Finds 2060: Super Disk and Friends

There’s something special about the moment when a collection levels up—not just in size, but in personality. This latest haul leans hard into that late-era Famicom ecosystem where official hardware blurred into the wild world of third-party innovation, imports, and bootleg creativity.

Front and center are the Super Disk Interceptor units, instantly recognizable with their chunky gray shells and bold branding. These devices are part of that fascinating chapter in retro gaming where players found ways to expand beyond cartridges—dabbling in disk-based formats, copying, and preservation long before it was mainstream. Whether used for backups or exploring otherwise hard-to-find titles, they represent a kind of DIY spirit that defined gaming in many parts of the world.

Surrounding them is a spread of Famicom cartridges, and this is where things get really fun. The translucent green shells, the colorful (and sometimes questionably printed) labels, and the mix of multi-carts and standalone titles all point to the golden age of unlicensed releases. You’ve got that unmistakable aesthetic—bold fonts, slightly off-model artwork, and a sense that anything could be on these carts. Sometimes that meant hidden gems, sometimes chaotic hacks, but always a surprise.

One standout piece is the boxed title with anime-style artwork, which adds a splash of personality and reminds you how much crossover there was between gaming and anime culture in Japan and beyond. Even if you don’t immediately recognize the title, it captures a vibe that’s instantly nostalgic.

What ties this whole pickup together is how it reflects a different side of retro gaming history—one that isn’t just about official releases or pristine collections, but about accessibility, experimentation, and the global spread of gaming culture. These pieces weren’t always polished, but they were played, shared, and loved.

Additions like these don’t just fill shelves—they tell stories. And this one? It’s loud, colorful, a little unpredictable, and absolutely essential to the full picture of retro gaming.

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Finds 2038: Fami-love from Taiwan

New Arrivals from Taiwan – Famicom Games & Mystery Boards
The Retro Gaming Life collection just grew with a new shipment arriving from Taiwan, packed with classic Famicom cartridges and a handful of intriguing mystery boards. This type of pickup perfectly represents the lesser-documented side of retro gaming history, especially in regions where unlicensed and bootleg games flourished.
Among the cartridges are recognizable titles like Rainbow Islands, Tag Team Pro Wrestling, and Super Chinese, all presented in colorful Famicom shells typical of Asian releases. Alongside them are several unknown circuit boards, each offering clues about manufacturing methods, chip sourcing, and regional distribution practices.
These boards may have once lived inside pirate carts, multicarts, or educational releases — uncovering their origins is part of the excitement. This haul isn’t just about playing games; it’s about preserving and understanding the global story of 8-bit gaming.

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Retro-Bit of the Day: Honey Peach (Famicom, Sachen)

Today’s Retro-Bit of the Day focuses on Honey Peach, an unlicensed Famicom game released in 1990 by Sachen. Unlike traditional action or platform games of the era, Honey Peach is built around a rock-paper-scissors mechanic rather than reflex-based gameplay.
Each match requires the player to win two out of three rounds against an opponent. With each loss, the opponent removes an article of clothing. There are six opponents total, each with three stages before the match is fully completed. Upon winning, the game supplies a password that can be entered at the title screen, allowing players to skip directly to specific opponents.
While often remembered for its controversial presentation, Honey Peach stands as a historical example of how unlicensed developers experimented with unconventional gameplay concepts during the late Famicom era.

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Famiclone Labels Update!

A whole new set of labels have been added to the archives! Make sure to check it out here or at the Famicom tab. Here is the list! 

• Guerilla Wars
• Gremlins 2
• Gremlins 2 Alt
• Heavy Barrel
• Double Dragon 2
• P.O.W.

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Finds 2035: Dracula Kid, DEC, Mystery Cart, and Controllers!

🎄 Merry Christmas & New Retro Additions to the Collection! 🎮
Merry Christmas to everyone celebrating out there! 🎅🎄 I hope the holidays are treating you well with good food, good company, and—of course—some classic gaming time. Today I wanted to share a few new additions to the collection that recently landed on my desk, and they’re some really fun ones.
First up, we’ve got a handful of Famicom bootleg cartridges, each with that unmistakable late-era charm. From colorful shells to wild label art, these carts really capture the creativity (and chaos) of the bootleg scene. One of them even features bold Chinese characters and dramatic artwork that instantly makes you curious about what kind of game experience you’re about to get.
Alongside the cartridges are a couple of Seniton Famicom-style controllers. These have that classic rectangular design we all know and love, complete with turbo buttons and a sturdy, no-nonsense feel. They’re perfect companions for testing mystery carts or just enjoying some old-school sessions.
Now for the most interesting piece of the bunch:🧠 The mystery game board (PCB).
I picked up this loose cartridge board with no shell and no label—just pure hardware. It’s always fascinating to examine these boards up close, from the ROM chips to the layout itself. This one has me especially curious, and I haven’t identified it yet.
So here’s where you come in 👇Can you guess what game this PCB belongs to?Drop your guesses in the comments or reach out if you recognize the board layout or chip markings. I love turning this hobby into a community detective effort!
Thanks for sticking around, supporting the collection updates, and sharing the love for retro gaming. More posts, testing, and deep dives are coming soon.
Once again—Merry Christmas and happy gaming! 🎄🕹️

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Famiclone Games Label Restorations! Goblin, Power Blade, Rockman V, and TMNT 2

I had these four games for a little bit now which came with either damaged labels or no labels at all. I finally found the time to restore them. Even though I had the TMNT 2, Power Blade, and Rockman V labels ready for printing, the Goblin(Pac-Man title hack) was something I had to work on. I will talk about that oddity in a bit. I used white glossy sticker label paper and have to say, I really love how they came out and I'm enjoying using this new paper.

As you can see, I had to put them through photoshop and edited them to the size accordingly. I do regret to say that all of them fit except the Goblin cart as the size is a little bigger than the other ones. I guess I should've measured that one as well but only realized that it was a little bigger than the others once I was sticking the labels. It still looks really good honestly.

You can see the carts with no labels ready to be given new life! 

Rockman V

Power Blade

Goblin

TMNT 2

Speaking of Goblin, here is the title screen of the game. I believe that's all that's different about it although maybe I need to play the game a little bit more to see if there are more surprises in store. 

Until next time! Game on!

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Dragon Fighter Famiclone Label Variant Added

Here is a new label added to the database. This one has been reworked and removes the blue banner it had on the title. It's a good variant for you guys to use. Be sure to check out the Famiclone Labels section to find this and many other labels! 

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Finds 2019: Famiclone Game Lot Find! Additions of Various Themes

Another fun haul has landed in the collection — a small but colorful mix of Famiclone cartridges packed with mystery and retro goodness! Each of these carts carries its own charm, from classic fighters to quirky platformers and everything in between. It’s always exciting to see what kind of surprises these unlicensed and third-party releases have to offer.

This lot includes some interesting titles:

1. Dragon Fighter – a fantasy action game with that classic early 90s anime-inspired art.

2. Don Doko Don – a fun and obscure title that gives off that cute and strange Japanese arcade vibe.

3. Street Fighter III (九人街霸) – another wild Famiclone version of the iconic fighting game. These pirate ports always have fascinating tweaks, strange hit detection, and unforgettable sprite work!

4. Quantum Fighter - An awesome side scroller that not many people talk about. 

5. Power Blaze - I have never seen this game before so it's a really wonderful addition to the collection. This is another side scroller gem. 

6. Alongside those, there are a few mystery carts — including one with a worn label that’s begging to be tested. You never know what hidden gem (or glitchy bootleg) might be waiting inside!

There’s something truly nostalgic about these cartridges — the different colored shells, the odd label art, and that sense of discovery every time you plug one in. They perfectly capture that wild side of Famicom collecting, where every game tells a different story from the gray market world of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.

I’ll be checking each of these out soon to see which ones boot up and what kind of surprises they hold. No matter what, this lot brings another wave of retro flavor to the collection.

Stay tuned for gameplay tests and more retro discoveries —
Retro Gaming Life keeps growing one cartridge at a time!

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Famicom Fridays: Rocman X

Welcome back to another edition of Famicom Fridays, our weekly deep dive into a fascinating or forgotten part of Sega’s (and sometimes other 8-bit era) history! This week’s pick is one of the more curious titles to appear on the Famicom — Rocman X, a game that might look familiar at first glance, but carries its own strange legacy in gaming history.

Developed by Sachen, an unlicensed Taiwanese developer active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Rocman X is a bootleg-style platformer that borrows heavily from Capcom’s Mega Man series — right down to its name and blue-helmeted hero. Released around 1994 for the Famicom (NES), it was never officially sanctioned by Nintendo or Capcom, making it one of the many oddities from the unlicensed gaming scene of the time.

In Rocman X, players control Rocman as he battles through robotic enemies and futuristic stages to stop a villainous organization threatening the world. The gameplay mechanics mimic the Mega Man formula — jumping, shooting, and dodging obstacles — but with distinct quirks. Enemies drop collectible energy icons, and level designs can feel unpredictable or unusually challenging.

What really makes Rocman X interesting today is its place in gaming’s “gray market” history. During the Famicom’s prime years, companies like Sachen filled the market in Asia with unofficial releases that often cloned or reimagined popular titles. Rocman X became one of the more recognizable examples due to its obvious Mega Man inspiration — and its surprisingly decent graphics and catchy 8-bit soundtrack for an unlicensed game.

While it’s not an official Mega Man game, Rocman X stands as a nostalgic curiosity — a glimpse into the bootleg creativity that thrived in the 8-bit era. Collectors of Famicom cartridges often seek it out for its rarity and the novelty of owning one of gaming’s more infamous “unofficial sequels.”

🎮 Platform: Famicom (NES compatible)
🏭 Developer/Publisher: Sachen
📅 Release Year: 1994
👾 Genre: Action / Platformer

✨ Fun Fact: In some regions, Rocman X was rebranded under different names, including Thunder Blast Man, depending on the distributor — further adding to its mysterious legacy in the world of Famicom oddities!

Stay tuned for next week’s Famicom Fridays, where we’ll continue to unearth more hidden gems and forgotten titles from Japan’s beloved 8-bit era!

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Finds 2010: Lost and Found Again, Long-lost Lot Returns!

Famiclone Lot Returns!

Every collector dreams of rediscovering something they thought was gone forever. Today, that dream became a reality for me. A treasure trove of unofficial and bootleg gems that defined the wild side of 8-bit gaming. This package was sent and then it disappeared, not until months later I found out that the sender got the package sent back and we decided to try again! All hope was lost, until now!

These aren’t your typical licensed Nintendo cartridges — they’re bold, colorful, and unapologetically bootleg. Each one tells its own story, blending official art, borrowed titles, and odd translations that make the Famiclone scene so fascinating. Seeing them again brought me right back to the days when clone systems ruled markets across Asia and Latin America, offering unique versions of games you couldn’t find anywhere else.

Let’s take a closer look at some of these rediscovered treasures:

• Double Dragon III (Bootleg) – A gritty take on the classic beat ‘em up, this cartridge captures that unmistakable bootleg label design of the early ‘90s.

• Low G Man: The Low Gravity Man – A sci-fi action platformer by Taxan that remains a hidden gem on the Famicom and NES.

• Attack of the Killer Tomatoes – A lesser-known shoot ‘em up featuring a schoolgirl protagonist taking on bizarre enemies.

• Daiku no Gen-san (Hammerin’ Harry) – The classic construction worker hero makes an appearance here in one of his toughest 8-bit adventures.

• Moon Crystal – A rare and highly sought-after Famicom platformer known for its animation and story-driven gameplay.

• Mahjong Trap (TC-010) – A quirky mahjong game with flashy label art that perfectly captures the Famiclone spirit.

• Wing of Madoola (Sunsoft Bootleg) – The cartridge label hints at an anime-style side-scrolling shooter.

• Mysterious Blue Cart – The label is completely worn off, leaving its contents a mystery until tested. Could be anything from Contra to Mario Bros. — that’s part of the fun!

• Mighty Final Fight – It's just a board, will need to get a case and label for it. 

Rediscovering these Famiclone cartridges reminds me why I love collecting in the first place. It’s not just about pristine boxes or rare licensed releases — it’s about the stories behind each find, the culture of gaming piracy, and the creativity that thrived outside official channels.

These carts are now proudly back in my collection, a reminder of the bootleg charm that shaped so much of gaming’s underground history.

Stay tuned to RetroGamingLife.com for more retro gaming stories, discoveries, and obscure treasures from the world of Famicom and beyond!

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Famiclone Labels Update! Restoration Complete!

As some of you may know, I came across some old unused labels that belong to Famiclone games. They are quite rare to find as these belong in the manufacturing stage of these games. I did my hardest to restore all of them and I'm finally done with it! Be sure to check out this last batch of Famiclone labels which are all already live on the Famiclone Labels Section. The list of this final update is below:

• City Connection
• Ikari Warriors
• Gradius
• Falsion
• Highway Star
• Lupin the 3rd
• Pachi Com
• Pro Wrestling
• Saint Seya
• Star Force
• Salamander
• Urusei Yatsura Lum's Wedding Bell
• Wild Gunman

Some of them have already been uploaded on here, but there are some differences in them such as the serial number or art. Let me know what you think! 

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Finds 1973: Bootleg Bonanza - New NES Carts Join the Collection!

There’s nothing quite like the wild world of NES bootlegs—and I just added some fantastic (and hilariously bizarre) new cartridges to my collection. Bootleg games are one of my favorite parts of retro collecting because you never know what surprises you’ll find, both inside and out. Let’s check out the latest additions:

🎮 Super Wonderful Mario
First up, we have “Super Wonderful Mario,” featuring a label with a slightly terrifying Mario and Princess Peach on it. The artwork alone is worth the price of admission—it’s like a fever dream version of the Mushroom Kingdom. I’m dying to pop this in and see what kind of Mario adventure (or hack) awaits.

🐵 Donkey Kong Clone (Unknown Title)
Next, there’s another gray cart with a pink label featuring Donkey Kong tossing barrels. It’s clearly trying to ride on the coattails of Nintendo’s classic, but who knows if it’s a direct port, a bizarre hack, or a completely different game hiding under a misleading label. Bootleggers love to keep us guessing.

🗒 52-in-1 Multicart
No bootleg collection is complete without a multicart, and this gray beauty boasts “52-in-1” on the label, with a list of game titles in Chinese characters and colorful cartoon artwork. These multicarts are legendary for cramming as many games (and repeats) as possible onto a single cartridge. Whether it’s 52 unique games or just five games repeated under different names remains to be seen—but that’s part of the fun!

⚾ Super Sports Challenge
Last but not least, there’s a black cart labeled “Super Sports Challenge,” featuring a mishmash of sports scenes: baseball, soccer, tennis, and BMX. The label alone screams 90s sports cheese, and I’m fully prepared for some janky but entertaining sports action—or possibly a glitchy mess. Either way, I’m in.

Collecting bootlegs is like gaming archaeology. Each cart is a mystery, and half the thrill is discovering whether it’s a playable gem, a hilarious hack, or an unplayable oddity. I’ll be testing these out soon and reporting back on what treasures (or disasters) I find.

Have you ever encountered any of these specific bootlegs in your own collecting adventures? Let me know your stories in the comments—I’d love to hear them!

Happy hunting, and long live the bootlegs!

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Finds 1972: New Bootleg Famicom Carts Join the Collection!

My retro game hunting continues to deliver surprises, and this week I’ve added some classic bootleg Famicom cartridges to the shelves. There’s just something magical about these carts—the odd color shells, the mysterious labels, and the pure unpredictability of what’s inside. Here’s a closer look at the latest finds:

🔫 Gun.Smoke (by Toyo)
This cream-colored cartridge features awesome western artwork, complete with a cowboy locked and loaded. I’m pretty sure it’s a bootleg version of Capcom’s arcade hit Gun.Smoke. I love how bootleg labels often try so hard to look official yet always feel slightly off in the best way possible.

🎱 Side Pocket
This bright orange cart sports a photo-realistic label of a pool player lining up his shot. Side Pocket is a classic billiards game, but who knows if the ROM inside is actually the real thing—or a random multi-game menu featuring totally unrelated games. That’s the fun part of testing these bootlegs!

🟥 Nintendo “Punching Game” Cart
This red cart is the biggest mystery of the bunch. The label features Japanese text and what looks like an overhead maze-style screenshot. It says “© Nintendo 1985,” but with bootlegs, you never know if it’s legit or not. Could it be Punch-Out!!? Or some obscure title masquerading under a fake label? Only one way to find out—plug it in and see!

What I love about collecting bootleg Famicom carts is the sense of adventure. Sometimes they’re faithful ports, other times they’re bizarre hacks, multi-game menus, or glitchy curiosities. But each one tells a story about gaming history, regional markets, and the creativity (or chaos) of the bootleg industry.

I’ll be testing these soon to see what’s actually on the chips. Stay tuned for updates—and if you’ve ever come across any of these carts yourself, let me know in the comments!

Happy collecting—and long live the bootlegs!

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Finds 1971: Paradise Adapter! A Rare Gem for the Famicom! Bootleg Disk System Adapter?

Have you ever come across one of these? This is the Paradise Adapter, and it’s honestly one of the quirkiest pieces of gaming hardware I’ve found. You could almost think of it as a bootleg version of the Famicom Disk System.

One of the cartridges it came with actually has Doki Doki Panic on it, and it plays just like the original game. What’s wild is that you have to press buttons on the adapter itself to switch sides, just like flipping disks. It’s such a unique experience!

I don’t have much solid info about this adapter, so if you know anything about it—or have ever used one—drop me a message. I’d love to learn more!

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Famicom Bootleg Database has been Updated!

All new labels have been added to the database. Be sure to check the tab to check out the database or click here to head there right away! 

• 35 in 1
• 64 Games
• 1944 V2
• Battle Chess
• Changeable Guardian Estique
• Croosfire
• Dynamite Bowl
• Inmortal
• Metal Flame Psy Buster V2
• Metal Flame Psy Buster 
• NES Play Action Football
• Paperboy 2
• Samurai Spirit
• Silent Service
• Sky Destroyer V2
• Snoopy's Silly Sports Spectacular!
• Star Wars V2
• The Last Ninja
• Tortugas Ninja 5 - Toxic Crusaders
• Town & Country Surf Designs

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Tons of new Labels Added to the Famicom Bootleg Labels Section!

Here are a whole bunch of new labels added to the database! The list is below:

• Abadox The Deadly Inner War
• Adventures of Lolo 2
• Adventures of Lolo 3
• Adventures of Lolo 
• Altered Beast - Juuouki V2
• Altered Beast - Juuouki V3
• Altered Beast - Juuouki
• Buggy Popper
• Cobra Comando
• Doraemon
• Double Dribble
• Dracula V2
• Dragon Ball
• Dragon Fighter
• Fifa Soccer 96
• Flash & Batman V2
• Fox's Peter Pan & the Pirates The Revenge of Captain Hook
• Getsu Fuma Den
• Ghosts 'n Goblins
• JJ Tobidase Daisakusen
• Kanshakudama Nage Kantarou no Toukaidou Gojuusan Tsugi
• Last Action Hero
• Lupin Sansei Pandora no Isan
• Mad City
• Mafat Conspirancy - Riddle of Icarus
• Ninja 4
• Pro Yakyuu Family Stadium '87
• R.B.I. Baseball
• R.C. Pro-Am II V2
• R.C. Pro-Am II
• Snow Bros. V2
• Snow Bros. 
• Solomon's Key
• Street Fighter 5 - 20 People
• Street Fighter 5 Turbo - 60 People
• Summer Carnival '92 Recca
• Super Donkey Kong
• Super Mario  World vol.1
• Super Mario Bros The lost Level
• Super Spy Hunter
• Takahashi Meijin no Bugutte Honey
• The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle and Friends
• Twinbee 2
• Twinbee 3
• Vegas Dream

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Famicom Bootleg Label Database Updated!

All new labels have been added to the database! Here is the list:

• Batman Returns V2
• Dr Chaos
• Journey to the West
• Lethal Weapon
• Mahou Densetsu II Daimashikyou Gariusu
• Monster Truck Rally
• Palamedes
• Pirates!
• Pocket Games 150 in 1
• Roadblasters
• Super Mario Bros 3 V2
• Swat
• Tetris
• The Ultimate Stuntman
• X-men

Be sure to click here to check out the database or click on the Famiclone tab for the database link. 

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Finds 1928: Famiclone Goodies! Bubble Bobble Kaiser, TMNT 2, and More!

Another beautiful lot from Thailand. This time around we got Bubble Bobble variant which is the Kaiser version. There really isn't that much different in this one except that Kaiser logo on the title. From what I know, Kaiser used to be a company that would release bootleg games into the market and some of them were FDS conversions into carts, isn't that neat? I also got another TMNT 2 cart because I want all the variants and colors of this game! A couple of other ones as well including a Dragon Ball Z 2 in 1 and a really cool Tetris multicart that comes with multiple version of Tetris as well as some neat puzzle games! Just love bootlegs! 

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Finds 1922: Peru Trip 2024 Spoils! Club Nintendo, Caballeros Del Zodiaco, TMNT, Famiclone Boxed Consoles, and More!

Another trip to the motherland leaves me with some really awesome additions which are better than prior years to be honest. This was such an amazing successful trip with a little bit of everything. I did a lot of walking and explored areas I've never seen before which leaves me wondering what else is there in store outside the capital? I will have to plan a more in depth trip to other areas of the country and see what comes out of them. Anyways, I finally ended up getting my Club Nintendo magazines which range from numbers 1-30 and then some are missing which I'll be sure to add them eventually. I need to create a list of the magazines I need. Either way, I'm so happy to have Club Nintendo #1! As you can see, this is the trip of Famiclone boxed consoles as I was able to finally pick up three of them which come with their respective consoles. I mainly got them for the boxes are they have become very hard to find. I did picked up two other clones with no boxes but totally worth getting to the collection. In La Feria del Juguete, I was able to get tons of really cool goodies including the Saint Seya PS4 game, and the bootleg TMNT action figures. Lets take a closer look with the rest of the photos! 

In this picture you can see an album of TMNT with the entire set of stickers that belong to it. They are actually a replica which I don't mind because finding the albums themselves have become extremely hard. You can see some of the lot of Famicom bootlegs which contain some goodies and variants I wanted. You can also see an Action Set Famiclone box and Club Nintendo #1! 

Here is another Famiclone boxed console called Creation with two more clone consoles. One of them is a Micro Genius which is a variant I was looking for forever! I also picked up extra controllers because apparently there are bootleg controllers of the bootleg controllers! Can you believe that? I test a few out and they play amazingly! 

I took a better shot of the bootleg TMNT action figures. I can't believe they are sealed so I picked them both up. Unfortunately, they don't come with weapons, but there are some that do so I will have to hunt down those variants. 

Famiclone games are just lovely to have. The highlights are Super Bros 8, Battletoads, Raf World, and Gijoe! Just so much fun to have! 

This shot shows an adapter which I got outside the festival for practically nothing! I also got a pal Spain exclusive Soccer game for the NES (Sorry Emilio), the 31 in 1 came inside one of the Famiclones, and the Saint Seya games for PS3 and PS4. They are all the Latin American releases which you can't find here in the States. The Famiclone is quite peculiar as it looks like a lady Robocop. The Mario Kart 8 is case only which I needed! 

I will come back sooner than later as I have more Club Nintendo magazines to bring home! Yes, probably around 100 issues! I really loved this trip and happy with the stuff I got, but most of all, I was able to visit family and relax for once. I feel refreshed to continue my busy life here in the States. Keep on hunting! 

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