New NES controllers

[jajaja]

Lately I've seen quite a few new and original NES controllers for sale. I think its strange that so many new controllers are surfacing at the same time. Anyone knows if Nintendo sold some batch or something or are they fake?

They look exactly like an original controller. Ive seen they come in both clear and blue plastic bag.

[demonofaj]

Odd, I think they might be refurbrished NES controllers in bags...I don't remember *when I first bought a NES at age 4 at the sale price of 50 dollars* buying a NES controller ever with that kind, mine was usually in a box, and you open it with a styrofoam shell or something...weird nonetheless, maybe nintendo released some Retrofest, either way it deserves a wazaa..."Wazaa"!

[InsaneDavid]

More than likely a refurb. I refurb NES (and to a lesser extent SNES) controllers myself however I usually don't scrub the outside of the shells but I do clean them. Instead I recondition the internals and replace anything that's excessively worn (usually the elastomers, sometimes buttons) with original NES parts so they function as if new. I've picked up many perfect looking NES controllers over the years that didn't work for snot. While my refurbs may not look super pristine, they function as a stock controller would.

For the record, NES controllers are supposed to feel somewhat mushy. I don't know how many refurb controllers I've sold only to get the response "why isn't it super responsive like a new controller?" x_x

[jajaja]

Ye, i know what u mean. U can feel if a NES controller is brand new. But how do you refurb them? All used NES controllers ive seen have scratches on the back. Wouldnt it be easy to notice this? I guess u can reduce some of the scratches, but not all?

[smokehouse]

I strongly doubt those controllers like the one pictured are new, but I can say that I have a brand new controller than came inside a brand new Action Set and can say that they did come bagged like that straight from Nintendo.

[InsaneDavid]

But how do you refurb them? All used NES controllers ive seen have scratches on the back. Wouldnt it be easy to notice this? I guess u can reduce some of the scratches, but not all?

As I said, I don't really refurbish the outside of the controller shells however I do clean them. I refurbish all the internals, replacing worn or damaged parts with properly working ones, I also make sure the contacts are clean, etc. I have quite an inventory of NES controller parts. Instead of junking bad controllers outright, I've kept all the parts (buttons, directional pads, elastomers, screws) over the years, cleaned them up, and put them away for repairs. I'm sure it wouldn't surprise you that about 1/3 of the controllers I get have a bad elastomer inside that needs to be replaced - strangely enough the majority of these have the select button seemingly bitten off. Not start and select, just select.

I sell them at $5 each so it's about the same as buying a controller from a flea market except I've shopped each one myself. And of course they get between 2 - 5 hours of playtime before going into storage for sale. If I was going to spend the time to buff out the shells I'd want $15-$20 a pop and no one is going to pay that. In fact I make an upfront disclaimer that some controllers may be missing screws due to damage to the controller shell screw posts, etc. One or two in opposing spots isn't a big deal but I use my discretion to decide if the controller is unsalvagable.

[lotus13]

The controllers in the bags came with the Action Set, Deluxe set, etc. That's not to say that those ones are particularly real. If you look at the board inside the controller it should be silkscreened, and say Nintendo on it. A few years ago I found two of those in my attic still in the Action set box, totally unused! They had been there since like 1988 or something. Don't you love when stuff like that happens?
Anyway, that does look like a legit Nintendo brand controller, right down to the twist tie and the two bags.

[jajaja]

The controllers in the bags came with the Action Set, Deluxe set, etc. That's not to say that those ones are particularly real. If you look at the board inside the controller it should be silkscreened, and say Nintendo on it. A few years ago I found two of those in my attic still in the Action set box, totally unused! They had been there since like 1988 or something. Don't you love when stuff like that happens?
Anyway, that does look like a legit Nintendo brand controller, right down to the twist tie and the two bags.

Ye, that is a possibility, i also thought about this. The actionset had 4 controllers and not everyone used all 4 controllers. But i just found it alittle strange that quite a few controllers surfaced at about the same time from diffrent sellers. Kinda want to buy one, but its like $30 shipped

[Darth Sensei]

I have a sealed box of two new controllers in my collection.

[rbudrick]

Lately I've seen quite a few new and original NES controllers for sale. I think its strange that so many new controllers are surfacing at the same time. Anyone knows if Nintendo sold some batch or something or are they fake?

They look exactly like an original controller. Ive seen they come in both clear and blue plastic bag.

Why not ask the sellers? Might solve the mystery right there.

-Rob

[jajaja]

Ye, i actually did before i saw your post hehe I also got an answer. He found them in an old local toystore. The controllers had been in the stock for years. Must have been cool to find

[jboypacman]

here in the area where i live we have a few locally owened game stores that sell nes and snes controllers in box. these one i know are made in china.they look like the old controllers and work like they should but the plastic they are made of is cheaper grade so they have a diffrent feel to them.i have seen some bagged controllers as well which i think are refurbished controllers.

[jajaja]

Do you have a pic of these controllers? Do they look exactly like the original? I know there are a few 3rd party NES controllers in boxes, but they dont look like the original.

[Moo Cow]

I recently bought two SNES controllers, and I can tell they're a bit different because they FEEL different.
Also, there's a moderate miscoloring around the ABXY buttons when compared with the originals.

[The Manimal]

I bought two boxes of NES controllers (each with 2 inside) off eBay around 7 years ago. Opened one box to make sure it was legit, it was, and they are in storage. I'll use these when my controllers kick the can..which is pretty soon.

[Speedy_NES]

I bought two boxes of NES controllers (each with 2 inside) off eBay around 7 years ago. Opened one box to make sure it was legit, it was, and they are in storage. I'll use these when my controllers kick the can..which is pretty soon.

Yeah, they were sold individually in multiple formats. They were sold individually as one controller boxed, set of two boxed, one controller in blisterpack NTSC (this one I've only seen once but it looked 100% legit), one controller blister pack PAL Benelux (also very hard to find these), and you could get them from repair centers if I'm not mistaken sealed in a "spare part" bag. The ones that jajaja is talking about come in normal baggies, and could be fake, although they do look authentic. My guess is that they were just NOS from a repair center or maybe from the factory before they were put in boxes/nintendo sets.