GAME-SPECIFIC VARIANTS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As opposed to evolutionary design changes like SOQ's and Back Labels that effected all the games produced during a certain date range, this page shows the game-specific variants that collectors are usually more familiar with. Generally speaking they're just more interesting, and therefore more fun to collect. Given the massive size of the NES catalog, there are surprisingly few of these variants that exist. Unlicensed game variants are included here as well.
SUPER MARIO BROS. 3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Left Bros.
Left Bros. came first and is the less common of the two. However so many copies of SMB3 were manufactured neither version is hard to find. Left Bros. always has the ID Code NES-UM-USA and the Oval TM SOQ. Right Bros. always has the ID Code NES-UM-USA-1 and the Oval R SOQ.
Right Bros.
As mentioned on the NTSC & PAL page of this site, there are tons of label variants among games that were manufactured for countries other than the USA. But this version of SMB 3 comes up a lot, so I'd thought I mention it here. This version with the red Nintendo Entertainment System logo at the top is a late-model Canadian release. Toward the end of the NES era games made for the USA and Canada were combined with a USA/CAN region code, starting with the REV-A 4 back label, which this game features. The only thing identifying this version as a Canada-only release is the NES-UM-CAN-1 ID Code on the front label. The eventual blending of USA and Canada releases into North American releases is why this version sometimes gets brought up as a USA variant, but it is not.
Super Mario Bros. 3
red label Canadian version
GUN.SMOKE --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bar Label
Bar label came first and is only found with a REV-A 1 back label. Saloon label exists with REV-A 1 and REV-A 2 back labels. Neither label is rare, and they're equally common. They're called "Bar" and "Saloon" because that's what the signs on the buildings say. Saloon is really hard to see.
Saloon Label
MIKE TYSON'S PUNCH-OUT!! -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
White Dots
Orange Dots
Most collectors believe that the white dots (often called bullets) came first, but that would be hard to actually prove. 5-Screw copies of MTPO are extremely rare and both versions exist in 5-Screw form. White dots were discontinued early, only appearing on one 3-Screw version of the game, whereas the orange dots were on all copies up through the Oval SOQ version. This is why the white dot version in 3-Screw is less common, although it's not exactly rare.
In 1990 Nintendo's contract with Mike Tyson had expired, and he had recently lost the heavyweight title (which probably didn't help the chances of it getting renewed), so he was dropped from the game and it was rereleased simply as Punch-Out!! Tyson was replaced with a fictional character called Mr. Dream.
ATHLETIC WORLD ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Family Fun Fitness Label
no Family Fun Fitness Label
This one is a little strange because the actual variant for Athletic World is not the label, it's the cartridge. The Family Fun Fitness label only appears on the 5-Screw version of the game with the ID Code NES-AW-USA. The label without the FFF logo only appears on the 3-Screw version with the ID Code NES-AW-USA-1. Bandai's FFF pad was purchased by Nintendo and re-released as the Power Pad. They also bought Stadium Events and re-released it as World Class Track Meet. Bandai continued to sell Athletic World for use with the NES Power Pad, but the FFF logo was dropped since that product line no longer existed. The 5-Screw version of the game is a little less common, but neither version is rare.
MEGA MAN 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Capcom Purple Label
Nintendo-Published Version
Mega Man 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 were all published by Capcom, but for whatever reason when Mega Man 6 came out toward the end of the NES era Nintendo purchased the publishing rights from Capcom for this game and released it themselves. Before that happened however a very small number of Mega Man 6 games were produced by Capcom. Once the game was licensed to Nintendo, these were shipped to Brazil and sold to Playtronic, a company distributing NES products there. Playtronic eventually began manufacturing their own version of the game, but the USA version does exist even though there is no evidence that it was ever
sold in the USA. The Capcom version has the ID Code NES-G6-USA, and is extremely rare. The Nintendo version has ID Code NES-G6-USA-1. This is one of the rarest USA variants in the NES catalog, and it often gets mixed up with the Playtronic version of the game for two reasons. The first is that the Playtronic label also has the same purple base at the bottom as the Capcom version. However this version of the game cart is not another sub-variant of Purple Label Mega Man 6. There were several Capcom games released by Playtronic in Brazil all with the same format (red stripe at
top, Playtonic logo, no ID code). While they are all tougher to find than their USA counterparts, Playtronic Mega Man 6 isn't necessarily any more rare than any of the other Playtronic Capcom games from Brazil. The second reason this gets confusing is that some copies of the USA Capcom game cart that made it to Brazil had the standard Playtronic back label applied over the original REV-A 4 back label that the true USA variant has. So these copies are technically the
Playtronic Back Label over USA Label
rare USA variant, just a modified version. Copies with the Playtronic back label are still very rare, but are significantly more common than the fully original USA variant.
Mega Man 6
Playtronic Version (Brazil)
ACTION 52 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Black PCB
large font
without capacitors
Black PCB
small font
with capacitors
Green PCB
small font
with capacitors
Any copy of Action 52 is hard to come by, and there are three variants of the cartridge. You can't open the game without breaking it apart, but the clear plastic shell and clear label leave most of the data on the IC chips visible. Based on the date codes I've seen, the first version is most likely the one with a black PCB, the large font "MADE IN THE USA", and without the two large capacitors in the middle of the PCB. This version has one additional IC chip that the other versions do not (all probably related to the NES lockout chip). The second and seemingly rarest version also has a black PCB but has a much smaller font "MADE IN USA", and has the 2 capacitors. The third and most common version is exactly like the second version, but with a green PCB. Not only have I seen later date codes on green copies, but this is also the board that was used for Cheetahmen II, so it follows that it was the last variant. The green PCB variety can be found with two different software versions, REV-A and REV-B, and also with either blue or orange sleeves over the capacitors. The REV-B software update did fix some bugs in a few of the games, but also created some new ones in the process. So regardless of which version you have, Action 52 is terrible.
REV-A
REV-B
Blue Capacitors
Orange Capacitors
Included in the box with the game was an Action 52 sticker that was exactly like the game's label, but with a purple background instead of a clear one. This is the same sticker/label found on the very rare prototype version of Action 52 that has a light blue PCB and screws holding it together. Sometimes you'll find a copy with this sticker on the cartridge, but it's not a variant. Some kid just decided to put it on there.
Action 52 Purple Sticker
(came in the box with the game)
THE UNTOUCHABLES --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Black Label
The black label version was released first and has ID Code NES-U6-USA. It features pictures of the actual movie cast that the game is based on. The blue label is the second version and has ID Code NES-U6-USA-1. The blue label variant is a little tougher to find, but neither version of this game is hard to locate.
Blue Label
BASES LOADED ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Orange Jaleco
Blue Jaleco
Sometime in mid-1989 Jaleco changed its logo from the all-caps orange name to the all-caps blue name with the blue-and-white round wavy thing. The early Jaleco games didn't have the game titles on the top spine part of the label, they all had the orange Jaleco logo. So the blue Jaleco variant has the new logo on the spine too. All sub-variant combinations of this game have the orange logo variant, and blue logo only appears with an Oval TM SOQ and REV-A 2 back label, the final version. Neither variant is rare.
R.C. PRO-AM -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No Star
With Star
This one seems really minor, but the star actually indicates something significant. The first copies of the game that do not have the star use PCB model NES-AN1ROM, do not have a ROM revision stamp on the back label, and have software code NES-PM-0 on the game's Program ROM chip. Games with the star use PCB model NES-SEROM, have an A stamp, and code NES-PM-1. When it was first released R.C. Pro-Am had some compatibility issues between different versions of the NES motherboard and chipset, so it got a more drastic overhaul than several other games that just got the -1 PROM update. Side note, I know this is an asterisk, not a star. But asterisk is hard to say, and even harder to spell, so I'm sticking with star.
In 1992 Nintendo rereleased four of its best-selling games as the Classic Series, each of which produced a variant, detailed below.
Classic Series announcement from Nintendo Power magazine Volume 41
THE LEGEND OF ZELDA -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gold Cartridge
In 1992 Nintendo re-released Zelda as part of its Classic Series and replaced the iconic gold cartridge with a standard-issue NES gray cart. Zelda sold millions and millions of copies so there are a lot more gold carts out there than gray ones. Even so, the re-issue sold well too and the gray cart is very common. Gold carts have the ID Code NES-ZL-USA (if the code appears at all, see 1987​ page), and gray carts have NES-ZL-USA-1.
Gray Cartridge
THE LEGEND OF ZELDA II: THE ADVENTURE OF LINK ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gold Cartridge
Same exact notes as above from Zelda apply to Link as well. Gold carts have the ID Code NES-AL-USA, and gray carts have NES-AL-USA-1.
Gray Cartridge
METROID ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Silver Label
Metroid was also a Classic Series re-issue in 1992 and was given a new yellow label. Unlike Zelda and Link's re-issue carts, yellow label Metroid is much less common than the sliver label version. It's still relatively easy to find a copy though. Silver label games have ID Code NES-MT-USA (if the code appears at all, see 1987 page). Yellow label games have ID Code NES-MT-USA-1.
Yellow Label
PUNCH-OUT!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zoomed In
The label artwork on both versions of Punch-Out!! is the same, but on the Classic Series version it is slightly zoomed out to where the game title is not covering boxer's head. Of the two, the zoomed out version is slightly less common, but neither one is rare. The zoomed in version has ID code NES-QP-USA and a REV-A 2 back label. The zoomed out version has ID Code NES-QP-USA-1 and a REV-A 4 back label.
Zoomed Out
BLADES OF STEEL ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Silver Label
Konami had it's own Classic Series re-issue of Blades of Steel that was given a new red label. The silver label games have ID Code NES-VS-USA, and the red label games have NES-VS-USA-1. Red label copies aren't necessarily rare, but they can be tough to locate.
Red Label
WAYNE GRETZKY HOCKEY --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Black Kings Jersey -1
White Kings Jersey -2
Blank White Jersey -3
NES-ZY-USA
Black Kings Jersey
This is the rarest version.
There are four versions of this game. The first two feature Wayne wearing a black Kings jersey and a helmet. This label comes with ID Code NES-ZY-USA or NES-ZY-USA-1. The third version features a white Kings jersey and is ID Code NES-ZY-USA-2. The fourth version has a blank white jersey and ID Code NES-ZY-USA-3. Most collectors see the blank white jersey cart as the rarest one. However the version that's actually hardest to find is the very first one with NES-ZY-USA.
SUPER MARIO BROS. / DUCK HUNT --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blue Line
It's hard to see, but the first version of SMB/DH has a dark blue border around both games. The second version features a thinner white line under each game. These aren't the main variants however. The blue line version only exists with no SOQ on the label. The white line version only exists with the Oval SOQ on the label. So the real variant for this game is the SOQ. The design change that came with it is secondary. This multi-game cart was included with the NES Action Set and is arguably the most common NES game, regardless of the version.
White Line
SUPER MARIO BROS. / DUCK HUNT / WORLD CLASS TRACK MEET -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mario Red Outfit
The first version of this game features Mario in a red outfit (overalls & hat). The second version features Mario in a white outfit. Just like with SMB/DH above, version 1 only exists with no SOQ, and version 2 only exists with the Oval SOQ. This multi-game cart came with the NES Power Set and both versions are very common.
Mario White Outfit
ROGER CLEMENS' MVP BASEBALL ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Black Label
Based on the PCB date codes I've seen, I believe that the black label version of this game came first, but I'm not 100% sure. Both versions are very common.
White Label
IVAN "IRONMAN" STEWART'S SUPER OFF-ROAD --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4-Player Red-Yellow
The first version of this game features the 4-Player logo with red text and a yellow background, and has ID Code NES-WU-USA. The second version features the 4-Player logo with white text and a red background, and has ID Code NES-WU-USA-1. Both versions are very common.
4-Player White-Red
NES PLAY ACTION FOOTBALL ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4-Player Red Text
The first version of this game features the 4-Player logo with red text and a white background. The second version features the 4-Player logo with white text and a red background. Both versions have the ID Code NES-NB-USA. Both versions are very common.
4-Player White Text
CALTRON 6-IN-1 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Caltron 6-In-1
Myriad Games Six-In-One with Matching Box
The full history of this variant is covered in detail on the Unlicensed Games page of the site. Caltron went out of business after being sued by Nintendo, and its remaining inventory of 6-In-1 went to Myriad Games of Texas. The games were repackaged with their own individually-numbered labels on top of the old Caltron labels, in matching numbered boxes. Caltron 6-In-1 is very rare, the Myriad Six-In-One version is extremely rare, and the Myriad version with a matching box is so rare it's practically non-existent.
COLOR DREAMS CARTRIDGES ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Color Dreams Blue Cart
P'Radikus Conflict
Color Dreams Black Cart
P'Radikus Conflict
Color Dreams released 15 unlicensed games, of which 13 exist in blue and black versions. Black is always harder to find, with some titles being very rare. RoboDemons came in blue only, and Operation Secret Storm came in black only. The Color Dreams unlicensed cartridge design was also used by Bunch Games and Wisdom Tree (both spinoffs of Color Dreams). Bunch Games released 5 games of which 3 exist in blue and black versions, and 2 (Mission Cobra and Tagin' Dragon) are only found in blue. Wisdom Tree released 7 games all in the black cartridge, except for Bible Adventures which exists in both blue and black.
KING OF KINGS: THE EARLY YEARS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blue Label
"Scripture" Text
Blue Label
"To Start Game" Text
Gold Label
The first version of this unlicensed game from Wisdom Tree has a blue label with a disclaimer about the scripture found within the game. The second version has the same label but the disclaimer is about how to get the game to work. The third version has an entirely new gold label that depicts the three wise men charging though the desert toward Bethlehem on their "trusty camels" (according to the game's box). None of these are particularly hard to find, and all three versions are about equally common.
BIBLE ADVENTURES ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blue Cartridge
No Text
No BC-3
Blue Cartridge
Scripture Text
No BC-3
Blue Cartridge
Scripture Text
BC-3
Bible Adventures by Wisdom Tree produced more variants than any other unlicensed USA NES game. Putting aside the different version numbers and back label combinations, there are five main variants to look for. The blue cartridge variant has a front label with no text, a front label with a disclaimer about the scripture found within the game, and a front label with the text and the code "BC-3" under the shield logo in the lower right corner. The black cartridge version has both scripture labels, with and without the code "BC-3" under the shield logo in the lower-right corner.
Black Cartridge
No BC-3
Black Cartridge
BC-3
AMERICAN VIDEO ENTERTAINMENT CARTRIDGES ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AVE Square Cart
DeathBots
AVE Angle Cart
DeathBots
One of the companies that released unlicensed games for the NES was American Video Entertainment. AVE released 18 games in total, and all but 3 of them were produced in both the square and angle cartridge. Rad Racket: Deluxe Tennis II and Venice Beach Volleyball only came in angle cart form, and Maxi 15 only came as a square cart. Which version is harder to find depends on which game it is. What's really hard to find with any of the AVE games is a label that's in decent shape. They are all made from cheap white paper.
MAXI 15 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Maxi 15
blue label
Maxi 15
purple label
Maxi 15 is an unlicensed game released by American Video Entertainment. It is a mix of 15 games in 1 cartridge all of which were previously available as standard releases from AVE, Color Dreams, or ACGI, except for Stakk'm which is a type of Mah Jong game only found on this cart. Both the blue and purple label versions contain exactly the same games. Aside from the color difference, the blue label version actually says "Maxi 15" on the top spine whereas the purple label version has a purple "Press Here" circle that almost makes it all the way onto the spine, but not quite. Maxi 15 is one of the tougher unlicensed games to find, and these two versions seem to exist in nearly equal quantities.
Maxi 15
top spines
Maxi 15 was packaged in a unique foam-lined, rounded hard plastic case which was different than any other NES release - licensed or unlicensed. Despite the cool packaging, and a 30-minute infomercial featuring Hulk Hogan, it was a financial failure for AVE and they ended up wholesaling 5,000 copies to a company called K-Tel International in Canada. K-Tel also did informercials and specialized in "As Seen On TV" products. They put the complete sealed Maxi 15's into a very flimsy yellow box and sold them on TV. A few of these have survived and the "Yellow Box" Maxi 15 is very rare and highly-coveted by collectors today.
Maxi 15
Standard Retail Packaging
Yellow Box Maxi 15
Repackaged by K-Tel International, Canada
INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Taito version (1991)
This one isn't a variant, per se. It's two different games based on the same movie, released by two different companies. Oh, and they happened to choose the exact same picture for the label artwork. The Taito version is pretty common. The Ubisoft version is semi-rare, and can be tough to find.
Ubisoft version (1993)
PAC-MAN -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tengen version (1988)
This is not a variant in the traditional sense. It's the same game, released by two different companies, at two different times. The Tengen version is also available in their unlicensed cartridge, and both are very common. The Namco version is a lot harder to come by, but it's not rare.
Namco version (1993)
TECMO NBA BASKETBALL ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ID Code variants get their own page on this site, so what's special about this one? The standard code for Tecmo NBA Basketball is NES-BK-USA, and there is a later version with NES-BK-USA-1. This version with the entirely new N7 code came later and is very rare, so it gets a special mention here. The N7 version has Michael Jordan removed from the game.
CASTLEVANIA -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
dual Konami
The very first version of Castlevania is a 5-screw cartridge and features two Konami logos on the label, one above the main graphics, and one upside-down that is a wraparound to the top spine label. The second and final version of the label, which also appears on the 5-screw cart, and on all subsequent versions of the game, only has one Konami logo. The single logo label also has a smaller Castlevania logo on the top spine. So this variant only applies to 5-screw Castlevania, as all 3-screw copies have the single Konami label. Both versions on the 5-screw cart seem to be equally common, and neither one is hard to find.
single Konami
large Castelvania logo (dual Konami)
&
small Castlevania logo (single Konami)
KLASHBALL ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
dark label
light label
If you examine enough NES carts you'll eventually find some shading differences from game-to-game. These are typically nothing more than production anomalies where the ink may have been slightly low on a particular roll of labels, causing a dark green font to appear light green, or something to that effect. At first glance these two versions of KlashBall could easily fall into that category, however the differences between them also appear on the game's box, which means this was a deliberate design change and therefore is an official variant. The dark label has a gray stone appearance at the bottom and on the top spine, light blue body armor on the "techno-gladiator", and dark blue water on the planet. The light label has a light-orange stone appearance at the bottom and on the top spine, sliver body armor, and light blue water. Dark label is the common one, and light label is pretty rare. It's not clear if one appeared before the other, or if they were produced at the same time.
dark label
&
light label
Ice Hockey -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ice Hockey has two versions of the Sports Series logo. One with blue text, and the other with white text. It's unclear if one came before the other, or if they overlapped. Both are very common.
Sports Series blue text
Sports Series white text
"Programable" Series --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Two of the three games in the NES black box Programmable Series, Excitebike and Wrecking Crew, have this variant. Some early copies with the first version of the black box label (Circle SOQ, no ID Code, NES no TM, no MiJ) have a larger font on the logo than all the later copies do. This can be found on carts both with and without the Famicom Adapter, so this logo variant is not an indicator for FCA's unfortunately. Unlike most
Large Font Logo
Small Font Logo
mysterious variants, it's pretty obvious why the change was made on this label - typo! The first labels with the larger font misspelled programmable with only one "m". This explains the need for the smaller font on the updated label.
HES CARTS -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sidewinder
HES Flat Cartridge
Sidewinder
HES Piggyback Cartridge
HES Piggyback Cartridge
Top View
Sidewinder
HES Dongle Cartridge
Currently unlicensed games from outside of the USA do not have a page on this site, but it's impossible not to mention these bizarre cartridges from Australian company HES (Home Entertainment Suppliers). Whether you were using an actual NES console, or one of the many available NES or Famicom clone systems, HES had a cartridge that would work for you. They defeated the NES lockout chip by having the player attach a licensed NES game to their cartridge via a built-in port on the "piggyback" cartridge design, or a special adapter with a ribbon cable connection on the "dongle" cartridge design. Either way, this effectively added a working lockout chip to their unlicensed game. Ingenious and annoying at the same time, these games are frustrating to collect because they don't fit into boxes, cases, or on shelves with the rest of your collection.
There is also a sub-variant of the HES flat cartridge design. Earlier releases (Type 1) have a flat top edge with tiny ridges to act as a grab-tab for loading and unloading the game into the console. Later releases (Type 2) have the same ridges, but also a raised lip at very top to make it easier to get the games in and out.
HES Flat Cart
Type 1
HES Flat Cart
Type 2
IMPOSSIBLE MISSION II by S.E.I. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Impossible Mission II
by S.E.I.
color label
Impossible Mission II
by S.E.I.
black & white label
Impossible Mission II is a game that was developed by Epyx and licensed to several different companies for release on multiple different gaming systems. It was never released as an official NES game by Nintendo or any of its licensed publishers. However it was sold as an unlicensed game for the NES by American Video Entertainment in the USA, by HES in Australia, and by an otherwise unknown company called S.E.I. in the USA. This is the only game S.E.I. ever released, and it appeared with two different label versions. Both versions seem to be about equally common, and considering what an obscure release this was, this game is not all that hard to find.