I've been wondering about this for a while and figured some of you guys might know. The label on my copy of Donkey Kong Land 2 doesn't seem to match up with any I've ever seen elsewhere. It has the later-version black ESRB logo and the product code doesn't seem to match up with other DKL2s I've seen. I suspected that it might be a fake, but the cart itself looks legit (security screw and all) and it's an actual Nintendo ROM inside, not a gloptop or anything. It's hard to imagine a pirate operation creating such an immaculate fake only to mess up on the label. Do I have some sort of rare variant or am I just a sucker?
^^Like a homemade one? I considered that, too, but I don't think that's it. Besides the fact that it's pretty weathered, it doesn't have a weird texture or anything, plus why would someone go to the trouble of making a whole different label with a different product code? Also, you can't really see it in the photo but it has the little impressed numbers on the sticker that Game Boy games always had which is a VERY subtle detail. It's all very odd, and I'm very curious now... e: here's a couple pictures of the actual ROM in case anyone can spot some sign of fakery that I might have missed.
Looking around the net tells me that DMG-ADDE-USA and -USA-1 are the original release and a Player's Choice re-release, so, with the battery and other chips apparently being dated 1999 and the ESRB switching from the "K-A" rating to "E" in 1998, my guess would be that this is another, very late (and uncommon) re-release?
Hmmm, that's really odd. The ESRB didn't switch to the solid black lettering until 1999 so I guess it all depends on when in 1998 Donkey Kong Land 2 was reissued. Maybe the ESRB switched up their branding midway through the production run and Nintendo had to print all new labels?
Well, I don't know exactly how the ESRB's changeover from K-A to E went, I just know that, according to Wikipedia, they switched to E in 1998. (Edit: Yeah, forgot about the "fuzzy-white" E, styled like the previous ratings.) That aside tho, the cartridge is from 1999 at the earliest anyway, because as I mentioned, the battery and chips appear to be dated that: battery from week 09(?), the ROM from week 34, the RAM from week 07... So based on the ROM's date code, I'd guess it's from late 1999?
Now that I think about it, I've seen Pokemon Yellow with both the fuzzy and solid E as well. I wonder how many other games have variants with both? Maybe I ought to make a list sometime.
I wondered this myself since I had two Pokemon Yellow Versions, one with black and one with the white. Glad this thread answered that for me.
