My first experience with gold/silver was also in Japanese but it was running on an emulator, on a PC that was set up at the after school club I went to. Between me and a few friends I think we got as far as Ecruteak without being able to read anything... My mind was blown when the English version was finally released and I was able to get my hands on a copy!
@@xyoungchopx1305 if you have an american original nintendo ds it can play both gen 4 and gen 5 the same is true of the ds lite since the lite and original ds are not region locked unlike the dsi they can play those games
"I wish more people knew about this" The reason why these games are cheaper is because more people DON'T KNOW about the price. Be careful what you wish for as they say lol. Great video
You can also get the japanese "Kirby Tilt and Tumble". Some stuff is explained in japanese but it should be easy to understand without it. One special feature of that game is that the cartridge has build-in accelerometer chip that is needed to play the game. Therefore you can't play it on emulators/flash cards. The japanese version is a good alternative.
UGH! Thank you for this because I was so scared for a minute. I’m starting a channel with a friend and one of the games we planned on playing was Legend of Zelda: Four Swords and my plan was to buy three other systems but I thought they might be region locked. But when you said they weren’t region specific, my heart jumped out of my chest in excitement.
I've found that it's not just Game Boy games that have been easier to get a hold of in Japanese, but pretty much all retro content. Prices in the west have really exploded in recent years, but that trend doesn't seem to have picked up in Japan. I owned a few Japanese copies of Pokémon games when I was younger, but recently had my entire collection stolen, so I've been trying to re-build it. I easily got a hold of the Japanese games I used to have, since they were each about €30 at most, but I still struggle to find some of the same ones in English for anything close to a reasonable price. What's nice for me is that I do actually understand Japanese, so the language difference isn't even an issue to me enjoying the game; in fact I actually prefer playing in that language.
Great video. I never realised Japanese games were mostly in English. Prices for Gameboy games are only going up, I'll definitely look at getting more Japanese games. I really want to get Pokémon games from Japan too, more for the differences in the artwork (they have different sprites in Red/Green to US/EU Red/Blue) but it might also help me learn some more Japanese. My hiragana is pretty decent now, so it'll be fun to pick up some more basic vocabulary.
I just started collecting Game Boy consoles and games and found this very helpful, thank you! I’ve ordered so many mint condition versions of Japanese games now. It’s crazy that a near mint condition Japanese version is 60-70% less than a beat up copy of an English release.
Another curious thing you didn't mention was that some titles have differences depending on the region it was released in such as Dragon Ball Advance Adventure. The Japanese version had a few songs in it that doesn't exist in international releases. Those boil down to songs that couldn't be licensed. Some games even have content that had to be cut when the games underwent localization such as Mega Man Battle Network 6 or even earlier games which cut the Jack-in animations.
In book off, the Japanese games are actually really cheap. There was a Pokémon green with the box and everything and it was only 3000 yen(25-30 US dollars) the other games without anything and just the cartridge, are usually 500 yen.
@@monsieur7787 Book-Off is a physical store in Japanese towns, therefore you cannot buy their products on a website. (Well, try googling the name and see if they *do* have a website)
I took a broken english copy of pokemon crystal and soldered in the rom chip from it in to a nice japanese copy. The japanese version of crystal has a really cool pcb silkscreen on the back and the label is also cooler. Also significantly cheaper.
All Gameboy games are region free. I used to believe this up until, as soon as a couple of days ago, when I found a counter example although only a partial one. Space Invaders has a special SGB mode that runs on the SNES, and this mode is region locked. Yeah, that should barely count as it's more like a SNES region lock and the rest of the game works fine.
I've bought pokemon gold and silver in japanese because i've been playing gold for over 20 years and i know the route through it by heart. Wondered if i could learn japanese by playing it! (Have to replace the save batteries to really find out) Unrelated technically by happened at the same time- i also have Pokemon Green version in english. Planning on buying weird japan region/language gameboy color games nobody's ever heard of in bulk. Weird collecting is my jam
I usually go to used markets or game shops to find retro games, here in Naples, you can make some pretty good deals if know where to find shops which have games
I bought Mario Picross for game boy from Japan, and it belonged to someone who solved all those puzzles really fast. So after beating their time on mostly all puzzles, I was determined to buy Picross 2 from Japan again. First cart’s battery was dead, so I sold the cart. Then I bought second one - and it had really low times, so it’s tough, but I dumped the save, changed the battery, and I’m slowly going through each level beating the time.
Nice video, thanks! I do think that Tetris 1.0 (the one with Minuet song) is rare, as there are "just" around 25000 copies. Compare that with the 30 million copies of Tetris 1.1 ("normal" version, with the Korobeiniki song).
I have Japanese copies of most of the pokemon games, and some other RPGs. I've been learning Japanese for about a year and a half so I'm able to read some of it, and it's good for practice. The prices of the games though are so much better, and often come complete in box.
@@ToutEstPolitiqueEtCestLogique japanese sellers list them for cheap because there isn't much demand in Japan. Also could you explain, how is buying something looting?
Haa...I've been doin this for years. Especially with SNES. Got dracula x for $40. hagane for $30. I see the prices going up now on SFCcartss tho I think people are catching on
Your videos are so interesting :o Dont mind me im just here trying to buy final fantasy tactics advanve other gba titles without accidentaly getting a fake cartridge containing a NSFW version of PONG that will take 3 months to arrive xD
Actually those tetris cartridges with the different main theme are pretty rare and go arround 50 buck a piece (that tetris version is called the minuet version)
I bought a game that is only in Japanese. It wasn't a big deal because it was just a tutorial on how to play the game which I figured out the normal. There was no story or anything. I never pay attention to stories anyway so even if it was it would still be cool.
Hello. Thank you for the video. It was very helpful. Idk if you know but if I were to go to Japan to buy Fire Emblem: Blazing Blade, would it be an English or would there be a way to switch the language to English?
What? Should be another question. Wonderswan of any type and Makaimura or Ninja Jajamarukun. Super Gameboy 2 and Super Gameboy controller from Hori. All kinds of Gameboy games like Hammering Harry, Banishing Racer, Burning Paper and Kid Dracula. Plus sport games like Boxing and World Ice Hockey are great too. I love Dot Matrix games. I will be getting the Arduboy FX soon if I can but that is off the subject.
also a big plus point, if you know the language. you can play the games uncensored nintendo-west in the 90s was pretty nasty in that regard. religious stuff for example - gone.
i reccomend Zelda links awakening on gameboy cause the game was meant for kids at the time also if you want to play it with the knowlege of whats going on i reccomend a guide. either on youtube or a book.
Hello. Thank you for the video. It was very helpful. Idk if you know but if I were to go to Japan to buy Fire Emblem: Blazing Blade, would it be in English?
I own Kirby's Dreamland the Japanese version because It was literally less than £7 and I perfer that games cartridge art I got tetris from Japan cheap too and I also prefer that art and both are games where you forget they are In Japanese
Hi there, I was wondering if you'd used proxy buying services to buy from Japan besides eBay? If so what are the cost for shipping and games and your experience with it?
Im not the person you asking the question but I have experience with using a Proxy Service. I use From Japan and overall you pay about 10€ per kg with FedEx Priority (this includes all the fees, shipping from the seller to the warehouse, international shipping etc). Its only really worth it when you buy a lot of stuff so shipping isnt too expensive compared when you buy just a handfull of games. With gameboy games when you bid on bigger lots with mostly normal stuff you pay about 100-200 Yen per game, so when you keep some of the stuff and sell the rest you get your games for free or even get money out!
the Japanese versions of gba and ds games are dirt cheaper compared to their English counterparts, it almost feels like a steal or scam. Luckily, im trying to learn Japanese and I’ve already played most the games i want at least a dozen times so this is such a win. Even in the United States, it seems demand doesn’t justify the pricing so I’d be suprised if the Japanese versions went up anytime soon. Great vid, I thought i was crazy or being goofed on, BUT, always make sure to do your search at least.
Can confirm. I think the reason it's cheaper is due to the fact that when you sell on eBay, you have to pay all those fees so that explains the higher costs. It was nothing to me as it only amounted to a few cents anyway. I will buy some stuff from the site in the future then.
i almost only collect jpn cib gb games, also because there are some super nice ones, which werent released anywhere else, (ok some of them got a chinese release but they are very rare) Games Like Ninja Spirit, Ikari no Yousai2 (supernice shooting game), Tekkyu Fight, Penta Dragon, Brave Fighter of the Sun, Chikyuu Kaihou Gun ZAS (excellent game but very expensive), Daiku No Gen-san Robot teikoku no yabou (basically Hammerin Harry2) all supernice playable games, check them out :-D Oh and very nice Video, thankyou for making it :-)
Good lord, now THIS is quality content.
I played Pokémon silver so many times when I got my hands on a Japanese copy I pretty much knew what I was to do 😂
Catch ‘em all
What else??
Do you need Japanese device for ds games
@@xyoungchopx1305 DSi games are region locked. 4th gen and down are region free.
My first experience with gold/silver was also in Japanese but it was running on an emulator, on a PC that was set up at the after school club I went to. Between me and a few friends I think we got as far as Ecruteak without being able to read anything... My mind was blown when the English version was finally released and I was able to get my hands on a copy!
@@xyoungchopx1305 if you have an american original nintendo ds it can play both gen 4 and gen 5 the same is true of the ds lite since the lite and original ds are not region locked unlike the dsi they can play those games
"I wish more people knew about this"
The reason why these games are cheaper is because more people DON'T KNOW about the price. Be careful what you wish for as they say lol.
Great video
You can also get the japanese "Kirby Tilt and Tumble". Some stuff is explained in japanese but it should be easy to understand without it.
One special feature of that game is that the cartridge has build-in accelerometer chip that is needed to play the game.
Therefore you can't play it on emulators/flash cards. The japanese version is a good alternative.
I played Wario ware twisted on my phone so the tilt function is probably emulated in a proper emulator.
Is got that game for $10
Why is it better than buying English language cartridge though?
@@GrooveSpaceArk the Japanese version is an 1/5 of the price. Sometimes even more!
UGH! Thank you for this because I was so scared for a minute. I’m starting a channel with a friend and one of the games we planned on playing was Legend of Zelda: Four Swords and my plan was to buy three other systems but I thought they might be region locked. But when you said they weren’t region specific, my heart jumped out of my chest in excitement.
I've found that it's not just Game Boy games that have been easier to get a hold of in Japanese, but pretty much all retro content. Prices in the west have really exploded in recent years, but that trend doesn't seem to have picked up in Japan.
I owned a few Japanese copies of Pokémon games when I was younger, but recently had my entire collection stolen, so I've been trying to re-build it. I easily got a hold of the Japanese games I used to have, since they were each about €30 at most, but I still struggle to find some of the same ones in English for anything close to a reasonable price.
What's nice for me is that I do actually understand Japanese, so the language difference isn't even an issue to me enjoying the game; in fact I actually prefer playing in that language.
Great video. I never realised Japanese games were mostly in English. Prices for Gameboy games are only going up, I'll definitely look at getting more Japanese games. I really want to get Pokémon games from Japan too, more for the differences in the artwork (they have different sprites in Red/Green to US/EU Red/Blue) but it might also help me learn some more Japanese. My hiragana is pretty decent now, so it'll be fun to pick up some more basic vocabulary.
I just started collecting Game Boy consoles and games and found this very helpful, thank you!
I’ve ordered so many mint condition versions of Japanese games now. It’s crazy that a near mint condition Japanese version is 60-70% less than a beat up copy of an English release.
Heyy!, Thank you for the video! I really enjoy the content that you make, I want start my videogame collection and your videos are helping me a lot
Another curious thing you didn't mention was that some titles have differences depending on the region it was released in such as Dragon Ball Advance Adventure. The Japanese version had a few songs in it that doesn't exist in international releases. Those boil down to songs that couldn't be licensed. Some games even have content that had to be cut when the games underwent localization such as Mega Man Battle Network 6 or even earlier games which cut the Jack-in animations.
Thanks for video. I really want to start collecting Gameboy games and this information will be really useful for me.
Thanks , I bought a Game Boy and I was affraid of buying japanese games , you're great
In book off, the Japanese games are actually really cheap. There was a Pokémon green with the box and everything and it was only 3000 yen(25-30 US dollars) the other games without anything and just the cartridge, are usually 500 yen.
On which website please?
@@monsieur7787 Book-Off is a physical store in Japanese towns, therefore you cannot buy their products on a website. (Well, try googling the name and see if they *do* have a website)
I took a broken english copy of pokemon crystal and soldered in the rom chip from it in to a nice japanese copy. The japanese version of crystal has a really cool pcb silkscreen on the back and the label is also cooler. Also significantly cheaper.
Nice video,good information on for people who are trying to collect gameboy games again
Nice job & introduction ✌✌✌
Glad I discovered your channel :) you deserve way more subscribers!
All Gameboy games are region free. I used to believe this up until, as soon as a couple of days ago, when I found a counter example although only a partial one. Space Invaders has a special SGB mode that runs on the SNES, and this mode is region locked. Yeah, that should barely count as it's more like a SNES region lock and the rest of the game works fine.
I've bought pokemon gold and silver in japanese because i've been playing gold for over 20 years and i know the route through it by heart. Wondered if i could learn japanese by playing it! (Have to replace the save batteries to really find out)
Unrelated technically by happened at the same time- i also have Pokemon Green version in english.
Planning on buying weird japan region/language gameboy color games nobody's ever heard of in bulk. Weird collecting is my jam
I usually go to used markets or game shops to find retro games, here in Naples, you can make some pretty good deals if know where to find shops which have games
I bought Mario Picross for game boy from Japan, and it belonged to someone who solved all those puzzles really fast. So after beating their time on mostly all puzzles, I was determined to buy Picross 2 from Japan again. First cart’s battery was dead, so I sold the cart. Then I bought second one - and it had really low times, so it’s tough, but I dumped the save, changed the battery, and I’m slowly going through each level beating the time.
Nice video, thanks! I do think that Tetris 1.0 (the one with Minuet song) is rare, as there are "just" around 25000 copies. Compare that with the 30 million copies of Tetris 1.1 ("normal" version, with the Korobeiniki song).
it's true, and 25000 is a good estimate.
Just discovering Japanese gameboy import games now, it's amazing
Just seen ur channel for the first time and wow great content👍. Just subscribed and cant wait for ur next nintendo related video🤗.
4:47 I see Rhythm Tengoku!! :-D
Thanks so much for this information!
thank you that was really useful information
I have Japanese copies of most of the pokemon games, and some other RPGs. I've been learning Japanese for about a year and a half so I'm able to read some of it, and it's good for practice. The prices of the games though are so much better, and often come complete in box.
The perfect guide to buying cheaper GameBoy games!
I picked up a lot of great English friendly games myself from Japan!
Thanks for the list
I almost always buy Japanese games for my Gameboy and Super Nintendo now. It makes collecting them so much cheaper.
Leave their cultural heritage to the Japanese people, stop looting
@@ToutEstPolitiqueEtCestLogique japanese sellers list them for cheap because there isn't much demand in Japan. Also could you explain, how is buying something looting?
@@ToutEstPolitiqueEtCestLogiquepeople like you have cringe in your DNA
I wish I didn't destroy my gba sp when I was little. Also nice video
That's sad :< but it might be still fixable if you didn't throw it away
Also, thanks a lot ^^
Haa...I've been doin this for years. Especially with SNES. Got dracula x for $40. hagane for $30. I see the prices going up now on SFCcartss tho I think people are catching on
Nice video thank you ☺️
Your videos are so interesting :o
Dont mind me im just here trying to buy final fantasy tactics advanve other gba titles without accidentaly getting a fake cartridge containing a NSFW version of PONG that will take 3 months to arrive xD
Actually those tetris cartridges with the different main theme are pretty rare and go arround 50 buck a piece
(that tetris version is called the minuet version)
Would love to get the Japanese it would probably help a lot learning Japanese to an extent
Oh yeah definitely. I’m interested in doing that too
I bought a game that is only in Japanese. It wasn't a big deal because it was just a tutorial on how to play the game which I figured out the normal. There was no story or anything. I never pay attention to stories anyway so even if it was it would still be cool.
game boy camera can actualy be used on the SP theres a option in the game to flip the image
Hello. Thank you for the video. It was very helpful. Idk if you know but if I were to go to Japan to buy Fire Emblem: Blazing Blade, would it be an English or would there be a way to switch the language to English?
I have the same question in mind, so far from what I’ve seen I believe it is in Japanese. I will be going on the end of May so I will let you know.
What? Should be another question.
Wonderswan of any type and Makaimura or Ninja Jajamarukun. Super Gameboy 2 and Super Gameboy controller from Hori. All kinds of Gameboy games like Hammering Harry, Banishing Racer, Burning Paper and Kid Dracula. Plus sport games like Boxing and World Ice Hockey are great too. I love Dot Matrix games. I will be getting the Arduboy FX soon if I can but that is off the subject.
I often order GameCube and Wii games from Japan to save a lot of money :D
Thank you Fami
also a big plus point, if you know the language. you can play the games uncensored
nintendo-west in the 90s was pretty nasty in that regard. religious stuff for example - gone.
is the Game Boy DMG (classic) region free? work american and japaneses cartridge?
yes
Love Japanese games ♡
i reccomend Zelda links awakening on gameboy cause the game was meant for kids at the time also if you want to play it with the knowlege of whats going on i reccomend a guide. either on youtube or a book.
Hello. Thank you for the video. It was very helpful. Idk if you know but if I were to go to Japan to buy Fire Emblem: Blazing Blade, would it be in English?
0:38 haha the yooooooooo
Btw thank you for this video
I own Kirby's Dreamland the Japanese version because It was literally less than £7 and I perfer that games cartridge art
I got tetris from Japan cheap too and I also prefer that art
and both are games where you forget they are In Japanese
I found this out by accident when i was testing a lot of Japanese GB games i bought on ebay
Hi there, I was wondering if you'd used proxy buying services to buy from Japan besides eBay? If so what are the cost for shipping and games and your experience with it?
Im not the person you asking the question but I have experience with using a Proxy Service. I use From Japan and overall you pay about 10€ per kg with FedEx Priority (this includes all the fees, shipping from the seller to the warehouse, international shipping etc). Its only really worth it when you buy a lot of stuff so shipping isnt too expensive compared when you buy just a handfull of games. With gameboy games when you bid on bigger lots with mostly normal stuff you pay about 100-200 Yen per game, so when you keep some of the stuff and sell the rest you get your games for free or even get money out!
@@misanthropicdeus6896 thank you, thanks for letting me know. That is a good idea to buy bulk and sell the stuff you don't want.
Are the Zelda links awakening, and oracle games in English on the Japanese version?
So you're saying some of the Japanese games play in English or do I need to rom swap onto a Japanese cartridge?
When you say all of the Mario land saga is in English, does that include the wario land games too?
thanks!
the database site is quite confusing. both tetris and dr mario show as JPN instead of INT.
I found a Japanese copy of Contra for the Gameboh at a local shop and have no problems with it as that game has like no dialogue
the Japanese versions of gba and ds games are dirt cheaper compared to their English counterparts, it almost feels like a steal or scam. Luckily, im trying to learn Japanese and I’ve already played most the games i want at least a dozen times so this is such a win. Even in the United States, it seems demand doesn’t justify the pricing so I’d be suprised if the Japanese versions went up anytime soon. Great vid, I thought i was crazy or being goofed on, BUT, always make sure to do your search at least.
Commenting for the algorithm.
I do like the artwork on the labels of the Japanese copies better tho
How do you change the language? for example in the pokemon green version?
You can’t
Does anyone know if it’s still financial useful in Germany? (Regarding taxes and what not)
Do you know if Baseball is in English?
Is there a similar website for GBA games?
How do you specifically search for games from Japan
i get mine from ebay
" Japan"
I like ur voice ;)
Where can I buy Japanese games?
Do you know if Japanese games would play on a European / American Game Boy Player?
yes, the game boy player is universal
@@f4micom Thanks!
Me, who doenst even has a gameboy, watching this video: interesting :3
just bought Japanese pokemon silver for like 6$, unsure if it's legit or not but got it anyways.
Ho una copia di pokemon giallo giapponese, quindi se compro un Game boy advance (non SP) funzionerà lo stesso da quello che ho capito
Esattamente :)
Anche il Gameboy Advance SP è region-free!
The minuet tetris game!
So you use only ebay to buy gb and gba games from japan or do you use any other website?
Yes! I only use eBay atm but I'm looking into how to buy from Yahoo Auctions JP since it seems there are some great deals to be made there ^^
Have a look for J4U. They're an ebay seller but they have their own website too which is a little cheaper than their ebay store.
Rick_Makes_Stuff I do usually buy from them ;; I have bought that GBA SP there
Can confirm. I think the reason it's cheaper is due to the fact that when you sell on eBay, you have to pay all those fees so that explains the higher costs. It was nothing to me as it only amounted to a few cents anyway. I will buy some stuff from the site in the future then.
I have 4 copies of Pokemon Crystal in Japanese. lmao
I just buy on eBay
So how can i play Japanese games in English
What do you mean?
@@austriadiamolo can i play japanese import games on my american gameboy in english instead of japenese
@@kyawthet455 No I think you can’t select between different languages on Gameboy games, but you can play Japanese games on your English Gameboy
i almost only collect jpn cib gb games, also because there are some super nice ones, which werent released anywhere else, (ok some of them got a chinese release but they are very rare) Games Like Ninja Spirit, Ikari no Yousai2 (supernice shooting game), Tekkyu Fight, Penta Dragon, Brave Fighter of the Sun, Chikyuu Kaihou Gun ZAS (excellent game but very expensive), Daiku No Gen-san Robot teikoku no yabou (basically Hammerin Harry2) all supernice playable games, check them out :-D Oh and very nice Video, thankyou for making it :-)
Japanese Game Boy are better than original!
🎌
Megaman V is very expensive here, but Rockman V was cheap.
I knew the voice was womanface.
I knew it.
Once you play enough pokemon those older gens are , the moves and opening the bag only take a few minutes to figure out. Aren't humans just amazing!