Is Your N64 Cartridge a FAKE? [Full Guide]
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
- Thanks for watching!
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Playlist of my N64 info videos:
• 20 Trivia Facts about ...
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Kevin MacLeod - Carefree
I just bought a whole n64 lot from my local retro store with 4 games, 2 controllers, and it’s the n64 jungle variant for $200 and I had no worries if anything was fake but it’s good to know these signs for fakes, thank you!
Damn dude I didnt get any games from my local shop but I only paid 55 for the system and a brand new 3rd party controller since the first 2 OEMs got stick drift within a couple days of speed running super mario 64
@@hugostiglitz4452 55? Dayumm where you buy it at
@@eljames4741 idk if their country wide but a local place called disc traders is where I found it...I was surprised when they said that price...gamecube are only I think 80 there with cables and controller lol if your that big of an enthusiast it may or may not be worth the drive
@@hugostiglitz4452 😂😂😂 the color console is in the hundreds 😢
I bought a jap version with 2 controllers.. off market place for $5 homeboy brought it my house. I tried to give him $8 Bing Bing's he would not except it. Gave me a nice computer bag with it. The av plug was bent down but I have a extra one. I sold it for $45.00 since I only paid a Abraham for it 😋🍭
2:17 Another indicator is the small leads at the bottom of the cartridge pins on authentic carts. These would be square on a fake cartridge.
Just a heads up, there are several authentic games like mortal kombat, offroad challenge or rush 2, that were published by midway or a 3rd party publisher that have the white border around the ESRB label, but are still authentic.
On me, I have a tony hawks pro skater 2 that has that white border but has literally every other sign that it is authentic.
There are dozens and dozens of games that have a white boarder around the ESRB label. The video is wrong about using that as a way to identify fake games.
I just got WWF No Mercy. White line around esrb but everything else is legit.
I'm thinking it's og and just from a 3rd party publisher.
There are some interesting things you mention here that I wasn't aware of but ultimately the following 3 are all anyone really needs to do to test and see if it's real 1) The double digit back label stamp (you mentioned), 2) check the black cartridge guard in the slot for a short serial number stamp, if it's there it's real, if it isn't it's not (not mentioned in vid) 3) Open up the cartridge with the 3.8 mm gamebit BUT forget checking the inside of the case for serials and just simply check the gameboard itself to see if it has the Nintendo logo on it. No fake has the Nintendo logo on the board and this test ultimately proves whether or not the heart of the game itself is real. The last one is the one that IMHO makes all others irrelevant, but I use the other 2 for a quick test in situations where cracking open the cartridge is not practical.
Also, the last textline in spanish says information when the real word is información.
And it uses the word "e" instead of "y." Maybe this cart is particularly amateurish.
It is supposed to be an e@@baigandinel7956
@@baigandinel7956Well, no. In Spanish you use «e» instead of «y» if the word starts with an “i” sound in Spanish (just like the word «y»). You can notice it a little at 2:11 how both versions have the e.
@@baigandinel7956I know this is like a year old, but it’s never too late. Greetings from El Salvador
@@eldiglett Thanks. I must have missed that rule.
Everything mentioned here is great advice *except* for the labels being off-center. My copies of DK 64 and Tonic Trouble are authentic, but over time (likely from a warmer environment) they've shifted slightly to the left. To anyone using this video as a way of spotting fakes, I recommend not focusing on the labels and only on the other tips.
yeah they can be a little off center, also some good fakes can pass these i think
I agree I have originals that pass the authenticity test right down to the Nintendo logo on the Gameboard itself, but the labels are just slightly off center. The "i" dot has also proven to be unreliable as well. I have a fake of Diddy Kong Racing that has a square above the "i".
Similar thing with my XG2 cartridge - one of the two games I got with my console around '99 or so. It has everything else legit such as the physical number stamps, but both the labels are off-center, with the front label being almost all the way to the side of the label area.
And apparently the top edge of one of the halves of that cart is starting to turn yellow like the outside of my old SNES!
That's a very good video with all important facts shortly and easy explained!
Lmfao. I bought my $20 repro well knowing it was a repro, but I just wanted to practice bomb clip. Btw, your Owless tutorial is absolutely amazing, thank you.
lmao! well, i'm glad i could help :D
Does it matter if it’s fake for my kids to play lmao😂
Thanks to this video, I was able to figure out if the cartridge I wanted to buy was fake or real. Good news it’s an authentic cartridge! Which are so hard to find on eBay these days.
not all the labels are perfectly aligned the machine used had 1 to 2mm variance in the factory. i know i have seen one operate. also you need to remove the shield to check pbc to be sure if it a real or fake.
ended up getting a copy of Pokémon stadium 2 for like $50 and wanted to double check i didn't get finessed considering this game sells for about $80 or more at the shops.
Good deal, mate!
It appears some of the real carts do have the white around the KA
Glad to be 100% sure that my Conker's bad fur day is real ! Thanks
Doesn't it have a white edge around the rating? Every real copy of conkers I've seen has it but it's more than the fake thin line white
Lots of rarer games have a white trim around the ESRB. Conkers, worms, stunt racer, bomberman second attack. But its a great sign for other fakes
Good to know, thanks 👌🏼
Thanks! I found out my copies of Yoshi’s Story and the Banjo games were fake.
At least games like Ms Pac-Man Maze Madness aren’t in high demand, so fakes are practically impossible to find
0:38 I believe the text can also be black depending on the game.
so I have a cartridge of MM and there is a slightly thicker boarder around the everything logo, the I on the nintendo logo is circular, the text on the back is smaller and the font is different, and the stickers are placed perfectly. but the back sticker and the nintendo seal of quality colors are fine. its also a gold cartridge that has glitter for some reason.
Sounds fine to me
Nice work my guy 🎉
Thanks my guy 🔥
@@Drogie you helped me BIG time I thought I knew Nintendo 64 games . I sell on ebay and had a customer to ask about some cartridges I have for sale. whether they are fake or authentic. Straight up repros 😂
@@syxxpoppin8830 lmfao well if you ever need more specific help, hmu on discord drogie#5170 . Either way I am really glad you care about your sales on ebay. Ebay needs more good sellers like you 🔥
@@Drogie 😊🍀 have the best day ever today 🌄 my friend 🤝💯
Good tips but I think the label centering is a bit questionable. They were hit & miss with the centering originally, some you see an off-center label but it's real.
One thing to note, opening the cartridge is the best way to know for sure. I have run across real cartridges but the front label had been replaced with an aftermarket repro because the original was damaged or peeled off. So would you count that as a fake or real?
Definitely real.
Now i need to control my Mario 64 copy... but honestly, if it would turn out to be fake, I don't think that would be such a problem considering the Nintendo 64 reads it perfectly
Yes!
Thanks for the vid! I just found out my sm64 cartridge was fake using this video lol. Where do these cartridges actually come from? I got mine on eBay but who is actually making them? Also would using these cartridges for runs make those runs invalid for submissions? Just wondering if I need to buy a real cartridge or not now. Thanks!
Lol, sorry you had to find that out 😆 They are mostly made in China from what I know. It doesn't make a difference for speedrunning though, so don't worry 😉
Little did we know just one month later you'd be huge lol
China
I believe Star wars Shadows of the empire does actually use red text, but in general this is a good way to spot a fake.
also the spanish text says "information" on a fake when it should be "información"
it's relieving to know the cartridge my naive 13yo self got 6 years ago wasn't fake
Let's gooooo
@Drogie's N64 Videos: Since I don't have my N64, and neither my copy of Super mario 64 I don't remember if it did have does problem, I Remember that my Super mario 64 came out of an official Super mario 64 box, but that does not mean the cartridge was not fake, and at the time if you just play the game it does not really matter as long it was still the real Super mario 64, and not just a modified game version of Super mario 64. It only matter if your a collector that want to re-sell the collected copy, or just a collecter, for the purpose of collecting cartridge without selling them, it is prefered to have the legit copy. If you just want to play it it does not matter from what I said before and also it also does not matter since back then Super mario 64 can't play online, since their was no online conectivity so it was impossible to get banned from the online services because of using a fake copy of Super mario 64, even thought their was no diffrence in the game play then the original game. this is also why it was not a big deal to used Game shark, to used hack in the game compare to the modern area.
So subtle
Not only can you buy these online but resellers are buying them and trying to make a profit at retro video game stores.
I noticed the fake carts on the back have the stickers way too glossy a.s shiny
Seems like it could be a reasonable pronunction of semicolon but whenever we have semi or demi it's like reading two different words and the stress goes there. SEmi colon. People are sort of forgetting what they are anyway.
Not the most common word for a non-native speaker. Doesn't mean I or my students don't know what it is.
@@Drogie It's not a common word for anyone. That was sort of just an in-joke that native English speakers don't know how to use it anymore.
Oh the dot on the i on Nintendo for my copy of Mario 64 is sqare but all other signs indicate it's fake. I think the people making these are also catching up to us just as we are catching up to them.
Great, thanks! I think the Labels that are black DO have the white border, right? i.e. red Spider-Man cartridge.
I think so, so ignore it for them I guess.
like conkers bad fur day has it
Thanks Drogie for the video!
Dkoldies told me that one way to check if mine was a fake is if the dot on the “i” was a square it would be real, but i see that the nintendo logo is a bit off and the seal of quality isnt gold
Send me pics on discord and i'll lyk
BEST way to check is cartridge is real:
Look at the bottom letters on the bottom of the front label, the authentic circuit board will have the EXACT same letters. Ex: NUS-NTEE-USA is for 1080° and the circuit board will also have NTEE to match! Can't find any videos explaining this fact anywhere...
Yeah that's what I did before too but thats kinda advanced. This is supposed to be a quick guide
My parents got me a reproduction cart by accident on my birthday but like I knew it was fake because it didn't even have a sticker on the back.
It's still the game though so I don't really mind that much
🤣🤣
Thank you. I can confirm my sister's Super 64 Mario is real. :) Great guide.
Actual Best Video Ever
I hope this video doesn’t give people the info they need to make better fakes.
I got a fake Super Smash Bros Game. but is it still fun to play, as it feels just like what I think playing Super Smash Bros feels like to me.
Hey man some games do have a white border around the rating
Very interesting to find out my copy of SM64 is a bootleg. Looks like its time to find a real copy, as much as this one works just fine
Thanks it turned out my cartage of SM64 is fake and checked off 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and i did not check the inside of the cartage but thanks a lot!
I bought conker’s bad fur day and was worried I’d get scammed. Thank god it’s not fake
Congrats! That's a sick game to possess.
If I had a fake cartridge would that mean it wouldn’t work as I have one that seems like it’s real but it also shows some signs of being fake.
Thank goodness that quarterback club was authentic!
Very helpful, thank you!
Only thing that was off was the stickers but other than that it was real
Hey my sister got me a copy of Pokemon snap for my b day and the sticker on the back is not perfectly laid but everything else cheks out should I be worried none of my cards have the sticker laid perfectly on the back except one. Some of them were my mom's from when she was a kid and some of them were my dad's from when he was I doubt there would have been that many fakes going around at the time but the Pokemon snap copy was sold to my sister at phan ex. factory error or fake?
Sounds fine to me, it can happen on original cartridges. To go safe, send me pictures of the cart on Discord, my name there is just Drogie.
@@Drogie I compared it to every other game in my collection except Mario kart and my Zelda games because my sister currently has those
@@AnonymouseNeedsHelpjk Yeah it sounds legit to me. Does the game have punched in number/letter on the back? Can see it if you tilt ir
@@Drogie yes
Every sign in this video was true (not counting 15 bcz i dont have a screwdriver of that type) but... my copy is real suprisingly
Thanks, now I annoyingly notice almost all legit cartridges misspell the french words "Manuel" and "À"
It's supposed to be an accent grave (`) Nintendo, YOU MISSPELT A ONE LETTER WORD
I checked all my cartridges every thing looked legit on my Mario kart 64 but the stickers are kinda misplaced It is my uncles so I hope that was just aging, I also found out one of my 007s are fake. 😖
Lol
My “WWF War Zone” game has the white border but everything else is good but it still plays in my N64.
Should be fine then👌🏿
Thanks for tip.....Been playing "reproduction" games for some time...all work 100%, not sure I want to pay twice the amount for a real game, since the repros seem to work fine.
The thing is N64 emulation is so easy that for me there's no point in having a cart if its not going to be authentic.
I’ve already bought some games for my n64, and my sm64 is fake, what should I do?
Idk. Wont be much of a difference to the original one.
Ty the one I bought on eBay looks very real thanks for showing me signs
Would a run be verified if it was played on one of this fake cartridges?
Yes, that is no problem!
Thank god eBay does returns Because my copy of Mario party three is 100% fake
I have a copy of banjo tooie where it seems everything is authentic except the label stickers. The lettering under the red nintento logo on the front is black, most of of the lettering on the front is pretty blurry and the picture looks too clean. Back label has no stamp and no accent on the "A" in the french sentence... but the cart has a square for the "i" in nintendo and after opening up both the cart and board look legit. I wonder if repro's are just getting better or if it's just the labels.
My copy of Tooie also has black text on front label where it says NUS-006 (USA) with everything else being legit.
The back label may have simply worn out over time. The À or Á (I've seen both) is very small and sometimes hard to see
Yeah but is there original stickers people selling on eBay might sell some people can just maybe buy them at the original sticker is it for sale on eBay and make them look new but look like not the reproduction cartridge
yo whered u get that n64 shirt? its really cool
dm me on twitter or discord, i'll send u the link
Just bought Mario golf, everything looks fine but the cartridge feels a little heavier than the rest of all my games
That happens. It's probably real ;)
@@Drogie there was also a sticker running along the top that had the Mario golf logo 🤔
this made me realize i had a very old copy of super Mario 64 it passed all the checks as real but it said 1996 as copyright and no -1 after NUS-USA/CAN it also said patent issued a pending see booklet without the U.S.PATENTS i assume this means my copy is a very old copy made in 1996
Bruh, today i buy a SM64 Cartridge, and when i get home i see that the i of the nintendo was circle and not square, thanks for give me the information Man, next time i will be carefully with this things
DROGIE UPLOAD WWWW
You've explained the casing & labels, but what if the original casing was damaged, so it was replaced with a reproduction casing?
Open it up: The metal part usually takes up more space in a repro cart, but more importantly: It doesn't say Nintendo anywhere on the circuit board.
Another sign is if you’ve had them since early 2000s which I know all mine are legit I’ve never had any new carts since 🥳
Sign #16 It's being sold on eBay from China for some ridiculous price, and the English in the listing is awkward. 😅
Great video! Please consider adding timestamps to it!
Thanks a lot! Will try to remember it during the holidays.
Dang I don’t have punch number but that was about all I got a N64 super Mario world from a 3rd party but the business name was “skdnbdhdudkdk” smh
I feel like scammers will just watch videos like these as a means of making their fakes looking even more realistic LMFAOOO
Not to mention that the fake cartridges don't save your game automatically like Diddy Kong Racing.
No, they work the same
does a fake cartirage change the game because it feels the exact same as a normal cart
Nope, same game
@@Drogie is it still legal for speedrunning
Is it against the speedrun rules to play on a fake cartridge because i believe mine is fake
Nah all good, they work fine
@@Drogie ight thanks! :D
so what will happen if i use a fake cartridge?
Nothing, works as normal
@@Drogie ah ok
I think i bought a fake copy. Does it affect the gameplay at all?
No, not at all!
@@Drogie ok thank you. It sucks to know i have a fake copy though
The only thing I have is the thin white line on my Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time carriage is it fake?
Can you upload some pics for me? And post the imgur link here or on my discord or twitter?
I don’t care if my Mario party 3 which I ordered is fake just wondering if repro cartridges can play the games fine?
Ye perfectly fine honestly, might just be a bit less staböe
@@Drogie thanks! I can’t wait to play it as it will be my first N64 game
Question: what’s to stop fakes from being so legit you can’t tell? Why don’t they just do that?
It'd be really difficult (and probably expensive) to fake them well enough so that no one would notice, especially because they'd look "too new" anyway.
ok so my cousins gave me a n64 ok and i was having alot of fun, i saw a video of a guy buying fake n64 games on amazon and he said that to tell if they were fake the picture would be blurry and it wouldnt fit perfectly in the space the picture is supposed to go so then i checked a few videos to see if my copy of sm64 was real or fake, im pretty sure its fake because everything you said in this video was like my copy, i would open it but i dont have the screwdriver for the job. I am now pretty sad to know this information. But i just have 1 question, since my game is fake, then are there any in-game differences? it would really help if you responded quickly.
No ingame doferences
@@Drogie thanks you so much for this
Drogie whenever you play a Fake cartridge on a Nintendo 64 system, is the sound quality different than the original real cartridge or no ?
Usually not, no. Same quality
Hey, I have got to fake games that I was hoping to b real games, they r Super Mario 64 & Mario Kart 64 but they won't save, I replaced all the cards & they still don't work, I heard that it's cause their copied versions of the game, I bought them from eBay.
Could be 😭
Yeah, I makes me mad & sad cause I wanna play far n the games but I can't when I'm done cause their not saving & I'd love to find the real copies of the games so I can play them & them save.
Does it matter if it's fake or real? Like does it affect the gameplay
Nope
Gameplay, no. Re-sale value, yes.
Does the same stuff aply for japanese carts
There arent many repros of japanese carts, but mostly, yes
Hey Drogie I know that with the N64 Console you are able to save your games through a Memory PAK Card that does on the back of your controller but I was just wondering.. Are you able to save your Game Data on the Fake Reproduction cartridges ? I plan on buying Mario Party 2
Yes, it will work normally
Wow I just realized the only N64 game that is fake is Mario 64. I bought it on eBay. But honestly, as long as it works from start to finish, I don't really mind. I got a small collection going but I'm in no way planning to have a full library. That would cost too much, plus demand a lot of space. Do you guys think this fake copy of Mario 64 will last me long?
I agree, in the end, it doesn't really matter. I think it will last just as long as an original cartridge - hopefully.
Wow!
Look at this chad
So I got a game recently that I thought was fake I opened it and matched it to my 2 copy and the circuit board was identical but the outside of the game look too new can it be fake
i assume you got it on ebay? i could imagine the cart was dirty or something, so he put the game into a 3rd party cartridge case. which is a good solution imo
or maybe they put a new sticker on the game? idk
Aw I just found out mine is fake
I found a Mario 64 cartridge on eBay everything looks good except I think the bottom text is red but the image is to blurry to make sure should I buy it?
Send me a link, I'll check it for you :)
I looked at other ones and I'm pretty sure its a fake. The real ones are way more expensive.
@@cdragoneer kk, gl on finding a real one hehe
Hey i have 3 licened games but they have E and M ratings But they have bordors only those its rush 2 And Turok 1 and 2
You can send me pictures on discord or twitter and I'll try to help
if the cartridge is still valid for runs then what’s the main issue with buying one?
just feels bad init
There isn't an issue, won't be worth as much reselling but I'd trust a new refurb over an original that has been slammed around for 20 years.
The biggest issue with the mass produced reproductions coming out of China is that they are consistently inconsistent for quality control standards. You can get some games that will perform just like the original and last years and you can get others that freeze up mid game, lose game saves, etc. all within the first year of purchase. Among the variables: 1) How much testing was done on them? 2) What ROM did they use for the flash? (there are a lot of hacked and beta versions out there 3) What type of game save do they use? (ie Memory Pak/Rumble Pak, EPROM, EEPROM, SRAM, Flash RAM or RTC). S-RAM and Flash RAM/RTC are the "blink and it's gone" type memory saves and Flash RAM was well known for being expensive and difficult to implement. Definitely not something I would trust a cheaply made flashboard to hold for any length of time. Bottom line AVOID REPROS OF FLASH RAM OR RTC GAMES like Paper Mario, Pokemon Stadium 2, Megaman 64 as there are definitely cases of these Repros ending up with wiped game saves within a year of purchase. The cheaper plastic that the cases are made out of, the fact that they don't even bother screwing the metal plating or the fact that the cheaper cases are often machined slightly off (don't line up right when you try to put them back together) don't inspire one with confidence either. Look into cosmetically flawed originals, Japanese versions (some are very English friendly and much cheaper than their US Counterparts) or invest in an Everdrive or make your own Repros (ie Retro Stage Blaster) as the quality of the board is significantly better and you can source the ROM for yourself. All of the aforementioned are better alternatives to the mass produced Repros.
If your cartridge is from eBay for 20 or 25 bucks it's fake lol
p much lol
Happy I bought all of mine back in ‘06 LMFAOO
Looks like all 5 of the N64 games I bought off of eBay recently are all fake 😭
😭😭😭😭
I need your help bro so I recently bought a few Nintendo 64 games including 2 Conker's bad fur.... previous owner told me one is fake the other is legit... I open them up and both of them look legit. I asked him which is fake he said I really can't tell which one is which .
Lol wtf? Well, you can send me pics on discord if you want
@@Drogie I will send some tomorrow after work I will like to sell on eBay but. If they fake I am trying to screw no one over ... Thank you for responding!
Drogie
Pls...
Your videos are cool but please no fake lip sync!!!
Damn I just bought a fake mario kart
R.I.P.
Can I pay you to get me a nintendo 64 system james bond zelda mario and mario cart?
Lol dm me on twitter and I'll help for free
Mine is half real and Half fake