Weakening Laser, Poor DVD Media, or the Game Itself?

[Geoduck]

I just bought a copy of Star Ocean: Till the End of Time, and had my neighbor burn me a backup on his PC (I'm a computer klutz, I confess :) ).

The game itself plays fine, but I noticed some inconsistencies with the load time. Most times, it loads from screen to screen (ie. from the shop to the streets) at an average of 2 seconds. But in some rare cases, (1 in every 30-40 loads, approx.), it took up to 20 seconds--in a few even rarer cases, the "loading from disc" dialog box actually came up.

I heard something about not exposing the disc's surface to light, which is something I did before discovering that I shouldn't (placed the DVD-R under the hot light of a tablelamp while cleaning it--dumb of me :o ).

In short, is the problem due to:

1) a weakening laser (probably not--about a year old, minimal to average usage)

2) poor DVD-R quality--shouldn't be, since he burned it on a Ritek RiData, I think (can't refer to the DVD-R, since I'm using a PC from an internet cafe right now). However, I did see some hairline scratches on it.

3) my thoughtlessness of placing a DVD-R under the light of a hot bulb
(albeit for less than a minute)

4) the game itself has loading inconsistencies (anyone who's played the game, please reply)

Thanks in advance!

[TylerDurden]

I have this game. I absolutely love it. I havent finished it yet, due to me always wanting to bulk up my damn strengths on any RPG. I always fall into that trap.

Thing is, I never backed it up to dvdr. I only backed it up on my ps2 hdd. It runs great off there. No I havent gotten to the point where you swap discs yet so I dont know if itll take when asked from the hdd. Im almost there though.





Tyler!

[Geoduck]

Greetings, Tyler!

I havent finished it yet, due to me always wanting to bulk up my damn strengths on any RPG. I always fall into that trap.

Heh, me too. I'm a glutton for power :) BTW, don't hessitate to level up your characters, you'll need it--take it from someone who's already level 78 with Fayt and still struggling with some of those damn mp-sucking bastards. Strangely, its the enemies lurking around the field that give me problems; boss fights don't take more than a minute.

Some IMHO's: laser weapons for everyone (except Fayt), and synthesize every damn one of them with at least three orichalcum, and a celestial homonculus (don't know if there's enough, though--could only find one for Fayt's weapon). Don't worry about cash, there'll be plenty from the in-field battles on the second disc.

BACK TO THE TOPIC, I think your reply rules out the possibility of the game having load inconsistencies, and since my other games tested alright, it has to be the disc.

BTW, I just had an idea. Would copying a game to the HDD be beneficial for the ps2's laser (ergo longevity), since it wouldn't be used to read the games?

Also, will the HDD copy from backups? My originals are sealed in a box somewhere in the attic, and I hate to dig through the dust and debris.

I haven't bought an HDD myself, but I'd be willing to fork out the cash if it works (I own a V7, and there aren't many of those around; better take good care of this one.)

Thanks!

[TylerDurden]

Would copying a game to the HDD be beneficial for the ps2's laser (ergo longevity), since it wouldn't be used to read the games?

Also, will the HDD copy from backups? My originals are sealed in a box somewhere in the attic, and I hate to dig through the dust and debris.



Yes it does save your laser since it doesnt use it during gameplay. Your ps2 would need to have a modchip for the HDLoader to install backups. Thing is most areas dont allow you to have more than one backup, so you may have to get rid of your disc backups if you choose to backup to your ps2 hdd. Ask your own legal advisor for more info on that.

Also try and find a HDLoader not the HDAdvance, because the HDAdvance is a pirated and crappier version of it.


Tyler!