Hacking USB Loader GX is kicking me back to HBC for some games

[blitzmann]

I am having this strange issue. I have a 16GB FAT32 flash drive that my games are stored on in wbfs format. Seems to work great for the most part - I can play New Super Mario Bros, Wii Sports, and Super Paper Mario from it.

However, I also have Donkey Kong Country Returns and Monster Hunter Tri. When I select them in in the USB Loader, there is simply a black screen with the Wii System Menu music and the options of settings and start (it should have animation and music related to the game). When I start it, it is a black screen for a few seconds, then I am booted back to the HBC.

The weird thing is that I can load and play these same files in the Dolphin emulator on my PC - they do not seem to be corrupted files. I've also tried Configurable USB Loader (using cIOS 248 - see below) and that doesn't even show the problem games, only the ones that can be played... I never have been able to get Wiiflow to work.

I've tried to force NTSC video mode, to no avail. Not really sure what else to do.

My system:
USB Loader GX 3.0
d2x v10 beta53 alt installed (I've read multiple sources that 249 and 250 shouldn't be used anymore and to instead use 247 and 248, hence why I have the best of both worlds):
- cIOS 247 - base 57
- cIOS 248 - base 56
- cIOS 249 - base 56
- cIOS 250 - base 57

 

[Cyan]

If USBLoaderGX doesn't display the banner animation, it's either a bug in the loader (not enough memory? etc.) or it's a sign that your ISO is bad and the loader can't access the banner animation file.
Launching the game also results in black screen, meaning the ISO couldn't be loaded.

Either the ISO is bad, or maybe they are write protected?
I really don't know why write protected files have issue loading, but check your files and be sure to disable write protection.

if it doesn't help, verify your ISO with WiiBackupManager Sha1 option.


I don't know which source you have read, but any slots are fine for cIOS (except 254).
249 and 250 are still fine to use and they are still the default cIOS slot used by the loader.
If you want to have two different slots with the same base, you could at least install beta52 and beta53 instead of all duplicated beta53 in 4 slots.
It shouldn't be useful to have both, but not worse than having duplicates.

 

[blitzmann]

I downloaded another Monster Hunter ISO with the same issues... I will check to make sure nothing it write protected, but otherwise I'm at a loss...

 

[blitzmann]

So, I feel dumb. Seems to be a naming issue.

All games are in sub directories called "Game Name [GAMEID]". But, the files names of the ones that work are simply named GAMEID.wbfs. The ones that don't were named "Game Name [GAMEID].wbfs". I'm assuming [ and ] are illegal character in the name, or that it simply expects the GAMEID as the name of the file. I don't know how I overlooked this before.

Thanks for the help tho. Cheers!

 

[Cyan]

it expects GameID6 for filename.
It expects the GameID6 in the sub-folder name.
The folder can contain either the "ID6_Title" or "Title [ID6]", or "ID6" since r1246.
6 means the 6 digits TitleID : RSBP01 for example.
The titleID is the official game code from Nintendo, you can use WiiBackupManager (setup guide) or Wit/wwt to automatically get the proper path and filename for your installed games, or manually check on http://gametdb.com


There are other formats that other loaders use but USBLoaderGX doesn't, like "Title" only or "ID6" only.


I checked the sources and here are the working format :
Format working for Wii games:
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6.wbfs
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6.iso
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6.ciso
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6].wbfs
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6].iso
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6].ciso
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6]/GAMEID6.wbfs <--- Preferred format. You should use this. The loader is generating this format when you dump a disc in the loader.
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6]/GAMEID6.iso
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6]/GAMEID6.ciso
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6_Title/GAMEID6.wbfs
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6_Title/GAMEID6.iso
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6_Title/GAMEID6.ciso
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6/GAMEID6.wbfs (r1246+)
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6/GAMEID6.iso (r1246+)
usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6/GAMEID6.iso (r1246+)

ciso format for wii games works only with Hermes cIOS.



format not working for Wii games:
any filename not a GameID (ex: title.iso, or title.wbfs)
Subfolder with GameID only (ex: usb:/wbfs/GAMEID6/GAMEID6.xxx) added in r1246
Subfolder with Title only (ex: usb:/wbfs/Title/GAMEID6.xxx). will probably be added in later revision.
6 characters folder name but not alphanumeric (eg: wbfs/d_blob/R6BP78.wbfs)
unknown GameID in folder name and not matching internal gameID (ex: wbfs/ABCD01/ABCD01.wbfs but GameID inside the ISO header is RSBP01)


Format working for gamecube games
/games/Title/game.iso
/games/Title/game.gcm
/games/Title/disc2.iso
/games/Title/disc2.gcm
/games/Title [ID6]/game.iso <--- Preferred format. You should use this. The loader is generating this format when you dump a disc in the loader.
/games/Title [ID6]/game.gcm
/games/Title [ID6]/disc2.iso <--- Preferred format. You should use this. The loader is generating this format when you dump a disc in the loader.
/games/Title [ID6]/disc2.gcm
/games/Title [ID6]/ID6.iso
/games/Title [ID6]/ID6.gcm
/games/ID6/game.iso
/games/ID6/game.gcm
/games/ID6/disc2.iso
/games/ID6/disc2.gcm
/games/ID6/ID6.iso
/games/ID6/ID6.gcm

ciso format for gamecube games is not implemented yet!


If launching a game directly from HBC>Nintendont, then /games/ID6/ is used for cheatcodes location. It doesn't matter when launched from USBloaderGX.

Format not working for gamecube games
/games/anyFilename.iso (format used by HBC>Devolution. Not an issue with devolution when launched from USBLoaderGX). This format works with nintendont launched from HBC too, but not added to USBGX yet.
/games/6 characters Not An ID6_Title/game.iso (ex: game/Luigis_mansion/game.iso, the 6 letters "Luigis_" part is detected as GameID. Don't use underscore, or add GameID in the path!)


I think I covered all possible path layout.

 

[kimotori]

Cyan Sorry, I try, but I can not run games .ciso on ext4 partition
I use
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID6].ciso
and reset loader, after, return to menu vWii

TITLE is case sensitive? all TITLE uppercase?

 

[Cyan]

Title is not case sensitive, you can use what you want as title.
But the GameID should be in uppercase, the extension in lowercase, /wbfs/ folder in lowercase too.

I don't have any ext partitioned drive to test (I own only a WinXP computer), I will check the sources to see if the /wbfs/ path layout are particular to each partition format.

 

[kimotori]

thank you very much

 

[Cyan]

The ext use the same class than fat to find backups.

If ext partition can detect wbfs, there's no reason it can't detect .iso and .ciso too.
But as I can't test, If it really doesn't work try other layout (you have plenty available from my post above) and let me know if none or only specific path are working.

 

[kimotori]

ok, give me a time for a test, i'm busy with an (it) "infante terribile" alias (fr)"enfant terrible"

however, files .ciso finds them, but at the start (game), "boot" in menu vWii.

usb:/wbfs/[GAMEID].ciso
usb:/wbfs/TITLE [GAMEID].ciso

 

[Cyan]

just to be sure, the bracket are used like that:
/wbfs/GameID.ciso
/wbfs/Title [GameID].ciso

/wbfs/smash brawl.ciso
/wbfs/smash brawl [RSBP01].ciso


reboot to system menu means the cIOS didn't find the game or the USB (or console didn't find cIOS).
Could you try with a wbfs and iso too?
maybe only .ciso has an issue.

take your time your your child, I'll check your test tomorrow.

 

[kimotori]

Good Morning,

Cyan, I try.
usbloader -> usb://wbfs/smash brawl [RSBP01].ciso boot in main menu

maybe need to CIOS suitable for files .cios? Because, (do you remember), I use the WiiU..

 

[Cyan]

I don't think cIOS have specific ciso support.
The loader is sending fragment list. All the used sector where the data is located, it doesn't care about the extension, and ciso is a normal iso so it shouldn't matter

Did you try with a full .iso? or with a converted .wbfs ?
Do you have a FAT32 drive where you could test ciso? (I'll test myself too, but probably this weekend)
To see if the issue is the partition format or the extension or the data.

 

[kimotori]

I don't think cIOS have specific ciso support.
The loader is sending fragment list. All the used sector where the data is located, it doesn't care about the extension, and ciso is a normal iso so it shouldn't matter

Did you try with a full .iso? or with a converted .wbfs ?
Do you have a FAT32 drive where you could test ciso? (I'll test myself too, but probably this weekend)
To see if the issue is the partition format or the extension or the data.

Ok in .wbfs ext4
ok in .iso ext4
ko .ciso ext4
partition is ext4 on usb stick kingston data travler
.ciso fat32 i try

 

[Cyan]

I think I found the issue.
If you add the GameID in the folder name, it's not marked as being a "ciso" format.

Try to write only the title as subfolder please.
/wbfs/Smash Brawl/RSBP01.ciso

wait, I'm checking the sources again.

 

[kimotori]

ok i try

 

[Cyan]

it's tricky, but it's only to see if that's the bug I found.

name it :
/wbfs/RSBP01.ciso

Go to settings>features, and disable titles from wiitdb.xml and enable Force titles from disc.

It should force open the ciso file to read the game's titles from the ISO header.
doing this is also marking the file as being a ciso format.
If it work, then the issue is the missing "ciso marker".

If it works, I'll fix it and provide a test build. you can then use your usual filename (title [ID])

 

[kimotori]

https://imgur.com/2svuOSw

white screen..

ext4 usb:/wbfs/Smash Browl/RSBP01.ciso

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Second option

ext4 usb:/wbfs/RSBP01.ciso

the title appears
ok whit NO (Go to settings>features, and disable titles from wiitdb.xml and enable Force titles from disc.)

ok whit YES ( Go to settings>features, and disable titles from wiitdb.xml and enable Force titles from disc.)

https://imgur.com/Kr9TuSX

But not boot game!

 

[Cyan]

whitescreen with usb:/wbfs/Smash Brawl/RSBP01.ciso is normal, because /wbfs/title/ID is not a working layout.

I thought disabling titles from wiitdb would fix the bug.
I will have to do some tests (like I said, probably this weekend).

Are you sure your ciso is correct? WBM is detecting and verifying it as good dump?
Maybe wwt/wit could also check your ciso format.
or try another loader to be sure the ciso is good.

 

[kimotori]

whitescreen with usb:/wbfs/Smash Brawl/RSBP01.ciso is normal, because /wbfs/title/ID is not a working layout.

I thought disabling titles from wiitdb would fix the bug.
I will have to do some tests (like I said, probably this weekend).

Are you sure your ciso is correct? WBM is detecting and verifying it as good dump?
Maybe wwt/wit could also check your ciso format.
or try another loader to be sure the ciso is good.

Yes is it good .cios, convert this .ciso in .wbfs and boot done. verify by tool wwt/wit.
Another loader... which one? I don't know any loader boot .ciso for vWii.
Sorry for the little help I can give you..