BOOTLEG!

mofo1115

mofo1115

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Anybody else extremely annoyed at the immense amount of bootleg GBA games nowadays? I've been checking out ebay and I'm almost positive that almost half the games are bootleg, shipping out from hong kong.

I don't want bootleg games! Only the real deal will do, even if its cart only.

Anybody else have trouble with bootleg games before? btw how do you check on the cart itself?
 
My friend actually enjoys these bootleg games because they are cheaper. He has ordered multiple of them because a lot of the time the games are of the rare sort and hard to find.
 
I won't even try to sell my legal GBA games on ebay, because they just don't go for much, mainly becuase of all of the bootlegs on there! :(
 
When I look on Ebay for a GBA game I usually do an advanced search. I do a U.S. search only and try to stick with real people with pictures over businesses. Has worked out well so far.
 
[quote name='mofo1115']btw how do you check on the cart itself?[/quote]
Its usually not too hard to spot bootleg carts. A few of the more common and obvious clues:

*Mispellings on the label/cart. A lot of times, the fake cart will carry a name like 'Nintenfro' or something instead of 'Nintendo'. I think its a (rather pathetic) attempt to avoid bootlegging laws, but I don't know. All I know is that its quite common.
*Fake carts are usually not quite the right color. Nintendo is pretty exact about the color of their carts with almost no variation from cart to cart. Bootleg games are a lot less picky about the coloring - anything dark grey will do - and if you compare them to a real Nintendo cart, they're usually noticably different
*Look inside the end that plugs into the system - there SHOULD be an ID code stamped in there (usually hard to read because of the bad angle.) Bootleg carts usually don't have it because its in a hard place to stamp.
*Cart size: Real Nintendo carts fit snuggly inside the slot. Pirated carts are usually made much less accurately, and are often either a bit too big (making it hard to insert and possibly damaging to the system...) or a bit too small, leaving wiggle room.

Those are the most common and easily spottable problems with bootleg carts.
 
Yeah, the bootlegging has been around forever. The key is to look at the item description. also, never ever buy any GBA games from hong kong...
 
I purchased a game. I didnt knwo it was bootleg, didnt even think it, but when it arrives I was pretty sure it was, Cart is fine, but the box art is just a lil off and the manual was clearly copied and printed out, game worked fine , so i didnt complain. I love the game and was just happy to have it.
 
i also bought some bootlegs on ebay, that was a while ago and i can't realy remember which ones. however I remember selling these games to my local ebgames with out any trouble.
 
I got a bootleg Sonic Advance a while back, but it wasn't from Hong Kong. I wouldn't even have noticed (even though it looks pretty fake) until I looked at the cart when the save system stopped working.

I have bought a few games from Hong Kong and none were bootlegs, though.

I think my Harmony of Dissoance is also a bootleg... but I'm not sure (I didn't even buy that on Ebay).
 
Bootlegs also commonly show up at flea markets. I'd be careful when buying them from there as well. Also, some bootleggers package their own games, and sell them as sealed. Watch out for that too...
 
it just seems like theres no way to fight it these days... way too many of them

soo hard especially if you're a cag looking for good deals
 
Yeah it sucks, I bought Mario Golf (for 21.50 in july) from some asshole in Canada (at least thats what he said) who assured me that it was not a bootleg.
One week later I receive a package from Hong Kong. Needless to say, the game was a quality knockoff.
That was the first and last time I buy or sell any GBA games via ebay.
 
Sadly, it's the truth. I used to buy a lot of DVD's off eBay, but now I don't really trust it anymore.
 
OP, I'm with you. It's not even worth my time looking on Ebay for popular GBA games. The trick is, the bootleggers are usually from Hong Kong or that area, and shipping is awful. The problem is, they seem to get some negative feedback, then just switch to a new user name.

I really wish Ebay would make something where you could only see results from one country/continent. I'm kind of sick of Asian and European listings, unless I'm looking at import stuff.
 
i bought a bootleg game from ebay before, then i modified the cart into rewritible (you need to solder 2 tips and so far i am only familier with 2 type of carts)

cheap flash cart :)
 
Did you guys report these people to Ebay? There is a counterfeit/bootleg report thing somewhere on there. I threatened to do it to some guy who sold me a bootleg Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon DVD, after he had the gaul to bitch at me for giving him a NEUTRAL feedback.
 
eBay is terrible about shutting down bootleg GBA carts. I don't think they understand how common and easy it is to bootleg the carts - they seem to figure that since they're proprietary electronics, they're probably difficult to bootleg, so they ignore most reports. Some people say they simply don't care about bootlegs, but I don't think that's true because they're usually pretty good about shutting down bootleg merchandice in other categories (clothing, jewelry, CDs, etc.) Its mostly just the GBA category that they ignore, and the bootleg sellers know it. It usually takes MONTHS before an account is shut down for selling bootlegs (even with dozens of feedbacks complaining about bootleg carts), and it usually doesn't matter anyway because they usually already have a dozen other accounts set up with feedback padding, so they're back in business the next day even when they do get shut down.
 
Doesn't ebay notice the huge price discrepancies between hong kong and American sellers? If you search for the castlevania games under completed items you'll see what I mean.
 
its not that ebay dosent care. its that nintendo dosent care.

if nintendo stepped in and would report sketchy looking auctions to ebay, ebay would shut them down in a minute.

nintendo dosent care, ebay is making money, and gamers are getting screwed
 
[quote name='punqsux']its not that ebay dosent care. its that nintendo dosent care.

if nintendo stepped in and would report sketchy looking auctions to ebay, ebay would shut them down in a minute.

nintendo dosent care, ebay is making money, and gamers are getting screwed[/quote]

It's funny, Nintendo seems to be very against piracy based on their console media choices, yet they let this stuff happen.
 
[quote name='rockhero'][quote name='punqsux']its not that ebay dosent care. its that nintendo dosent care.

if nintendo stepped in and would report sketchy looking auctions to ebay, ebay would shut them down in a minute.

nintendo dosent care, ebay is making money, and gamers are getting screwed[/quote]

It's funny, Nintendo seems to be very against piracy based on their console media choices, yet they let this stuff happen.[/quote]


They are still making a ton of money of the portable industry.
 
[quote name='ViolentLee']OP, I'm with you. It's not even worth my time looking on Ebay for popular GBA games. The trick is, the bootleggers are usually from Hong Kong or that area, and shipping is awful. The problem is, they seem to get some negative feedback, then just switch to a new user name.

I really wish Ebay would make something where you could only see results from one country/continent. I'm kind of sick of Asian and European listings, unless I'm looking at import stuff.[/quote]
Your right about assholes switching user names, but not all bootleggers are located in Asia. As I said earlier some Canadian scumbag had a bootlegged game shipped to me from Hong Kong.
Aside from feedback, you really can't tell.
 
I remember when i tried to sell my Dreamcast, it came with Shenmue 2 and a Freeloader disc. Ebay took it off the site because they didn't think it was legal to have that Freeloader thing. They step in on something small like that, but not on actual bootleg games? Crazy...
 
Hong Kong gives it away. I still wonder why ebay allows this. Probably for money reasons. I just get angry cause they don't stop these things while they do stop other ridiculous stuff.
 
[quote name='oddjob93']Your right about assholes switching user names, but not all bootleggers are located in Asia. As I said earlier some Canadian scumbag had a bootlegged game shipped to me from Hong Kong.
Aside from feedback, you really can't tell.[/quote]
Actually, odds are that he probably wasn't Canadian: it was most likely someone from Hong Kong using a fake address. As more and more eBayers are learning about pirated carts and that they should avoid sellers from HK, the bootleg sellers are 'fighting back' by using fake addresses.


Here's some clues that will help spot likely bootleggers:
1) Bad Engrish
2) They say they can't answer questions and emails (it means they got a decent English speaker to write the boilerplate for all their auctions and they stick the game's name in, but if they answered questions by email, it would reveal their bad english, assuming they speak it at all)
3) They're selling 'New games with flattened boxes to reduce shipping'. Opening and flattening the boxes saves maybe $1 in shipping, but takes off probably a good $5 on the game's price - no (honest) seller in his right mind would do that. They're pirates who are simply too lazy to assemble the boxes
4) They're selling 'new' games with boxes but no manuals
5) Their feedback is private. It means their feedback has a lot of mentions of bootleg games, even if it is mostly positives.
6) They have a low feedback rating and are selling huge amounts of games all of a sudden
7) Their account age is a couple of years old and has a few (maybe 20-30) positives right at the beginning, then nothing until a whole bunch of feedback all at once for selling a bajillion GBA games (seeded account, created in advance and left to age (because buyers are often buy less from new accounts) and given some feedback from fake auctions, then left until their other account(s) got closed)
8) Check to see if they're selling Pokemon FireRed/LeafGreen. If they are, and they don't include the wireless network adapter, they're selling pirated goods.
9) Offering international shipping for the same price. That's because they're shipping from HK anyway, no matter where they claim they are.
10) seller claims to be in US/Canada/UK, but has a .hk email address (very common...)
11) They're selling nothing but GBA games, and a lot of them. An honest game dealer is almost certainly going to also be selling PS2, XBox and GC games.
 
[quote name='Rig']Bootlegs also commonly show up at flea markets. I'd be careful when buying them from there as well. Also, some bootleggers package their own games, and sell them as sealed. Watch out for that too...[/quote]

I second that. I bought some GBA games at a flea market once, only to find out that they were bootlegs. The store in the flea market got them from a distributor in Canada.


It really sucks that the bootleg problem is so large. As a result of it, buying used GBA games is pretty difficult if you want to make sure you get authentic copies; basically, you have to inspect the cart in person, eliminating all of your online options for buying used games. I just got a GBA this past fall, so I missed out on a lot of games that came earlier in the system's life. It's hard finding those games in stores, and I don't want to buy used online, so I'm missing out on a lot of them.
 
Canada is really bad for bootlegs, at least toronto. The law are more lax here, they may even be legal (I know the bootleg dvd's and cd's are). All the asian malls, and even some western malls, have bootleg video game stores here.
 
[quote name='Drocket'][quote name='oddjob93']Your right about assholes switching user names, but not all bootleggers are located in Asia. As I said earlier some Canadian scumbag had a bootlegged game shipped to me from Hong Kong.
Aside from feedback, you really can't tell.[/quote]
Actually, odds are that he probably wasn't Canadian: it was most likely someone from Hong Kong using a fake address. As more and more eBayers are learning about pirated carts and that they should avoid sellers from HK, the bootleg sellers are 'fighting back' by using fake addresses.
[/quote]

Or it could be some person in America reselling the pirated GBA game they bought (happened to me). I've bought most of my GBA games off eBay, and I've only gotten one bootleg. I think the best things to look at to avoid getting one is feedback (seeing if it's good and seeing what items they've sold before), email responses of the seller, and very good pictures of the item. I'm surprised the bootleg auctions around don't specifically say lik and say they're not bootlegs. I see a ton of DVD sellers selling bootleg DVDs saying right in their auctions that their DVDs are authentic.
 
He said the game shipped from HK. An honest seller who just happened to resell a couple of bootleg games they bought unknowingly would have shipped from the US/Canada/whatever. Its POSSIBLE that the seller is in Canada and was using a drop-shipper in HK, but I would suspect that he would still know he was selling bootleg items. Most likely, though, is that he lied about being in Canada because he knows HK sellers have a bad reputation.
 
As an eBayer and CAGer and hardcore game enthusiast nerd I always post my GBA game auctions stating that they are are LEGIT copies of their respective games, too bad most people don't.
 
Canada is really bad for bootlegs, at least toronto. The law are more lax here, they may even be legal (I know the bootleg dvd's and cd's are). All the asian malls, and even some western malls, have bootleg video game stores here.
Click to expand...

Canadians pay a tax on blank media. This tax goes to recording artists/software developers. In return, Canadian law grants Canandians the right to make and use bootlegs.
 
how is the retail sales for games and stuff there? with bootlegs so rampant it doesnt make that much sense for the retail industry to be that profitable
 
the biggest notice-If youre buying from a real life seller, is that the paper on the packaging looks overly shiny and printed, as well as of a different quality.. They do a pretty damn good job (Saw them while i was in LA).
 
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