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Edit: Here's a great link to helping spot those dang nasty fakers http://ap.nintendo.com/detect/photos/gameboy_advance.jsp (Big ups to cd. jester)
Before Paying:
1. Shipping from an asian country at half the price of what an authentic cartridge costs.
2. Ask seller for a picture of actual cartridge and look closely at the label for the regional stamp (usually AGB-misc. numbers-USA), Nintendo Seal of Approval and compare the photo to a stock photo as sometimes they don't even get the label color correct.
3. If you win an auction for a rediculously cheap game ask a bunchof questions and mention that you're worried about getting a bootleg and most sellers will back out of a sale if it is a fake cartridge.
4. Any nintendo owned property (Mario, Donkey Kong, Castlevania, Metroid, etc.) is heavily bootlegged in eastern countries. If it's a more obscure title chances are it's not a bootleg if you won the auction cheap. Many people may not be interested in that particular game.
After Recieving Game:
Before Paying:
1. Shipping from an asian country at half the price of what an authentic cartridge costs.
2. Ask seller for a picture of actual cartridge and look closely at the label for the regional stamp (usually AGB-misc. numbers-USA), Nintendo Seal of Approval and compare the photo to a stock photo as sometimes they don't even get the label color correct.
3. If you win an auction for a rediculously cheap game ask a bunchof questions and mention that you're worried about getting a bootleg and most sellers will back out of a sale if it is a fake cartridge.
4. Any nintendo owned property (Mario, Donkey Kong, Castlevania, Metroid, etc.) is heavily bootlegged in eastern countries. If it's a more obscure title chances are it's not a bootleg if you won the auction cheap. Many people may not be interested in that particular game.
After Recieving Game:
1. Okay
so you run out to check the mail and there it is. Your package
has finally arrived. You pick it up and notice there's some odd
looking letters and postage from a different country attached to
it. Chances are you just got a bootleg. Sometimes the
seller won't mention in the auction listing where they're shipping from
as there are middlemen from Iowa to California to New York and
everywhere in between.
2. Tear that package open and you want to know if this is a genuine authorized game. Here's what you're looking for:
First things first contact the seller immediately and inform him/her of your dissatisfaction and request a refund with your shipping cost included. Usually they'll write back either flat out denying it's a bootleg (liars). Or playing dumb and saying they didn't know (dumb liars). If they refund your money (shipping included as this is their fault) you can leave negative feedback after recieving your refund (which you probably won't get a penny out of these thieves) and call it a learning experience. If they refuse to refund your money contact ebay through the dispute console and go through the guilty party's recent sale notifying all of his/her unknowingly satisfied customers of the fact they got ripped off which should get this seller's account banned (I've done this :)) Next thing you can do is contact Nintendo with all of the information such as addresses of seller/supplier but that probably won't go far and most people aren't on any one man crusade to stop video game piracy so do what I do. You know those chain stores that deal in used video games(EB Games, Funcoland, Gamestop, etc.)? The chain stores that offered you 99 cents for Madden a year after you paid $49.99 for it? The chain stores with the obnoxious know it all teenager who flaunts his power by taking extremely long amounts of time from your life by chatting with every customer to approach the counter about rediculously stupid video game crap? Take your bootleg there my friend. First scout it out and make sure they have the authentic version of your bootleg for sale. Tell them you bought the bootleg around a week and a half ago from their store (some stores have a 2 week return policy while some have 30 and 90 day policies respectively) and it doesnt work properly. Say the screen flickers or it doesn't keep your saves. Don't say it's broke because they may test it. If they do take the time to look at the label and see somethings odd just go with it. Say "Maybe it's a promo or a different region or something". 9 times out of 10 they'll just exchange it for the same game without a problem. I have never been refused using this tactic in 4 attempts. They may ask for the reciept but just say "It worked fine so I tossed it." They will accept your "return".
Well if I got it so cheap and it works I'm happy with a bootleg
Give it some time and you won't be. If your bootleg saves it won't for very long. Genuine cartridges contain flash based memory. Bootlegs have VERY cheap battery based memory. Sortof like old NES games but with a much shorter lifespan (all batteries die). Also the pin connectors are very cheaply constructed and can wear away from normal use to the point they will not work. Flickery screen, Garbled sound, or just plain old won't detect cartridge can and will happen in the near future.
Hope this guide helps but if you bid on alot of GBA games like myself you're bound to get a bad one sooner or later. Good luck and remember not mom and pops but CHAINSTORES!!!!
2. Tear that package open and you want to know if this is a genuine authorized game. Here's what you're looking for:
- Check the label for the Nintendo Seal of Quality, Regional Code
(see above), and compare the label to a picture found online from a
reputable game dealer.
- Look at the pin connector. There should be a nintendo stamp. Also many bootlegs have what appear to be tiny sunken spaces that look sortof like holes.
- Save a game (If this function's available). Turn your GBA off and then back on and check and see if your game saved. You wouldn't believe how many cheap bootlegs don't even include memory backup.
First things first contact the seller immediately and inform him/her of your dissatisfaction and request a refund with your shipping cost included. Usually they'll write back either flat out denying it's a bootleg (liars). Or playing dumb and saying they didn't know (dumb liars). If they refund your money (shipping included as this is their fault) you can leave negative feedback after recieving your refund (which you probably won't get a penny out of these thieves) and call it a learning experience. If they refuse to refund your money contact ebay through the dispute console and go through the guilty party's recent sale notifying all of his/her unknowingly satisfied customers of the fact they got ripped off which should get this seller's account banned (I've done this :)) Next thing you can do is contact Nintendo with all of the information such as addresses of seller/supplier but that probably won't go far and most people aren't on any one man crusade to stop video game piracy so do what I do. You know those chain stores that deal in used video games(EB Games, Funcoland, Gamestop, etc.)? The chain stores that offered you 99 cents for Madden a year after you paid $49.99 for it? The chain stores with the obnoxious know it all teenager who flaunts his power by taking extremely long amounts of time from your life by chatting with every customer to approach the counter about rediculously stupid video game crap? Take your bootleg there my friend. First scout it out and make sure they have the authentic version of your bootleg for sale. Tell them you bought the bootleg around a week and a half ago from their store (some stores have a 2 week return policy while some have 30 and 90 day policies respectively) and it doesnt work properly. Say the screen flickers or it doesn't keep your saves. Don't say it's broke because they may test it. If they do take the time to look at the label and see somethings odd just go with it. Say "Maybe it's a promo or a different region or something". 9 times out of 10 they'll just exchange it for the same game without a problem. I have never been refused using this tactic in 4 attempts. They may ask for the reciept but just say "It worked fine so I tossed it." They will accept your "return".
Well if I got it so cheap and it works I'm happy with a bootleg
Give it some time and you won't be. If your bootleg saves it won't for very long. Genuine cartridges contain flash based memory. Bootlegs have VERY cheap battery based memory. Sortof like old NES games but with a much shorter lifespan (all batteries die). Also the pin connectors are very cheaply constructed and can wear away from normal use to the point they will not work. Flickery screen, Garbled sound, or just plain old won't detect cartridge can and will happen in the near future.
Hope this guide helps but if you bid on alot of GBA games like myself you're bound to get a bad one sooner or later. Good luck and remember not mom and pops but CHAINSTORES!!!!
Guide created: 05/04/06 (updated 10/12/09)
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