Topic: Just got a Donkey Kong II Game & Watch with a very dim upper screen. Update: Got it fixed!

So my brother just got back from a missions trip to Japan, and he got me an awesome souvenir: A Japanese Donkey Kong II Game & Watch! It's in really great shape, too!

It just has one problem though, (The pictures aren't a great example) the upper screen is very dim, I can barely tell when the sprites (Is sprite the correct term?) are on. I was wondering if anyone here has had any experience with repairing these. I'm thinking maybe I just need to do some re-soldering to the ribbon cable connecting to the upper screen, but really I'm not sure. The lower screen also seems like it might be a tad dim, but I can see it just fine and I've never seen any other G&Ws in person to compare it too, so I don't know for sure. The unit has brand new batteries, so it's not that. Otherwise it I think it all plays and controls just fine, the buttons are quick to respond, although I can't seem to be able to move very fast when I press a direction button rapidly, but again I'm not sure if it's supposed to play like this or not. Anyways, I'd love to get it fixed, but even if I can't it will still look awesome on display!

I'll give this a bump. Also, did anyone hear about the guy that erased Miyamoto's signature off of a Donkey Kong Game & Watch? I found it on someone's guide to cleaning a G&W while doing some research:

"Its previous owner had taken the liberty to write his funny looking signature on the front plate:

Later...

"If that does not work, you can use some nail polish remover. If you go this way, be extra careful not to get the nail polish remover in contact with any plastic parts as this can melt plastic. Nail polish remover would erase something written with a marker, but leave the original printed markings intact."

Let's all hope it was fake...

Nice find! My guess is that the polarizing filter on the top screen has gone bad. Switching the filters probably isn't too hard if you could find a replacement one. The easiest way is probably to find a broken G&W and remove its filter.

I've always wondered, though, if the polarizing filters used the type of 3D glasses you get in a movie theater would work. It might be worth experimentation.

(Edit): I'm not sure if it's just the reflections, but the lower screen in that picture looks quite faded too. It is likely the same problem. I've heard that too much exposure to sunlight damage the filters in this way.

Yeah, the pictures of the screen didn't turn out great, the bottom screen is much easier to see IRL. Still, it looks like it might be a tad faded as well. I wouldn't think it's sunlight fade since the top screen is much more faded than the bottom screen, and you would think they would have both had just as much exposure to the sun. Thanks for the tip though, I'll look into finding some replacement parts if I can't find any other fixes. I'm planning on taking a peek inside soon, hopefully it'll be a much simpler fix like a loose connection or something!

Also, since you mentioned polarizing filters, I decided that, just for kicks, I'd try looking at it through some cheap sun glasses I have, (Since I know some are polarized, but I'm not sure if mine are or not) and when I did I was actually able to see the LCDs somewhat better! Through the sunglasses, they were definitely much easier to make out, but they were also a weird orange color, and looked really weird when they changed states, like, when one turned off, it turned black for a split second before disappearing. It only affected the upper screen though, the bottom screen looked pretty normal, which seems kind of strange. Do you have any idea what causes this or if it points to any specific issues?

Well, I found another LCD game I had (Some sort of Nascar game) and I took it apart and held the screen in front of the G&W. Sure enough, everything showed up on the display nicely! So, I've ordered a few replacement polarizers, hopefully they work out well. Thanks again, @JVeg199X!

Good to hear! You're welcome!
Enjoy the game, too, it's a good one!

Whelp, I got the replacement polarizers I ordered, and...

The screens look perfect now! The pictures don't do it justice. I'm really happy with how it turned out! Now, it sits on my desk as the most amazing clock I've ever had!