Prototype Alert! CGC Video Games Grades Ninja Taro for the Nintendo Entertainment System

Prototype collectors, check this out! CGC Video Games™ recently certified a Ninja Taro cartridge — an authentic, unreleased game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. 

In 1989, Japanese video game developer UPL — the creator of hit Japanese series Ninja-kun (1984) — began talks with American Sammy to bring the series to North America. American Sammy planned a full launch of the game — renamed Ninja Taro for English audiences — and began demonstrating a semi-complete port of the title in 1990, with some notable appearances including the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas and in advertisements within several prominent gaming magazines.

Despite Ninja Taro’s heavy advertisement and anticipation from fans, the Nintendo Entertainment System version of the game was never released. It is unknown why the game was never released on the Nintendo Entertainment System, but American Sammy did release a revised version of the game for the Nintendo Game Boy in 1991.

The unreleased NES port of Ninja Taro was thought to be lost media, but a single copy was recently found in a lot of 30 other NES games in the San Francisco Bay area. CGC Video Games’ expert graders worked with renowned prototype expert Frank Cifaldi to authenticate the prototype. The cartridge was then encapsulated in a state-of-the-art CGC Video Games holder.

Because the cartridge is a prototype, it received an NG designation, meaning “No Grade.” This designation is used when CGC Video Games authenticates an item but declines to assign a numerical grade due to the game’s condition or circumstance. Submissions receive a No Grade designation if they are prototypes or otherwise unique.

For more information about this prototype copy of Ninja Taro, check out the video below.

Did you know that CGC Video Games accepts prototype cartridges and discs for grading, authentication and encapsulation? Submit your games to CGC Video Games today to keep them preserved for generations to come. To learn more about how to submit to CGC Video Games, go here.