Gaming Finding a Legit Pokemon Emerald

[Wire]

I have been searching for Pokemon Emerald for several weeks and I had no idea if any on ebay are legit. I have found one but the pictures aren't too great and was wondering of my fellow tempers could help me out.
Here is the image of the cartridge.

Spoiler: Image

Spoiler: smallImage

 

[VinsCool]

How about a smaller image? I can't see it properly.

 

[TinyRick]

Ummm. You do realize you put up a picture of an image that is super tiny right?

 

[Wire]

Here is a small image.
Here is a big image.

Spoiler: BIg

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Sorry, fixed that.

 

[TinyRick]

Looks pretty fake to me. Label doesn't look shiny like it's supposed to, but that might be the camera angle. Depending on asking price and such, you're more than likely looking at a fake.

 

[Wire]

I only have a budget of $20, so its kind of tight(?) but I have no idea what it will take to get a legit cartridge. Thanks for letting me know that its fake, definitely will not be getting it from there. Also, would it be safe to assume its fake if the seller is selling multiple all at one time?

 

[TinyRick]

Yes that's a good indicator that they are selling fakes. Good luck trying to find a real one at that price... That might prove to be difficult.

 

[Wire]

Well thanks for your help. Wish the budget wasn't an issue though.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Yes that's a good indicator that they are selling fakes. Good luck trying to find a real one at that price... That might prove to be difficult.

How about a smaller image? I can't see it properly.

Could this one be real?

Spoiler

 

[VinsCool]

Well thanks for your help. Wish the budget wasn't an issue though.

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Could this one be real?

Spoiler

Totally! My Emerald cart is identical, and is of course real!

 

[Wire]

Totally! My Emerald cart is identical, and is of course real!

Thanks! I will most likely be ordering that one. Thank you for all the help. I just needed to make sure its real although a little above my budget, but hey its got to be done to be safe.

 

[Misledz]

I have a question, why the need to buy a phased out cartridge? Would it matter if it was fake or real? The same problem would exist, the battery had to be a good one to keep your save.

I'm just curious is all.

 

[Wire]

I have a question, why the need to buy a phased out cartridge? Would it matter if it was fake or real? The same problem would exist, the battery had to be a good one to keep your save.

I'm just curious is all.

I wanted to get Pokemon emerald so that I could complete my collection up to gen 5. I have all of the main games through black/white 2. I don't have a 3ds yet or I would be getting gen 6.

 

[Misledz]

I wanted to get Pokemon emerald so that I could complete my collection up to gen 5. I have all of the main games through black/white 2. I don't have a 3ds yet or I would be getting gen 6.

That's a pretty awesome dream there to collect all. Good thing to show the next generation what good handheld gaming was all about

 

[romanaOne]

I bought a bundle of Pokemon games on eBay last xmas for $40 which included Emerald, Sapphire, Leaf Green, Ruby, Fire Red.

Right after I paid, the auction suddenly disappeared and eBay sent me a message that I didn't have to pay. Nevertheless, the seller sent me a tracking number and the games arrived in about a month from China and appear totally legit, near mint condition, shiny labels and all.

My Emerald game plays fine and looks exactly like the one cited above as legit. Did I get a bunch of good fakes? Are there subtle indicators of fakes? Maybe wrong serial numbers, differences in the pcb?

 

[Essometer]

I bought a bundle of Pokemon games on eBay last xmas for $40 which included Emerald, Sapphire, Leaf Green, Ruby, Fire Red.

Right after I paid, the auction suddenly disappeared and eBay sent me a message that I didn't have to pay. Nevertheless, the seller sent me a tracking number and the games arrived in about a month from China and appear totally legit, near mint condition, shiny labels and all.

My Emerald game plays fine and looks exactly like the one cited above as legit. Did I get a bunch of good fakes? Are there subtle indicators of fakes? Maybe wrong serial numbers, differences in the pcb?

Hard to say without a picture. I'd say that the shipment from china is a giveaway that they are fake.

 

[romanaOne]

Front side almost identical to the one above. I think the only difference is the tiny yellow R to the bottom right of the Nintendo seal. EDIT: I notice there is also "09" above the seal on the one above.

 

[Deleted-236924]

Those two look totally fake to me.

FireRed is dead obvious, this is what the insides of a legit one should look like:

Spoiler

And you should probably open up your Emerald too:

Spoiler

(Sorry this is the best quality camera I really have.)

You will also find that:
- The (Nintendo) Logo is written really weird on yours;
- The ® at the bottom right corner of the Official Nintendo Seal has a white background on yours, which shouldn't happen (makes the ® pretty much invisible on my Emerald, if it's even there at all, but you can see it on FireRed);
- The AGB-BPRE-USA on your FireRed looks to be written in a slightly different font than on mine;
- The "GAME BOY ADVANCE" thing at the top of the cartridge looks to be printed very crudely. I couldn't get a good picture directly from my Emerald or FireRed because the cartridges are see-through and my phone isn't good enough to get a good picture, but I got a picture from another GBA game:

Spoiler

(I made that when I was like 12 okay x3)

You only showed Emerald and FireRed but I'd assume the others are fakes too.

Also the ones you showed don't seem to have any numbers/letters imprinted into the sticker which should be there on legit cartridges.

 

[The Catboy]

I honestly say, if you have a local game store that sells classic games, check them out first. I have a store in my town that actually goes through and checks to make sure their games are legit before buying/selling them.
I do end up paying a little more for them, but paying the extra dollar to ensure I get a legit Pokemon game is worth more to me, then going cheap and getting a fake one.

 

[romanaOne]

I'm actually not fcsked up about their being fakes...was just curious. I've played them all a lot and they seem to work fine so no big deal. If real ones cost 20+ USD even after they look like someone played hockey with them, I'm content with mint $8 knock-offs, LOL.

 

[Deleted-236924]

Have you actually beat the Elite Four on any of them?