WesternNYCollector
09-13-2011, 05:44 PM
I got a tri-wing screwdriver today as part of my effort to get tools to open all of my game systems and cartridges, and of course immediately took apart all of my loose GBA games just out of curiosity.
One thing I noticed, is that two of the games I have - Breath of Fire and Breath of Fire II, both have some sort of button cell battery in them, while all of my others (I only own RPGs) seem to have flash memory for saves, because all that's on the boards are surface mount chips. All the other telltale signs that I've read about when it comes to counterfeit games aren't there: the cartridge shell looks authentic, the name "Nintendo" is printed on the board, and the pins on the edge connector are the same as any other game.
The labels, especially on the first Breath of Fire game do look like they were almost slapped on by hand, and are fairly off-center, but otherwise they look to be the same quality and material as all the other games I own.
I've found conflicting information online about GBA games, and I can't find an authoritative statement as to whether the presence of a battery backup is a true indication of a fake or not.
Can any of the gurus here give me a better answer?
One thing I noticed, is that two of the games I have - Breath of Fire and Breath of Fire II, both have some sort of button cell battery in them, while all of my others (I only own RPGs) seem to have flash memory for saves, because all that's on the boards are surface mount chips. All the other telltale signs that I've read about when it comes to counterfeit games aren't there: the cartridge shell looks authentic, the name "Nintendo" is printed on the board, and the pins on the edge connector are the same as any other game.
The labels, especially on the first Breath of Fire game do look like they were almost slapped on by hand, and are fairly off-center, but otherwise they look to be the same quality and material as all the other games I own.
I've found conflicting information online about GBA games, and I can't find an authoritative statement as to whether the presence of a battery backup is a true indication of a fake or not.
Can any of the gurus here give me a better answer?