Are Your Cartridge Games Not Working? Try This!
You finally grabbed a copy of that Super Mario 64 you’ve been wanting to play. You’re about to relive all of your favorite childhood memories… but the game won’t work! Don’t worry — we’ve learned a few tricks over our 16 years in business, and we’re going to show you how to bring those games back to life.
Nine times out of ten, there is nothing wrong with your N64, Genesis, NES, SNES, or cartridge-reading handheld consoles — it all comes down to pin cleaning.
On every cartridge game, there are brass pins that slide into the pin connector inside your console. These brass pins oxidize over time. Think of it like a penny that loses its shine as it changes from hand to hand. Brass is no different. Oxidation, as well as other debris, can prevent your games from getting a proper connection to the pin reader in your console.
To get those pins back in great shape, you’ll only need three ingredients and a little patience. And trust us — the blowing method does not actually work. It makes it worse over time!
What You’ll Need:
- Cotton tips
- 91% Rubbing Alcohol
- Brass Cleaner Cream
Step 1: Alcohol Cleaning
First, soak the cotton tips in the alcohol, then vigorously rub the brass pins with the cotton tips. This begins removing layers of oxidation and debris. You may notice grey or black residue on your cotton tip — that’s completely normal.
Step 2: Brass Cleaner
Apply a very small dab of brass cleaner cream to a cotton tip and gently run it over both sides of the pins in your cartridge. You’ll likely notice the cotton tip becoming shockingly dirty. The brass cleaner strips oxidation and debris and restores shine to the pins.
However, the third step is paramount to ensuring the brass cleaner does not remain on your pins and potentially cause damage.
Step 3: Final Alcohol Clean (Most Important)
Using fresh cotton tips, reapply 91% rubbing alcohol and thoroughly clean all brass cleaner residue off the pins. You can be generous with the alcohol during this step to ensure everything is completely removed.
Test Your Game
Now pop your cartridge into the console and see how easily your game reads! In our experience, 99% of the time, cartridge games not reading simply means the pins need cleaning.
This is a fantastic way to keep your games fresh and ready to enjoy for years to come — and just another way GamersGoRetro has been preserving retro gaming for all.