinion.

And you can't assume there aren't bootlegs of "cheap" games, because there absolutely have been bootlegs of some really stupidly cheap games out there.

[west chasm]

I don't think those are pieces of plastic, I think that's some kind of dirt, it's a different color than the shell

and given how nice the label is I'm not inclined to think it's fake

[sharp jacinth]

Legit shell? Looks really pale for a glacier/milky blue but maybe that's just the lighting.

[livid lotus]

Unless they started faking the rust stains from the speaker...

[worthy arch]

also new shells don't have the numbers on the inside of the battery cover.

[sharp jacinth]

Thanks! I didn’t realize that was a rust stain lol

[glossy patio]

It will probably wash away

[obtuse grove]

@hybrid rover you 100% on that? Because someone in another server said fake

[glossy patio]

We would mention it if we had doubts

[west chasm]

what did they say was fake about it?

[blissful shadow]

https://imgur.com/a/Hj5fda8

[paper sluice]

101% real

I'll buy it from you for $100 though if you don't believe it

[obtuse grove]

That's what I paid for it

[paper sluice]

Good deal for you

[obtuse grove]

This look real?

[west chasm]

Yep

[west chasm]

I'm not sure about that label

but the rest of the cart looks real

the corners of the label look too pointed, the text is aligned weird, I'm not sure where in Europe would have the CЄ mark when neither Germany or France had it

but I could just be trippin'

[glossy patio]

I was also surprised by the top right corner but I think it's an optical illusion

If someone out there is locked in enough to make a fake revision 1 label along with a revision 1 stamp, I'm fine being fooled

[grim raptor]

could also be phone post processing shenanigans

(didndt look too closely)

[glossy patio]

Or even a failed cut
@lusty apex do you have other pictures ?

[hard crater]

Hey guys, may not be the best picture but there's a local store around here that is selling some games. I recently came into a Gameboy Pocket and want to restore my childhood collection so I was debating going in and picking up a game. Not the best photo as it's from their social media page but how do these look? Mainly talking Pokemon Blue and what we can see of Yellow. I've bought SNES games from this location before which ended up being bootleg so I'm wary

[west chasm]

Those do look real but they also look more expensive. You can get everything there for $10-20 less by going through ebay.

if they're the kind of place to try and pass off bootlegs as real they're probably not worth paying a premium to "support local businesses" or whatever

I could see paying $70 for a copy of Blue with a completely immaculate label, which that is not

[hard crater]

Gotcha, good to know. Yeah, I'm not sure they knew the SNES games were fake and I try to give them the benefit of the doubt but I'm always cautious now. Perhaps I'll go through ebay then. I appreciate the help!

[obtuse grove]

Is this real?

[livid lotus]

You may want to head to the DS server

[obtuse grove]

I think I'm banned

[west chasm]

how did you get banned

[obtuse grove]

I don't remember 🤣

I thinks saying to wash your DS on the washing machine

[sharp jacinth]

Seems legit? I'm guessing there's just some screen / back sticker damage and the battery cover is on loose?

[worthy arch]

a good sign that it's an original shell is that it's beat up or dirty.

replacement shells are new so they tend not to have any of the wear from years of use and abuse.

[ruby bloom]

is it unusual to have the imprinted number on the bottom like this? most others I've seen are above the Nintendo seal

[west chasm]

Numbers can kinda be wherever, I've seen them basically all over the bottom right quarter of the label

[hoary ruin]

Gameboy color games give me a hard time identifying them

[west chasm]

gold looks legit, silver is a bit hard to tell

[glossy patio]

not common seeing a revision 1 EUR gold

[grim raptor]

r@re

$200 I know what I have

[glossy patio]

I'll put a game for verification for once 🙂
There is to stake since I'm not trying to buy it but I thought the discussion on this one could be a bit fun
So ! or ? 🙂

[livid lotus]

it seems to be damaged

[zinc dune]

Sticker seems replaced but PCB looks legit, but still difficult to tell because of some kind of water damage ? That screw is green. The inside should be crusty.

[west chasm]

the inside is way crusty, you can see white stuff all over the inside of the shell

the shell does have the hallmarks of being real but the photo is very low quality

also looks like there's corrosion filling some of the vias above the pins, if you look at the back there's black spots along that line

[grim raptor]

my bet is real

also no 🥩 ? :(

[bronze sorrel]

Open it up, I want to see the damage

[glossy patio]

Contrary to what it may look like, the cartridge works

They're selling it for 70€ which is absurdly high for a sapphire cartridge around here
I'm gonna message them for a low offer, see if I can save this cartridge for the fun of it

Edit : they pulled a "I know it's corroded but I know what I've got" on me 🫠

[bronze sorrel]

Damn

[gentle drift]

I found this listing, and I’m new to collecting SPs so I don’t really know if it’s legit or not. Asking the seller to send a pic of the back though, cause I know that matters. I think the speakers look good though

[livid lotus]

Too worn out to be a

Hence imo

[blissful shadow]

speaker holes look good 👍

[gentle drift]

Appreciate all the feedback guys, think I’ll pull the trigger on it

[bronze sorrel]

Damn that console is so clean, I'll get a repro shell

[gentle drift]

Last listing fell through cause the guy didn’t realize he’d get f’d up by international shipping, so that was why it was too good to be true 😭 tried to find another one, and this looks legit based on the speakers and the screw, but those are the only identifiers i know right now

There’s also this one that may or may not be a huge bargain. I might buy it if it’s legit

[grim raptor]

reshell

[gentle drift]

How do you tell?

[grim raptor]

wrong color buttons for one

[gentle drift]

Also I tried asking him questions but the dude was being dodgey so I’m probably gonna pass on this anyway lol

[gentle drift]

Damn, yeah, i saw so many i didnt even think to confirm what the actual buttons were

[grim raptor]

happens

[gentle drift]

So the brown ones are the correct colors?

[livid lotus]

both are reshells

[gentle drift]

For the Zelda one, I’m guessing it’s not the right color gold?

[livid lotus]

The label

Also the thing is too new, the color of the buttons...

[gentle drift]

bruh someone tell me where this Zelda sp dude lives so I can break into his home and steal one of his 50 sps 😭

It’s brutal out here

[gentle drift]

Sorry to bug you boss, but I’m comparing the label with supposedly verified versions, and I can’t tell the differences between this one and those. Can you point out what’s off about this label for me?

Also the buttons look black to me, it feels like it’s just the lighting

[gentle drift]

This is the same one the guy sent, I’m pretty sure this is real. There are other pictures that show minor scuffs, but he told me he bought it and just never felt like playing it (which is why it looks good). The start/select buttons look good, speakers look good, and I haven’t seen a single repro have those black hinges for the screen

[livid lotus]

what you see is not the hinge, it's just a cover. If you feel like it, go ahead and buy it, it might as well be , I might have been confused by the other one, which is totally a reshell

[lean agate]

Guys, can you help me identity if these are real with this picture? I am going to pick it up in 3 hours but don't have a tool to open them.

The 32 in 1 I imagine that is fake but I am more worried about the Pokemon ones. It will cost 350 euros

[hybrid rover]

It is impossible to say with certainty due to the photo quality

Rather, due to the lack thereof

[glossy patio]

Share photos when you are hands on with the cartridges
I would bet these are real but like March said, there's no way of telling for sure with that picture quality

[naive tangle]

I'm leaning towards what White said as well.
Still, I'm not certain of anything due to the bad image quality

[west chasm]

Is there anything you can do to get a higher quality version of that photo?

like is this a cropped screenshot? can we get the original link?

Crystal version looks pretty genuine, I'm worried about ALL of the rest of the pokemon games though

yeah this is crap. any attempt to bring out more detail in this image just brings out more jpeg artifacts instead.

I’m a little more hopeful that the pokemon games could be genuine after staring at them very closely though. The top left Yellow version is still a little sus since the cart is a different shade of yellow from donkey kong right next to it

but that isn’t necessarily a smoking gun

but the labels themselves look pretty accurate, barring gold and silver, which are oddly flat with possibly squared off corners?

again, impossible to tell given the image quality

[lean agate]

I have bought a game bit screwdriver I've open all of them. All original! Uruu. Minus the 32 in 1 or course (:

[blissful shadow]

so the 32 in 1 is still available? 👀

[lean agate]

I got the 32 in 1 as well

Now I need to find a nice GBA SP with IPS screen so I can play in bed hahah

[rancid vigil]

while searching up on fb marketplace i stumbled across this gameboy pocket at a fairly good price, but i just want to check if it is legit or not, i consider it is real but i just tend to overthink things too much

btw sorry if i make grammar errors, English is not my first language

[west chasm]

It's definitely real but you're going to want a new screen

this is what’s known as screen rot

...there may be a little corrosion on the battery terminals, too, but that's cleaned up easy

[rancid vigil]

thanks! the seller sent me a video of the console working and the screen works fine but i'll change it to a ips one anyways

[mighty sky]

hey fellas, long time no see, is there a way to spot fake inlays for gba? i have the following three and i suspect one of them is fake

I believe the last one is fake but I’m not sure

[mighty sky]

Yup it’s fake

[lone charm]

Is this Pokémon Yellow Sticker label legit?

[west chasm]

Sticker's fake, yeah. It looks like it's applied over damage to the cart, for one thing, and the number stamp is in a font that looks too tall, with the bottom of the stamp having also left an indent on the label, which is something you never see in genuine labels.

oh. it's very fake, Yellow's ESRB icon is the later, solid block letter

that label is also printed at a much higher resolution than the real thing lol
...and is slightly too large? this gets weirder the longer I look at it

it's weird to see a fake that's higher quality than the original

[grim raptor]

not true

well not strictly true

there are several yellow releases

one of which is like that

https://www.videogamesage.com/forums/topic/6629-pokemon-generations-i-to-iii-us-box-printvariant-guide-with-contents-and-population-survey/

[shrewd trail]

Thank you for the verification folks, gonna go pick them up and I’ll finally have every authentic Gen 2 and 3 game

[river wave]

Hello! Wanted to make sure this copy of Harvest Moon: FOTM was authentic AND that it’s using a FRAM saving system

Here’s another photo

[livid lotus]

what is it there that makes you think otherwise?

[river wave]

Sorry, a bit new to GBA collecting and I heard Harvest Moon FOMT can also come with a battery and as a SRAM save

[livid lotus]

The pinned messages on this thread and a quick Googling on the marking of the chips could have told you what you need to know. That seems to be

[glossy patio]

In this case you can read on the PCB that it's a FRAM version, and there are no pads for a battery anyway

[river wave]

Now I feel like a dope lol

Thank you though, I appreciate it

[hybrid rover]

@viral tinsel please use this thread to see if your games are authentic

[viral tinsel]

Yep just saw

are the games fake you think? I'm about to trade my old 3ds for it i don't wanna get scammed (please)

sorry i don't have better pictures

[west chasm]

Games are real but given current prices this is probably not a worthwhile trade

What model 3DS

[viral tinsel]

i bought it on ebay from japan for 200 with shipping ect

a while ago

[west chasm]

Ah since it's the original model that's not as expensive

Gold is about $70, PAL Yellow is $40, SMBDX is $30, and a good condition atomic purple GBC is easily more than $60, so you'd actually be getting the better end of this deal

...I am a little curious about the Yellow label, I initially thought it was Australian but I can't find corroborating images online

It's definitely not a US copy but it looks like it's English-language

[west chasm]

detective voice: *bingo*

[teal totem]

Are these games legitimate?

Apparently the not for resale seasons goes for like 200..

Not mine but i’m bidding on them

[livid lotus]

what makes you think they are not? Check the pinned messages for tips on how to determine that yourself...

[glossy patio]

Not for resale cartridges are a real thing

[frigid yew]

I picked this up from an antique store this week. I tested it out, didn’t work so the clerk gave it to me for free.

I just wanna verify if it’s legit or not

I’m really hoping it just needs a little bit of contact cleaner

[glossy patio]

If you check the pinned guides of the channel, you'll surely come to the conclusion that everything checks out 🙂
As for why it's not working, head over to #1006386432065155083
Having it for free is a score, good for you 😉

[west chasm]

Those contacts look pretty passable

[frigid yew]

What does “passable” mean. ?

[west chasm]

They don’t look like the source of the issue, I mean. I see carts with worse looking pins work all the time.

Just take the board out and use q-tips and rubbing alcohol for a quick clean

Then try it again

[frigid yew]

Will do thanks !!!

[fervent blade]

If that doesn’t work you can try to get your hands on a red eraser. With that you can rub the contacts in the long direction to remove any left over debris

[livid lotus]

I am dealing with one of these myself, I hope it is just bad RAM

[west chasm]

not a red eraser

even pink pearls have an abrasive element in them

you want a plastic eraser - one of these

plastic erasers don't work as well since they don't have abrasives in them - but that's exactly why you want to avoid the abrasive ones! it's taking off the gold as well as the grime! much safer to use vinegar instead for grime that simply won't come up with alcohol

you gotta baby these carts a bit, they're old, they were made somewhat cheaply, and they haven't necessarily been well cared for. gentler, milder chemical cleaning methods are far superior to abrasive mechanical means because they preserve far more of the gold plating. even if you're gentle, you scratch the gold exposing the more reactive lower layers, then you have a much higher likelihood of corrosion happening from ambient humidity/oxygen

[glossy patio]

Guys this is not the topic 🙏

[west chasm]

I just feel very strongly about erasers lol

I have a copy of Quarth with no gold left on the pins from someone overenthusiatically using an eraser

[fervent blade]

The red one is not the abrasive one, at least here. The blue one is the one you want to avoid. Red is just a stiffer, less smeary type.

[worthy arch]

this guy erasers

[remote mortar]

Hi, do you think this one is a real?

[livid lotus]

what makes you think otherwise? I don't know what's inside, but looks to me

[remote mortar]

just to be sure

imo it's real

the sprinkles on the cartridge are hard to fake

and the sticker is the good one, with a holographic filter

[livid lotus]

and the usual streaking

[remote mortar]

yeah

[glossy patio]

Tout a l'air bon
Petite règle facile : si il y a de l'usure et de la dégradation d'étiquette, c'est bon signe 🤗

[remote mortar]

ouais

c'est de l'usure légitim

fin surtout moi je regarde : cohérence du plastique (cristal c impossible à fake, or/argent très dur), l'étiquette, si le jeu marche si possible

le mec vendait une rouge feu, mais j'avais trop peur d'acheter (y avait un liquide noir a l'arrière de la cartouche et je pouvais pas confirmer que le jeu fonctionnait)

[glossy patio]

Le liquide est la plupart du temps le plastifiant de la cartouche qui suinte
Ca se nettoie mais ca peut accumuler l'humidité ambiante

[remote mortar]

c'est bon à savoir

mais ouais j'avais pas pris ma ds, je pouvais pas test

[wary yarrow]

Hoping to verify before purchasing but these photos are meh. My guts telling me no but im awful at spotting fakes

[livid lotus]

the pics are awful, especially the one of the back, like, srsly

[wary yarrow]

Yeah they are 😅 thats even asking for better pics too

My thought was the front photo showed the case a little too transparent

[grim raptor]

Fake

[wary yarrow]

Is it the gameboy font? It looked a little off to me

[blissful shadow]

read through this guide and you will be a pro! https://imgur.com/a/Hj5fda8

first place i look is in the embed right there, the shell has an indent for the battery and it should be visible on the front

[worthy arch]

A real AUS cart would be upside down.

[pure hemlock]

So fake aswell?

So many fake copies on eBay haha I’m just trying to play some pokemon 😂

[knotty birch]

im not familiar with AUS labels, but TDC was just making a joke about australia being down under

looks like a real un to me

[west chasm]

it's difficult to tell from those photos, but it does look pretty good

the shell looks right, the label looks right, and the board looks right

[pure hemlock]

I’ll try get some more photos

[whole phoenix]

That looks like a legit aus label

[wary yarrow]

As far as im aware the AUS ones are rarely if ever faked

[pure hemlock]

Thanks guys appreciate the help. Only just found my game boy yesterday. Got no clue what real and fake looks like as if legit started looking today on eBay

Two different cards ^

[whole phoenix]

one of the best ways to tell on the pcb is the layout of components and traces, that ones a legit copy

[pure hemlock]

Both of them? I sent two different ones I saw on eBay

[whole phoenix]

Does the back look the same to you?

[glossy patio]

@pure hemlock I would recommend reading the pinned comments in this topic 🙂

[pure hemlock]

They do look similar. Easier to see the top one because the photo isn’t as dark.

[pure hemlock]

I’ll look through them now. Thanks

Tbh I’m probably just looking to buy some gen 1 and gen 3 games play them and be done with it haha. But there is just so many fakes out there

[glossy patio]

If you're not looking to collect them, consider buying a good SD based flashcart instead (I like the everdrive mini or pro)
You can talk about it in #gameboy 😉

[pure hemlock]

I’ll probably eventually get one of each and play them as I’m a massive Pokemon fan. But over a good amount of time

[livid lotus]

there is also #emulation which will be cheaper and better than play the originals, just sayin

[pure hemlock]

Yeah I’m buying mostly for nostalgia. Found my old game boy so keen to play it haha

[livid lotus]

makes sense

[pure hemlock]

But I collect Pokemon cards and other stuff so. Probably will end up collecting the games too. But for now just starting with fire red and emerald

[west chasm]

getting the expensive ones out of the way early

smart

[pure hemlock]

Yeah I got emerald for a good deal

Which is nice

[pure mason]

I’m pretty sure this is real

[west chasm]

Nope, classic fake

label is super weird, case is the wrong color, lacks the correct internal indentations, the board is the wrong shape and layout

this is the back of an authentic cart

[pure mason]

Alright thanks!

[whole phoenix]

Also this is a good demonstration of "don't trust the 4 gold squares"

[cursive fjord]

Hi

Does this look real?

I just want to ensure the copy is real before I spend some serious change to buy the first ever gameboy game I had as a kid

Thanks very much for the reaction! The slight corrosion in the top right of the front of the board made me also think its real

[naive tangle]

I didn't notice any corrosion. If you meant the front top-right side, that looks like flux residue and maybe a solder blob(?).

The label and board were what I was focusing on. They're all legit

[cursive fjord]

Thanks

[west chasm]

Yeah they're legit. That battery replacement is pretty sus though

[severe hare]

Hey guys this might make me sound like a knuckle dragging idiot but is there fake copy’s of Donkey Kong King of swing and if so what do they look like thanks to anyone that helps !

[west chasm]

probably, and they look fake

there's way too much variation in fakes to tell you definitively what they look like

generally it's a good bet that any Nintendo first party title has been faked

though it's impossible to know things like how many times and what the exact specs of the carts are. there are probably made-to-order fakes of any cart you could imagine, including bootlegs of homebrew titles that may not have even gotten a physical release

I'm not embedded in Shenzhen, I don't know for sure, but it's probably trivial to get a run of dozens or hundreds of fakes made for extremely cheap, almost pennies per cart

[severe hare]

Thanks for the answer if I send this chat an eBay listing could you guys verify?

[west chasm]

just upload the photos from the listing

[naive tangle]

Just the pictures will be fine. As long as it's clear

[severe hare]

Here are the photos lads

[versed bison]

Good Evening Everyone! Would anyone be able to tell if my copy of Pokémon Sapphire is authentic? This is my first GBA game and I’d greatly appreciate the help! Here are the pictures, if retakes are needed please let me know:

[worthy arch]

so fake

[versed bison]

What are some of the traits that show it’s fake? Just so I know later on if I buy more GBA games?

[worthy arch]

no need to ping, I'm right here.

while not a completely reliable sign, there are three things about the back of a GBA cart in a clear or translucent shell that cheaper fakes don't bother replicating.

a side by side comparison with a real cart, and that back really stands out.

another thing is that the shell in your picture is much clearer than real ones

[fossil sluice]

here's my copy of metroid zero mission

and my copy of sd gundam force