|
On my trip to Singapore, I went sightseeing, and as you'd
probably guess, saw many various pirate carts and multi carts for the GameBoy. However, what caught my eye was
the 'US' version of 'Pocket Monsters Go! Go!'. It seems that due to demand for the cart, the pirates created a
new version of the game, with US style packaging and English instructions. (As you may remember, the previous instructions were in Chinese.)
Let's Compare
Yes, things have changed in this newer version of Pocket
Monsters Go! Go!. Although nothing has changed in the game's programming (except the header, which has changed
from 'Smurf's Nightmare' to 'Pocket Monster'), the cart and packaging have endured plenty of cosmetic changes.
The cart on the left is Pocket Monsters Go! Go! (as you
might have guessed). This cart is an extremely good duplicate of the real Nintendo carts. It
has everything from 'Nintendo GameBoy to a little sticker with a Goomba on the back where the screw is to prevent
you from opening it. The pirates even went to a lot of trouble with the front label, putting Nintendo's logo and
seal of quality (!) as well as a rating with the ESRB. It even has its own Game Code (DMG-GO-USA).
The Game Boxes
As well as producing an excellent copy of the cartridge,
the pirates went to a lot of trouble producing an accurate copy of the US style boxes. Here's a comparison:
 
Once again, the pirates have put Nintendo's logo and
seal of quality, as well as the ESRB's 'Everyone' rating. It also has the 'GameBoy Color' holographic strip
down the side. 'Pocket Monsters Go! Go!' has even got a great cover picture!
 
The back of the box once again contains Nintendo's seal of quality (which
the pirates seem to be very proud of), along with Nintendo's fine print (i.e. 'This official seal is your assurance
that Nintendo has approved the quality of this product...' and 'Made in Japan, Licensed by Nintendo...' etc.). The
game's description is merely a cut-and-paste job of Pokemon Red's description, while the screen shots are that
of a hacked Kirby's Dreamland 2 with Kirby as Pikachu. Oddly, that is not what the game plays like.
What it Contains
 
The US version of 'Pocket Monsters Go! Go!' is a pirate's
milestone, because it is the first pirated GameBoy game to have the cardboard game holder. (All previous games
have had the old plastic game holders.) The English manual's dimensions are also pretty accurate, and there
is no noticeable fuzziness or misprinting of the manual. If it weren't for the fact that it was missing the GameBoy
information, the plastic slip that the new games come in and standard advertising material, I would swear that
this game wasn't pirated. But then again, I'm no pro when it comes to spotting pirates.
Conclusion
It's pretty interesting that the pirates have gone to so
much trouble to create a US version of 'Pocket Monsters Go! Go!'. It must have proved to be so popular if that
was the case. It just confirms what we already know: "We want more games starring those cute monsters! (Actually,
a Pokemon platform game would be nice...)" Nintendo, are you listening?
|
