Gaming How to spot fake Game cartridges?

[Bi99uy]

Yo. I recently began to build my GBA collection and have bought a couple of games. However, i recently got Golden Sun 2 and i really don´t know if it´s a fake or not. I don´t have any other USA games for GBA either, so i can´t really compare.

The biggest question therefore is :
Is the box supposed to be pretty stiff and glossy? On EU boxes the material is pretty weak and thin.

Would also be awesome if someone could scan the back of the box / Take a picture / write down what it says on the backtext, as it seems pretty funky.

 

[Zanonymous]

If the sticker isn't exactly parallel on the cartridge, it could be. I know nothing of PAL boxes, though. However I've seen many fake ones, like a Shiny Gold cart (being sold for $20, that really sucks for whoever buys it) at a flea market and a Sapphire without the crystal blue cart at Gamestop.

 

[DanTheManMS]

I've seen worse:


Regardless, I know at least one quick and easy way to test if the card is genuine or not. Look at the bottom of the cartridge and tilt it so you can see the pins. Way in the back you should see the word Nintendo on the green PCB. If you don't see that, then for sure it's a fake. If you do, well there's still a chance, but I'm really not up to date on other identifiers you could use, sorry.

 

[Fat D]

does it have all the information shared among your real carts? It should have at least a game code, a SoQ, a rating and a publisher label.
Also, with Pokémon games, there are a lot of easy-to-spot fakes, as the originals have a colored, for R/S/E even translucent shell, and I have seen one with regular black shell at GameStop once.
However, while you can indicate most fakes, you can never make perfectly sure a game is not a fake, there might be "good" fakes out there that are indistinguishable.

 

[Toni Plutonij]

I had a fake Fire Emblem.....It had "Nintondo" written in the back..so it was obviously fake, and battery died on me very soon...I lost the savefile of 40+ hours....was pissed..

But I managed to "scam" our local shop to exchange that fake one (they don't know shit about it) with the new original (still sealed) Fire Emblem Sacred Stones..

 

[Psyfira]

Best post I've seen on the subject: http://gbatemp.net/index.php?s=&showto...t&p=1103779

The most obvious way to check while standing in a shop is probably the screw, Nintendo put tri-wings on everything.

 

[Fat D]

Best post I've seen on the subject: http://gbatemp.net/index.php?s=&showto...t&p=1103779

The most obvious way to check while standing in a shop is probably the screw, Nintendo put tri-wings on everything.

triwings OR linehead nuts.

 

[Shabadage]

I had a fake Fire Emblem.....It had "Nintondo" written in the back..so it was obviously fake, and battery died on me very soon...I lost the savefile of 40+ hours....was pissed..

But I managed to "scam" our local shop to exchange that fake on (they don't know shit about it) with the new original (still sealed) Fire Emblem Sacred Stones..

Actually, if you look closely, it should be Nlntondo. yes, that's an L. My Megaman & Bass was a Nlntondo copy. I was quite amused and that was the last time I bought a game off of ebay.

 

[Dark]

It happened to me too. I had 33hrs in mario and luigi super star something. I was going to fight the final boss and the battary died on me.

 

[double_vision]

lol... these bootlegs are really getting out of control.... you can see tons at gamestop and ebgames.

 

[Dark]

Really? I stop buying used games cause of those fake ones. My friend got a fake megaman game. I still pirate buy games.

 

[FireEmblemGuy]

If I buy a used game, I buy buy it in person, and if it looks remotely fake I'll calmly explain then demand that the guy working at the shop give me a new cartridge or I'll sue their entire chain for counterfeiting. Effective.

Also, if you have a cart that you know is real, compare the text and font on the backside to one you think may be fake. Some of the giveaways are the font/spelling of Nintendo and saying Model AGB-033 instead of AGB-002, as I believe all games are.

Just because a Pokemon game has the proper looking cartridge, never assume it's real. My fake Emerald cart would like to have a word with you.

Never EVER buy off eBay, Amazon, or any other trading site. Gamestop has been pretty good about sending real carts, but I haven't bought from them in years.

 

[Searinox]

Bootlegs... boy did I ever have a HARD time with 'em. Avoid them as much as possible. Most of their hardware uses cheap SRAM on EEPROM games and they drain the battery much quicker, in months they stop saving.

The best way to check if it's fake or not is examine the sticker at an angle in the light to see if there is a number(3 digits usually) engraved on it. That's an indicator of originality. Other signs include a round Nintendo Seal of Quality, bootlegs usually have that seal oval shaped, copied in low quality, its golden color isn't shiny, or it is absent altogether. Also low-res unofficial or poor boxart quality is a fake indicator. Some bootlegs contain copies of the original game manual that only stretch 10-20 ages opposite to the original which are around 50.

But it's possible that a second hand original cart ends up in a fake box or that the seal of quality gets copied right, the best indicator of originality remains the numbers engraved on the cart's label. ALL official Nintendo carts have it, and no bootleg makers bother stamping it.

 

[unknownworlder]

Well, you can check the build quality of some fake carts and you can tell if they are fake. Once, I got a pokemon game and the case felt like some cheap plastic.

 

[Sstew]

Lol, I have a fake one, (I'll try to upload a pic)

But its Pokemon "Diamante" for GBA

I swear to you, theres Looney Toons characters in it XD
You can be Taz, Bugs, and someone else, but man is it weird XD

 

[knightguy363]

the box seems fake =S it seems poorly printed
also the sticker will be not as high quality
and it may have grammar mistakes or have wrong name

 

[Knarf]

Probably fake. I received a fake Super Mario World GBA cart on eBay once. The box was glossy and the inside was white, the car's label was off center, the label was a different pic, and the manual was only 5 pages long. I think I kept the box... If I find it I'll scan it and post it.

 

[RevvRon]

I bought an "original unopened" copy of Harvest Moon DS off ebay for $11 with shipping and handling. The manual is a dead giveaway. The grammar is absolutely horrendous. I could barely understand it. The cart looked just like the real deal. I had to open it to verify that it was in fact fake.