How to spot a fake Recca?

[Brickman | 3,983]

I have the opportunity to buy Recca in practically brand new condition at a very good price from a connection in Japan but how do I spot a fake Recca?

I 100% trust the seller and have purchased numerous rare games from him before, but I worry that maybe he got swindled as fakes are starting to even show up in shops in Japan and not just online.

Anyone have Recca and can share some pictures or have some advice? Or should I just forget about this game with so many fakes flying around now?

Edited June 3, 2021 by Shmup

[Sumez | 2,933]

I got a Recca that I'm almost completely certain is genuine, but I have seen clones out there that are incredibly convincing - and trying to open up a Famicom cartridge is more than a little risky.

The ones I have seen have had tells though, in the way the connector pins are shaped and colored, as well as the cutting of the label itself. I can give you close up pictures of mine if requested. ()

Edited June 3, 2021 by Sumez

[Brickman | 3,983]

5 minutes ago, Sumez said:

I got a Recca that I'm almost completely certain is genuine, but I have seen clones out there that are incredibly convincing - and trying to open up a Famicom cartridge is more than a little risky.

The ones I have seen have had tells though, in the way the connector pins are shaped and colored, as well as the cutting of the label itself. I can give you close up pictures of mine if requested. ()

If you’re happy to provide them I’m happy for you to PM me if you don’t feel like sharing it publicly. 

I’m pretty confident this is 100% real but it is always worth getting community help in situations like this

[The Count | 526]

On 6/3/2021 at 4:32 AM, Sumez said:

I can give you close up pictures of mine if requested. ()

Hey Ohhh!

[DefaultGen | 5,400]

Did you end up figuring this out? There's a seller on YAJ who claims he has a real and fake Recca for sale and they've been up a while. I have both sets of pictures saved to compare, but whenever another Recca comes up I still usually can't tell 100% what is real and what is fake. I can sometimes easily tell fake ones, but I can't 100% call something real, especially since the reg cards and everything are repro'd. I just figure if I get one I'll need someone local or a trustworthy dealer to authenticate one for me.

[Brickman | 3,983]

58 minutes ago, DefaultGen said:

Did you end up figuring this out? There's a seller on YAJ who claims he has a real and fake Recca for sale and they've been up a while. I have both sets of pictures saved to compare, but whenever another Recca comes up I still usually can't tell 100% what is real and what is fake. I can sometimes easily tell fake ones, but I can't 100% call something real, especially since the reg cards and everything are repro'd. I just figure if I get one I'll need someone local or a trustworthy dealer to authenticate one for me.

Nah I didn’t end up buying it. I trust the seller but I just can’t trust that he hasn’t been swindled himself and can’t spot it. He even said the fakes are showing up in stores and shop owners can’t spot them.

The fakes for this game are just too good now which is unfortunate.

Like yourself, I can easily spot the fakes but the ones that are done well are just too hard to spot and because it is hard to open famicom games I think I will just have to pass on this game being in my collection.

[Sumez | 2,933]

Maybe try asking on the shmups forum. People around there are pretty knowledgeable about bootleg spotting, and Recca is a coveted game.