Repro Games - Are they worth buying? And how to spot one!

The stores these repro carts came from are linked below.

These are not affiliated links. Also, don't buy repros to sell them on as originals. That is not cool at all.

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[jamesburchill]

Repro is one way to beat chip and disc rot. I see no issues with them. So long as they aren't being passed off as original copies.

[treyslay]

The American Genesis releases also had the hang tags on the cases.

[fulgenzio]

the packaging of the japanese megadrive cartridges is the best in the history of video games: sturdy, durable and with outstanding artwork.

[petercipriano]

Stellar video! I live in Japan as well, and there are now a ton of repros on the various auction sites and online marketplaces. Most sellers are pretty honest, but always good to be educated. Would love for you to do this for other systems as well, especially Neo Geo!

[Galdelico]

As much as I enjoyed your video - I follow you for ages and you earned my endless respect as a retrogamer and collector - I really believe these repros are gonna be THE cancer in retrocollecting, sooner than we expect. Even by just sticking to MD games, it happened to me I bought (through a good friend and collector himself) a Vampire Killer from Yahoo Auctions, last year, and I'm still 99, 99% sure it had at least a repro manual... Such a good repro, in case, that I even wondered if it mattered at all, but you know what I mean. I paid a 'genuine' retro price for that game, and so I ended up giving it back to the same friend, who btw thought I was wrong and sold it again to another person (and I bought it again too, a month or so ago, from a reputable Japanese collector).
A decade down the line, we'll be possibly paying grands for an Eliminate Down coming with a repro cover, or manual, or cartridge sticker, without even knowing it, and I don't like this scenario one bit.
I'm all in for reproductions and reprints that also come with their own package/manual design and differentiate from the originals (like your prototype), but these life-like copies... I wish they weren't so well accepted everywhere. When they will be generally made of a better quality, it may be too late to take countermeasures.

[terrythedmaniac]

Thanks for the very well made and detailed video my friend, it's been a while but I really missed your great comparative videos as it seems the YouTube algorithm is not showing or pushing your videos on the main page like before, anyways hope your all doing well in the pandemic and thanks for the great content.

[WrightOffsGaming]

Love this vid thanks Mark, my days of collecting those awesome MD games are long gone so watching you tinker with originals and repros makes for compelling viewing. You just can't repro the smell of the original products.

[dodgykebaab]

12:24 office carts run at 5 volts.
Thanks retro dude, now I know what to do should I ever pick up an office cart in staples!

[SaturnHST]

I had a few of those cheap repros from Aliexpress with that large empty plastic piece attached to the pcb and the non-beveled connectors. Some of them I only played once or twice, then for no reason at all they stopped booting up. On the other hand, all of my multicarts and Everdrive clones that I also got from Aliexpress still work fine.

[topofbones]

Very useful! Thanks!
I always loved the japanese artwork of 16 bit cartdriges in general.

[WickedGamerCollector]

6:22 happy to see i'm not the only one that sniffs stuff 🤣

[ByteSizeThoughts]

A few years ago I got some repros for my Sega Saturn so I could try Panzer Dragoon Saga, Policenauts and a few others that I could never afford. I've recently upgraded to a satiator but without the repro's I wouldnt have had the chance to try these amazing games.

[mastershmiddy]

Incredibly thorough and informative. Helped me decipher a potential fake on eBay :)

[Konuvis]

If you can't tell the difference between the official and the repro then it doesn't really matter. Just enjoy the game :)
I personally ordered my first repros a few months ago and so far I'm limiting my buys to Japanese exclusives that have translation patches so I got Rudora, Live a Live and Star Ocean.

[TheKayliedGamerChannel-YouTube]

Genuine Sega cart PCB edge always been that 'brown' colour since beginning, a simple but great indicator of a genuine product ✌️

[metrocity]

Interesting the voltage question, but is it possible to change some component in the PCB to make it become 5 volts?

[msk]

Nice video, thank you !
Just one remark though, hook on the box actually exists with some late japanese MD games like Alien Soldier or Ristar.

[h.z.]

I don't know if its said before, but the back of the cartridge has also the Sega logo stamped on it. Capcom, Taito and Namco have even their own logo on the back.

[JasonStevens]

I found where to buy them and ordered one of everything. It’s great to anyone having lost a collection and being able to rebuild it very cheaply and share it with my kids on a reproduction system. I don’t have to worry about damage as it’s all insanely cheap

[DragonGrafx-]

You can bevel the edges yourself. I did so with my repro copy of Grind Stormer (V-V) It also does not use a flash chip so it is the correct voltage. I also stuck the PCB into a authentic cart and printed a new label.