game boy Work In Progress: Complete List of NA(US) Game Boy Cartridge Variants

[RpgCollector | 900]

Because it is Christmas time thought I would share a super rare cart variant:

 

[JVOSS | 1,762]

TM VS R WHO WILL WIN.....

[RH | 4,913]

1 minute ago, JVOSS said:

TM VS R WHO WILL WIN.....

Lol.  I didn't notice that.  I just noticed the difference in the Game Boy/Game Link logo.  This issue harkens back to -1 rev of Castlevania, but Castlevania got a label revision bump.

[JVOSS | 1,762]

5 minutes ago, JVOSS said:

TM VS R WHO WILL WIN.....

@RpgCollector the r is first edition? what did the board show?

[JVOSS | 1,762]

just checked mine is a TM with 98 chip.  now have to add to the list.  thanks for the keen eyes @RpgCollector

[RpgCollector | 900]

26 minutes ago, JVOSS said:

just checked mine is a TM with 98 chip.  now have to add to the list.  thanks for the keen eyes @RpgCollector

Saw a pic of the R cart/box/manual about 4 years ago. This is the first R cart I have found from then till last week (still need the box/manual). Pics of the board:

 

[Splain | 2,571]

@RpgCollector do you use a neural net or something to find these variants? I'm trying to think about how long it would have taken me to find something like this without just stepping through the entire library and inspecting every photo on the internet.

Stupid no-revision variants!!

[RpgCollector | 900]

1 minute ago, Splain said:

@RpgCollector do you use a neural net or something to find these variants? I'm trying to think about how long it would have taken me to find something like this without just stepping through the entire library and inspecting every photo on the internet.

Stupid no-revision variants!!

Sorry trade secret, but I have been a data analyst for 23 years and a nerd for twice as long. Man I am getting old. I collect box variants also, 3x as many of those!

[JVOSS | 1,762]

8 minutes ago, RpgCollector said:

I collect box variants also, 3x as many of those!

i go broke picking up boxes.  and 3x is being kind.  i would say 6x lol...

[JVOSS | 1,762]

now have to list all the ones that have "GAME BOY" down the side to check..

 

Happy New Year...

[JVOSS | 1,762]

Game BoyTM  VS  Game Boy

Here a list of games with "Game Boy" down the side. 

there could be more games with "Game Boy" down the side i just looked at the documented one.

This is for the TM Vs R check.

BTW.  the tm vs r is very on the manuals as well.

Crystal Quest
Castlevania Adventure, The
Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge
Double Dribble: 5 on 5
Bill Elliot's Nascar Fast Tracks
NFL Football
World Circuit Series
Ghostbusters II
Game of Harmony, The
Top Gun: Guts & Glory
Godzilla
Ultra Golf
Track & Field
Motocross Maniacs
Gradius: The Interstellar Assault
Nemesis
Quarth
Star Trek: 25th Anniversary
Skate Or Die: Bad 'N Rad
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Back from the Sewers
Tiny Toon Adventures: Bab's Big Break
Blades of Steel
Zen: Intergalactic Ninja

[Splain | 2,571]

I thumbed through my games and confirmed this list, and added Operation C and 2 games from the 2-line/3-line discussion. And wrote down what each of my games has. So if anyone has or has seen anything different from this list, then that's a variant. And if @RpgCollector or anyone else already knows about other variants while we're brute-forcing it, please feel free to chime in

I have no reason to believe that any of my carts are extraordinary in any way, so I'm assuming that if there are any variants to uncover here, the version I have is the more common one. I can start searching ebay listings and Google images for these, later today.

 

Games with GAME BOY on the left side of the label

Bill Elliot's Nascar Fast Tracks (Splain: R)
Blades of Steel (Splain: rev-0 and rev-1, both R)
Castlevania Adventure, The (Splain: went from TM to R with rev-1)
Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge (Splain: R)
Crystal Quest (Splain: R)
Double Dribble: 5 on 5 (Splain: rev-0 R and rev-1 R)
Game of Harmony, The (Splain: TM)
Ghostbusters II (Splain: went from TM to R with rev-1)
Godzilla (Splain: went from TM to R with rev-1)
Gradius: The Interstellar Assault (Splain: R)
Heavyweight Championship Boxing (both confirmed, paired with Game Link icon change)
Malibu Beach Volleyball (RPGCollector: three-line paired with TM, two-line paired with R)
Motocross Maniacs (RPGCollector: three-line paired with TM, two-line paired with R)
Nemesis (Splain: TM)
NFL Football (Splain: TM) (already has Game Link icon variants, both of samsamsamsmasmasma's variants are TM)
Operation C (Splain: went from TM to R with rev-1)
Quarth (Splain: TM)
Star Trek: 25th Anniversary (Splain: R)
Skate Or Die: Bad 'N Rad (Splain: TM)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: Back from the Sewers (Splain: R)
Tiny Toon Adventures: Bab's Big Break (Splain: R)
Top Gun: Guts & Glory (Splain: R)
Track & Field (Splain: rev-0 and rev-1, both R)
Ultra Golf (Splain: rev-0 and rev-1, both R)
World Circuit Series (Splain: rev-0 and rev-1, both R)
Zen: Intergalactic Ninja (Splain: R)

[JVOSS | 1,762]

since we are digging in to every thing, one more item to look at while you are in your Games. 

Look closely at the Logo the ones that are None Game Link will have

Game BoyTM  or  Game Boy or Game Boy

Some times this may look like a "." but that is due to poor printing practice. i have a good example ill post as soon as i can get a good picture.  but out of the ones i have documented (ie Googled/ebayed) they are present.

Bust A Move 2 is a good example of the   and Aero Star rev-0 is a good example of TM and Aero Star rev -1 is a good example of

@Splain  the ones you have no indication on has the what i'll call the "Standard logo" not sure what is higher the TM or .  see below.

Edited

Clarification of TM vs R.

The TM symbol can generally be used by any person or business to indicate that a particular word, phrase or logo is intended to serve as an identifier for the source of that product or service. You do not have to have registered a trademark to use it and many companies will opt to use the TM symbol for new goods or services in advance of and during the application process.

The R symbol indicates that this word, phrase or logo is a registered trademark for the product or service. It must only be used in the case of registered trademarks and by the owner or licensee. It also must only be used in the regions in which you possess a valid trademark registration.

Edited December 9, 2020 by JVOSS

[samsamsamsmasmasma | 16]

On 12/8/2020 at 11:35 AM, RpgCollector said:

Saw a pic of the R cart/box/manual about 4 years ago. This is the first R cart I have found from then till last week (still need the box/manual). Pics of the board:

 

Awesome. A challenge for the new year  I could only find one other sold listing other than the recent one on eBay that im assuming you were referring to. It sold 6 months ago so this one should be fun to track down. I was getting tired of doing the same 5 searches for the remaining variants I need to find every hours im awake. Are you still aware of more variants?

Edit* found a second sold listing. Not that that does me any good. Just trying to see how limited this print was.

Edited December 10, 2020 by samsamsamsmasmasma

[RH | 4,913]

Ok, who one that auction?  You know which one.

[bluebomber | 3]

17 minutes ago, RH said:

Ok, who one that auction?  You know which one.

The SML PC E? I didn’t, I threw my hat in for $150 and still lost. 

[RH | 4,913]

7 minutes ago, bluebomber said:

The SML PC E? I didn’t, I threw my hat in for $150 and still lost. 

Yup.

[bluebomber | 3]

3 minutes ago, RH said:

Yup.

I kinda feel bad for the guy that won, even being what it is, they WAYYYYYYYYY overpaid 

[bowser | 598]

Holy shit the mythical Rated E boxed Super Mario Land. Looking at the sale price I suppose there are a lot more variant hunters now than before?

[RH | 4,913]

For the curios.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Super-Mario-Land-Game-Boy-Complete-in-box-excellent-condition-/303806849969?_trksid=p2349526.m4383.l44720.c10&nordt=true&rt=nc&orig_cvip=true

I used Gixen with a max bid of $200.  I really assumed I'd get it for $100, tops.  I really didn't expect 2 other people to outbid me.  The #1 bidder must have thrown out something really crazy.

This and the SML 2 one I have seem to be quite rare, and they are first party variants, so it kind of doesn't surprise me.  Heck, if I hadn't been tapped out of Paypal funds for my fun money, I know I would have gone higher.  I want to pair this with my CIB SML 2 E as a set, as sort of a "grail".  I hope I didn't miss my last chance at a "reasonable" price in the next 10 years.

Regardless, I bet the seller is a bit shocked at what they got.  This is usually like a $50 game CIB.

[DK | 260]

On 11/11/2020 at 1:03 AM, creepsthething said:

I was expecting it to have a newer revision or something, but for Nintendo to use the same version of the game for over 10 YEARS really boggles me. What's the PCB manufacture date on the back? I'd like to compare them to these images I took.

I didn't see anyone post an answer, so I went and took pics of mine. 

SML -2 "E" variant, 9945

[0xDEAFC0DE | 1,277]

Lol, I just lost a fairly nice LA rated E CIB (box has K-A though) with a bid of 177. I did get the seller to send me pictures of the box and manual date codes (980819 and 980820 respectively), so I'm pretty sure a rated E box doesn't exist. 

EDIT: I should also mention my rated E cart has a date code of 9834 which is the week of Aug 16, 1998.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/174551873689

Edited May 4, 2021 by 0xDEAFC0DE
Fixing images

[RH | 4,913]

Wait a minute.  When did the ratings change from KA to Rated-E?!  You might have just solved the mystery of where this game came from.  I assumed this was a mismatch.  I've seen plenty of KA rated games with that box and inserts.

[0xDEAFC0DE | 1,277]

2 minutes ago, RH said:

Wait a minute.  When did the ratings change from KA to Rated-E?!  You might have just solved the mystery of where this game came from.  I assumed this was a mismatch.  I've seen plenty of KA rated games with that box and inserts.

Tl;dr: it's roughly
spray paint E: August 1998 - September 1999
Solid E: October 1999 - present 

[RH | 4,913]

Well that really does help clarify.  I'm going to go with they updated the cartridge label but not the box.  That works for me. I'm happy with that explaination.