How to Spot a Fake Neo Geo AES or MVS Cartridge
SNK Neo Geo AES & MVS: what to check before you buy.
Start with the best method and the universal red flags in the main guide; they apply to every platform. This page covers what is specific to the SNK Neo Geo AES & MVS.
The financial stakes here are the highest in the hobby. Neo Geo AES cartridges routinely sell for hundreds to many thousands of dollars, which makes them the most economically attractive fakes in retro collecting.
The most common Neo Geo scam is an MVS-to-AES conversion: taking a cheap arcade (MVS) board and putting it in a home (AES) shell, sometimes with a modified BIOS chip to make it boot on home hardware. These are functional games, but they are not genuine AES releases, and the value gap between MVS and AES for many titles is enormous.
What to check
- Board layout and part numbers. Genuine AES boards and genuine MVS boards have different layouts and different SNK part numbers. Know which board revision your target title shipped on. This is title-specific research, and there is no shortcut.
- Chip markings and dates. SNK mask ROMs carry SNK markings and date codes. A conversion will often show mismatched date codes across chips, or chips from the wrong era entirely.
- Added or socketed chips. Conversions commonly require adding a chip or a small daughterboard. Any socket, wire, or piggyback on a Neo Geo board is a serious flag.
- Shell and label. Genuine AES shells have specific molding; labels have specific printing and, on many titles, a particular finish. Fakes have improved a lot here.
- Region. Japanese AES and US AES releases have different labels and, for some titles, different board content. Verify what you're actually buying.
Practical advice: at Neo Geo prices, do not buy from an unknown seller without board photographs, and consider paying for third-party authentication. The community forums that specialize in Neo Geo authentication are the best available resource and are far more granular than any general guide can be.
Values and counterfeit patterns shift constantly. Cross-reference specific titles against current market data and community authentication threads before any significant purchase.