Is my game real or a fake?

VGS_HammerfestusVGS_Hammerfestus
in Help Wanted!
so I'm pretty new to this stuff but I always hear folks mention wanting to see the circuit board before purchasing rarer games.  I was wondering how one is able to verify a games authenticity by looking at its board?  Is there some sort of known serial number printed on it?
«134

Comments

  • GuntzGuntz
    After I make this post, can we sticky this thread?



    Look carefully at this picture, using SNES as an example. NES and Genesis boards look similar.



    image



    Where it says ROM is the part of the board you want to look at. In that picture, right now that ROM chip is a mask ROM. That is what every retail NES / SNES / Genesis cartridge should contain.



    If you see this (EPROM):



    image



    Or this (one time programmable EPROM):



    OTP EPROM

    Or this (TSOP flash on adapter):



    image



    IT IS A FAKE.



    If you're at all confused, IN PRODUCT CODES WE TRUST.



    Since pictures are better than text. Here's a couple picture guides for you:



    image



    image



    Every Nintendo game is given a product code. Here's the one for Super Mario World:



    SNS-MW-USA



    That product code is printed on the box, manual, cartridge label and mask ROM for Mario World. If the Mask ROM has no Nintendo product code, it will probably be a OTP EPROM instead, thus fake.



    NintendoAge has nearly every product code for NES and SNES listed, just search. Here is Mario World's entry:



    http://nintendoage.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Element.View&egID=40610&lgID=40610&sID=40610



    Lastly, sometimes a non-valuable game will have a replacement for the mask ROM, or there will be two ROM chips and only one is a mask ROM. These are probably repairs, not fakes. Not everything of this sort is malicious with the intent of scamming.



    MOD EDIT: If you're not sure about NES games, you can always compare them to the board scans available on http://bootgod.dyndns.org:7777

    If some of the numbers on the chips don't match, that doesn't necessarily mean your game is fake. It usually only means that the game was produced at another date.
  • VGS_HammerfestusVGS_Hammerfestus
    thanks boss. That was super helpful
  • Max VelocityMax Velocity
    Good post Guntz! Bookmarked for future reference.
  • USFLegendUSFLegend
    Very valuable information there. Can't stress enough how import Guntz post is.
  • GuntzGuntz
    Sticky bump
  • alekxalekx
    With the ammount of fake posts being made every day i agree this info should be stickied so new users have something to reference.
  • anruiukimianruiukimi
    That TSOP flash just looks messy, that would be a red flag for me even if I knew nothing about this. Thanks for the great post!
  • GuntzGuntz
    The pictured TSOP flash adapter is an ugly example. Properly installed ones look a lot better. Most of the popular SNES repros (like RPGs) contain such an adapter, otherwise you'd need multiple EPROMs tied together with some logic hardware, which is significantly less reliable than a flash chip on an adapter.
  • Vectrex28Vectrex28
    Yep, sticky this. Also, if you're buying NES stuff, this site is your best friend



    http://bootgod.dyndns.org:7777/
  • infectedAinfectedA
    This is a worthy stick, I agree. Great info.
  • Commander SantaCommander Santa
    Sticky worthy based on the superb combo or Guntz's and Vectrex's post.



    Anybody have more great resources to contribute? Might as well,get as much in here as we can.
  • Logo1285Logo1285
    I'm in favor of a sticky as well. Will definitely help in the long run. Especially with the amount of makes going around now and having this information as our fingertips would be a blessing.
  • dra600ndra600n
    Am I mistaken, Guntz, or is your 2nd chip an EEPROM, which wouldn't be a OTP, that would be the EPROM?
  • GuntzGuntz

    Originally posted by: Commander Santa



    Sticky worthy based on the superb combo or Guntz's and Vectrex's post.



    Anybody have more great resources to contribute? Might as well,get as much in here as we can.



    I could gather some more pictures for extra clarification.




    Originally posted by: dra600n



    Am I mistaken, Guntz, or is your 2nd chip an EEPROM, which wouldn't be a OTP, that would be the EPROM?



    The site said it was a OTP EPROM. I don't think the average EEPROM would work in place of a ROM chip.
  • dra600ndra600n

    Originally posted by: Guntz




    Originally posted by: Commander Santa



    Sticky worthy based on the superb combo or Guntz's and Vectrex's post.



    Anybody have more great resources to contribute? Might as well,get as much in here as we can.



    I could gather some more pictures for extra clarification.




    Originally posted by: dra600n



    Am I mistaken, Guntz, or is your 2nd chip an EEPROM, which wouldn't be a OTP, that would be the EPROM?



    The site said it was a OTP EPROM. I don't think the average EEPROM would work in place of a ROM chip.



    There are some Amtel EEPROM's that I've used for Earthbound Zero and some others. OTP's generally have the window while solid ones are EEPROM's, though I suppose there could be the oddities, or I'm just thinking of something else and I'm completely wrong, which is very possible lol


  • EnternalEnternal
    Please sticky for our decendents
  • infectedAinfectedA
    Are people selling fake versions of the three Panisan games we all know about? Just curious because I'm thinking about investing in bubble bath babes soon. I assume I need shots of the board and I'll post them here to verify before payment.
  • GuntzGuntz
    The Panesian games are one of the only exceptions to the guide I posted, but really most unlicensed games shouldn't be counted like officially licensed games. I'm pretty sure they use EPROMs. As for the boards, I don't know. The shells are apparently unique to Panesian, but are similar looking to Color Dreams / Sachen.



    As long as you know what the real Panesian carts look like, I don't think you'll see too many truly authentic-looking fakes.



    Though I could be wrong too.
  • Vectrex28Vectrex28

    Originally posted by: Guntz



    The Panesian games are one of the only exceptions to the guide I posted, but really most unlicensed games shouldn't be counted like officially licensed games. I'm pretty sure they use EPROMs. As for the boards, I don't know. The shells are apparently unique to Panesian, but are similar looking to Color Dreams / Sachen.



    As long as you know what the real Panesian carts look like, I don't think you'll see too many truly authentic-looking fakes.



    Though I could be wrong too.

    Panesians definitely use EPROMs. I've seen pics of their boards and did a research to find that they do use EPROMs.

    This also means that all Panesians will stop working at some point.




  • JerbillyJerbilly

    Originally posted by: Vectrex280996



    This also means that all Panesians will stop working at some point.



    Thank god.


  • dra600ndra600n

    Originally posted by: deathrock83




    Originally posted by: Vectrex280996



    This also means that all Panesians will stop working at some point.



    Thank god.

     



    We'll most likely be all gone before they stop working. Besides, if they use EPROMS, it would take a minute to fix it


  • GuntzGuntz
    Huzzah, it has been stickied! Hopefully we will have fewer repeats of this kind of thread now.
  • WarbucksWarbucks
    Thanks, now I know what to look out for
  • smicksmick

    Originally posted by: Guntz



    NintendoAge has nearly every product code for NES and SNES listed, just search. Here is Mario World's entry:



    http://nintendoage.com/index.cfm?...



     

    I just got a copy of Donkey Kong Jr. Math, and I just read this thread so I used that game to test out the process here.  I have no reason to believe that someone faked that game, and I believe that the board is legit.  However, it doesn't match the Hardware Profile here: http://nintendoage.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=Element.View&egID=672&lgID=297&sID=297



    I think I just have an older board.  Am I right?  Can there be different boards for a game and ones that aren't listed in the NA database?  If so, is there a way to get the database updated to include them? 



    Here is a pic of my board:







    Thanks!
  • LincolnLincoln
    Yes that's a very common thing. I don't know how extensive NA's hardware reference is. Bootgod's site is probably better but even he is missing stuff.

    Http://Bootgod.dyndns.org:7777/
  • removed04092017removed04092017
    Wait, how long has this been here? Holy hell it's about time. And yeah as said above, it's a Nintendo custom chip, anything marked with Nintendo's numbers obviously isn't a generic chip, so it's real.
  • GuntzGuntz
    When I have a moment I'll see about making better pictures for the 2nd post guide. But the surest way to protect yourself is to trust in product codes. NintendoAge seems to have nearly every product code entered into the NES and SNES database lists. Just open your suspect game, look up the game title on NintendoAge and see if the product code is written on the ROM(s).
  • smicksmick

    Originally posted by: Lincoln



    Yes that's a very common thing. I don't know how extensive NA's hardware reference is. Bootgod's site is probably better but even he is missing stuff.

    Http://Bootgod.dyndns.org:7777/...







    That makes sense.  There are probably tons of hardware profiles for some games.  I didn't see mine on his site either, though he has a few more than the NA database. Your comment here is very valuable for future enquirers.  Just because your specific chip numbers don't show up in a hardware database, that doesn't mean your board is fake. 
  • XerxesXerxes
    Very good information all around. I think that we could improve the second post by incorporating Vectex's comment on bootgod, possibly with some text explaining the database. I also think that a more nuanced explination of EPROMs would be helpful. I think explaining that some games had them stock, and some manufactures (Wisdom Tree) are know to have used EPROMs and mask ROMs on the same title.
  • LincolnLincoln

    Originally posted by: dra600n




    Originally posted by: Guntz




    Originally posted by: dra600n



    Am I mistaken, Guntz, or is your 2nd chip an EEPROM, which wouldn't be a OTP, that would be the EPROM?



    The site said it was a OTP EPROM. I don't think the average EEPROM would work in place of a ROM chip.



    There are some Amtel EEPROM's that I've used for Earthbound Zero and some others. OTP's generally have the window while solid ones are EEPROM's, though I suppose there could be the oddities, or I'm just thinking of something else and I'm completely wrong, which is very possible lol

     



    EEPROMs work fine for NES repros. OTP EPROM = one-time programmable, which means you get one shot to get it right. They aren't erasable like windowed EPROMs. Otherwise they function the same.



    Also if anyone else has questions, this is the place to ask. Would rather keep all this fenced in to one place on the boards.


Sign In or Register to comment.