I have a PAL Playstation 2 (SCHP 5000x).
I bought 2 NTSC games (because not available in PAL) and Swap Magic 3 with slide tool. It works just fine for my granddaughters game Harvest Moon Save the Homeland, but not for my game Suikoden 3.
I'm not very technical but think (from the message which comes up and what I have read in these forums) that it is a TOC probelm, i.e. the game has a larger TOC (image size) than 4.35 GB.
Do I follow the instructions given to jO3 (http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/127255)
If so - I'm lost!
Problem 1: First I have to install DVD Decypter (you have a link to that but are no longer able to publish the guide - without help I'll mess up for sure.
Problem 2: It says I must also have "CDVDGEN, AND ISOBUSTER INSTALLED ON YOUR COMPUTER". What are they? Where do I get them.
Basically I am not technical but am methodical, so can follow step-by-step instructions even if I don't understand what is actually happening. Is there anyone REALLY patient out there who can talk me through this? I've wanted to play Suikoden 3 for ages and am getting to the stage where I'm looking on eBay for NTSC format PS2 consoles - which I can't afford and would be daft for the sake of 1 game I don't even know I'll like!!!
UPDATE FROM Erk45: I have downloaded and installed DVD Decrypter and Isobuster - they make sense. I also downloaded CDVDGen but don't know what it is? Where it is? Has it downloaded to the right place? etc etc - after "17 files unzipped" the only option was CLOSE - I closed, but there's nothing to see to explain what I've downloaded.
DO I NEED TO KNOW or shall I just press on?
The only time you get TOC error is if your not swapping it right, are you using the slide tool? Well i had the same problems but the other way around i have a NTSC ps2 and want to play PAL games, thats why they have PAL to NTSC and vice versa patchers, you can get those at sksapps.com, but it sounds like your just not swapping right. You can find DVD Decrypter from torrent sites, p2p and some other places, cd/dvd gen and those others are hardly ever needed.
Since the game has a TOC of over 4.35 GB then you have to rebuild it. You can do it with CDVDGen (I reccommend 2.0 instead of 1.5) and ISO buster. But it's far easier to use gnie's expert tool. 4 button clicks and the file is rebuilt. Sometimes I've had it not work for me so I always go the ISO buster, CDVD gen method. Here's a link for a step-by-step guide to rebuilt the games. Also, Since you're using swap magic to boot NTSC games on a PAL machine, you might want to use the program NTSC2PAL so your games won't be in black and white.
Here's a link to the programs you'll need
http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/290701
Not sure if these replies should be posted or sent as private messages?
1. noobers - Thanks for your reply - I did use the slide tool, but not as smoothly as in the 'how to' video, so will give it a few more tries.
2. PS2Menace - Thanks for the detailed reply - I'll try this (but slowly and a step at a time so will be some time before I can report on success or failure!). Just wanted you to know I've received your reply and am grateful.
ALL SORTED!!! I HAD messed up on using Swap Magic - I'm a bit embarrassed to say so, but, it was all down to me (used CD disc instead of DVD disc).
But, PLEASE don't feel like you wasted your time - if I had not come on here I would never have solved the problem. (And let this serve as a reminder to others as dim as me: always start by looking at the basics!)
PS A friend advised I come onto the Afterdawn forum; I was reluctant as have come across some superior attitudes to newbies on some tech sites for other things. My friend was right - I found patient and helpful posters.