Another thing to look for on the back sticker is the slight color difference between an authentic Nintendo cartridge and a reproduction, as well as a couple of the words having the A look like “A” (repro) vs the authentic version being “À,” and O look like “O” (again, repro) vs the authentic version being “Ó.”
just make sure it is advertised as authentic. If they end up scamming you while the item is "authentic" in its description, ebay will get you your money back guaranteed
My sister in law bought me a copy of Banjo-Tooie, and after watching this and checking my cartridges of Mickey's Speedway USA and Banjo-Tooie, i can now confirm that my copy of Mickey's Speedway USA is indeed a genuine cartridge, while my copy of Banjo-Tooie is indeed a counterfeit :/ My sister in law simply didn't know any better, sadly...
Always look on back of N64 cartridges to see if logo on back has square on i letter, and if label is placed correctly, and inside button of cartridge if the plastic and metal part is brown! My mom and sister had me order a couple of N64 games and I had no idea what fake cartridges were until I saw video recommendations, a Mario Kart 64 and Starfox 64 what we ordered from them, they were both so light grey, brightest colors stickers I ever seen, back of Nintendo still had a square on letter I label was a bit different, bottom of cartridge plastic and metal was all white on both, and Reddit said they're both fake, we inserted it in our n64 and they played just like normal and original and all! And my mom sister got shocked and didn't knew much! Descriptions of these two games sounded a bit different as well!
There are also some strong indicators without even looking at the cart. Virtually all that list "Game Card" in the description or Condition: New are going to be fake. My favorite quick method though is the cartridge pins. Brown=Real, White=Fake. Only 2 exceptions to this rule (Ogre Battle 64 and Resident Evil 2).
Watching this after i recieved mine today (smashbros) . I offered and paid $28.99 CAN, $16 shipping. Its beat up and old looking so hopefully its authentic. Mine has the back sticker stamps and a number on bottom. Steal.
Yes and no. Some of the fakes can freeze up and glitch but some are well done and will work just as good as the original. It's a crap shoot with the mass produced fakes (I say this as someone with 4 of them). Durability wise it is a much bigger question. They don't even bother screwing down the cartridge to the interior of the case (all 4 of mine were missing the inner screws when I opened them up). IMHO the best compromise is to go with an OEM Cosmetically Flawed game. You get the real deal with some minor cosmetic damage for not much more than the bootlegs and even cosmetically flawed they will go up in value as they become harder to find.
@@Stephen-ut5xo i mean, they do have a point. originals are just great for collecting value, and it feels more... natural? Idk how to explain it. if you wanna get reproductions i totally understand though, i have a few myself
Plenty of reasons to want an authentic N64 cartridge. Some people speedrun the game using the initial hardware and software. A lot of people collect N64 games to try and build a complete and genuine collection. Authentic cartridges are valuable because they are over a quarter century old and are very popular. Even though a reproduction seems to play just fine and, in almost all situations, is indistinguishable from the original, it just really isn't the actual game using the same components. I have no issue with reproductions. They play like the original cartridges; however, they aren't for everyone. Has very little to do with being a snob in the vast majority of cases. :)
i buy these fakes up for my collection, original is not important , just serviceability...... why pay 70 bucks for a game i can get for 20? now im not building a collection of original nintendos, im building the collection i can play...and not break the bank...lets be honest, buying original does not give Nintendo any profit, and why would someone want me to buy oem that im just going to play like we used to play on the machine? i say leave oem for the collectors and welcome chinese fakes for those like myself
As someone looking to get into collecting retro games (mainly N64 stuff!) this was insightful!
I am collecting N64 games and these people are so garbage for ripping us off! It's so FREAKING wrong 😔
@Jenee Reavish shut up
Another tell is that the original cartridge has some 90s-era memory chips on that board, whereas the Chinese knock-off has much more modern chips.
Another thing to look for on the back sticker is the slight color difference between an authentic Nintendo cartridge and a reproduction, as well as a couple of the words having the A look like “A” (repro) vs the authentic version being “À,” and O look like “O” (again, repro) vs the authentic version being “Ó.”
just make sure it is advertised as authentic. If they end up scamming you while the item is "authentic" in its description, ebay will get you your money back guaranteed
And also what if the seller accepts returns and you accidentally threw the package away that it was sent in?
I recently found out my copies of Yoshi’s Story and the Banjo games were fake. Thanks for this guide!
My sister in law bought me a copy of Banjo-Tooie, and after watching this and checking my cartridges of Mickey's Speedway USA and Banjo-Tooie, i can now confirm that my copy of Mickey's Speedway USA is indeed a genuine cartridge, while my copy of Banjo-Tooie is indeed a counterfeit :/
My sister in law simply didn't know any better, sadly...
This video deserve more viewers
Always look on back of N64 cartridges to see if logo on back has square on i letter, and if label is placed correctly, and inside button of cartridge if the plastic and metal part is brown!
My mom and sister had me order a couple of N64 games and I had no idea what fake cartridges were until I saw video recommendations, a Mario Kart 64 and Starfox 64 what we ordered from them, they were both so light grey, brightest colors stickers I ever seen, back of Nintendo still had a square on letter I label was a bit different, bottom of cartridge plastic and metal was all white on both, and Reddit said they're both fake, we inserted it in our n64 and they played just like normal and original and all!
And my mom sister got shocked and didn't knew much!
Descriptions of these two games sounded a bit different as well!
I like how Chinese knockoffs play the same and don't have bedbugs
good for you. Stick to the BS and leave the authentics to the real collectors then
@@BigDirtDawg Have fun with bedbugs, you probably have them like anyone else who shops at thrift stores.
So a new game that works and looks the same. What's the complaint. You can play the game on the original hardware. 20bucks vs 200 dollar ever drive.
Thank you fir the insight man. Just got a N64
That actually works great! I’m impressed!
There are also some strong indicators without even looking at the cart. Virtually all that list "Game Card" in the description or Condition: New are going to be fake. My favorite quick method though is the cartridge pins. Brown=Real, White=Fake. Only 2 exceptions to this rule (Ogre Battle 64 and Resident Evil 2).
Detailed and right to the point! Thank you, I was worried my MarioKart was reproduction but its the real deal!
a useful video, thank you very much.
n64 has no anti piracy screen
I just got a fake Paper Mario game. I knew it was too good to be true: both price and condition of the game.
Does it work though?
Any issues with it? I got Goldeneye and it works no problem.
I got fake paper Mario n64, work like its original. No freeze issued, glitch.
Pins that need cleaning are always a good sign lol
I just got SSB64 a for the first time and it doesn’t even save data. That means it’s a fake, isn’t it? Fake copies don’t save data?
It happened to me with Ocarina of Time so I guess they don’t.
The cartridge battery could also be dead, which would prevent it from saving
How hard would it be to replace a battery for all sorts of N64 games?
And where to get batteries?
I bought some fake games they play great and cost less to. It's whatever.
Nice! I got a fake DK64 and my official expansion pak is on the way and it looks the exact same as of the warning.
Great video good to know thanks
😮 I don’t have enough money to buy the original so bootleg I’ll be an option or emulation game
Watching this after i recieved mine today (smashbros) . I offered and paid $28.99 CAN, $16 shipping. Its beat up and old looking so hopefully its authentic.
Mine has the back sticker stamps and a number on bottom. Steal.
Demand that refund, it was advertised as a brand new bootleg. Where’s the knock-off box at?
My question is, do the bootlegged ones still work just as well as the original?
Yes, only snobs really care.
Yes and no. Some of the fakes can freeze up and glitch but some are well done and will work just as good as the original. It's a crap shoot with the mass produced fakes (I say this as someone with 4 of them). Durability wise it is a much bigger question. They don't even bother screwing down the cartridge to the interior of the case (all 4 of mine were missing the inner screws when I opened them up). IMHO the best compromise is to go with an OEM Cosmetically Flawed game. You get the real deal with some minor cosmetic damage for not much more than the bootlegs and even cosmetically flawed they will go up in value as they become harder to find.
@@Stephen-ut5xo i mean, they do have a point. originals are just great for collecting value, and it feels more... natural? Idk how to explain it. if you wanna get reproductions i totally understand though, i have a few myself
Plenty of reasons to want an authentic N64 cartridge. Some people speedrun the game using the initial hardware and software. A lot of people collect N64 games to try and build a complete and genuine collection. Authentic cartridges are valuable because they are over a quarter century old and are very popular. Even though a reproduction seems to play just fine and, in almost all situations, is indistinguishable from the original, it just really isn't the actual game using the same components. I have no issue with reproductions. They play like the original cartridges; however, they aren't for everyone. Has very little to do with being a snob in the vast majority of cases. :)
@@Stephen-ut5xo only snobs? No people who don’t want counterfeit cheap BS
Great information, thanks!
wew have the exact same laptop cool
it plays just as well, and will probably last longer than the original carts. the rest is in your head.
i buy these fakes up for my collection, original is not important , just serviceability...... why pay 70 bucks for a game i can get for 20? now im not building a collection of original nintendos, im building the collection i can play...and not break the bank...lets be honest, buying original does not give Nintendo any profit, and why would someone want me to buy oem that im just going to play like we used to play on the machine? i say leave oem for the collectors and welcome chinese fakes for those like myself
its obvious ....
fix your audio