Gaming Super Mario 64 DS : corrupted data

[KoopaMaster]

Resolved :

Every time i launch the game , i get a some data is corrupted and lost screen after i select adventure.
I lost all my progress.
Any help ?

 

[FAST6191]

If there is anything then it will not be easy. Pretty much only pokemon and maybe final fantasy have save editors of any great note here.

You can try to dump the save and see if you can open it in a hex editor or something to see what remains of the save, and then either try to port that across to a new save, force the hash to be correct, or try to force load it with a version of the ROM with save checking disabled. Definitely grab a copy of your save at the first chance you have you -- if you start playing and overwrite it then chances are nothing is coming back.

What will probably be easier at this point is to load up the game with a bunch of cheats and power level your way back to where you were.

 

[KoopaMaster]

If there is anything then it will not be easy. Pretty much only pokemon and maybe final fantasy have save editors of any great note here.

You can try to dump the save and see if you can open it in a hex editor or something to see what remains of the save, and then either try to port that across to a new save, force the hash to be correct, or try to force load it with a version of the ROM with save checking disabled. Definitely grab a copy of your save at the first chance you have you -- if you start playing and overwrite it then chances are nothing is coming back.

What will probably be easier at this point is to load up the game with a bunch of cheats and power level your way back to where you were.

I have news about this horror ....
I launched the cartridge , and played a bit to test to save .
I switch off it , and switch on again ...
Saves disappeared , and I re loaded the cartridge ...
I let the cartridge in the plug of the DS , I waiting 10 minutes , launched again , and the old first saves with my real progress re appeared .
I hope it wouldn't happen again , but I am afraid about DS cartridges now ...

Is there alike the gba's cartridges save battery in the dses ?

 

[FAST6191]

That is odd.

That it came back sounds more like bad contacts or bad connections inside the cart itself -- if it failed to power on or speak to the chip and only got back junk it would say corrupted, and then if the connection was good afterwards it would come back. Quite possible as the cart is possibly the better part of 15 years old at this point (and now I did the "wow I am old" for today).
Clean the cart pins, clean your DS slot if you can (contact cleaner, not automotive contact cleaner though, insert and remove a cart a bunch of times, maybe put a bit of tape on the back to force even better contact), do also check the DS slot to make sure no pins are bent, and maybe you will also have to pop open the DS cart and reflow the save chip.

Also dump your save now and check it works in an emulator or something.

 

[KoopaMaster]

Any tutorial for open dses cartridge ?

 

[alivebacon]

Any tutorial for open dses cartridge ?

You probably don't need to go that far, but if you need it, there's a text tutorial at https://itstillworks.com/12341457/how-to-open-a-ds-game-cartridge. Does it happen with other games? Can you send me some pictures of the cartridge so that I can check if it's fake?

 

[KleinesSinchen]

Any tutorial for open dses cartridge ?

Please backup the save at first while it can be done.

I suggest to not open DS gamecarts unless you are quite sure there is hardware damage. The two parts are really tight and often the cartridge will not hold together once opened – not matter how careful you do this (Replacement shells do exist)

However if the problem recurs after cleaning the cartridge contacts (and can be reproduced on another DS system), there is not much to lose. I would try something like a plastic opening tool or a spudger. A flat screwdriver might also work, but metal may cause scratches and the like (or even damage the PCB if you are not careful).

 

[FAST6191]

Do some kind of clean first


After that if you do have the means to seal it back up then the following seems OK

 

[alivebacon]

He's marked it as resolved.
GudTM

 

[Amez]

I use a small wire brush to clean the contacts on the game cartridges, it's great for getting rid of any black marks on them.

For the game slot, a nail file, not a metal one and not one of those with the foam bits on, just a standard 2 way nail file like..

Be gentle with it, do all the pins, you only need to stroke it over the pins, then when you've done give it a blow to get any dust outta there and away you go.