How To Backup PS2 Save Files (2019)

In this video I'll be showing you how to backup your save files from your ps2 memory card and transfer them to a usb thumb-drive. You'll need Free McBoot and UlaunchElf. This works for all versions of the PS2.

Steps:
1) Plug in USB thumb-drive to either USB slot on your PS2
2) Go to UlaunchElf
3) Go to "mc0" folder
4) Push the "square" button to select all folders
5) Push "R1" button
6) Select copy
7) Go back to root folder
8) Select "mass" folder
9) Push "R1" button
10) Select paste
11) Wait....
12) Done!!!

Though Sony has kept details of the PlayStation 2's development secret, work on the console began around the time that the original PlayStation was released (in late 1994).[13] Insiders stated that it was developed in the U.S. West Coast by former members of Argonaut Software.[14] By 1997 word had leaked to the press that the console would have backwards compatibility with the original PlayStation, a built-in DVD player, and Internet connectivity.[14][15] Sony announced the PlayStation 2 (PS2) on March 1, 1999. The video game console was positioned as a competitor to Sega's Dreamcast, the first sixth-generation console to be released, although ultimately the main rivals of the PS2 were Nintendo's GameCube and Microsoft's Xbox.[16][17] The Dreamcast itself launched very successfully in North America later that year, selling over 500,000 units within two weeks.[18]

Soon after the Dreamcast's North American launch, Sony unveiled the PlayStation 2 at the Tokyo Game Show on September 20, 1999.[19] Sony showed fully playable demos of upcoming PlayStation 2 games including Gran Turismo 2000 (later released as Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec) and Tekken Tag Tournament – which showed the console's graphic abilities and power.[20]

The PS2 was launched in March 2000 in Japan, October in North America, and November in Europe. Sales of the console, games and accessories pulled in $250 million on the first day, beating the $97 million made on the first day of the Dreamcast.[21] Directly after its release, it was difficult to find PS2 units on retailer shelves[22] due to manufacturing delays.[23] Another option was purchasing the console online through auction websites such as eBay, where people paid over a thousand dollars for the console.[24] The PS2 initially sold well partly on the basis of the strength of the PlayStation brand and the console's backward compatibility, selling over 980,000 units in Japan by March 5, 2000, one day after launch.[25] This allowed the PS2 to tap the large install base established by the PlayStation – another major selling point over the competition. Later, Sony added new development kits for game developers and more PS2 units for consumers. The PS2's built-in functionality also expanded its audience beyond the gamer,[2] as its debut pricing was the same or less than a standalone DVD player. This made the console a low cost entry into the home theater market.[26]

The success of the PS2 at the end of 2000 caused Sega problems both financially and competitively, and Sega announced the discontinuation of the Dreamcast in March 2001, just 18 months after its successful launch. The PS2 remained as the only active sixth generation console for over 6 months, before it would face competition from newer rivals; Nintendo's GameCube and Microsoft's Xbox, which were then released. Many analysts predicted a close three-way matchup among the three consoles; the Xbox having the most powerful hardware, while the GameCube was the least expensive console, and Nintendo changed its policy to encourage third-party developers. While the PlayStation 2 theoretically had the weakest specification of the three, it had a head start due to its installed base plus strong developer commitment, as well as a built-in DVD player (the Xbox required an adapter, while the GameCube lacked support entirely).[27] While the PlayStation 2's initial games lineup was considered mediocre, this changed during the 2001 holiday season with the release of several blockbuster games that maintained the PS2's sales momentum and held off its newer rivals. Sony also countered the Xbox by temporarily securing PlayStation 2 exclusives for highly anticipated games such as the Grand Theft Auto series and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.[28]

Sony cut the price of the console in May 2002 from US$299 to $199 in North America,[29] making it the same price as the GameCube and $100 less than the Xbox. It also planned to cut the price in Japan around that time.[30] It cut the price twice in Japan in 2003.[31] In 2006, Sony cut the cost of the console in anticipation of the release of the PlayStation 3.[31]

[THATCANADIANDUDE]

Just a pro tip for anyone on this video, I tried to import these save files into .ps2 files for PCSX2 but none of them actually work.
What you have to do is instead of just selecting paste to start the transfer, click "psuPaste". This will have the saves be in a format
that can be imported into .ps2 files with mymc.

[LeftSideDown]

You know it's gonna be a good tutorial when you hear Scott Pilgrim music

[themissinfowar]

Is there anyway to keep the original save file dates? The dates at 0:40 are all the same 1/9/19 at 2:29

[waldevv]

Thank you, I have so many save games dated between 2004 and 2007 and I wanted to preserve them, even if the dates on them wont stay the same (although memory cards are so cheap I'm never going to delete any old saves anyway). Would've been nice to preserve the dates in case I ever play those old saves and overwrite the dates by doing that but I guess it's fine.
Really does feel strange going back to a 15 year old save and continuing the game from where I left off

[ThunderChunky]

Where are save files stored on the hdd?! I can't find mine anywhere...

[FeiXenogears]

Can you do this for ps1 saves?
Also if you want the saves from the usb to go back on a memory card do you just reverse the steps?

[brentbuckleynorthernindian]

Is there a way to find out what backup goes to what game?

[federica_madreJC]

Sorry, I don't know if you can help me, I already have free mcboot and I have to copy a save to ps2. I followed the whole procedure on pc with save builder and copied to usb. But when copying the save from usb to ps2 when I press R1 the menu does not appear on the right, so I can't copy it, why? Thank you

[noaharkadedelgado]

Should I psupaste it into a PSU folder instead of normaly pasting the files on the root of the USB?

[AntoniusTertius]

Usb doesn't need to be blank, right?

[gutti]

hey! it was succesfull. BUT: How can i now use these save files, for an ps2-emulator on pc? (PCSX2)??? i guess, that i need to convert it. But i dont know how! (im from germany, sorry about this bad english)

[Coordman]

Hi. Will this also work for PS1 saves backed up to a PS2 memory card? (This was an option for PS1 game saves on the PS2. You could copy them to the PS2 memory card as a backup.) Thanks, in advance.

[cooolpotato]

What kind of format do the files export to the usb as? I'm curious as I would like to import my saves to my PS3 and I know the PS3 is very picky when reading saves.

[TVRust]

i downloaded a back up save file from gamefaq for the pump it up exceed game but it comes just 1 files and its a .max file, how do I export this to my memory card? i need to unlock all songs from this game so I can play with my new mat HELP!

[CaitlinL]

Thank you for the helpful video. I have a few USB drives along with a few external hard drives. Would it be safe to copy my save files from a USB drive to an external hard drive? Or is it possible and safe to copy my save files directly from the PS2 memory card to an external hard drive? Also, do I need to format the USB drive and/or external hard drive to FAT32? Also, I have PS1 save files and GameCube save files to backup, as well as more than one memory card for each system. Would I need to use more than one USB Drive/external hard drive to store my save files? Like, for instance, one USB drive/external hard drive for GameCube memory card one, one for GameCube memory card two, one for ps1 memory card one, one for ps1 memory card two, and so on? Or can I put them all on one hard drive that has lots of space, maybe in different file folders? By the way, I have a few SD cards as well (I think I’ll need that for backing up files for the GameCube)

Also, one of my GameCube memory cards recently corrupted, how do I fix this? I followed the steps to format it, but it’s still corrupted. This is the whole reason I wanted to do backups so it doesn’t happen again. Yeah I have a lot of questions, sorry about that XD

[dhafin_aditya]

How do I know if I want to back up specific game? Like which one's which?

[kelley]

Where's the video explaining reverse mode so I can transfer to ps2

[Fine_Mouche]

And how use this saves in pcx2 after transfer it to the PC? (edit : i had a start of answer but i want be sure/certain how to do this to not corromp my memcards folder of the emulator or the ps2 saves)

[bex--]

Can you not back up the file dates? My save files reading back to 2002 is the reason I don't want to delete half of them.

[squallleonhart]

Hi i fellow the step but it say past failed what format do i need on the usb?