Buying 3rd Generation Games
So as we all know, 3rd Generation games (or any Game Boy Advance games for that matter) are extremely tough to find anywhere but the internet. The internet is great, but also carries the risk of purchasing bootleg copies, which is something you don't want to mess around with. The GBA games were so easy to bootleg, that there are many of them out there. In most countries, boot legging anything is illegal and a very serious issue.
So, I've come to study up on bootlegs and have found different ways to find if a game is a bootleg or not, and I'm here to share these tips with my fellow Pokebay-ers :)
1) It sounds bad to say, but don't buy from Asia. Asia's laws on bootlegging are not as strict as some countries, so Asian countries are more vulnerable to selling you a fake copy.
2) The 3rd Generation Pokemon games have kind of a "foil" label. If you look at a copy of a 3rd Gen games, and the label doesn't reflect light, or just looks like a paper sticker, it's most likely a fake.
3)Look at pictures online of a legitimate game cartridge sticker, and look at the location of everything (the rating, "The Pokemon Company", the games name, Nintendo Logo and Seal), if they are out of place or something doesn't look right (such as if there are bubbles on the sticker of Sapphire Version), then that's a red flag as well.
4) Look inside the cartridge (on the chip part where you insert the game). It should have writing on it. It should say "Copyright __" and the Nintendo logo. Don't get too hung up on what it says though. Just look for the Nintendo logo mainly. If there is nothing written on it, then it's most likely a fake.
5) When you turn the game on, and after you exit the title screen, it should go right to your save file. If the game says "The game can be played" or "The save file has been erased" or anything in between the title screen and the saved game screen, it's a fake
6) If the seller does not post an actual picture of the game, or doesn't allow you to look at a picture of the game before buying it, that should be a red flag that they know they're selling a fake game as well.
7) If the price is too good to be true ($4.00 with free shipping, for example), then it probably is.
Here is a Youtube video(s) that sums up (and gives comparisons between a fake and real game) what I just said. It helps give a few visuals as well. Remember to never sell a bootleg game if you receive one. Usually Amazon and Ebay have the buyer protection, which will refund you if you have received something that isn't really what it's advertised to be.:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fKOW...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bm9FK...eature=related
Good luck!
