MGS2 BUG FIX (BLACK SCREEN IN GAME START-UP)

[Acey]

I was playing MGS2 happily yesterday until this new update came out. I seem to be running into a black screen whenever I start it up through the menu.

I've disabled my antivirus and firewall and still nothing.

I've even gone back to the beta version, which manages to boot up and get into the game, but it's one hell of a buggy mess with no controller support :(

If anyone has any ideas, I would really appreciate it

[Acey]

FIX:

After some trial and error, I found that installing the beta version and then switching back to the new version works.

Try the beta code
Kh48El4ZdYfU5TdaMg - MGS2

first make sure that you deactivate or remove any mods which may not work in the beta version, or could result in issues that would not occur without those mods. And remove any modded items or if possible start a new profile without any modded items.

Then:
- Right click on the game in Steam Library and click on Properties.
- on BETAS tab select the beta version from drop down list.
- Enter beta access code and click on CHECK CODE

Hope this helps anyone experiencing a similar issue.

[Afevis Solmunko]

Glad that worked for you! To note, switching to the Beta rolls you back to version 1.2.2.

In the interest of a proper fix/to catalogue the issue on the community bug tracker[docs.google.com] that i maintain, mind if I ask:
What's your PC's specs?
What mods are you running?
Would you mind screenshotting your game's folder? :>

[Wilde-Mulqueen]

I'm having a similar issue, any solutions?

[Gregatron]

Originally posted by Acey:

FIX:

After some trial and error, I found that installing the beta version and then switching back to the new version works.

Try the beta code
Kh48El4ZdYfU5TdaMg - MGS2

first make sure that you deactivate or remove any mods which may not work in the beta version, or could result in issues that would not occur without those mods. And remove any modded items or if possible start a new profile without any modded items.

Then:
- Right click on the game in Steam Library and click on Properties.
- on BETAS tab select the beta version from drop down list.
- Enter beta access code and click on CHECK CODE

Hope this helps anyone experiencing a similar issue.

Tried this today, now getting a disk read error when trying to install. Any fixes?

[Afevis Solmunko]

Originally posted by Gregatron:

Originally posted by Acey:

FIX:

After some trial and error, I found that installing the beta version and then switching back to the new version works.

Try the beta code
Kh48El4ZdYfU5TdaMg - MGS2

first make sure that you deactivate or remove any mods which may not work in the beta version, or could result in issues that would not occur without those mods. And remove any modded items or if possible start a new profile without any modded items.

Then:
- Right click on the game in Steam Library and click on Properties.
- on BETAS tab select the beta version from drop down list.
- Enter beta access code and click on CHECK CODE

Hope this helps anyone experiencing a similar issue.

Tried this today, now getting a disk read error when trying to install. Any fixes?

The beta wasn't actually a beta, it was a 2 year old build of the game. Steam implemented a cache purge of builds older than 6 months at the start of the year, so downgrading to old builds no longer works.


What is your GPU? Please post your PC's specs, as asked for in the post above.

[NemasisRinzler]

Hey all, sorry to revive an older post but I got hit with this issue a few days ago. I had tried reinstalling the game, verifying integrity of game files, installing latest drivers. You know, the usual stuff. But after looking through different forums I have managed to track down a few potential causes as to why we get the black screen on launch.

1.) You have not selected your discrete/dedicated GPU device for displaying this game in your Nvidia Control panel or AMD Adrenaline app.

2.) Your windows defender or chosen antivirus has blocked the launcher or game .exe files.

3.) Your save data is unreadable by the launcher, possibly due to an alt + F4 maneuver meaning that you will have to disable steam's save data cloud service for MGS2 and then navigate to <\SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\MGS2\mgs2_savedata_win> and delete the save data folder. (Be sure to make a backup of the files before doing this).

As for reasons why the save data might be the cause of this bug, well from what I can tell (and without revealing any spoilers), the master collection launcher reads MGS2's save data almost immediately upon start up in order to make aesthetic alterations after the player completes the game. Here it is important to note that my save file was still accessible by using the MGSHDFix mod to bypass the launcher altogether to boot straight into the game. Given the fact that the game data was readable by the game itself but not by the launcher implies that the launcher itself has a bug. On the other hand, this issue only occurred after I had alt + F4'd out of the game on one particular occasion which is a maneuver that is infamous for corrupting files. It is entirely possible that both are true, the launcher is bugged *and* that alt +F4ing causes save file corruption, but In any case I hope this helps.