Expert: Octane - 12/26/2008

Question
Hi, i just got the guitar hero world tour band kit and game for Christmas for my PS2, but it is not working very well at all. It is going very slow and it takes about ten minutes from when i turn on the game to play a song. Also many times when i play the songs they are messed up and have a huge lag and it sounds way different then the notes i am supposed to hit. The game i got was new so do you think the PS2 is most likely the problem? I have also tried it without the memory cards and it doesn't act any different, so i don't think the memory is the problem. Would the best thing to do is just get a new PS2? Or is it just that the game is too much for the PS2 and i need to get a PS3, although i don't want to spend that much. Thanks and please get back to me!

Answer
Gday Greg,

Okay this could be something simple or something more complex.

What type of PS2 is it the older fat kind or the slim line model?

A lot of people are having issues with Guitar Hero 3 loading.  The problem may lie in the fact that GH3 is a DVD9 standard game.  (Dual layered Game)  There is about only 20 DVD9 games released http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_PlayStation_2_DVD-9_games for the PS2 if you have problems with one of these game then you will have problems with all these.  This would point to a laser  intensity problem.  And your laser may need adjusting for it to be able to read these disk properly.  It works fine with CD or DVD games just when it attempts to read the DVD9 Dual layered disks it has a problem.

I would rule out first check your disk in question for major scratches, scuffles or marks because it is new.

I would also still check and clean the laser.  If you have a slim you can do it with a qtip and some cleaning alcohol if you have a PS2 older model you might want to invest in a lens cleaner CD.  Maybe your lens is dirty or cloudy.  This usually helps, I know I had a problem with the exact same game on my slimline until I cleaned the lens.

Unfortunately if after a cleaning is done and there is no improvement it is a Laser head problem with your PS2 which would mean adjustment or replacement.

Hope this helps.

Octane