Did I find a rare version of a boxed NES game?

[DaddyLongLegs]

Hey guys! I just moved and perused some local garage sales in the new neighborhood, and found a guy who had some N64 stuff (nothing great) but had one NES game to sell. It was a boxed copy of Golf for the NES; but it's a bit different than all the other copies I can find.



I *think* it might actually be brand new even though there's no cellophane, and let me explain why. I took the game out of the box and you can tell it has literally never been played. The label is brand new. Not so much as a fingerprint or scuff or anything. The manual and ROB the Robot poster are mint.

Then the back of the box looks like this:



See on the top there? It's actually a perforated spot you are supposed to tear in the cardboard to make a "hang tag" out of (pretty clever!). I have never seen this before. Also, the very few pictures I can find of a sealed Golf has a plastic hang tag like this:



And one "mint in box" I found looks like this:



As you see, no perforation lines to rip a hang tag into it. What the did I find here? Thanks guys!

[Duke.Togo]

There are both hangtag and no hangtag versions of many of the black box NES games. You can find more details over at Nintendo Age.

[DaddyLongLegs]

There are both hangtag and no hangtag versions of many of the black box NES games. You can find more details over at Nintendo Age.

Thanks mate!

[dgdgagdae]

My black box copy of Golf would be just like yours, but the hang tag is long since torn off. You can see the back of the box where it's perforated for the hang tag, though.

My black box copies of Super Mario Bros., 10-Yard Fight, Duck Hunt, Gyromite, and Hogan's Alley are like that, too. The hang tag is part of the cardboard box, and you can punch it out to hang the box.

[Tanooki]

I'm not thinking it's new. Well not entirely. It may be a case where someone opened it up and didn't play it possibly. Old old early NES games weren't sealed, they had these little black circle stickers with print saying Nintendo on them and those had the attached hang tab your box there has. After that then you had the sealed up games and they had the plastic hang tab stuck onto the cellophane. Either way at least it looks to be in pretty decent shape as far as 25 year old boxes go. May be the lighting but it looks a little faded in front compared to the back and I think it's torn up there on the top.

I'm not some CIB nut though, I just like having a good quality condition game, and if I can get the manual tossed in as it should be, or with little added cost I'm happy.

[DaddyLongLegs]

I'm not thinking it's new. Well not entirely. It may be a case where someone opened it up and didn't play it possibly. Old old early NES games weren't sealed, they had these little black circle stickers with print saying Nintendo on them and those had the attached hang tab your box there has. After that then you had the sealed up games and they had the plastic hang tab stuck onto the cellophane. Either way at least it looks to be in pretty decent shape as far as 25 year old boxes go. May be the lighting but it looks a little faded in front compared to the back and I think it's torn up there on the top.

I'm not some CIB nut though, I just like having a good quality condition game, and if I can get the manual tossed in as it should be, or with little added cost I'm happy.

Ah so I was correct; this game I found was never sealed with cellophane even when it was brand new. Interesting! Only thing more interesting is there is no sign of a black circle sticker. There's no indication that there ever was one on there and was removed.