Oldschool...I keep blowing...I even press the Power button gentle..but..

[rJ floW]

Well if you grew up in the NES era (genesis too at times but not NEARLY as bad), I'm sure you've been rediculously angry when your goddamn games dont work in your System...especially if you waited all weekend to rent megaman 2 and now that you have it, goddammit its not working!!!

After a while im sure we all have a process

1) Do this
2) if that didnt work, try this
3) if THAT didnt work, try this
4) if its STILL not working, try them all and pray!

So what was your process?? Mine was as follows

1) Blow in the cartridge, as hard as my lungs could
2) Still getting the verticle lines? stay calm, take the game out, and blow into the system, that dust must be hiding somewhere
3) the game half works but there are lines all around and its making a funny sound?? take the game out gently, blow in it gently, blow in the system, slowly put the game back in. And press the power button as slowly as possible.
4) IF it still doesnt work...walk away, calm down, smack the NES, push the game up and down as ferociously as possible, scream at it, get yelled at by your mom, close your eyes and press the button

If you're playing a savable game (DW4) you just hope you dont hear the horrible music of death when the game starts up!

Note; This happened with Atari as well...sometimes, but not nearly as often...my Nintendo often ****ed me around.

So lets hear the other processes

[Victoria]

Rubbing alcohol on the cartridge. Worked every time. Other than that added step, pretty much the same listed as you.

[Kindushin]

My games always work until I actually want them to.

Tried everything to get Final Fantasy 9 to work but it hates FMV's

[Meier Link]

I did pretty much the same thing RJ but before I flew off the handle and went nuts I would add in Sheenas step. If that didn't work I would turn off the console remove the cartrige then put it back in push down and hold it to the left; turn on the power and keep hitting reset about 20 times. If it didn't work by that point I would flip the trey up and down about 20 times and do the reset thing again. Then if that still didnt work I would take it out and smack it around and then fly off the handle and start screaming at the NES as if I was going to change its mind and make it work.

[SuperSabin]

When I have problems with my nes cartridges or snes cartridges i would take them out of the system and shake them hoping i get the dust out and put it back in the system. it works most of the time for me. if not, i use a quetip to clean off the dirt in the cartridge and try turning the game on afterwards.

[Zargabaath]

I had a copy of World Series Baseball '96 that no matter what I did would always have some vertical lines when I was at bat or pitching and would sometime appear when I was fielding. The funny thing about the game was around the 6th inning the vertical lines would not appear anymore. It had something to due with initially playing the game, but after sometime passed the game would play perfect.

The usual process would be to blow the cartridge, blow the into the console, then to make sure I firmly placed the game into the console. If not repeat and if the game was being stubborn I would try back later.

[Tiffany]

I'd blow into the cartridge or into the console itself. Sometimes it'd work, sometimes it wouldn't.

I can remember playing Super Mario 3 Japanese Version because it wasn't out here yet. My brother and I played for hooooours even though we had no idea what everyone was saying. I think my brother got the english version for a gift at some point so we played it again to see what was going on.

[Pete]

I never really had any problems with my Genesis. It only got a little bad when I pulled it down from the attic a year or two back, but I picked up one of those dust blaster cans, or whatever they are, and I haven't had a problem since.

I had a friend who took his SNES apart, back when we were like 10. I don't think he ever figured out how to put it back together.

[Taco-Calamitous]

I think my brother got the english version for a gift at some point so we played it again to see what was going on.

Bet it didn't make that much of a difference, did it? Heh. Most of the dialogue was like, "Oh noes, the king has been transformed!" "Thank you for saving me, here's a letter from the princess!" "Have this advice, and this item! Good luck!" (A friend and I just beat it again the other day.)

My strategies were pretty much similar to everyone else's; blowing in the cartridge, blowing in the system, hitting the reset button, getting pissed off and hitting the system itself... thereby causing the cartridge to pop up while the system is on, which really is more detrimental than helpful. That's probably why the thing doesn't work anymore, and I had to get a "Duo Retro" last year to play my NES games again. Anyhoo...

WUv, Yer Mom

[Tiffany]

Bet it didn't make that much of a difference, did it? Heh. Most of the dialogue was like, "Oh noes, the king has been transformed!" "Thank you for saving me, here's a letter from the princess!" "Have this advice, and this item! Good luck!" (A friend and I just beat it again the other day.)

My strategies were pretty much similar to everyone else's; blowing in the cartridge, blowing in the system, hitting the reset button, getting pissed off and hitting the system itself... thereby causing the cartridge to pop up while the system is on, which really is more detrimental than helpful. That's probably why the thing doesn't work anymore, and I had to get a "Duo Retro" last year to play my NES games again. Anyhoo...

WUv, Yer Mom

Pretty much!

The only "Woweeeeeeeeeee!" moment I had was finally knowing what Toad (?) was freaking out about. I can't remember the particulars, but when he's wigging out saying that so and so has been captured.

Even then it wasn't that mind blowing. But it was definitely nice to know!

[loaf]

My Genesis works fine, now and then I had to do some things to get it to work if it wasn't working but for the most part that Genesis was solid.

I've gone from methods of putting the NES or SNES on it's side to getting alcohol and cleaning the inside of the system and the games.

[Josh_R]

My process was pretty much the same as you. Everynow and again I have to do it with my Nintendo 64, I still play it all the time. The only added step to mine would be to whine like a little baby and kick the shit out of my game system...