telling the difference between NTSC and PAL games

[DarQ Massacres]

this may seem like a dumb question as I've been collecting games for over a year now, but I'm wondering the best ways to tell the difference between European releases and American releases, or just NTSC and PAL in general, as far as I can see there is no difference in the carts in most cases, am I wrong?

[+groundtrooper]

Most PAL games that were published by Atari and other third party vendors marked the end label or put a small label with a P on the bottom side of the cart. NTSC labels don’t generally have any sort of designation.

 

I collect NTSC only for the most part but I do have a couple of PAL game that I have got by accident and some that were intentionally bought because they had no NTSC release.

 

 

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[Spriggy]

I'm an Aussie collector, hence mostly PAL. Easiest way? http://www.atarimania.com/pgemainsoft.awp?type=G&system=2 . Check the label variant scans.

Rom Hunters and crew database makes it easy for the majority of games. Depending on the publisher, differences can vary. Some examples. Activision PAL carts may have "International Edition" on the label. Imagic PAL carts may have Italian text on the label. As aforementioned above, Atari USA PAL carts may have a 'P' on the end label or Tigervision PAL carts may have a 'P' on the underside of the cart. etc ...

 

NTSC/PAL/SECAM color pallettes are also different. http://spiceware.org/atari_ntsc_pal_secam.html . Utilize a 2600 emulator to test specific rom colors with your cart.

Edited December 11, 2018 by Spriggy

[Dionoid]

The PAL carts from Atari:

• Picture labels: have a "p" after the title on the top label
• Text labels: have a "-P" after their serial code on the front label
• Silver and Red labels sometimes have a little "P" sticker on the backside of the cart, but not always (I guess some people peeled them off)

PAL carts from Activision:

• Have a serial number printed on the front label that either starts with "E" or "P" (I guess that stands for European or Pal) or sometimes "INTERNATIONAL VERSION" below the title on the front label

PAL carts from Imagine:

• Only have text on the front-label and no image

 

And for the rest of the carts: try them out on a real Atari console to see if the colors are the same as in a recorded video of the game on Youtube.

Edited December 11, 2018 by Dionoid

[Jstick]

Activision PAL carts may have "International Edition" on the label.

 

NOTE: I have a few Activision carts labeled "International Edition", but they are NTSC versions (I believe these were for the Canadian market). One of them has an 'N' sticker on it, but the others don't.

 

So that is most likely not a reliable way to determine PAL/NTSC.

Edited December 11, 2018 by Jstick

[KevKelley]

I usually cross reference the various Atari websites and also ask the sellers though I think some are u familiar with the difference or don't care and say whatever you want to hear.

[Spriggy]

 

NOTE: I have a few Activision carts labeled "International Edition", but they are NTSC versions (I believe these were for the Canadian market). One of them has an 'N' sticker on it, but the others don't.

 

So that is most likely not a reliable way to determine PAL/NTSC.

 

Cheers. Didn't know that . Did a quick search for more info.

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/171901-are-activision-international-edition-all-pal/

Edited December 12, 2018 by Spriggy