So I realise this isn’t quite a DC tech support forum, but thought I’d try my luck among the DC vets - I’ve got a copy of Gauntlet Legends, Chu-Chu Rocket, and Resident Evil 2 that two separate Dreamcasts have been unable to read (they just take you back to the system options screen whenever you try to load them). I’d suspect dodgy discs, but all look in pretty good shape, and it seems odd that three would suffer the same problem.
Has anyone else had this issue? Is it possible the problem is something more subtle, and if so can anyone suggest a way to fix it?
Do either of the Dreamcasts read other games? If so, I’m inclined to think it’s the discs. If not, maybe both systems failed?
But if they look fine and cleaning/resurfacing doesn’t work then maybe try using a boot disc?
This is entirely conjecture but there might be something wrong with the function that reads the disc as being an official DC game in the proper region.
The only one I can think of off the top of my head is called Utopia - you should be able to find it through Google. Burn that to a disc, use it to boot up your DC, then switch discs. I have no idea WHY that would help, but it might.
I have the same problem Jinx. I have three Dreamcasts, none of which can boot scratch-free retail copies of Rez, Power Stone 2 or Ferrari F355 Challenge.
After doing a bit of research it seems to be a “GD-ROM loading problem”:
[quote]Please read: Some older Dreamcast consoles may encounter problems booting Rez. It’s not a game problem, a boot disk problem, nor a chip problem but a GD-ROM loading problem. The error occurs at the immediate outset of the loading process when the DC moves the drive laser from the inner track to the outer track in one smooth motion. If your GD-Rom drive is old, worn, and incapable of handling this process, Rez will not load. At all. Please don’t buy Rez if you have an older Dreamcast system because it will be inevitable that we’ll suffer a return of the game.
A simple solution to help your older Dreamcast boot Rez would be to flip the Dreamcast 90 degrees on it’s side when loading up Rez or turn the console over entirely. The new position eases the GD-Rom laser’s movement and allows the DC to read past the initial boot track on the Rez disk. While not a foolproof solution, it seems to help 70% to 80% of old and dodgy Dreamcast drives. After the initial load, you can flip the DC back to its normal position for the remainder of the game.
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I performed the above solution with an extra step: repeatedly and slowly raising/lowering the vented side of the upsidedown DC through a 90 degree arc (like the motion of a seesaw). This motion helps the laser to “catch” the correct area of the disc whilst its loading and should make it boot. Simply leaving the DC on its side or upsidedown is not enough for my Dreamcasts to boot discs it seems. I then leave the DC upsidedown whilst playing to reduce the risk of failed disc loads in-game.
If the laser does fail to read data during a game (e.g. I’ve experienced missing music or hanging at a loading screen in Power Stone) I have to repeat the procedure again to help the laser “catch” the correct area of the disc. Otherwise the laser will attempt to read the data repeatedly until it succeeds (never if physically unassisted) or it will simply stop.
This booting problem seems to be game-specific i.e. some games will boot fine and others won’t. I guess it depends how old/worn-out your laser is. My copy of Chu Chu Rocket and Resident Evil 2 work fine for example.