documenting my findings on Japanese distribution cartridges

[rockaedward]

I'm just gonna make this thread to document my findings on Japanese distribution carts. Since I can't really find any documentation on them myself. Hopefully someone will be able to find this interesting and/or helpful.

Edit: If anyone has any info they'd like to add, please PM me. for now I'd prefer to keep this thread as just me posting so that this isnt a documentation of my findings and people just discussing JPN distribution cartridges.

From here on out I'll be replying with my findings. As in, photos, information, sales, etc. 

Edit 2: The non-rambling google doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Y95KHX9bi-dRhe2we39QPjAjE4_0PbM4eoi--ID_Zoo/edit?usp=sharing

Edited January 24, 2023 by rockaedward
adding doc link

[rockaedward]

A user that goes by ICanSnake in the project Pokémon discord was able to provide me a photo of an old 4th gen 2nd slot 10th Deoxys cartridge. 
So, I guess for this event at least, even though it was Gen 4 and the DS era, Pokémon decided to use the GBA slot on the bottom of DS originals and Lites for the distribution. Interesting!

Its serial number from what I can tell, is AGB-B5EJ-JPN. So, the classic AGB for a Gameboy advance game, B5EJ which I would assume matches up with an English cart, and JPN for the region. From my extremely crude understanding of Japanese. It looks like the two Pokémon titles on the left say "Daiyamondo" So diamond, duh. And "Pa-ru" so pearl. 
On the right it says, from top to bottom. Ge-mu Bo-i Adobansu. So, Gameboy advance. Deokishisu, the Japanese name for deoxys. And the final line, which I had trouble reading so please forgive any mistakes, bureyantokyanben. Which I have no idea what it means. hopefully someone who has better understanding of Japanese can understand it, as its probably just an English word I'm not sounding out correctly, since its katakana. And at the bottom it has kanji I don't recognize, but the katakana next to it says ka-toriji. So, cartridge. I would assume it means distribution, or event cartridge. Please forgive my poor translation, I'm still learning Japanese so I'm not very good lol.

ICanSnake also mentioned that they know someone that goes by Soniktts who collected distribution carts. They said his arent up for trade, which is a shame (not like I probably afford one anyways). But that's a good lead that hopefully can lead me to some more info.

 

I've PM'd YoshiMoshi who I know has had a Japanese distribution cartridge for the DS back in 2018. Hopefully they can give me some more info aswell. I'll keep this thread up to date

I'm also likely going to make a google doc that will more neatly document all my findings for people who wish to see them. Cuz this thread is gonna be more of just posting whatever I can find, like this. But the document would be neat, organized, and easy to read.

[rockaedward]

Quick update, PM'd Soniktts. They last posted in November, so hopefully they see my message. But I'm new here, so maybe people post less frequently but still peruse the forums. 
ICanSnake also got me some more photos, I'll go attach them. Their resolution still leaves much to be desired, but hey, I'll happily take any info

The top one (19) seems to be dated 2005. The titles are a bit obscured from glare, but it looks like its diamond and pearl again. So, another 4th gen 2nd slot cart, cool!
The serial code is the same except for 1 letter, the middle section reads B5DJ. While the deoxys was B5EJ. Makes sense, being that the deoxys one is different than these. So, I guess Nintendo would change letters depending on the event. The paper is also noticeably white instead of light blue like on the deoxys. The numbering sticker is also different, being just a number and not with any kanji after it. The top of the black section is different, reading "Manahui", Manaphy. same with the one underneath it (15). However, 15 is dated different from 19. Even though 19 is a higher number, 19 is dated 2005, while 15 looks to be dated 2006. Other than that, they look the same. Except that 19's plastic looks just a little more vibrantly colored than 15, but that's probably just lighting or something. I'm unaware of a manaphy event distribution for Gen 4, but one probably happened since these carts exist. I'm just not super well versed on my event history, forgive me. 

Now for the bottom one, which only has the title for pokemon diamond on it, not pearl. Dated 2006, with a middle serial number of B5CJ. So, we've seen B5EJ with deoxys, and B5DJ with manaphy. The sticker is a different color than the deoxys one. The deoxys one had a very vibrant light blue; this is like a light blue-ish purple-ish. Which is certainly not up to the lighting, as they look very obviously different. Its number sticker is the same kind as the deoxys one. So, I guess during 2006 Nintendo stopped using the white stickers and basic number stickers and opted for a colored background and yellow number sticker. The number is pixilated for some reason. I have no clue why someone would do that other than trying to keep it on the downlow after just stealing it or something. But that seems unlikely. Unfortunately, its top text on the black section has kanji. T_T so I have no clue what the kanji means. But, after the kanji it says "toisshoni". I have no clue what that means. I know isshoni means together. "to" is a particle in Japanese that's used as "and" to my knowledge. So maybe the cart has two events on it?

 

As I'm typing this, I've just asked ICanSnake what the cartridge is, so hopefully they can let me know.  I'll keep the thread updated on all my findings

[rockaedward]

Another quick update, ICanSnake was able to help me understand the text on the cartridges. that "bureyantokyanben" from the first post was just horrifically misread on my part. Its purezento kyampe-n. Present campaign. 

The part on the cartridge in the most recent reply is "tomodachi to issho ni". Which is honestly pretty embarrassing I couldn't read that, as tomodachi is a kanji I've already learned in school lmao. the text means together with friends. ICanSnake says the cartridge had an electabuzz on it only for diamond, and it was for some "Festa 2006". I'm guessing pearl would have its own distribution cart for magmar. Being that iirc they're kinda counterparts of each other, and both are item-held trade evolutions. So, I'm guessing that it was meant to be that you would trade with a buddy who got the other pokemon from the event and you each would get the fully evolved version. 

Thats all for now, I'll keep this thread updated

[rockaedward]

Probably the last update for today, theSLAYER linked me a thread for distribution device photos. In this thread I'm mainly gonna be documenting the cartridges themselves, rather than the machines they would distribute from. But luckily there was 2 cartridges that I hadn't seen yet. Also, I found out that my hunch was right, well, half right. The cart from earlier isn't an electabuzz, but a magmar for diamond. I'm pretty sure pearl got an electabuzz, and just as I suspected, they were meant to trade to evolve. so yeah, the cart for festa 2006 is a magmar.

Now onto the new finds

The first one (the green one) is a cartridge that distributes the old Pikachu colored pichu. Unfortunately, the resolution is pretty bad. So, it makes it hard to read some text.
It seems like its middle serial number is B5LJ? I'm not sure entirely, since it's hard for me to read it. It's also dated 2009, I think. 2009 would make sense, and also not. Since its another 2nd slot, GBA cart. In 2008, Nintendo released the DSi in Japan, the DSi has no GBA slot like the DS original and the lite. So, it would be a bit weird for Nintendo to use a storage medium that they had started abandoning just a few months prior. But, if I remember correctly, this event is for HGSS, which came out in Japan in late 2009. This makes me think I might just be misreading it, who knows. Anyways, it uses a white sticker, which I haven't seen yet on a cart post 2006. But it uses the yellow number sticker, which fits with the other post 2006 carts that would seemingly begin use it. The text reads
"pokettomonsuta-daimondo pa-ru buuona" so, pocketmonster diamond pearl, and I don't know what the buuona is. Mi not confident on me reading it correctly cuz it's just so small.  the black part reads "pichu-puresento" pichu present, and then the normal kanji I don't know followed by ka-toriji, cartridge.  So, Pichu Present (Distribution?) Cartridge

 

 

Next up, the black pair of cartridges. They're jirachi cartridges for the 2007 Tanabata event. Once I make the google doc, I'll have a concise list of what all these cartridges are for, events and all. Instead of just this random wall of posts, pinky promise. Anyways, this picture or pictures, are actually pretty good res. These cartridges are for the GBA slot, or 2nd slot of the DS. Which still seems to be the common trend for gen 4. Unlike other carts I've seen for gen 4, these are black. And from what we can see, have a single white sticker. It says "Jira-chi", not a big surprise. Then (A), which I'm not sure what it would be for, and 22. Which I'm assuming is the number for the individual cart we can see the full sticker of in the photo. From what I can tell, it's model number on the shell says AGB-013. And since the shape, color, and sticker for the case is all different from other gen 4 2nd slot distribution carts, I would assume its model numbers follow a different naming convention or whatever you would call it. I'm honestly pretty tired, so I'll skip on translating the wonder card. here's the bulbapedia page for it if you wanna check it out. List of local Japanese event Pokémon distributions (Generation IV) - Bulbapedia, the community-driven Pokémon encyclopedia (bulbagarden.net)

 

From what I can tell, these are the only pictures of cartridges I haven't documented yet from theSLAYER's thread. you can check out the thread here 

 

 

 

Anyways, thanks for reading, if someone other than me is actually reading this. I'm gonna go to bed and hopefully be able to update here with more progress tomorrow. 

 

[theSLAYER]

@rockaedward for the Pichu, I believe I got the image from here: http://pikachuftt.blog82.fc2.com/blog-entry-1263.html

Also, there's an excel file documenting all the IDs for these slot 2 carts, around the time Giga leak was popping off.

 

Changing gears, you may find this page slightly interesting. It's always interesting to see old official event pages:
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0404/pokemon/index.html

[rockaedward]

23 minutes ago, theSLAYER said:

@rockaedward for the Pichu, I believe I got the image from here: http://pikachuftt.blog82.fc2.com/blog-entry-1263.html

Also, there's an excel file documenting all the IDs for these slot 2 carts, around the time Giga leak was popping off.

 

Changing gears, you may find this page slightly interesting. It's always interesting to see old official event pages:
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0404/pokemon/index.html

Oh, great! Could you possibly get me a link to that excel? And yeah, these old sites are interesting and will definitely be helpful for the future google doc I'll make. Thanks

[rockaedward]

Update: Unfortunately I havent found any new photos of carts or anything, Im currently working on making the google doc. I'll add the link when its ready

[InsaneNutter]

This is the one @YoshiMoshihas:

NTR-AAIJ-JPN - Strongest Pokemon Distribution

Yoshi was kind enough to dump and let us release this, so if you Google you will find it.

It will distribute the following depending on the date set on the DS distributing:

Milotic - December 15, 2007 to January 14, 2008
Dragonite - January 15 to February 14, 2008
Salamence - February 15 to March 14, 2008

Edited January 12, 2023 by InsaneNutter

[rockaedward]

19 hours ago, InsaneNutter said:

This is the one @YoshiMoshihas:

NTR-AAIJ-JPN - Strongest Pokemon Distribution

Yoshi was kind enough to dump and let us release this, so if you Google you will find it.

It will distribute the following depending on the date set on the DS distributing:

Milotic - December 15, 2007 to January 14, 2008
Dragonite - January 15 to February 14, 2008
Salamence - February 15 to March 14, 2008

Thank you! I contacted them a couple days ago, hopefully they can provide some more photos and stuff

[rockaedward]

Quick little post so that people dont think I've given up on the thread or anything. Unfortunately, both people I've contacted through PMs have not responded. I could try to find them on other social media where they may be more available, but that feels like pushing it a bit far, and maybe a bit weird. I'll just wait for a bit for their response, with fingers crossed

[rockaedward]

Update, I missed the one month anniversary of the thread! 

Besides that, great news! YoshiMoshi was able to get back to me. They unfortunately havent been able to get any more carts. But I'm happy they were able to get back to me atleast

I dont think I've said this already, but I will not abandon this thread unless I specifically clarify. So even if you see me not post for a few weeks, dont worry, I havent given up. Thanks to the help of the mod team, this thread now needs moderator approval to post on. This helps the thread be more tidy, AKA just me listing my findings. If you want something more clear and less unorganized, please check out the google doc https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Y95KHX9bi-dRhe2we39QPjAjE4_0PbM4eoi--ID_Zoo/edit?usp=sharing
 

welp, happy superbowl! if thats a thing. idk I dont really care much for sports lmao

[YoshiMoshi]

On that blog, there is discussion of the Manaphy distribution cartridge being sold online at high prices, so in theory it's confirmed to have copies existing in private collections. Maybe one day it will show up.

 

There's also a YouTube video somewhere, of a japan cartridge being distributed, can't seem to find it. But at least in theory that's another one known to exist in private collection. See if I can find it again.

[rockaedward]

3 hours ago, YoshiMoshi said:

On that blog, there is discussion of the Manaphy distribution cartridge being sold online at high prices, so in theory it's confirmed to have copies existing in private collections. Maybe one day it will show up.

 

There's also a YouTube video somewhere, of a japan cartridge being distributed, can't seem to find it. But at least in theory that's another one known to exist in private collection. See if I can find it again.

Sorry, which blog do you mean? That's pretty cool! 

[YoshiMoshi]

 

Here's proof that this one exists in private collections.

 

http://pikachuftt.blog82.fc2.com/blog-entry-1263.html

This blog, I remember going through and translating it, there was a manaphy distribution entry, and translated it, saying the cartridge sold for a high amount on auction sites, so at least in theory if that's true, it's in private collections as well.

[rockaedward]

15 hours ago, YoshiMoshi said:

 

Here's proof that this one exists in private collections.

 

http://pikachuftt.blog82.fc2.com/blog-entry-1263.html

This blog, I remember going through and translating it, there was a manaphy distribution entry, and translated it, saying the cartridge sold for a high amount on auction sites, so at least in theory if that's true, it's in private collections as well.

Woah, awesome! I didn't expect the Japanese cartridge to have a different UI than English ones. It's a small difference, but it looks like the Japanese UI has a bigger font size on the top and is displayed a bit higher than the English ones. It also doesn't say distribution pending or anything, it just says to press A to begin distribution. It also doesn't say to press A to stop after beginning distribution.  And the lower screen has a smaller font size than English ones. That's surprising. Thank you for showing me and the thread! 

[theSLAYER]

19 minutes ago, rockaedward said:

Woah, awesome! I didn't expect the Japanese cartridge to have a different UI than English ones. It's a small difference, but it looks like the Japanese UI has a bigger font size on the top and is displayed a bit higher than the English ones. It also doesn't say distribution pending or anything, it just says to press A to begin distribution. It also doesn't say to press A to stop after beginning distribution.  And the lower screen has a smaller font size than English ones. That's surprising. Thank you for showing me and the thread! 

Not just about the font, also about the fact it’s distributing a funfest event. Those carts haven’t been seen in the wild at all.

[YoshiMoshi]

Yea there's also the um... Some slot 2 gba distribution carts that leaked. The ones for the legendary dogs for Japan, there's some pictures in the public somewhere

 

It's also probably worth getting the text on those green gba carts translated. I believe one of them is strongest Pokemon slot 2 distribution, mamar and Electra buzz. But a translation would be good.

 

I believe the legendary dogs is a red gba cartridge, but it's been awhile sense I have seen the image. I think I found it on Google somewhere a few years back.

[rockaedward]

On 2/27/2023 at 7:03 PM, YoshiMoshi said:

Yea there's also the um... Some slot 2 gba distribution carts that leaked. The ones for the legendary dogs for Japan, there's some pictures in the public somewhere

 

It's also probably worth getting the text on those green gba carts translated. I believe one of them is strongest Pokemon slot 2 distribution, mamar and Electra buzz. But a translation would be good.

 

I believe the legendary dogs is a red gba cartridge, but it's been awhile sense I have seen the image. I think I found it on Google somewhere a few years back.

About the magmar and electabuzz slot 2, in page 7 of the document theres the magmar cartridge for diamond. Full translation of the text is definitely planned but it's gonna be tough since I have a very basic understanding of Japanese, not even mentioning kanji. But, regarding the slot 2 magmar cart. From what I can tell it says, friends together, present campaign, distribution cartridge. The only way we can know that its magmar is because its a diamond only cart, and the magmar was diamond only.

[YoshiMoshi]

Here's a good repository of distribution devices.

 

While your at preserving distribution device images, here's one not documented in the database  linked in previous post. Very low resolution, but still another image of one of these machines.

[KaptaRR]

Hi, I just discovered this thread, and I see that there has been no news for a year. Has another unit been discovered or is there any more information about this Japanese distribution cartridge from @YoshiMoshi?

[rockaedward]

5 hours ago, KaptaRR said:

Hi, I just discovered this thread, and I see that there has been no news for a year. Has another unit been discovered or is there any more information about this Japanese distribution cartridge from @YoshiMoshi?

Yeah, I've been a bit busy with other things in life so, I've been doing some major slacking on my JP distribution cart hunt & thread. Sorry.
I personally don't know of any new cart discoveries, but it's not like I've exactly been keeping up haha

In regard to YoshiMoshi's cart, as far as I know, there isn't much else that can be said about it. They've very generously dumped all of its data online and took photos.
For a touchup on its background, I wrote a bit about it on the google doc. I didn't exactly do a super deep dive, but to my knowledge there isn't much else to its story.
More information on it would likely be found on Japanese forum or Pokémon news sites.

Unfortunately, it's likely that we won't be getting regular updates on JPN dist cart finds, since Nintendo did a very good job at destroying nearly all of the distribution carts in Asia, unlike how lax they were in Europe and the USA.
Back when I was still actively updating this thread and the google doc, I heard rumors of a few Japanese collectors who had several JP distribution carts to their name.
Problem is, I dont actually know the collectors' names, and I recall hearing that they can be pretty secretive of their collection.
So, contacting them and getting a satisfying answer could prove to be quite difficult.

I remember seeing very old posts on JP auction sites of a distribution cart or two. But I'm talking like years ago, sold and gone.
If you scour those sites, you may be able to find some old posts, or if you're lucky, find an active listing for one.
Although, I would expect the listing prices to easily go past $1000, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was several thousands of dollars, seeing as JP distribution carts are extremely rare. 

Quick edit: On the topic of cart sales, I'm not sure if I already mentioned this in the thread but, YoshiMoshi told me that they bought their cart off of Mercari. 
So, that could be a place to look ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I hope this helped clear some things up. If anyone finds any new information, feel free to let me know about it and I'll happily update the google doc

Edited July 29 by rockaedward