Multi Disc

📎 Recovered from the ShaolinAssassin wiki · snapshot 20250110103459

Swap disc feature

You can now play multi-discs games with POPS.

1. Create a DISCS.TXT text file containing the file names of your VCDs, one file name per line (with VCD extension) ;

DISCS.TXT line 1 = disc 1
DISCS.TXT line 2 = disc 2
DISCS.TXT line 3 = disc 3
DISCS.TXT line 4 = disc 4

Example :

MGS_CD1.VCD
MGS_CD2.VCD
[Empty]
[Empty]

2. Copy/paste this DISCS.TXT file to the VMC folders of ALL your game discs ;

3. When required by the game, open the lid using the hotkey ;

4. Insert the disc you want to load using the hotkey ;

5. Close the lid using the hotkey.

Hotkeys :

• To open the lid : Select + L2 + R2 + △

• To insert Disc 1 : Select + L2 + R2 + ↑

• To insert Disc 2 : Select + L2 + R2 + →

• To insert Disc 3 : Select + L2 + R2 + ↓

• To insert Disc 4 : Select + L2 + R2 + ←

• To close the lid : Select + L2 + R2 + □

Limitations :

• Up to 4 file names in DISCS.TXT ;

• A file name must not exceed 89 characters ;

• The VCD files have to be in the same partition/folder ;

• If you have more than 4 lines in the DISCS.TXT file, the feature will not work.

Example of working setup :

mass:/POPS/MGS_CD1.VCD
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD2.VCD
mass:/POPS/XX.MGS_CD1.ELF
mass:/POPS/XX.MGS_CD2.ELF
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD1/DISCS.TXT
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD2/DISCS.TXT

DISCS.TXT content :

MGS_CD1.VCD
MGS_CD2.VCD

Notes :

• The swap disc feature is useful only if you must swap discs without any PS1 reboot. For the other games, you only need to swap the VMCs manually (copy/paste VMCs from VMC disc 1 folder to VMC disc 2 folder) – or you can use the “trick” below to avoid such a manipulation ;

• If your game has more than 4 discs, install the forth first ones, play them until disc 4, then uninstall discs 1, 2 and 3, and install disc 5, 6, 7…

• Does not work properly with all games ((not working with Final Fantasy IX and Grandia) ;

• Multi disc games combined to single VCDs still work, up to ~2GB per VCD.

Use a single pair of VMCs for multi-disc games :

You can use the VMCDIR.TXT file to use only 1 pair of VMCs for a multi-disc game. This VMCDIR.TXT must be placed into disc 1 and disc 2 VMC game folders. Read here to know more about the VMCDIR.TXT file (“Setting a path for the VMC folder” section).

Example :

mass:/POPS/MGS_CD1.VCD
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD2.VCD
mass:/POPS/XX.MGS_CD1.ELF
mass:/POPS/XX.MGS_CD2.ELF
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD1/DISCS.TXT
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD1/VMCDIR.TXT
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD2/DISCS.TXT
mass:/POPS/MGS_CD2/VMCDIR.TXT

DISCS.TXT content :

MGS_CD1.VCD
MGS_CD2.VCD

VMCDIR.TXT content (= CD1 VMC game folder) :

MGS_CD1

In this situation, disc 1 and disc 2 share the same VMC folder.

DISCS POOPER

DISCS_POOPER is a little program that does the boring job for you.

• Download : here

How to use it :

1. Create a new folder ;

2. Drop the VCD files of your multic-disc game in it ;

3. Drop DISCS_POOPER.EXE in the folder and run it ;

DISCS_POOPER creates :

. A VMC folder for each VCD in the folder ;

. A DISCS.TXT inside each VMC folder ;

. A VMCDIR.TXT inside each VMC to use only a pair of VMC for this multi-disc game.

4. Move your VCD and VMC game folders to your POPS folder ;

5. Enjoy.

Limits :

. Doesn’t comply with 4 CDs limit of the swap disc feature (don’t use it with more than 4 VCDs) ;

Related curated section → Multi-disc & VMC