How to spot a converted AES cart

[mrmark0673]

I don't know a whole lot about NEO GEO carts, but from what I have heard it is extremely difficult to tell the difference between a legit AES cart and an MVS conversion of the cart. Are there particular things I should be looking out for? Do most conversions state on the cart that it is an MVS/AES conversion? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

-Mark

[RadiantSvgun]

Conversions usually don't come with manuals. Also, if you are getting it from ebay, check for an unusually low price or a strange looking shockbox.

[Blur2040]

It is in fact very difficult to tell...espcially as nobody marks on the cart that it is a conversion.

Really the best way is to know which games don't come in AES form...and which ones get commonly converted.

Ie: Any AES Neo Bomberman is converted...Many Slug 1s 2s converted as they cost a ton...and nobody can afford to (or wants to) buy them. Another popular convert is Neo Turf Masters.

Converted games often don't come with manuals (but some do).

So, you don't have to worry about a converted....Baseball Stars 2...Or Nam 1975...or World Heroes...as they're cheapish and commonish.

If you're getting a Slug 1 for 200 bucks though...you're probably getting a convert though.

[CosmicMonkey]

Yeah, most conversions don't have manuals, and will be sold as a conversion. However, on some of the higher priced Home Carts, there are those that are blatantly out to scam people. I've seen Metal Slugs and Big Tournament Golfs that are 99% bang on. The only way to be sure in cases like that is to either have an original available for comparison (which isn't always possible), or get the seller to crack open the cart and take nice big pics of the PCBs.

I myself have a few conversions, but they're of games that never received an official AES release.

[FABombjoy]

I would think that it would be easy to tell based on:

1: Was never released for the AES, OR
2: Is selling very cheaply relative to standard value (see: Metal Slug 1)
3: Artwork is probably made using color photocopier and printed on different stock than normal inserts
4: Artwork would show moiré patterns from scanning / copying, or be darker/lighter than normal (check detail on small text)
5: Manual typically missing
6: If label corners are rounded, their corner radius might be inconsistant with production labels. Only a few early titles had square label corners.

If a conversion passes all of thoses tests, then really it's a counterfeit product created by someone with a lot of time & tools.

Opening the cart would be a dead giveway, but that requires a certain finesse.

[mrmark0673]

Well the cart in question is a Metal Slug 2, here is a crumby pic:

http://i113.photobucket.com/albums/n223/mrmark0673/pictures/NeoGeo.jpg

Any glaring signs that this is a fake? It does NOT come with a manual, but then again neither does bowling. Let me know if there is anything I could tell from the pic, and thanks for the advise!

[Vectorman0]

Without very detailed pics, it's too hard to tell most of the time. You have to assume the worst, considering it doesn't have a manual. Not many people shelled out hundreds of dollars back in the day, for a single game, to end up throwing out the manual. And no one would ever consider doing that now.

[FABombjoy]

Agreed - no manual for Bowling isn't a surprise as it was an early title, and those did tend to lose their manuals as they passed through owners hands (or was an ex-rental & was lost).

Anyone that plunked down for MS2 was a collector, and whomever it was resold to was probably a collector, too.

[mrmark0673]

Damn, I was thinking that was the case. What would be a good price for the lot assuming that is a repo? Also, are there any in game differences I would notice that would tell me if its a legit copy or not?