lol

I was under the impression that VGA will only grade sealed games.

The qualified games do not have a grade on them (bronze, silver, gold), only a "qualified" sticker.

Someone please verify. Thanks.

^^^not true Fris - the BB Gyro you sold me was sold to another person on this site - the BB Gyro I had graded was the one that was sold on Ebay w/shrinkwrap that was from Lionel that the seller claimed was removed - your BB Gyro box was actually much nicer than my graded copy which has a tear on top flap - but yes, they do open the games & check the contents, so it is what it is - a "qualified 85+ game will look nicer than 99% of any other CIB's and better than some sealed - that being said, I'd still rather have a sealed copy

The only thing VGA will not grade is used or resealed items.
In regards to Qualified games, they are examined and do get a grade (bronze, silver, gold)
A perfect example is the VGA Earthbound...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/EarthBoun...

If a box originally had a seal and the seal has been removed, as long as the contents are unused ( brand new ), then they will grade it with a Qualified grading.
If a box had no seal, like a SNES console, it can receive a Standard grading (not qualified) as long as the box has never been opened. If the box had been opened before but the inner contents are unused, it will get a Qualified grading.
And yes, you can tell if the side flaps have been opened even once.
That VGA Earthbound never came with an official seal. The reason it received a Qualified grading and not a standard grading was because the box had been opened before.

Whoa I was not expecting this thread to explode into an argument of semantics and VGA grading unsealed games. I think I got the answer I was looking for. I find it very interested that the listing is not technically violating ebays policy. I suppose, we can all start listing stuff on ebay as "brand new" because "it's unused"..

I have a Super Mario World game cartridge only - Brand new! I took it out of the box to make sure it was there. Sorry I accidentally threw away the box and dropped the cartridge on the ground numerous times. I also cut the sticker on the game with a knife when I opened it. Brand new - High VGA grade potential!

Does the grade label say "qualified" anywhere on the label?

EDIT: Never mind. Found it.

Holy-SNES thanks for all the clarification.

I was wrong in stating that VGA does not grade opened games. Still doesn't seem right, but whatever make them money.. I guess.

Oowwwww...... Very Nice
Yeah that would have never been opened before.
Thats why I cringe when sellers say never been opened until today just to take pics...
Little do they know they just brought it from Standard to Qualified. lol
If only they knew!

Segertar... Your welcome

Just was at the gas station, bought a soda. I opened it before deciding that didn't want it. Screwed the cap back on and tried to return it. Guy wouldn't take it back because it was "used." I kept screaming, "Yeah, but the contents are in unused condition!" They called the police.

I think what a lot of people don't get is that VGA grades games much like coins are graded. They assign them a number based on their condition and preserve them in that state of condition. The large majority of the time the games are new, so people assume that if a game is graded it is new. People are using VGA's grading criteria as an argument defending opened games as new. That is wrong.

If a game has been opened, it is no longer new. The integrity of it's contents has been called into question. The game cart although perhaps not introduced into a console, has the possibility of having been handled. The same with the inserts and manuals.

Once the game is opened, the condition of the item has been altered from what it was originally, and at best you have a mint copy.

I really don't understand why anyone would think that once a game has been opened, that it still is correct to call it new (maybe they're cart-only collector's and live in a twisted reality).