PS2VR 0.2.2 – game test reports

You can now report how games run, to help build the compatibility list. Fill in the game report form after testing a game. Failures help as much as successes, and reports from real PS2 hardware or from playing to completion are especially welcome.

Download

PS2VR-0.2.2-windows-x64.zip – unzip anywhere and run:

• PS2VR.exe – the GUI. Double-click it, or drag a disc image onto it.
• PS2VR-cli.exe – the command line, e.g. PS2VR-cli.exe batch "D:\PS2" -r --all.

The exes are not code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may show "Windows protected your PC" on first run. Click More info → Run anyway. You can also run from source (python ps2vr.py) or build the exes yourself with build_exe.py.

New

• Game reports. A GitHub form collects test results for the compatibility list. analyze, replace, batch and the GUI link to it, with the game filled in when known, and the single-image tab has a Report a test result... button. PS2VR sends nothing by itself.

Disc processing is unchanged from 0.2.1. The known problems from 0.2.0 still apply.

Earlier versions are covered in CHANGELOG.md.

PS2VR 0.2.1 – safety and security fixes

Safety and security fixes. Everyone on 0.2.0 should update: it fixes a rare case where a failed job could delete the source image, and a way for a crafted disc image to write files outside the current folder through extract.

Download

PS2VR-0.2.1-windows-x64.zip – unzip anywhere and run:

• PS2VR.exe – the GUI. Double-click it, or drag a disc image onto it.
• PS2VR-cli.exe – the command line, e.g. PS2VR-cli.exe batch "D:\PS2" -r --all.

The exes are not code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may show "Windows protected your PC" on first run. Click More info → Run anyway. You can also run from source (python ps2vr.py) or build the exes yourself with build_exe.py.

Security

• extract without -o no longer lets a file name on a crafted disc write outside the current folder, and no longer replaces an existing file.

Fixed

• A failed run could delete the source image if the source was named like the temporary output (<output>.part).
• Verification now fails when the output's UDF file system can no longer be read.
• Rebuild mode no longer moves discs with UDF structures after the files it removes, or files with several extents. It refuses them, which avoids a corrupt output.
• If all of the selected padding turns out to hold data, the job stops instead of writing an unchanged copy.
• Two batch images with the same output name no longer overwrite each other.
• Closing the GUI during a job now asks first, stops the job and removes its partial output. Browsing during a job no longer clears the list or undoes Cancel.
• batch --rescan no longer forgets the scan results of other folders, scan errors are no longer cached, and a damaged cache row is ignored.
• A missing log folder, a bad window size or a damaged settings file or list no longer stops the program from starting.
• --duration is limited to 0-600 seconds, and the GUI's blank length to 600 seconds.

Tested

• All regression tests pass, including closing the GUI during a write.
• Grand Theft Auto III (USA) rebuilt with 0.2.1 gives a byte-identical ISO to 0.2.0.
• The stricter layout checks change nothing for any of 247 library images. No new PCSX2 boot tests were run, and the known problems from 0.2.0 still apply.

Earlier versions are covered in CHANGELOG.md.

PS2VR 0.2.0 – padding removal and compatibility list

Removes blank padding as well as videos, adds a compatibility list with boot test results, and fixes many of the games that hung on blank videos in 0.1.x.

Download

PS2VR-0.2.0-windows-x64.zip – unzip anywhere and run:

• PS2VR.exe – the GUI. Double-click it, or drag a disc image onto it.
• PS2VR-cli.exe – the command line, e.g. PS2VR-cli.exe batch "D:\PS2" -r --all.

The exes are not code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may show "Windows protected your PC" on first run. Click More info → Run anyway. You can also run from source (python ps2vr.py) or build the exes yourself with build_exe.py.

New

• Padding removal. --padding removes blank padding as well as videos, and --padding-only (GUI: Padding only (keep videos)) keeps every video. --padding-suspect also removes files that only look like padding. analyze, the single-image list and the batch scan all report padding. It is off by default.
• Sector number warning. PS2VR warns when removing padding would move files whose sector numbers appear to be stored in a small root file or an .ELF. Such games usually break in rebuild mode, and verification cannot detect it. It only warns; the job still runs.
• Compatibility list. ps2vr/compat.csv lists 12,835 games by serial, with boot test results for those tested so far. PS2VR reads the serial from the disc, shows the game and its results in analyze, the scan and the GUI, and warns when a job matches a recorded failure.
• Output names show what was removed: [PS2VR-V] videos, [PS2VR-P] padding, [PS2VR-VP] both, with S added for suspect padding. Scans also skip the plain [PS2VR] of older versions.
• Batch options in the GUI and command line now cover padding and padding only. The batch After and Saves columns update when these are ticked.

Changed

• Your source image is never overwritten. Every write refuses an output that is any file of the source image, including a CUE's BIN or an MDS's MDF, under any spelling of its path: other case, short name, link or mapped drive. --overwrite does not change this.
• The output is written to a .part file and only renamed once verified, so a failed or cancelled run leaves no partial output and keeps any earlier one.
• The single-image tab's button is now Write ISO. It asks you to click Analyze again if the selected image has changed.

Fixed

• Blank videos hanging games. Many movie players hang on a blank whose picture flags differ from the original movie's. Blanks now copy the original's flags.
• Archives taken for videos. Files that start with a movie but hold other data, or several movies, are no longer treated as one video (Sly 3, Silent Hill 2, Katamari Damacy).
• Dual-layer discs. Layer 1 is now kept intact in rebuild mode and checked by verification. Edits that would have to move it are refused, with a pointer to in-place mode.
• Truncated images are refused with a clear message, instead of producing a bad output.
• Failure reasons are no longer lost, and a failed run no longer deletes an earlier output.
• In-place mode no longer reports padding as removed when it stays on the disc.
• Batch options can no longer be changed in the middle of a run, and the warning about small images being taken for CDs is no longer hidden.

Tested

• Every replaceable video blanked in rebuild mode, 159 images (155 games), 60 s boot in PCSX2: 111 games ok, 14 broken, 30 unclear.
• All 159 outputs built and passed verification, with the size matching the estimate.
• Padding removed with videos kept, 75 s boot in PCSX2, 27 games: 16 ok, 7 broken, 4 unclear. The games are listed in the README.

Known problems

• Nine games stay on a black screen with blank videos in both modes, while their originals boot: .hack Parts 1–4, ATV Offroad Fury, Paris-Dakar Rally, The Simpsons: Road Rage, Twisted Metal: Black and War of the Monsters. The blanks are the likely cause, but this has not been confirmed or fixed. Removing padding only is the option to try for these; it is known to break Paris-Dakar Rally.
• Some games break in rebuild mode because they read raw sector numbers. In-place mode helps Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando and ATV Offroad Fury 2.
• Tests reach an intro or menu only. Gameplay and real hardware are untested, so keep your original images.

Earlier versions are covered in CHANGELOG.md.

PS2VR 0.1.1 – Windows executables

Windows executables. No Python needed.

Download

PS2VR-0.1.1-windows-x64.zip – unzip anywhere and run:

• PS2VR.exe – the GUI. Double-click it, or drag a disc image onto it.
• PS2VR-cli.exe – the command line, e.g. PS2VR-cli.exe batch "D:\PS2" -r --all.

Settings (settings.json), the scan cache (scan_cache.csv) and logs\ are kept next to the exes, so the folder is portable. If the folder isn't writable (e.g. Program Files), they go to %APPDATA%\PS2VR instead.

The exes are not code-signed, so Windows SmartScreen may show "Windows protected your PC" on first run. Click More info → Run anyway. You can also run from source (python ps2vr.py) or build the exes yourself with build_exe.py.

Changes since 0.1.0

• New: Windows builds PS2VR.exe (GUI) and PS2VR-cli.exe (command line), built with PyInstaller. Each exe carries version info in its file properties.
• New: build_exe.py builds both exes and the release zip.
• Changed: if PS2VR.exe is given command-line arguments, it shows a message pointing to PS2VR-cli.exe instead of failing silently.

Features and processing are unchanged from 0.1.0; see the 0.1.0 release notes.

Tested

• PS2VR-cli.exe rebuilt Grand Theft Auto III (USA) and produced a byte-identical ISO to the 0.1.0 output that was tested in PCSX2.
• PS2VR.exe opens, saves its settings on close, and exits cleanly.
• Tested on Windows 11 x64.

PS2VR 0.1.0

First release of PS2VR – PlayStation 2 Video Replacer. It replaces FMV movies in PS2 disc images with tiny blank videos so the images get smaller. It has a GUI and a command line, and needs only Python 3 – no ffmpeg or other tools.

Features

• Opens ISO, BIN/CUE (2352 Mode 1 / Mode 2), MDF/MDS and raw dumps; output is always a standard 2048-byte ISO.
• Analyses the disc and lists every video with its format, resolution, frame rate, length, audio and whether it can be replaced.
• Generates a real MPEG-2 blank for each Sony PSS / MPEG-2 video: a black frame plus repeat frames and silent audio, matching the original's resolution, frame rate, timestamps, pack layout and audio header. A 46 MB movie becomes about 208 KB.
• Two output modes:
  • Rebuild (default) moves later files down so the ISO shrinks, and patches every ISO9660 and UDF structure.
  • In-place keeps every file where it was and zero-fills the freed space.
• Verifies every output against the source.
• Batch mode: scan a folder (optionally with subfolders), see each image's current size, estimated size and savings, sort the table by any column, tick the images you want and process them in one go.
• Settings tab: remembered folders and options (settings.json), a scan cache so unchanged images aren't re-analysed (scan_cache.csv), and debug logging with five levels and overwrite / new / append log modes.

Requirements

Python 3.10 or newer (Tkinter is included with the standard Windows/macOS installers).

python ps2vr.py                       # GUI
python ps2vr.py analyze "Game.iso"
python ps2vr.py replace "Game.iso" --all
python ps2vr.py batch "D:\PS2" -r --all

Tested

• Grand Theft Auto III (USA, SLUS-20062): 4.32 GiB → 4.27 GiB (BIN/CUE → ISO: 4.96 GiB → 4.27 GiB).
• Emulator: in PCSX2 2.5 the rebuilt image boots, both movies pass in under 6 seconds, and the game loads into its opening cutscene.
• Video decoding: the generated video decodes correctly in Windows' MPEG-2 decoder.

Known limitations

• IPU, Sofdec (.SFD), Bink and Smacker videos are detected but cannot be replaced yet. Bink and Smacker are closed formats and may never be supported.
• Only GTA III has been tested in-game so far, and no real PS2 hardware has been tested. Please keep your original images and report games that misbehave. If a game hangs, try --mode inplace or a longer --duration.