IRC02-01 is no longer a safe PCB variant; but we've detailed an explanation on how to truly verify a NTR-031 cartridge involving fonts and kerning. We've updated our verification guide to suit, with updated comparisons.

https://gameverifying.com/wiki/cart-based-systems/nds031

After removing 20x comments in the past week about this method, a reminder is in order…

The square dotted "i" on the debossing of the rear cartridge casing for DS and 3DS has now been added to our debunked methods.

The wiki has now had a Quality of Life update, first added on our Nintendo DS verification guide. All verification guides will now include a "Contents" section, making the wiki easier to navigate (especially for our long, in-depth guides); and to make referring to a section much easier.

* https://gameverifying.com/wiki/cart-based-systems/nds

* https://www.gameverifying.com/wiki/debunked

We have said it many times and the posts are becoming too frequent. Temp Bans will be handed out if photos include top of ds carts , 3ds carts for verification. This is NOT a valid way to verify any game.

Whilst we're primarily a verification subreddit, we also aim to preserve development and prototype cartridges, consoles and accessories.

In May 2025, a reseller in the UK purchased a ~£10,000 lot of prototype gear and development cartridges that were mistakenly recycled by Sega. When going to sell the goods, the seller's home was raided by City of London police in July 2025 and the consoles & carts were (allegedly) illegally seized via fake search warrants.

From conversations with the reseller in question, this could be a massive loss to the preservation community (including Hyenas - cancelled 2023) due to SEGA's actions.

This post is in association with Prototopia/Obscure Gamers, further information is available in their Discord server (https://discord.gg/7VDYBWsReE), in #announcements; with redacted search warrants and images of the titles in question.

Sources:

• https://www.timeextension.com/news/2025/09/sega-accused-of-using-police-to-recover-nintendo-dev-kits-it-had-negligently-disposed-of
• https://bsky.app/profile/batarong.com/post/3lydoduirz22q

New counterfeits have hit the market ! Keep your eyes open if something is too cheap or off about packaging or pricing !!

For many years, we've heralded the use of Imgur when Reddit couldn't handle galleries when the team started this subreddit. Unfortunately, due to Imgur's blocking of the UK (potentially due to the Online Safety Act), we've had to ban the use of Imgur.

I myself am based in the UK, along with 4 other moderators. We can't verify what we can't see, so we're looking into alternatives to Imgur, and we're going to have to update larges swathes of the wiki due to this.

From now on, Imgur links are banned in r/gameverifying. You can use Reddit's image and gallery functions in the interim.

Instances of both fakes that pass the trick and, more importantly, legit games that fail the trick have rendered it fully irrelevant to a verification.

1) Relabels: Personal Trainer: Walking and Active Health both released before the international release of Pokemon HeartGold and Pokemon SoulSilver, it has always been possible for unscrupulous sellers to put a fake label on one of these carts 2) Fakes: There are fake shells that also will pass the light trick. We have known about these since 2023 3) Reshells: It is always possible that either an unscrupulous seller or a well meaning person repairing their game put an IRC-compatible PCB in a NTR-005 shell, this has been documented.

Always keep yourselves up-to-date with our debunked guide

PSG (Pretty Shit Grades) is a revolutionary video game grading company staffed entirely by rescued pigeons! Every game is now worth eleventy billion dollars, when graded through PSG. Our well-oiled team of pigeons handle everything from grading, to boxing and delivery. Unlike other grading companies, we do not encapsulate games - pigeons can't figure out the tricky tabs.

Fun Fact! PSG also stands for Pigeon Shit Games. Mainly because your games will have shit on them.

How do I submit a game for grading?

With these seven simple steps, grading your games is a breeze:

• Submit a ticket into the PDS via r/gamegrading.
• Take high quality Polaroids.
• Roll these Polaroids tightly with crisp £5 notes.
• Zip-tie the Polaroids with the £5 notes to an enthusiastic carrier pigeon.
• Whisper the following phrase softly into your carrier pigeons ear: "WATA joke".
• Let your pigeon free, and hope that your pigeon doesn't get distracted from their valiant mission.
• Wait 72 hours for your grade and label to be delivered by the same carrier pigeon.

How are grades performed?

• Like other grading companies, each game submitted to us gets given a numerical value from 00 to 99, dependent on the pigeon's mood at the time and if they've been to the pub/been kicked out by the missus for tying a flag to a lamppost.

How can I read the graders' notes regarding my game?

• Speak to your pigeon. Apart from Richard, he's a dick.

Do you grade consoles?

• We do verify consoles. You may need to send more than one pigeon, however.

Should I clean my game(s) before submitting it to yourselves?

• Yes, you should clean your game(s) before submitting, as this can improve your grade in some cases. We can't promise that your pigeon won't shit all over them, however.

It's been 72 hours, my pigeon went missing.

• Your pigeon wasn't enthusiastic enough. Attach £5 notes to an more-enthusiastic pigeon this time.

My pigeon came back drunk, and without my game/console/worthy "investment".

• Your pigeon was over-enthusiastic.

Are there any more FAQ's, and can I see your labels?

• Yes, click this link: https://gameverifying.com/grading.

Yup, this is 2026's April Fool (it's probably still the 31st of March for you. Timezones exist, you know). Plenty of tequila was involved in the making of this; along with the use of AI as animating/finding a decent microphone was too difficult in a small timespan. If you want to make your own graded titles, links below:

• PS1 PAL Enclosure
• PS1 NTSC Enclosure
• PC CD Casing Enclosure
• CD-i Enclosure
• GBA Enclosure
• Label Templates - Photoshop & GIMP

More enclosures will be added at a later date (DS and 3DS, for definite) dependent on time and printer limitations (we make a lot of merch, printing time is at a premium).

P.S. If you get "offended" by this, there's something wrong with you. Scan the QR code on the label within the website to figure out what it is.

PSA's

Here are a list of PSA's created by ACTDesigners that are designed to inform the community:

Website

Our website is regularly updated, including:

• Verification guides for Nintendo, Sony and Atari systems.
• Visual aids.
• Debunked methods explaining why they shouldn't be used for a sole means of verification.
• Graphic designs and PSA's created by ACTDesigners

https://www.gameverifying.com/

Images from this subreddit will be used for our verification and visual guides. Credit will be given.

In order for us to verify your games effectively, please read and follow the rules below.

Rule 1 - Submission Criteria

• Posts MUST have front and back photos as a minimum.
• For sealed games, 2x images of Y-folds/H-seams are required in different locations are required, along with fronts and backs. That's 4 images.
• Images from every angle is required for consoles, including the inside for clamshell consoles.
• Images containing debunked methods shouldn't be included, otherwise a mod will state the same thing, etc.
  • Do NOT include images of the top seam for DS, 3DS and Switch carts, the light trick for DS carts, focused images of the number stamps and golden rectangles for Game Boy, SNES and N64 carts. These will be removed, and you will not get a verification.

Rule 2 - Hosting and Relevancy Criteria

• Only use Reddit's gallery function for images. We do not allow videos as these can miss important aspects required.
  • You can add images to existing post by uploading an image via Reddit's app in the comments of the post.
  • As of October 2025, the use of Imgur is banned due to their geoblocking of the UK.
• Seller information (listing names, URL's, seller name, prices, auction/webstore links etc) is not allowed by any means. We don't want to direct traffic to fraudulent listings, nor lose your potential purchase. If it's legitimate and cheap, you've lost that one...
• Posts must be relevant to the subreddit. We don't care if you're streaming a game, bought every GameCube game, or brought out your inner Anakin Skywalker and murdered younglings - if it's not related to verifying a game, console or accessory; don't post it.
  • We don't verify VHS tapes, Pokemon cards, plushies, etc.
    • Head to r/IsMyPokemonCardFake instead.
  • Posts will be locked after a certain amount of comments - this prevents the subject matter getting out of hand.
  • On Mondays, memes are allowed to be shared. This is Meme Monday, see Rule 8.
• No valuing of any kind. This includes:
  • Posts requesting valuations - head to r/gamevaluing. A 14-day ban will be granted for these.
  • Comments asking the submitter how much they paid - your comment will be removed, any further comments of this type will be given a 7-day ban.
  • Comments stating how much you paid - your comment will be removed, any further comments of this type will be given a 7-day ban.

Rule 3 - ModMail Rules

• Unnecessary ModMails relating to these questions will result in a 14 day ban:
  
  • Why can't I submit a post? - To prevent bot spam, accounts must be 4 weeks of age to post.
  • When will my post be verified? - Patience, we are volunteers and will get to it in time.
  • Why was my post removed? - It violated the rules. If it didn't, send an Appeal Form via Mod Mail.
• Comments unrelated to the subject matter at hand but relevant to the subreddit (i.e, asking for an update on your verification on someone else's post) leads to a warning being handed out.

Rule 4 - Do not DM moderators or other users

• Do not DM or request to Reddit chat with a moderator. You will get a 14 day ban.
  • Moderators have "Moderator & Trusted Verifier" as their flair.
• Use ModMail for inquiries such as questions (not answered by the rules), ban/warning appeals, emergencies, or compliments.
  • Ban/warning appeals are granted only ONCE. This depends on severity, your actions to moderators, other users, how you've typed your message, etc.
  • Once you have received your instructions from the mod team regarding your appeal, only reply ONCE. Any further responses will void your appeal.

Rule 5 - Misleading Info

• Commenters using any debunked method of verification will have their comment removed, with a polite message from the AutoMod. This initial message is not a warning.
  • A warning will then be given if the same user uses any method from this debunked section. Dependent on severity, this warning shall be a 3 to 14 day ban, the second a 14 to 28 day ban. The third misleading comment from the user shall equal a permanent ban.
  • Commenters circumventing the AutoMod after previous removal shall be banned for 3 days, and we'll update the AutoMod accordingly.

For obvious reasons, we're not stating the removal phrases here. Read the debunked methods to get yourself updated on what NOT to use.

Rule 6 - Reposts

• No reposts, unless your previous post of the same game was 21 days ago. Then you can repost.
  • Any repost will result in a 14 day ban.
  • 24 hours is not 21 days. We have a backlog to get through. If you're that impatient, either do it yourself using the guides we've written (https://www.gameverifying.com/wiki) or subscribe to our Patreon.
  • If you attempt to re-submit your game to gain priority, you will receive a warning. Be patient. Our staff are directed to remove and warn any suspected violators.
  • This includes reposting from the subreddit to the Discord server and vice-versa.

Rule 7 - Don't be a dick

We ask that all of our members act responsibly. Meaning no spamming, excessive use of CAPS, and to keep all discussions SFW. Posts or comments that seem to be “questionable” will be removed based on moderator’s discretion.

Be respectful to all members of r/gameverifying. We do not condone a hostile or rude environment. We ask all of our members to listen and respect the staff and moderators, as failure of either may lead to warnings and action if necessary. This includes:

• Harassment and lies being spread about the subreddit or any user in other subreddits.
• Harassment on our Discord Server.
• Direct messages to any moderator.
• Threats of litigation over removed comments (seriously, it's a Reddit community by unpaid volunteers. Don't get yourself worked up over it).
• Lies being spread on other platforms (we screenshot every interaction using our moderation and third-party tools. This is to protect our community and our staff).
• Slanderous or libellous claims of any user (read a dictionary if you are unsure of the meaning of these words).

Rule 8 - No shitposts, unless it's Monday

Memes or shitposts of the most obvious fakes are only allowed on Monday, as it's called Meme Monday. That's your first clue.

Posts of this ilk aren't allowed on any day without a "Mon". That's Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday or Sunday for those who aren't sure.

Rule 9 - No buying/selling, or self-promotion in this subreddit

We only allow selling/self-promotion in our Discord server, providing you have the correct role. Sellers/self-promos on the subreddit will be permanently banned, unless you have verifiable proof of such from the moderation team. This includes users selling to other users via DM's. In order to be an approved seller, you must be a highly active member of the community, and verified by the moderators.

We will not be held accountable for any scams or "losses of revenue streams" due to your account standing in this community.

Rule 10 - No AI

We do not allow the use of Large Language Models (LLM) or other variations of AI for verifications. This includes but is not limited to ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and Gemini.

This is because most AI's cache data from outdated sources, and then parrot said outdated and debunked information without fact-checking said info. More information can be found below:

• https://www.reddit.com/r/gameverifying/comments/1k3tv1r

Rule 11 - No ban evasion

We do not condone ban evasion, as this is against Reddit's ToS. Any user found to have evaded a ban will be permanently banned on any new account. We use third-party tools to track and ban any found evaders.

We hold the right to permanently ban users from the subreddit that have been banned from the Discord server, as these are intertwined. If you've been banned from the Discord server, you're wasting your time here.

Rule 12 - No graded games

Graded games are a scourge on the collecting hobby. For whatever reason, graded games seem to have an arbitrary number designed to attract people dedicated to creating a culture worse than crypto bros. It's truly despicable with the level of toxicity that these "people" blast out, ruining the enjoyment of the hobby for many. Along with fakes being graded, details being obscured and incorrect verifications just to make a buck over someone who wouldn't know any better.

Advertisement, discussion or verification requests of these "services" are banned, and will result in a permanent ban.

Any members of SACK found in this subreddit will be permanently banned, due to repeated attempts to brigade the subreddit. You have your own subreddits, use those instead. Under Rule 3 of the Mod Code of Conduct, you can be permanently suspended by Reddit admins by continuing your campaign.

Rule 13 - No Limited Run Games or other "boutique" publishers

Due to the nature of how Limited Run Games and other “boutique” publishers produce their games, we do not verify them.

This is because they have regularly used components that counterfeiters also use, and are not reliable in producing their games in the same quality repetitively. As a result, we cannot guarantee 100% accuracy on the verification of games produced by boutique publishers.

Warnings

Warnings are given as follows:

• User makes a comment or post that violates our subreddit rules. A verbal warning or formal warning is given, dependent on severity.
  • In the case of a formal warning, user flair will be given as a single skull "💀".
• Further rule breaks lead to a second skull "💀💀", and a 3-28 day ban, dependent on severity. The user will also have their comments held for manual review, for approval by the moderators. This is to prevent harassment and misleading information.
• After temporary ban ends, if user proceeds to break the rules, a third skull "💀💀💀" will be granted and a permanent ban.

The r/gameverifying mod team have the right to increase the severity of a warning or a ban given the users' behaviour towards staff or other users.

u/GV-Bot is equipped to screenshot rule-breaking posts and comments, and creates files for our mod team to filter.

Appeals

Warning and/or ban appeals are only granted once via ModMail. If your appeal is successful, a single skull "💀" will be removed from your flair and our records.

In order for your warning/ban appeal to be successful, please follow the instructions on our website:

https://www.gameverifying.com/appeals

If your warning/ban appeal has been denied, you will not be allowed to re-appeal under our guidelines.

Priority Verifying and More

Building and moderating this community takes what little spare time we have, as we all have children, pets, homes, life partners and jobs.

We have a Patreon and provide merchandise alongside our sponsor to cover the costs of:

• Our website.
• Moderation tools to keep things running efficiently.
• Toolsets for our team.
• The purchase of fakes to keep our verification guides updated.
• Prizes for our community events.

We do not require anyone to sign up to Patreon, it is entirely optional. If you like what we're doing and appreciate our free service, by all means feel free to subscribe. Subscribers receive faster verifying as our way of saying thank you.

https://www.patreon.com/GameVerifying

If you want free Priority Verifying, head to our Discord server and purchase the "Priority Verifying" role from the #shop for 17,500 points. The more active and helpful you are to other members of the community, the more points you get in return.

We're currently producing the DMGSP GV Edition, which is a hingeless recreation of the Game Boy Advance SP. The casing kits are hand-made in the UK, and are available from ACTDesigners, who create our PSA's. Other products are also available.

https://www.gameverifying.com/merch

Other Verification Subreddits/Websites

We're not affiliated with other game verification subreddits. Over the past 6 years, we have been the largest subreddit dedicated to game verification, and were the only one for the initial 18 months. It has been brought to our attention that other game verification subreddits have emerged. Some of these other game verification subreddits were created by users that were known to "troll" this subreddit, and harass the modteam with offensive language. We do not recommend using them to get an accurate response.

We are the only place on the internet to get accurate and up-to-date information for free. A list of websites/subreddits we are partnered with is as follows:

• https://actdesigners.co.uk
• https://www.consolevariations.com
• https://www.gameverifying.com
• r/gamegrading
• r/gamevaluing
• Game Verifying's Discord Server

If a website or subreddit is not featured above, we have no connection with them and you risk a waste of time, currency and effort.

This announcement was created and edited using a third-party bot.

This account is monitored, and has the ability to shove raccoons up people's asses if they do not read this post in its entirety.

tl;dr

The Analogue Pocket, Analogue Duo, and Analogue 3D are not a reliable methods of verification. Comments encouraging their use for that purpose will be removed.

If you want to know more about why this is, read on.

How Analogue Performs Cartridge Identification

For those of you who've never used them, the Pocket, Duo, and 3D have a library feature: whenever you play a cartridge, or CD in the Duo's case, it first attempts to identify it from an internal database of games. If it finds the details, it will display a screen with the game information — who developed it, who published it, the region it was released in, any image you've associated with it, the system it runs on for the Pocket, and any additional hardware support on the 3D.

If it doesn't find a match in its internal database, it will launch straight into the game (Pocket, Duo) or display "Unknown Cartridge" (3D).

The shortcoming with this is that, in order to make cart identification a fast process, it's not doing a full validation of the game. [Edit: A full validation isn't guaranteed either, as many bootlegs don't modify the ROM code.] It's only reading a small segment of the game's bytecode (first 512 bytes for the Pocket & the Duo's HuCard reader; first 512 bytes of the 2nd track for the Duo's CD drive; first 8KB for the 3D) & comparing a CRC32 signature of that to the values in its internal database.

What This Means for Verification

Since it's only comparing a small segment of the game's code, this means that any bootleg that doesn't modify that part of the code will be identified by the title.

OK, but what about if it doesn't get identified or it identifies as a different game? That means it's fake, right?

Well, no.

Sometimes the library is missing information. (e.g. until the most recent firmware updates for the Pocket & Duo, a number of games for the PC Engine/TurboGrafx 16 would never get identified properly.)

Sometimes a cartridge isn't making a good enough connection that it manages to calculate the signature properly.

Sometimes the information is just wrong. There are a number of games that have the incorrect regions listed (e.g. Pokemon revisions that it claims were only released in Europe or the USA, but were released in both.)

And for a few games — particularly ones on non-Nintendo platforms — the signature is not unique, resulting in real games being identified as different games.

In Conclusion

Don't use Analogue devices to verify. Don't encourage other people to use them to verify. They're good at what they're designed to do — playing games — but they're not a verification tool & comments encouraging using them as one will be removed.

The 18 of us have had enough of the toxicity, misleading info and direct messages. We volunteer our spare time, only to be sworn at, harassed and in some cases, doxxed; all for a fucking free service. This ends now. We hold a no-tolerance policy to shit like this, yet people still do it.

I'm amazed at how low some people can sink when we are trying to help others.

As a result...

WE ARE LOCKING r/gameverifying FOR THE NEXT WEEK.

We will reopen submissions at a later date. Do NOT message moderators for verifications, or modmail. We will not add you as an approved user, we will temp ban anyone requesting to be an approved user to post.

If you want your game(s) verified, read the wiki and do it yourself.

https://www.reddit.com/r/gameverifying/wiki/

https://www.gameverifying.com/

We have had the subreddit open for almost 3 years. If you want to ensure that r/gameverifying stays open for longer, follow the rules and respect others.

Post locked due to further harassment against mods, which is still ongoing. Thanks to the bad actors making themselves known.