Samurai Shodown IV

petieken

n00b
Joined
Apr 3, 2007
Posts
12
Hey everyone,
I just got Samurai Shodown IV :), it came in a transparent cartridge with a fake label.
I took some pictures of the pcb's. On first sight they look legitimate to me but the fake label made me worry a bit. So here are the pics:
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I guess they are real, what do you people think?
 

Murray

Akari's Big Brother
Joined
Aug 16, 2005
Posts
2,533
Fake shells and labels don't mean anything. And yeah, looks real to me too.
 

mmsadda

Just buy my shit. Seriously. You can call me Susan
10 Year Member
Joined
Jan 20, 2009
Posts
3,067
^yeah, Murray, but all of us have to learn that shiat somehow.

OP, I don't have to guess to tell you it's legit. That is, unless SNK makes its own bootlegs now *kehehe*
 

petieken

n00b
Joined
Apr 3, 2007
Posts
12
Thanks for the replies.
I'm pretty new to the neo geo scene. I have my MVS motherboard for about 2-3 years now, and I finally started buying games for it. :)
Thanks to this forum and it's search button I learned a lot already about neo geo.

Can you guys tell me about the obvious signs of a bootleg/legit cart? So that I don't have to post pics everytime I buy a new game. I read somewhere that flash chips definitely indicate a boot but other than that I'm a bit clueless.
 

Kunio

Mr. Big's Thug
Joined
Oct 27, 2005
Posts
201
If you see a chip inside with an MX logo on it, it's time to get wary. If you see one or two or sometimes even four windowed eproms (SS3/KOF95/MOTW for instance) there is no need to worry, but when you get a cart where every chip is windowed, it's a boot. Small surface mounted chips mounted onto adapters and then soldered to the boards is a dead on sign of bootlegging.

To find an original, look at the chips inside the cart. If you find a number on the chips that matches the master list on this site, you are safe. For example SS2 is #063, so if you open an SS2 cart and find a full set of chips stamped 063, your're safe. This even applies to a cart with one or a few windowed eproms. Those ones are usually SNK after production fixes.

A fake label or a board with an SNK logo means absolutely nothing. There are many many real carts with a fake english label slapped over the original Japanese one as well as many many carts with original SNK boards but with swapped chips that are fake.

If you stay away from MX-chips, adapter mounted SMD-chips and full sets of windowed eproms, you are generally safe. It's not that difficult, really..
 

petieken

n00b
Joined
Apr 3, 2007
Posts
12
Thanks for the pointers and the link to the website! Now I'm gonna play some Samurai Shodown IV :vik:
 
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