Unreadable Disk - Xbox 360 problem

[reyscarface]

Synre said it was ok to make this thread so please dont infract me Firestorm x_x.

Well, hello all of Smogon, I require help from the 360 players here.

Basically, I was playing MW2 yesterday all perfectly, no problems at all. Today, I went to the beach and did some sports, while leaving my friends alone in the hotel room playing the 360. When I came back, they had problems with the game, apparently, when trying to find a match in MW2 online multiplayer, everything goes fine, until, when you find a match, the game freezes. The game is trying to take you on to the match (i know it because the "Waiting..." sign is moving... like: "Waiting." "Waiting.." "Waiting...", etc. so its not a complete freeze, but I cannot use the controllers to even get out of the lobby, etc. The problem is only with Modern Warfare 2, because I tried using another game and it worked perfectly.
I checked out some forums by googling stuff and a lot of people seem to have the exact same problem.

It is not the console, since I can play other games nicely, so im pretty certain it could be the disk, although its not fractured or anything, nor it has been exposed to extreme condition/anything, maybe its just another dumb problem about the game?

Please smogoners, if any of you can help me with this, it will be greatly appreciated.

Edit: I also forgot to say that I have tried clearing the xbox cache, cleaning the disk, using the "envelope trick", and even updating the game (an update message appeared when I turned on the game for like the 5th time, but it didnt help at all).

Also, to show you:

Theres where it freezes, but the intermission/waiting thingie keeps moving.

And thats the message that appears after a while.

 

[Alan]

Sometimes this happens to me, but like only after my 360 has been idle for a while and I change discs. I can't really help you out other than the link I gave you in irc. You could try the old N64 trick and just like blow on the disc and see if that helps.

 

[AJers]

This happens to me with my ODST disk, it goes up until I'm entering the campaign, and then it freezes and ends up with the "unreadable disk" message. :( My sister tilted her Xbox when playing it and I got a cool (slight) ring-like scratch on the back of my disk.

Did your friends tilt the Xbox when you were away and/or do you see any scratches on it?

There are some techniques when you google scratched disks online and I know some places buff scratches from disks; so far, nothing has restored my disk (despite the fact that the scratch was pretty light).

Other than that, I don't know what else could be going on if it's not messing up on other disks.

 

[reyscarface]

Yeah they probably did and are not saying anything, just for reference, how was the ring-like scratch? Was it like at the border of the disk or was it tiny and in the body of the disk?

 

[cantab]

You can buy various disk polishing stuff. They can work. Sometimes.

IIRC XBox 360 games are on DVDs, correct? In DVDs the data layer is in the middle, so is unlikely to be actually damaged by scratches. (On a CD the data is right under the label so a label-side scratch can ruin it, as happened to one of my FFVIII disks).

 

[reyscarface]

Holy fuck I just saw an insanely big ring on the disk (what you said AJers). Apparently they actually knocked off the xbox and they told me _just now.

Ok a little change of direction, does anyone know how to fix that? =/

 

[cantab]

Circular scratches are generally the worst, since they're in the same direction as the data.

As I said above, polishing may fix it. There are various products available, from simple kits with polish and a cloth, to more sophisticated cranked or motorised machines. There are also commercial services.
Of note is that while some are only polish, others have an abrasion step to do first. I'd say they should only be used in severe cases where ordinary polish has failed - don't sand a disk that doesn't need it!

I've never actually fixed a disk with any such polishes, because as I mentioned the one badly damaged disk I had was beyond what polish can do. But they are what SHOULD work.

 

[DDRMaster]

I think you should consider yourself lucky that the game works at all and only the online doesn't work. I got a circular scratch on my Monster Rancher 2 disc and it only gets to the title screen. You might be able to get it prfessionally cleaned but I think your only option is get your friends to buy you a new game.

Edit: @ Llama: Yeah, I guess you have a point. Games like that really are only good for their multi-player.

 

[Llama]

I think you should consider yourself lucky that the game works at all and only the online doesn't work. I got a circular scratch on my Monster Rancher 2 disc and it only gets to the title screen. You might be able to get it prfessionally cleaned but I think your only option is get your friends to buy you a new game.

Just pointing out that the game in question is Modern Warfare 2, if multi-player doesn't work the game might as well not work at all.

 

[reyscarface]

I think you should consider yourself lucky that the game works at all and only the online doesn't work. I got a circular scratch on my Monster Rancher 2 disc and it only gets to the title screen. You might be able to get it prfessionally cleaned but I think your only option is get your friends to buy you a new game.

Edit: @ Llama: Yeah, I guess you have a point. Games like that really are only good for their multi-player.

Yeah, it only gets to the title screen, like, if I go to "Campaign" and click "Museum" level, it freezes and says "unable to read disk", same happens for Special Ops, and so does for Multiplayer, so the game is as good as dead. As for buying another one, my friend told me he will when he gets the money, though id rather not be such a terrible friend and have it cleaned to check if it works.

Edit: And also, someone told me to get the disk from another friend, saving it to the Hard Drive, and then using mine to play the game, would that work?

 

[vashta]

yes. install the game onto the hard drive and then use your old cd at the same time - it should work. that's what happened to me.

 

[VKCA]

Holy fuck I just saw an insanely big ring on the disk (what you said AJers). Apparently they actually knocked off the xbox and they told me _just now.

Ok a little change of direction, does anyone know how to fix that? =/

Same thing happened to my friend the day the map pack came out. Except it was his fault. He just rented the game for the mean time, most game stores(or at least the ones close to me) will fix scratches for like 3 bucks or something.

 

[Darkvirus]

alot of game ships these days have a machine that will take off a layer of a discs surface without making it unreadable ( think and be done 2/3 times without fucking it up compleatly) so your best bet is to try that ( its only £3 here in uk per disc) so even if it dosent fix its not a costly thing to try

 

[Firestorm]

Yeah, the HDD install trick should work as long as the 360 can verify you have MW2 in the tray. As long as that part is readable you'd be fine. Fortunately, you'll be able to use 16GB USB flash/hard drives starting this month so you'll have more space available.

 

[faint]

If you can barely play the disk installing it to your hard drive isn't going to work. Also if you guys have the arcade 360 (white one) it has a tendency to scratch disk while in the tray. Thats one of the reasons why they made the elite (as well as the much more hd space). Anyways don't bother with a disk cleaner because it's not going to help the scratches that prevent a disc from working. Disc cleaners are meant to be used for minor scratches to prevent them from getting any worse, not to fill in craters.


also try putting the 360 vertically if it alrready isnt, with the hdd facing on the top, as thats how the 360 is meant to be positioned even if it would look normal horizontally.

 

[cantab]

If you can barely play the disk installing it to your hard drive isn't going to work.

I think the idea is to install using a different copy of the disk.

Anyways don't bother with a disk cleaner because it's not going to help the scratches that prevent a disc from working. Disc cleaners are meant to be used for minor scratches to prevent them from getting any worse, not to fill in craters.

I along with some others were referring to disk polishers, which are different to disk cleaners (though many products include both, since it's a good idea to clean before polishing) and ARE "to fill in craters".

 

[reyscarface]

The disk doesnt really have a crater, its just a big scratch, since I felt no void on it really. Also, my 360 is Elite, and is placed vertically, so yah you could just say I have very bad luck lol.

Thanks a lot everyone who answered, ill tell one of my friends to give me his mw2 so I can instal it in the Hard Drive, and well, if it doesnt work, my friend will have to buy me a new one lol.

 

[faint]

oh. well that sucks. if he doesnt let u borrow it u could just rent it and install it to ur hd.. also if ur a real beast just rent it and replace ur shit one with the rented one. make sure u mention like "the disc was unreadable" to the clerk that way it doesnt look like u did it. im so smart. ^_^

 

[reyscarface]

Thanks everyone for your input, my friends just rented the game, we saved it to the HDD, and it works perfectly fine ^__^