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Counterfeit Slifer Yu-Gi-Oh Card

Authentic Slifer card
Authentic Slifer Card
Recently, my son traded three common Yu-Gi-Oh cards for the coveted Slifer god card. He was very excited, thinking he worked the deal of a lifetime. Indeed, Slifer cards sell for around $35.00 apiece, depending on the dealer.

Nonetheless, trading three worthless cards for a Slifer god card seemed like a phenomenal deal.. What we discovered next nearly dropped us to the floor — the Slifer card was a counterfeit! Within moments of checking it out, Mom immediately recognized the unusual coloring, odd syntax, and heavy gloss on the card.

Upon closer examination, many errors were discovered — spelling mistakes, missing graphics, and misaligned text — all pointing to one inescapable reality: an illegitimate Slifer card!

Absolutely pathetic

Counterfeit Slifer Card
Counterfeit Slifer Card
Amazed by the idea that someone would actually produce a fake Slifer card, I quickly confiscated the card and began scrutinizing the various details and differences.

After studying the card, carefully comparing it to other Yu-Gi-Oh cards and several legitimate Slifer cards (via dealer sites, etc.), the extremely poor quality of the counterfeit became laughably obvious. This is sad for at least two reasons.

First, it is sad that there are scumbags who steal from children. Second, it is sad that a counterfeiter would perform such an absolutely pathetic rendition of the very popular Slifer Yu-Gi-Oh god card. Seriously such a weak attempt at a counterfeit it just makes me laugh out loud.

Real vs. Fake

Nonetheless, discovering and studying the counterfeit card provided such a thrill that we thought others might benefit from a critical online analysis. Hopefully, this article will serve as a reference for others to compare against in order to avoid the purchase or trade of other fake Yu-Gi-Oh cards. If nothing else, we hope that you will enjoy a hearty laugh upon discovering the amateur nature of this particular counterfeit.

Side-by-side comparison of the authentic vs. counterfeit Slifer cards »

Summary of errors

Here is a summary of the obvious errors on the front of the fake Slifer card:

  • [a] Card title is in lowercase text; “sky dragon” is not capitalized
  • [b] The text, “GOD”, has replaced the original symbol and text
  • [c] Incorrect number of stars: ten stars on the real card, eleven on fake
  • [d] Missing serial number below image of Slifer, on right-hand side
  • [e] DIBINE .BEAST is misspelled and is typographically incorrect
  • [f] Description contains numerous errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation, and typography
  • [g] Misaligned text for “ATK” and “DEF” characters
  • [h] Missing japanese characters in the lower-left corner of the card
  • [i] Missing copyright and japanese name in lower-right corner of card
  • [j] Missing reflective authenticity decal in lower-right corner of card
  • [k] Image resolution/quality is poor — out of focus, grainy, pixelated
  • [l] Overall coloring of the card is too pale, or otherwise inaccurate
  • [m] Placement of the description text is misaligned, too low
  • [n] The card itself is overly glossy — way too much gloss

And here is a summary of the flaws present on the back of the fake Slifer card:

  • The brand name, “KONAMI” and registered symbol (R) missing from upper-left corner Apparently, authentic god cards display neither brand name nor registered symbol on the back of the card.
  • Trademark signature (TM) missing from Yu-Gi-Oh logo in lower-right corner Apparently, authentic god cards do not display a trademark signature on the back of the card.
  • Front of card lacks proper card gloss — surface similar to paper
  • Colorization is too pale, or otherwise inaccurate

We hope this article is helpful to someone. If you have other examples of counterfeit Yu-Gi-Oh cards, we would love to hear about them.

About the Author
Jeff Starr = Web Developer. Security Specialist. WordPress Buff.
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86 responses to “Counterfeit Slifer Yu-Gi-Oh Card”

  1. I remember these cards. Heck, the descriptions of the card and the attributes are very laughable, I have to say. Those idiots, thinking that they can fool many kids because they’re selling “real” cards.

  2. Craig, Competitions Guru 2008/05/18 1:46 pm

    Well, here’s another incentive to teach our kids to learn correct spelling from a young age! We certainly hate to see them getting ripped off. :(

    I think a clue to it’s origin is the mis-spelling of “divine”. “Dibine” hints that the counterfeiter is of Spanish speaking origin, because in Spanish, there is no difference in the sound of “v” and “b”. Thus, mixing these letters up is a common spelling mistake of native Spanish speakers.

  3. Perishable 2008/05/18 5:34 pm

    Absolutely, Craig — every little bit helps, especially where education is concerned ;) Also, great insight about the misspelling of “Dibine”.. it certainly opens the gates to a whole new perspective as to the origin and background of the counterfeit card. Thanks for the info!

  4. xxxxxxxxx 2008/06/15 7:53 pm

    this same thing happend to me recently but instead of trading cards for it i bought it for like $50.what a waist of money

  5. It is such a tragedy that we must be on the look out at all times for the counterfeiting of anything these days.
    You are making several positives from this one negative, which is awesome, this will last a long time in your son’s young mind and a lesson well learned. This will save him time and money in the years ahead in his lifetime, or let us hope so anyway!
    I have to say that I am impressed that the creator of these extremely popular cards made and took the time to comment on your post!

  6. CyberEvidence 2008/07/17 9:28 pm

    The misspellings aren’t unique to fakes, but they are a lot rarer. I’m really not sure which genius over there in Asia put’s out these counterfeits, but you’d think they’d at least get the spelling right.

  7. Perishable 2008/07/20 7:20 am

    @Dr Saxe: I agree wholeheartedly. It takes a real lowlife to prey upon innocent children. As you say, however, lessons have been learned and we are all a bit wiser having gone through the experience. Thanks for the comment!

  8. I got a good counterfiet for $10 that looks exactly like Slifer from a seller called blinksale (I’m warning that name) on eBay. Problems are, whole glossy card, commas are too close, back is orange instead of red (there are no logos on back of god cards). Hey it fools everyone, (even the store owner of my local cardshop who couldn’t tell it from the real Slifer till he got his book). Now what?

  9. Perishable 2008/07/26 4:57 pm

    I totally feel your pain, FlareKR. Even the most observant collectors get burned on occasion. As James says on the other counterfeit Yu-Gi-Oh post, “if you think the deal is too good to be true, it is.” Surely the $10-dollar price tag raised an eyebrow before you made the purchase. In any case, you have the card, it isn’t real, oh well. Without trying to sound rude, I say chalk it up as a “lesson learned” and get on with your life. Whatever you do, don’t try to resell it on eBay! ;)

  10. Saen Mathews 2008/07/27 6:40 am

    i have a slifer with a different number under the picture YMA-EN001
    instead of G4-01 and the bottom left corner, the japanese is english. is this reel or fake?

    this helps alot to alot of people.

  11. i have a card that says WATAON card number is 87774234 and MOC-EN003. do i have a messuped watapon?

  12. Matthew Morales 2008/08/01 3:01 pm

    i know i have the real slifer have all three “gods” iam only ten but i still have them my friend giving them away so i got them free! well the real slifer is very good if you have good dragon cards there are some fake ones but the real ones are enscriped in japanese or chinese at the bottom left corner i know this becuse i like yugioh.And the little sybol at the top says divine.There are only 12 real slifer’s ra’s and oblisk’s i realy like them i have a english slifer,japanese oblisk,and a japanese ra! i do love the game but basket ball better! p.s.i hope i helped on proving your card is real!!!

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