variant How to predict how many versions there are of a Game.

[JVOSS | 1,762]

Just running through a few games and stumbled on a theory and was looking to see if it hold water.

For years we have been tracking variants on Nintendo Games (for me it's GB).  One thing I have always wondered why manuals are not following the revision ie label identity.  Could it be as some suspect "easier/less expensive to update and print the a CIB" (as @RH suspects) or is it quite possibly a non documented revision (i.e. no version bump on label)

here is the data..

GB: Legend of Zelda, The: Links Awakening has 4 cart versions and 5 manuals the label are as follow

DMG-ZL-USA  (Manual and cart)
DMG-ZL-USA-1 (Manual and cart)
DMG-ZL-USA-2 (Manual and cart)
USA-ZL-USA-3 (Manual and cart)
USA-ZL-USA-4 (Manual ONLY)

Here is where the theory changes the whole thing. 

Some time during the first year of production the programmers did some sort of bug fix/ change.  Causing Nintendo to change the CIBs but that did not trigger a  label version bump i.e. going from DMG-LZ-USA to DMG-LZ-USA-1.   Such label change might have been reserved for a major (graphic) release.  However to keep up with the correct data in the manuals they did a manual version update along with a box version update (this is a hole other can of worm). This would increase the actually cart count to 5 versions thus matching the manual count.

So with that data applied you get this.

Manual                   Cart

5 manuals and 5 carts,

DMG-ZL-USA        DMG-ZL-USA (Original ROM
DMG-ZL-USA-1    DMG-ZL-USA (ROM UPDATE)
DMG-ZL-USA-2    DMG-ZL-USA-1
USA-ZL-USA-3     DMG-ZL-USA-2
USA-ZL-USA-4     DMG-ZL-USA-3

the manuals and games are accounted for

Tennis

3 manuals and 3 carts,

Manual                   Cart

DMG-TN-USA       DMG-TN-USA (Original ROM
DMG-TN-USA-1   DMG-TN-USA  (label variant)
DMG-TN-USA-2   DMG-TN-USA-1

other examples.

Tetris( @RH theory works here) it is plausible that bundles can account for the manual changes

6 manuals and 5 carts,

DMG-TR-USA org with ROM A
DMG-TR-USA label variant 1
DMG-TR-USA label variant 2
DMG-TR-USA-1
DMG-TR-USA -2

Super Mario Land (SML)( @RH theory works here) it is plausible that bundles can account for the manual changes

8 manuals 4 carts

DMG-ML-USA = manual blank -1
DMG-ML-USA(rom) = manual 2-5
DMG-ML-USA-1 = manual 6-7
DMG-ML-USA-2  = manual 8

Dose this hold water?  How dose this data compare to say NES or SNES or even DS?

Is it plausible that some games have variants that are not yet documented?

 

Edited February 2, 2021 by JVOSS

[0xDEAFC0DE | 1,277]

I know of Link's Awakening the carts and manuals do not match up that way. Here's how I have them matching up.

C	I	B
-0, 1.0 ROM	-0	-0 Glossy
-0, 1.1 ROM	-0	-0 Matte
-0, 1.2 ROM	-0	-0 Matte
-1	-0	-1
-1	-1	-1
-1	-2	-1
-1	-3	-1
-2	-4	Pocket bundle
-3	-3	-1

[0xDEAFC0DE | 1,277]

I go into greater detail as to why here:

Also as an update another -3 cart came up an ebay in a CIB and it also had the had the -3 manual and the -1 box with matching datecodes. So, it's likely that a -2 box with the E-rating doesn't exist.

[JVOSS | 1,762]

Great data.

however i was looking at how the manual numbers could relate to how many cart variants there are.