Copy games from CD to computer to DVD-RW

Is there one single program that copies all the stuff inside game CDs effectively, then transfer to DVD-RW? I've tried it with the Windows program but the game won't play from the DVD-RW.

 

Most games have CD copy protection schemes, therefore you can’t just copy them from a CD to a DVD and run. However there are ways to do it, but I’m not going to discuss it here because of the legal issues and forum rules.

 

Phoenix is right about the copy protection, that can be a real pain. But the largest pain is that while you could do this to about 7-10 CDs, your games would not recognize the DVD as the 'original.'

FairUse dictates you are allowed to make your own copy for personal use, so I don't see anything wrong with the OPs question...as long as it is for personal use.

The only real way it might work?
1) Get a program like Sonic, Nero, DAEMON, etc...to burn ISOs of every single CD you are interested in.
2) Burn ISOs (as files, not make a CD image) to the DVD.
3) Use a third party program to mount those ISOs to a separate virtual drive, which the game might then recognize.

The one 'nearly foolproof' DVD/CD emulator I have is VCDControlTool, which was briefly endorsed by Microsoft back in the day.

As for if it will work - it depends on the game. Oblivion has no problem with this, but Grand Theft Auto: Vice City refuses to run! It all depends on the game.

Just don't discuss EXE NO-CD patches here, and we'll be relatively fine. Just keep this discussion 'clean.'

And before anyone cries foul that your local super-uber-software-licensing-nutzo moderator is actually talking about this...don't forget the Fair Use law. I hate it when companies try to prevent us from exercising that one right we have.

 

Ok, roger that .
I also don’t see any wrong doing in copying or taking a backup of something I already own. But I didn’t want to say anything that could get me in to trouble

 

What I tend to do is just use a drive emulator like Daemon Tools or Alcohol 52% (both free and legal), and just store a copy of the disc on my drive, and mount it as a virtual drive. There are tools like SafeDisc Hider that will "hide" any inquiries about the type of drive it is for protection schemes like SafeDisc (a virtual drive shows up slightly differently to the system than a "real" drive). It lets me play online and LAN games since the executable isn't changed at all, I get better performance, and I can leave the original CD's as the "backups". They're better quality and won't degrade like burned discs will, either. It eats up hard drive space, but that's not a big deal My desktop is for the major storage, I just keep what I want to use on my laptop... heh.

 

You see, I have a copy of Warcraft 3 at home. But my brother plays with it. So I was thinking of burning a DVD with that game and some others to bring along with me when I go to college, so I don't have to buy new copies of the same game I already own.

Thanks for the help guys, I'll be careful about this Copyright and FairUse.

 

That's not really legal now, is it? You can't use the same copy of Warcraft 3 as he does, unless their EULA allows that (which I doubt). That's not backing up software, that's going against the laws.

It's stupid, but you have to buy another copy of your games to stay legit (according to current legal theories).

 

But the CDs are registered under my name.

 

So take them with you. They are yours, not your brothers.

Seriously though, depends on the program and copy protection that has been implemented as to how easy (or hard) it is to make a copy.

 

I tried our 'local super-uber-software-licensing-nutzo' moderator's method, but it didn't work. I checked on Daemon's website and it says D2 and War3's game.exe is protected. Well, too bad for you little brother, then.

 

Isn't that legal too, as long as you own the game in question?

Anyway, as said above, there are two methods.
Either make an iso (or other CD/DVD image format) and mount it with Daemon-Tools or similar, and hope that it's able to emulate the copy protection.

Alternatively, you can try burning a copy of the disc with BlindWrite or CloneCD. Both can make very accurate copies of CD's or DVD's, including the many small errors that make copy protection work. (I've personally had the best experiences with BlindWrite, although it takes ages to rip a DVD)