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Disc Rot - What is it, how is it affecting cd based games, and how can you can avoid it? - YouTube
Channel: Jenovi
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in 1982 a form of optical media storage
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called the compact disc made its market
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debut developed in tandem by Sony and
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Philips it would revolutionize the way
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we listen to music
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and store data
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1990 the release of the turbo graphics
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CD would finally introduce cd-based
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entertainment to the North American home
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console market. This gave game developers
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a huge increase in storage space to use
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in their development, and a reasonably
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priced way to deliver full motion video
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along with cd-quality audio. This was a
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huge step forward allowing a slew of
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amazing games that were only possible
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thanks to the CDs massive storage
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capacity, and cheap production costs.
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As years passed on reports started the
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surface about a longevity issue that was
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causing loss of data stored on these
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discs. This is retro impressions and we
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are covering disc rot.
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In order to truly understand
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disc rot we need to discuss
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how optical media discs are made.
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All dvds cds and other optical media have a
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basic common construction.
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From the bottom up there is a polycarbonate
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plastic layer no data is stored there
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this is just a protective layer. Next is
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a metal reflective data layer this is
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nearly always aluminum base and is where
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the information is stored. On a CD it's
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near the top of the disk and on DVDs
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this layer is about in the center of the
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disc. Next exclusive to DVDs is an
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adhesion layer followed by a
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polycarbonate plastic layer on top.
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For CDs there is a thin protective lacquer
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layer. Lastly the printed surface
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containing the label is on top of the
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disc. So what is disc rot? It's a physical
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or chemical deterioration of the
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metallic reflective data layer. It's
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nearly always caused by a failure in the
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protective layer allowing the outer
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atmosphere to interact wit,h and decay
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the data layer. It's important to mention
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at this point that there is no repairing
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disc rot. Once it happens, it's permanent.
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Disc rot isn't something that happens
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overnight it has nothing to do with the
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bottom of the disk being scratched and
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it's not the same as
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someone damaging the data layer with a deep scratch.
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In fact, disc rot is not damage
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that can easily be duplicated by humans
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although the way we handle this can be a
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factor in damage that will eventually
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occur. As humans we are not the primary
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cause. Disc rot can even occur with a
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new unopen disk . It can be hard to spot
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on some disc as the damage may only be a
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small pin sized hole. It can also appear
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as large missing chunks of the
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reflective data layer, or a discoloration
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given the reflective side of the disc
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the appearance of being stained. So what
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does this mean for someone who's playing
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a game on a rotted disk? Well it means
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you could experience issues. They could
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be anything from bad audio or video to
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the game crashing at any point and
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becoming unplayable. Imagine playing
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through 20 to 30 hours of a game only to
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have it lock up and become unplayable at
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the end. Well if you have a rotted disc it's
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a real possibility, and it has in fact
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happened to me. This is something you
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should be aware of when you're buying
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and selling games its more common than
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you might think, and it can be impossible
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to spot if you're not looking for it.
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I collect games for a lot of systems and
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there is one in particular that suffers
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from disc rot far in excessive of all
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other systems. In fact it accounts for
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ninety percent of all games that I have
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or that I have seen in the wild with
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disc rot. That console the Gamecube
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now this is just my personal experience but
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it's become so bad that I wouldn't
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consider purchasing gamecube disc I
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can't verify the integrity of myself.
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Of all the games on the gamecube there is
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one game in particular that is nearly
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impossible to find without disc rot or
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some sort of disc layer separation that
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will eventually lead to rot. The game is
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Metal Gear Solid twins
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I've been looking for a clean copy of
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this game for four years now to replace
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my damaged copy, and if only found rotted
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disc. Disc one in particular is so bad
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you can see the physical deterioration
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without the assistance of any lights on
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multiple E-bay listings being passed off
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as good copies. Okay, so they're out there,
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and if you have a sizable disc
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collection you more than likely haven't
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dodged this bullet so here are my tips
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to avoid this in the future as you
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continue to add games to your collection
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if you can physically inspect the disc
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use a light to illuminate it. I recommend
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carrying a small flashlight with you or
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using the light on your phone that
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that's an option. I personally like to
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illuminate from the bottom side of the
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disc while inspecting from the label
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side first as i find it's easier to spot
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damage this way. Look for pin holes or
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missing material in the reflective layer
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my advice is if there's damage don't buy
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the disc. Asking online sellers to
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inspect the disc for you isn't enough to
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guarantee you will avoid buying a rotted
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disc. If you're really interested in a
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game, have the seller illuminate the disc
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while taking pictures of both sides,
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and explain what you're looking for.
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Just keep in mind that pictures can be
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deceptive, videos of the game working
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isn't proof that the disc isn't damaged,
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and a lot of times, photos won't do the
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disc justice when damage is minor. The
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last thing you can do is use a computer
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program to test the integrity of the
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files on the disc. If you're someone who
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is unsure if your disc is affected, a
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program designed to check the integrity
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of the files will give you a definitive answer.
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So when this video is done, you start
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looking over your collection and
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you find you have rotted a disc, what do
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you do? Well it's not necessarily time to
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chuck them. There are great odds that any
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older game will just have a glitchy
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audio or video track and still be fully
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playable. It's also possible that the rot
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is outside the area where critical data
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is stored. If the damage is part of the
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game code however, there isn't much you
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can do. Although you can't repair
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rotted discs you
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and take steps to ensure you're not
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contributing to the factors that
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increase the odds of it happening to
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your disc collection. Keep your discs
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stored in a cool dark and dry location,
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always handle them from the outside edge
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and the center hole, and store them in a
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jewel case rather than a sleeve System.
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I hope you found this information helpful
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and informative. Thanks for watching the
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video, feel free to leave a positive or
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negative comment below letting me know
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your thoughts. I should have the next
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retro impressions and review video up in
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about a week. So click the subscribe
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button if you enjoyed what you've seen
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and we'll see you again until next time
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this has been retro impressions.
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