COMPLETE IN BOX ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ready to take the next step in your collection? Loose cartridges are great, but you're ready for the next challenge? Careful what you wish for, because it's time to talk about games that are Complete In Box (CIB). Among collectors, the concept of what constitutes a CIB game is kind of a moving target. The reason for this is that just about every game came with the same basic components (box, cartridge, manual), and also came with a wide variety of other inserts that were often specific to that game and/or specific to that print run of the game. Depending on what marketing material,
contests, promotions, etc., were happening at that moment in time, box inserts can be game-specific, publisher-specific, time-specific, or a combination of all three. There are also a lot of box variants that feature different graphics or stickers (either on the box on the on the cellophane wrapper) that correspond to the promotional inserts inside. The only way to be positive about which components make up a truly 100% complete boxed copy of a game would be to open a sealed copy to see what's inside. This has been done quite a bit over the years, but there is no comprehensive database and there never will be. For all of these reasons, the collecting community decided a long time ago that a CIB copy of an NES game consists of three things: Box, cartridge, and manual. Anything extra that is included simply makes that copy more complete, more desirable, and inherently more valuable. Much like obscure sub-variants on cartridges, some collectors choose to pursue all the additional inserts, and others don't really care enough to do so. This section of the site covers all the basics of NES CIB collecting.
Ninja Gaiden
complete in box with inserts
MANUALS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All NES games, both licensed and unlicensed, came with a manual. The manual explains what the game is about, what the object of the game is, who the characters are, what items to look for, and how the controls work. Just about every manual is in the form of a stapled booklet. A majority are full color, but some are black-and-white. Most manuals measure roughly 5.375in x 4in, however toward the end of the NES era some games were produced with an oversized manual measuring 4.5in x 6.75in (the same size as manuals for Super NES games). Manuals for unlicensed games often had their own unique sizes as well.
Godzilla: Monster of Monsters
standard size color manual
Infiltrator
standard size black & white manual
The 18 games that came with an SNES-sized manual are:
Crystalis
SNES-sized manual
The manuals for Athletic World and Stadium Events are a unique size, 4in x 5.75in. They include instructions for using the "Control Mat", which is the Bandai Family Fun Fitness pad. These instructions were relabeled as "Power Pad" on later copies of Athletic World.
Athletic World manual
Power Pad version
There is no dedicated manual for World Class Track Meet. Instead the instructions for this game are included as part of the manual for the Power Pad. WCTM was only sold as the pack-in game with the sold-alone Power Pad, and therefore it does not have its own box either.
Power Pad manual
includes World Class Track Meet
The only licensed NES game whose manual is not a stapled booklet is Rollerball. The manual for Rollerball is a 2-sided folded poster, like the poster inserts described below.
Rollerball
poster-style manual
The manual for StarTropics is unique in that it has an insert glued to its back cover. At one point in the game the main character Mike has to use a secret radio frequency code hidden in a letter from his Uncle Steve, who he is trying to rescue. The code is written in invisible ink and only becomes visible when the letter is submerged in water. While this is a very creative way to add a real-world element to the game, it made things difficult later on if you played through a second time and no longer had the letter, or if you were renting the game and didn't get it at all. If you have one of these don't destroy it. The code is 747.
StarTopics manual
Uncle Steve letter
Just like with the game cartridges, the amount of variants that exist for manuals are practically endless. Also mirroring the games, some variants occurred across the entire catalog over different periods, and others are game-specific. Game-specific manual variants typically follow the cartridge label variants detailed throughout this site, or align with a promotion advertised on the box. These instances aside, there are four primary characteristics of NES manuals to identify when attempting to tell them apart, and to match them up to their corresponding game and box: Seal of Quality (SOQ), ID Code, Circle T ( Ⓣ ), and Date Code.
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A logical first thing to look at when piecing together a manual variant is the SOQ. SOQ's on manuals are exactly the same as SOQ's on the game cartridges. They have the same variants and follow the same patterns and timelines. Some manuals will have the SOQ on the front cover, but most of them will have it on the inside front cover. There are titles such as Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt that will have one version of the SOQ on the front cover, and the next version moved to the inside front cover, but there is no manual variant with the same SOQ located in two different places.
Tiger-Heli
Oval TM SOQ front cover
Kirby's Adventure
Oval R SOQ inside front cover
The second thing to identify is the manual's ID Code. ID Codes on manuals follow the same format as ID Codes on the game cartridges, but with a few extra things added on as well. The 4th part of the code (-1, -2, etc.) does not correspond to the same part of the code on the game's label, if it exists at all. It does serve the same purpose however, indicating a revised version of the manual. The other symbol you will often see with the ID Code on a manual is either a leading or
trailing star ( * ). NES games run the risk of damaging projection TV systems. Projection TV's shoot images onto a screen from across the room, just like in a movie theatre. Games that have a background image that doesn't change much, or that get left on pause for an extended period, will cause a phenomenon known as "burn-in" on the screen. This is where the static image becomes permanently marked on the screen, even after the scene changes or the game is turned off. Several of the games had a separate insert in the box warning about this potential damage, but it was eventually added directly into the manuals as well. The addition of the star symbol to the ID Code was to indicate that the manual contained the Projection TV Warning.
Blaster Master
leading star
Rygar
trailing star
Projection TV Warning box insert
NES-RPTV-USA
Marble Madness
in-manual Projection TV Warning
The third thing to look for when identifying a manual variant is a new symbol - the Circle T ( Ⓣ ). Starting around January 1990 the manuals dropped the stars in favor of this (apparently) more standardized and identifiable symbol. The Ⓣ isn't necessarily an industry standard, or something that is universally recognized like the trademark symbols on the game cartridges, but in the case of the NES it basically indicates that there is a Projection TV Warning contained within. It's unlikely that anyone who bought an NES game knew what this symbol meant, and it took collectors analyzing countless manuals to figure it out, but it's an important manual variant nonetheless. Not surprisingly, there are a few manuals that ended up with both a star and a Ⓣ while the changeover was happening.
Conquest of the Crystal Palace
Circle T ( Ⓣ ) manual
Dragon Warrior II
* and Ⓣ manual
The fourth thing to check on a manual is whether or not it has a date code. Do you remember date codes from the PCB's page? These are just like that, only different. Seemingly at random, around October 1988, most (but not all) NES manuals started getting a date code printed on the bottom-right corner of the last page. These codes continued to appear on a majority of manuals through the end of production. Other than the same codes also appearing on box ear flaps (see below), the addition of these date codes to the manuals does not correspond to any other design update or specific change to the product line. Unlike the multitude of date code formats on IC chips, the manual date codes are all the same format: 1-digit year - 2-digit month - 2-digit day (YMMDD). This is true even on European releases where dates are typically expressed as day, then month. For example, the code 10522 would translate to May 22, 1991.
DuckTales manual date code
90920 - September 20, 1989
Also not unlike the game cartridges, there are some additional variants to learn about when you're collecting manuals from PAL regions. In the early days of distribution outside of the USA there was apparently some cost cutting going on with the game packaging, which included the manuals. The result was a cheap, black & white, folded-up, poster-style manual that at first glance looks like it has to be a photocopy. No way this could be the real manual, right? Yeah, it is. This style of manual was included with the early versions of the short box packaging described below.
Super Mario Bros.
Version Española (PAL-B)
black & white poster-style manual
At a certain point, presumably after Nintendo's international distribution channels were more established, the non-USA manuals were color-coded with a triangle in the upper-left corner of the front cover. It's not really clear what practical purpose this served. The manuals already had ID codes on the front cover that included their respective region codes. Also, some of the colors were similar looking, and would vary somewhat in shade between different titles. I labeled them here for reference, but these are my own made-up color names, nothing official. Games that had these manuals also had an ear flap of the box color-coded to match.
regional color markings for non-USA manuals
Crackout (UKV)
dark green box ear flap
The first copies of the manuals for the 17 original launch titles have a misprint on the back cover which lists Nintendo's PO Box address as "9572" instead of "957". It is believed that this error was very quickly corrected, and that these manuals only match up to the boxes with Matte Sticker Seals described below.
Duck Hunt
9572 manual
Duck Hunt
957 manual
BOXES ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Whether it's toys, vinyl records, VHS tapes, or video games, cardboard packaging is easily the most challenging thing for collectors to find in like-new condition. It creases and tears easily, it gets soft and even moldy when subjected to fluctuations in temperature and humidity, and colors fade after even brief periods of sunlight exposure. A good condition box will increase the value of a game exponentially, causing most collectors to either lower their standards for acceptable condition, be more selective about which CIB titles to go after, or not collect them at all. Very few people attempt to get a full CIB NES set simply because it would be so expensive. An NES box measures roughly 7.125in tall x 5in wide x 1in deep. This is significantly taller than the game cartridge and serves no practical purpose. The first version of the box featured a hang tab cutout on the back that could be popped out and used to hang the games on a peg
hook. These boxes were originally sealed with a small round sticker over the flap to allow the hang tab to be accessed. Later the boxes were wrapped in cellophane to seal them, and soon after the hang tabs were also replaced with the more common "flat back" boxes. There was a brief overlap where hang tab boxes were sealed with cellophane. In Canada and Europe sticker seals were used on many games for the entire NES life span. The very first copies of the 17 black box launch titles had a sticker seal with a dull appearance and texture. These are known as Matte Sticker Seals. The next version had the same sized sticker, but with a glossy finish. These are known as Gloss Sticker Seals. Sticker seals are only found on black box games. By the time Nintendo stopped using the black box design, and the first 3rd-party titles were coming out, all games were sealed with cellophane. The cellophane was sealed across the back and up the sides of the box, creating the shape of an "H". Therefore the seals on NES boxes are called H-Seams. Boxes for unlicensed games are all the same size as licensed games, which makes sense as they would have been competing for the same retail shelf space and different sizes would have complicated that.
Stadium Events box
Duck Hunt
Hang Tab box
Gyromite
Matte Sticker Seal
Gyromite
Gloss Sticker Seal
Metal Gear
Flat Back box
Ice Hockey
H-Seam cellophane seal
The center part of the hang tab that gets removed when hanging the game is called the sombrero, for what I believe are obvious reasons.
Tennis
punched-out sombrero
Hang tab boxes only contained 5-Screw carts. So if you see a graded CIB game that is labeled as Hang Tab and "matching components", there's a 5-Screw game in there.
ID Codes on boxes follow the same timeline and patterns as the carts and manuals. If a box has an ID Code it will be on the ear flaps, under the lid. Just like with the manuals, most NES boxes started getting a YMMDD date code printed on them around October 1988, located under the ID Code on the right ear flap. Occasionally the ID code will also have a star symbol, like the manuals sometimes do. It is not confirmed exactly what the star on the ear flap actually represents. There have been a few different theories about it, but nothing that has been conclusively proven.
R.C. Pro-Am
Star Code Ear Flap
00525 Date Code
The bottom of NES boxes have four tabs that fold into each other and lock together. The box technically isn't sealed at the bottom and it is possible to unfold the box and flatten it out. Boxes that have ID Codes on the ear flaps will also have the code on the bottom flaps as well, along with a random number that is a marker for the printing process.
Monopoly
bottom flap ID Code
Like everything else NES, box variants have their own set of rules and patterns. Some of the more obvious game-specific variants are exactly like their cartridge counterparts, such as Super Mario Bros. 3, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, Gun.Smoke, and the Classic Series games. Like the black box game carts, the actual black boxes have a multitude of little sub-variants involving different codes and trademarks, and it is commonly known that there are more than 10 specific "prints" of the black boxes. SOQ and REV-A variations follow the same patterns and timelines as the cartridges. Then there are all kinds of overlapping minor text edits that evolved over time usually involving ZIP codes, warranty statements, and even things like number placement on UPC's. Pictured below are some of the more significant and widely known box-only variants. No matter what your level of interest in is box variants, you'll want to be familiar with these as they will always factor into the conversation when talking about CIB for these titles.
The Legend of Zelda
ladder scene & water scene
Mega Man
Dr. Wright & Dr. Wily
Rad Racer
day scene & night scene
Dragon Warrior
1HP & 2HP
Hollywood Squares
blue box & black box
Tecmo Bowl
left & right football
Athletic World
FamilyFunFitness & Power Pad boxes
Ring King
without & with Ray Leonard Jr. banner
Flying Dragon: The Secret Scroll
red box & white box
Lunar Pool
Stage 01 & Stage 25 screenshots
One thing that a lot of boxes feature that game cartridges do not is a promotional offer. Some games have versions that include items in the box like stickers or coupons. Other have giveaways, contests, or special merchandise offers. How these promotions were advertised varied from game-to-game. Some had banners or logos printed on the box, others had stickers applied to the outer cellophane wrapping. The promotions always resulted in some different and/or additional inserts being included in the box. So not only do they create a box variant, the corresponding content becomes its own set of variants as well. Below are a few examples.
Vegas Dream
Las Vegas coupon book offer
promotional sticker on cellophane
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse
Dracula's hometown trip contest
promotional ad printed on box
Little Nemo the Dream Master
Mega Man sticker offer
promotional banner printed on box
Kabuki: Quantum Fighter
free T-shirt & poster offer
promotional sticker on cellophane
There are four games that came in special over-sized packaging because they included an accessory specific to the game. They are known as "Big Box" variants. Stack-Up and Gyromite included their
ROB accessories, Arkanoid included the Vaus paddle controller, and Where In Time is Carmen Sandiego? included a paperback encyclopedia that could be used to find the answers needed to complete the game. They are pictured here together for scale.
NES Big Box variants
Gyromite, Where In Time Is Carmen Sandiego?, Stack-Up, Arkanoid
Early 1st-party (Nintendo-published) PAL-B releases labeled as European Version, and also Asian Version and Hong Kong Version releases, were sold in a smaller box that was the same size as the game cartridge. These are known as "Short Box" variants. When these same games were released later on in standard-sized boxes, the Short Box counterpart is referred to as the "Long Box" variant.
Soccer
Short Box European Version (PAL-B) &
Long Box FRA (PAL-B)
PACKAGING ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Most people think of the packaging materials that surround new products in the box as something to be ripped open and thrown away. This is why collectors hold these items in very high regard. They don't survive too often, especially in good condition. NES console sets have a ton of items that fall into this category, but the games really only have three things: Sleeves, game bags, and styrofoam.
Every game came packaged in a very nice plastic sleeve. These were sturdy but also flexible, and clearly not meant to be just thrown away. The sleeve offered kids a way to keep their games protected (and clean) once they were no longer safe in their boxes. 1st-party (Nintendo-published) games included a sleeve with the Nintendo logo on it, in a red-orange color. 3rd-party games came in a plain black sleeve. Sometime around 1993, seemingly right about when the late-model GameBit screws went into use, the Nintendo logo became a shiny red-pink color. These late- release sleeves are known as "foil logo" since they they have a metallic, reflective appearance. Over the years there were some slight variations in the weight and texture of the plastic. The most noticeable is that sleeves from the first 1-2 years are a lot thicker and more rigid than ones produced later on.
NES logo, NES red foil logo, and plain black sleeves
original NES logo
red foil NES logo
Here's a pro tip for anyone that has some of these sleeves and is looking for the best way to store them. PLEASE do not force one sleeve inside of another one. This is guaranteed to deform and damage both sleeves. The best way to do it is to nest the sleeves at a 90-degree angle. This saves just as much space and causes no damage.
nested sleeves - incorrect
nested sleeves - correct
Without question the piece of packing material that most often got thrown away was the game bag. Games came packaged inside the sleeve, and then in this clear plastic bag. They are open on the bottom end and were folded over, not sealed, which is a good thing because if they were taped shut it's a safe bet that almost none of them would have survived. The bags have a small round hole punched through them right in the middle. There are a couple really minor variations of this hole punch, but we're talking millimeters of diameter, so for all intensive purposes the bags are all the same. The only exception is the game bag that was included with The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. The boxes for these games were die cut so that the shiny gold cartridge showed though, and the game bags have a very large hole cut out near the upper left corner for the same reason.
standard NES game bag
Zelda game bag
Pirates!
CIB with game bag
The last piece of packaging in an NES box is a piece of white styrofoam that sits at the bottom of the box to fill the empty space not taken up by the game. Almost all of these are exactly the same for every game, except for the 18 titles mentioned above that have the SNES-sized manuals. These manuals are taller than the game cartridge, and therefore need to go down further into the box. This was accomplished by using a thinner piece of styrofoam. They're easy to spot because they are a blend of blue and white material. There is a third styrofoam variant that was only used with Monster In My Pocket. This game came with one of four exclusive action figures in the box, and the only way to make it fit was to make a shorter piece of styrofoam that the figure could insert beside. There are also two games, Captain Planet and the Planeteers and M.C. Kids, that used a cardboard spacer instead of a styrofoam one. It is believed that in both cases this was done to be more environmentally-friendly. Captain Planet of course is on a constant mission to save the planet from pollution. McDonald's at that time was the largest consumer of styrofoam in the United States and had recently stopped using it to due to pressure from customers and environmental groups.
standard, SNES manual style, and Monster In My Pocket (with figure) NES styrofoam box inserts
Captain Planet and the Planeteers
cardboard spacer insert
One other thing that falls into the category of packaging is the plastic hang tag. Lots of stores still wanted to merchandise the games on peg hooks after the built in hang tabs were gone, so you'll often find these attached to the cellophane on games that are either sealed, or still have the wrapping in tact. They're not really a variant, just something to be aware of.
Tetris
plastic hang tag
INSERTS --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Box inserts may very well be the final frontier of NES collecting. With close to 700 games produced across countless print runs, comprising of numerous variations, there are hundreds of unique inserts - and that's not counting the manuals. Most inserts have a 3-part ID Code not unlike the codes for games, manuals, and boxes. However, there are examples where the same code was used for different inserts from the same publisher. You can sort inserts into four basic categories: Poster, Registration Card, Nintendo Power Subscription Card, and Everything Else.
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Most NES games came with a folded up poster in the box. Some were one-sided, blank on the back, and some were doubled-sided. They also came in a variety of sizes and fold patterns. Posters featured all kinds of things including game art, advertisements, maps and guides, promotions, and contests. Below are a few examples of folded poster inserts.
The Nintendo Game Plan poster
no ID Code
FCI poster
FCI-NES-US
Alfred Chicken poster
MIN-AC-US
Konami poster (double-sided)
KON-NES-US
Ghost Lion map & guide poster (double-sided)
NES-LL-USA
Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!
letter from Mike poster
no ID Code
Nobunaga's Ambition II poster & map (double-sided)
KOE-NU-US
Marble Madness poster (double-sided)
MIL-MV-US
LJN poster
LJN-NES-US
All NES games came with a 90-day limited manufacturer's warranty against defects and product failure. 1st-party Nintendo-published titles had instructions in the manual how to contact Nintendo and file a warranty claim. If a return was authorized it had to be accompanied by a dated proof-of-purchase. Nintendo also offered warranty assistance at their World Class Service Centers around the country. Games released by 3rd-party publishers all had mail-in processes for warranty claims. Unlike Nintendo, customers first had to fill out and mail in a registration card included with the game in order to register their copy and activate the warranty. In a lot of cases publishers used the same registration card for several different games in their catalog. Other registration cards are game-specific. Other than the manuals, registration cards are the most popular inserts among collectors. I definitely feel this way, and I have no idea why. Below are a few examples of registration cards.
Tradewest registration card
TRA-NES-US
FCI registration card
FCI-NES-US-2
Konami registration card
KON-NES-US-2
LJN registration card
LJN-NES-US-1
Capcom registration card
CAP-NES-US-1
Sunsoft registration card
SUN-NES-US
Most games came with an insert for Nintendo Power magazine, and before that for its predecessor the Nintendo Fun Club Newsletter. A few examples of these inserts are below.
Nintendo Fun Club Newsletter insert
no ID Code
Nintendo Power insert
PMG-US
Nintendo Power insert
PMG-VR-USA
Nintendo Power insert
PMG-USA-1
Nintendo Power insert
PMG-USA
Nintendo Power insert
GP-NES-USA
Nintendo Power insert
GP-DMG-USA
Nintendo Power insert
PMG-BB-USA
Finally, there is the category of inserts I'm calling "Everything Else". Giveaways, promotions, coupons, contests, warnings, manual updates, and more can all be found packaged in with an NES game. Below are a few examples.
Consumer Info Booklet
Nintendo
NES-USA/CAN-2
Free Games! Contest Card
Electro Brain
ELE-NES-US
Watch Offer with Address Label
Tecmo
TEC-NES-US
Double Dragon "Bounce" Warning
Tradewest
NES-WD-US
Seizure Warning
Nintendo
NES-DOC-USA
The Mega Man Refund
Capcom
CAP-NES-US-3
One insert was also an actual gameplay accessory - 3D Glasses. Rad Racer, 3-D WorldRunner, and ORB-3D were all programmed for 3D and came packaged with 3D glasses, each pictured here.
3D Glasses Inserts