Nintendo Lot Check ROM Leak

Edit on Github | Updated: 30th September 2020

Since Nintendo controls manufacturing of all official games they have a process called Lot Check that ensures the games quality before manufacturing. Every game ever officially released for their platform has had to go through the Lot Check process in order to achieve the Nintendo Seal of Quality.

Lot Check Lists

In the Pokemon Leak on the 10th of April 2020 a bunch of excel spreadsheets were uploaded into the /misc folder, these contained the full list of all games that have gone through the Nintendo Lot Check process for most systems up until the Nintendo DS.

The GigaLeak (NES Lot Check released)

As part of the Gigaleak the full set of official Nintendo Lot Check ROMS were distributed online on 4Chan. They were located in an archive called Other.7z and the sub archive Famicom_NES.7z.

Contents of Famicom_NES.7z

When extracted from the archive, two folders are created:

• HVC - Japanese Famicom ROMS
• NES - US Nintendo Entertainment System ROMS

Note that in the NES Lot Check list (HNPdata_List.xlsx) it had 3 different codes, HVC, NES and PAL, but all the PAL content was not leaked during the Gigaleak.

HVC stands for Home Video Computer and was the codename for the Famicom during development, this is also the product code for all Japanese games.

ROM Format

The ROMS contained in the 2 main folders are not standard, e.g they are not .NES files and don’t have an iNES header. You can not just rename to .nes and run them in an emulator.

If you look at the internals of NES cartridge you will notice that there are in fact multiple ROM chips on board, known as PRG for Program code and CHR for Character Tiles (Graphics).

This is important as when manufacturing the cartridge Nintendo would need to have the data for both chips and thus the ROMS available in the Lot Check are split into these two parts.

In theory you could create an iNES header and merge the 2 parts into a .NES rom that would run in an emulator, but you might as well just get the rom elsewhere. It is only worth doing this for games that have never been dumped before, which is the topic of the next section.

The name format is:

{HVC or NES}{Abbreviation}{Revision_version}{P or C}.{Software_Number}

So for example for Kirby’s Adventure its Abbreviation is “KR”, it has 2 revisions of the program so you can choose either 0 or one for the revision version.

System = "NES"
Abbreviation = "KR"
Revision_version = 0
Software_Number = '073'

// Result
PRG_FileName = System + Abbreviation + Revision_version + "P." + Software_Number  // NESKR0P.073
CHR_FileName = System + Abbreviation + Revision_version + "C." + Software_Numbe // NESKR0C.073

You can find the Abbreviation, revision and software numbers in the HDPdata_List spreadsheet.

Un-released NES ROMS

As the Nintendo Lot Check process is only done during the final stages of development, don’t expect any beta or prototype games to be here.

However there is an occasional game that made it all the way to Lot Check phase but was then deemed too costly to physically manufacture. It is these games that make the Lot Check leak worthwhile.

I cross-referenced the NES bank dumps from today's leaks, against the known collection of NES roms (No-Intro 2017-06-18). Looks like there's a few previously unknown roms, including a second revision of the Nintendo World Championship cart! pic.twitter.com/tFol8CxyLH

— ラ0.F (@MrCheeze_) July 25, 2020

New Revision ROMS

All computer programs have bugs, and NES games are no different, in some cases there were new patched versions of a game released with a higher revision number. A few of these never got physically manufactured such as ¹:

• Bridgestone Cycle: Radac Tailor-made (Japan)
• Dragon Slayer Jr.: Romancia (Japan)
• Family Computer Othello (Japan)
• Nintendo World Cup (North America)
• Roger Clemens’ MVP Baseball (North America)

the mystery roms have been discovered pic.twitter.com/tY5sH5yfeq

— I..A..N..S (@IANSYT) July 27, 2020

Famicom Disk System Lot Check

On the 30th September 2020 the Famicom Disc System Lot Check ROMS were leaked to the public as part of the Paladin Leak. The archive containing these ROMS was called FMC_DISK.7z and was included in the paladin.7z main archive.

It is important to know a few things about the Famicom Disk System before proceeding, the disks could have multiple sides (2 of course) and has different content on each side. Nintendo used a format called RD* to store these games and had a different file for each side, so if a game has two sides then there would be both an RDA and RDB file (for side A and side B respectively).

Contents of FMC_DISK.7z

When the FMC_DISK.7z archive has been extract it creates the following files and folders:

• 110803HNPdata.xls - NES Lot Check list (from 3rd August 2011)
• DiskWriterSoftPak_ZEL.txt - Notes about the Zelda EPROM Converter
• DiskWriterSoftPak_ZEL.zip - Source code and Zelda EPROM result
• FMC_DISK.zip - Zip of the disk_image folder (password protected)
• FMCｄｉｓｋsystem_ead_070726.xls - Lot Check list of Famicom Disk System Games (from 26th July 2007)
• FMCｄｉｓｋsystem_ead_160519.xls - Lot Check list of Famicom Disk System Games (from 19th May 2016)
• disk_image - ROMS for each of the sides (A/B) of the disks
• disk_labels - photographs of each of the master disks that was dumped
• readme.txt - notes about the files in this folder, created for Wii Virtual Console
• tool - contains a tool to convert RDA/RDB to FDS format (rdafds.exe)

The readme.txt file is really interesting as it mentions converting side A and side B of the Disk to a format called QD, which is basically both rda and rda files concatenated together.

Presumably the D in both file extension formats stands for Disk, but it is unclear what the Q stands for or even the R in RDA/RDB.

RDA to FDS Converter tool (rdafds)

This is a tool that converts from the Nintendo RD* format for Disk System games to the iNES FDS so that it can be emulated on a PC. It seems that nintendo were using an NES emulator to test these games before the virtual console versions were available.

If you are interested in converting the RD* files located in this archive then you can use the rdafds.exe executable located in the tool folder to do the conversion.

Zelda Disk Version (DiskWriterSoftPak_ZEL.zip)

It seems that Nintendo had trouble getting any data from the Master Disk for Zelda so they asked Mr. Tomohiro Kawase who managed to get the data from an EPROM (SQCD?).

It seems they needed to create a tool called scattoqd.exe to convert the resulting EPROM data (called SCAT for some reason?) to the Virtual Console QD format. The source code is also availble for this tool under a single C++ source file called scattoqd.cpp.

The result is in the zip archive under the name 007_FMC-ZEL-0-1.qd, as mentioned before the Virtual Console (QD) format is just RDA and RDB concatenated together, so you could split it up fairly easily.

Unreleased Famicom Disc System Games

Thanks to MrCheeze_ over on twitter we have a list of games that do not match any previously released Game Codes, these games are:

• 064 - BAN-UL1-0-0 - Ultraman - Kaijuu Teikoku no Gyakushuu
• 070 - SCO-MEA-2-0 - Michael English Daibouken (Sample)
• 085 - FMC-ON1-3-0 - Famicom Mukashi Banashi - Shin Onigashima
• 086 - FMC-ON2-0-0 - Famicom Mukashi Banashi - Shin Onigashima (Disk 2)
• 143 - NDS-PAC-1-0 - Pac-Man
• 145 - NDS-DIG-0-0 - Dig Dug
• 146 - NDS-DD2-0-0 - Dig Dug II
• 164 - FSC-FTAJ-1-0 - 野村のファミコントレード (Nomura NES Trade)
• 165 - FSC-FTEJ-1-0 - 野村のファミコントレード（デモ用）(Nomura’s NES trade (for demo))
• 166 - FMC-KMAR-0-0 - Kaettekita Mario Bros. (translation: Come back Mario Bros)
• 174 - FMC-BFD-1-0 - バルーンファイト (Balloon fight)
• 180 - FMC-GOD-0-0 - 五目ならべ (Five eyes) (Gomoku Narabe Renju)
• 194 - SFL-TMG-1-0 - ザ·マネーゲーム (The Money Game)
• 195 - PAC-KTD-1-0 - Kattobi! Warabe Ko
• 201 - BAN-SG2-0-0 - SDｶﾞﾝﾀﾞﾑﾜｰﾙﾄﾞ ｶﾞﾁｬﾎﾟﾝ戦士 SCRAMBLE WARS ﾏｯﾌﾟｺﾚｸｼｮﾝ (SD Gundam World Gachapon Warrior SCRAMBLE WARS Map Collection)
• 210 - FSC-FTBJ-1-0 - 野村のファミコントレード (Nomura NES Trade)

Some of the names for the games were found in the MAME source code, so not completely unknown ROMS ².

of particular note are the Nomura NES Trade ROMS which were used to trade Stock with the Japanese bank Nomura.

The format of each Games product code is as follows (example is for Bandai’s Ultraman):

Publisher = "BAN"
Abbreviation = "UL1"
Revision_version = 0
Unknown = 0
Software_Number = '064'

// Result
SIDE_A_FileName = Software_Number + "_" Publisher + "-" + Abbreviation + "-" + Revision_version + Unknown  + ".rda" // 064_BAN-UL1-0-0.rda
SIDE_B_FileName = Software_Number + "_" Publisher + "-" + Abbreviation + "-" + Revision_version + Unknown  + ".rdb" // 064_BAN-UL1-0-0.rdb

The Publisher codes used for the above files are as follows:

• BAN - Bandai
• KDS - Konami
• FSC - Nintendo
• FMC - Nintendo
• NDS - Namco
• PAC - Pack-In Video
• SCO - Scorpion Soft
• SFL - Sofel

Gomoku Narabe Renju 五目ならべ

@LuigiBlood already documented the unreleased FDS port of Balloon Fight. I think this is another unrelease FDS port of "Gomoku Narabe Renju", Nintendo's Famicom version of Go. pic.twitter.com/PAhjtBW8fJ

— ラ0.F (@MrCheeze_) September 30, 2020

Balloon Fight

I've never seen Balloon Fight on FDS, ever pic.twitter.com/NACIXI3nCP

— LuigiBlood (@LuigiBlood) September 30, 2020

Game Boy (DMG & GBC) Lot Check

The Game Boy Lot check including both original and Color games was released to the public on the 9th of September as part of the Platinum Leak. The content was available inside the platinum.7z file in an archive called dmg_sgb.7z.

Contents of dmg_sgb.7z

There are two folders at the top level of the archive which are:

• DMG - lot Check ROMS are in here
• SGB - Super Game Boy BIOS

For documentation on the SGB folder checkout the Cutting Room Floors article on it: Proto:Super Game Boy - The Cutting Room Floor

DMG Folder

The DMG (Dot Matrix Game) folder actually also contains GBC Roms too, it has the following folders in it:

• 001~500 - first 500 games (.001 to .500)
• 501~@00 - second 500 games (.501 to .@00)
• @01~E00 - next 500 games (.@01 to .E00)
• e01~j00 - next 500 games (.e01 to .j00)
• J01~O00 - next 500 games (.j01 to .O00)
• TestPRG - Test programs internal to Nintendo (MBC5 tester)
• CGB - Game Boy color roms, also split into 2 folders of 500
• MBC3_CGB - Documentation for Memory Bank Controller 3 for the Color Game Boy
• NG - ?
• POOL - ?
• KENSA - Test Games (KENSA is Japanese word for test/inspection/examination.)

The games are numbered based on when they came into the Lot Check process so release dates can vary.

Not that because they use a 3 digit extension for the number, when it reached .999 it had to start using the alphabet as the first character, counting from @ to the letter O. The @ symbol comes before A but it is unclear why they did this, maybe to give an extra letter incase they ran out, but surely they would do that at the end after Z.

The NG folder contains games:

• One Piece (J)
• Yu-Gi-Oh (EU)
• Yu-Gi-Oh (FR)
• Wendy Der Traum Yon Arizona (GER)
• Watashi no Restaurant (J)
• Kanji Boy 3 (J)
• Tonka Construction Zone (U)
• Komugi-Chan no Cake o Tsukurou! (J)

The POOL folder contains games such as:

• Edd the Duck
• CutThroat Island (U)
• NFL Quarterback Club ‘96 US
• Alien Games 2044 AD (U)

Un-released Game Boy ROMS

As the Nintendo Lot Check process is only done during the final stages of development, don’t expect any beta or prototype games to be here.

However there is an occasional game that made it all the way to Lot Check phase but was then deemed too costly to physically manufacture. It is these games that make the Lot Check leak worthwhile. Unlike the NES Lot Check Leak, for the Game Boy there was a plethora of previously un-released games in the Lot Check set!

All Un-released and Un-dumped DMG ROMS

The table below contains all the previously unreleased ROMS for the original Game Boy (DMG). Some are from cancelled games, unreleased localisations and others are games that made it to retail but have never been dumped or released online.

Bloomland (DMGB7A-0.288)

Another fascinating discovery 'Philip & Marlowe in Bloomland'. Appears to be an English version of 'Taiyou no Tenshi Marlowe' but lacks the cutscene at the start, but also is dated 1991 - This game eventually came out in 1994! pic.twitter.com/oYzglvAPZW

— Nintendo Metro (@NintendoMetro) September 9, 2020

John Madden Football (DMGAJFE0)

Ubisoft's unreleased port of John Madden Football for the Game Boy has found its way online https://t.co/l51xnKbbBO pic.twitter.com/58QdHqHVWG

— GoNintendoTweet (@GoNintendoTweet) September 16, 2020

Gargoyle’s Quest II (DMGRFE-0.828)

'Gargoyle's Quest II' was released in the US on the NES. In Japan this was also released on the Game Boy, but didn't get an English release.

Except thanks to these new #NintendoLeaks.. the seeminly finished game is just here. In English. pic.twitter.com/O4yZjmA4Gs

— Nintendo Metro (@NintendoMetro) September 9, 2020

Golf King (DMGBGRP0.2) & Golf Robot (DMGBGRE0.1)

at some point this game was reworked into SuperShot Golf Robot, where Bobby is replaced with a robot called Vibot pic.twitter.com/ZgCzJo6gTO

— taizou 🏳️‍🌈🦁 (@taizou_hori) September 10, 2020

Hello Kitty Pocket Camera (GBDHKAJ0.2)

Hello Kitty Pocket Camera Game Boy (I never thought I'd say those words and yet here we are..) Press and hold Start + Select while booting up to access an "erase all Data" screen, as in the original Game Boy / Pocket Camera. pic.twitter.com/B9wlynjzMe

— ‏Soul filing cabinets (@nensondubois_) September 12, 2020

Home Alone 2 - Kevin’s Dream (DMGV6E-0)

Here’s a Toys R Us Vidpro card for the Game Boy game Home Alone 2: Kevin’s Dream. This game was never released and I can barely find anything else about it pic.twitter.com/9MjGWqHNzh

— N4Us (@TheN4Us) July 9, 2020

Lunar Chase/X (DMGECE-0.477)

The game 'X', developed by Argonaut on the Game Boy as a 3D title, never made it to the states. With the new #NintendoLeaks, it appears this was intended to release as 'Lunar Chase' at some point. @dylancuthbert pic.twitter.com/QfeLxC6hb9

— Nintendo Metro (@NintendoMetro) September 9, 2020

Nick Faldo Championship Golf (DMGNFE-0.372)

'Nick Faldo Championship Golf' appears to be an unreleased 1991 Golf game for the Game Boy by Titus. #NintendoLeaks pic.twitter.com/biarKEJjLT

— Nintendo Metro (@NintendoMetro) September 9, 2020

Rap Quest (DMGRQE-0.547)

Checking out Rap Quest, an unreleased Game Boy game featuring Vanilla Ice https://t.co/HoDPMfhCPO pic.twitter.com/NQfYIEtiIe

— GoNintendoTweet (@GoNintendoTweet) October 30, 2018

Robopon (DMGHRCE0.2)

I've found another huge get in the leak!? This Robopon pre-release, raffled out in Comic BomBom to only 500 people! Unlike the final GBC version, it targets the Super Game Boy, and lacks the special cartridge.
With this… some revision of EVERY official GB(C) cart is preserved!!! pic.twitter.com/G1SBoi5qgc

— Samuel 💻✨ Messner (@obskyr) September 14, 2020

Sutte Hakkun (DMGASPJ0.2)

both of the sutte hakkun protos from the leak have a neat SGB border.. huh. pic.twitter.com/nZyEYcnaes

— 🦦kuro!! (@kurobutt) September 13, 2020

WorkBoy (DMGWYE-0.781)

In today's #NintendoLeak there is also the GB ROM of the WorkBoy, a never-released peripheral!!!

More info: https://t.co/dJAXlqQFkR pic.twitter.com/kyfvRFOecd

— WaluigiBSOD (@WaluigiBSOD) September 9, 2020

RockBoard (DMGVOJ-0)

News: Unreleased RockBoard Game Boy Port Discoveredhttps://t.co/6C9WmhkBOA pic.twitter.com/UXizG2448p

— Brian (@Protodude) September 9, 2020

Un-released Game Boy Color ROMS

All Un-released GBC ROMS

The table below contains all the previously unreleased ROMS for the original Game Boy (DMG).

The table was generated from a file called newroms.7z was was released after the main leak.

Austin Powers Episode 3 (CGBBA3P0.3) & 4 (CGBBA4P0.0)

gamers, the motherlode has been found in this latest nintendo leak: TWO unreleased game boy color austin powers games pic.twitter.com/QdAYa9dhBx

— The Ordinary Nintendo (@sebmal) September 9, 2020

Gimmick Land/Tomato Adventure (KENSA\CGBBAKJ0.0)

Gimmick Land/Tomato Adventure for the GBC!
It looks AMAZING!! pic.twitter.com/HKHNAKDKFK

— toruzz (@toruzz) September 9, 2020

Hajimari no Mori (CGBAHJJ0.1)

Game Boy Bunko: Hajimari no Mori (Game Boy Pocket Books: The Forest of Beginnings) is an unannounced first party game for the GBC found in the recent leaks. It's apparently a version of Famicom Bunko: Hajimari no Mori, a Super Famicom game.
It looks incredible. pic.twitter.com/tjBAp7qekp

— toruzz (@toruzz) September 9, 2020

Kanji Shishuu / Kanji Embroidery (CGBBKBJ0.0)

Kirby Family (CGBBJVJ0.0)

[Bonus Posts !]
Today, a new Nintendo leaks happened, and it contained the unreleased (JPN only AD-ON/games) "Kirby Family" for the GBC ! which was planned to be released in September 2001 !

So, today we can say that it's the day this game was released (discovered) in the world! pic.twitter.com/TF2nr6tMPm

— Kirby Birthday ! 🎉 (@KirbyBirthday) September 9, 2020

Pokémon Picross (DMGAKVJ0.1)

Canceled Pokémon Picross Game Boy Color Game Surfaces In Nintendo Leak https://t.co/A8QS7LTEno

— ⭐ yyoossk⭐ (@Cloud0835) September 10, 2020

Nintendo DSi

While not quite a Lot Check release, you might also be interested in the DSiWareROM.rar archive from the Platinum leak as it contains a ton of DSiWare ROMS in TAD format.

These were sent to iQue for localisation for the Chinese market and were presumably taken from the Lot Check archive by Nintendo SPD.

References