Savegame

[MoonYoung]

Hey all,

Could someone explain me why everytime i restart my computer or steam or anything my savegame is corrupted ? well i always backup it but today even with the last backup i couldnt restore cause the game said my "last backup" savegame was corrupted. I dont understand how it can be possible since all was ok when i left the game yesterday .... This is such a mess to lose all the caws i did etc

[Apost Khan]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

[MoonYoung]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

well it seems i didnt. Im gonna try tomorrow thx for ur answer

[MoonYoung]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

well it seems i didnt. Im gonna try tomorrow thx for ur answer

Well i tried ... but when i restart steam everytime the cloud sync turns on alone. So one more time today ive a save game corruption .. for the 5778754567 time

[kim666]

make sure your savegame folder is empty when you create a new save. If there is only one file left in this folder you get a save game corruption error.

[MoonYoung]

make sure your savegame folder is empty when you create a new save. If there is only one file left in this folder you get a save game corruption error.

yeah i know but now is corrupted with no reason .. just because i restart my computer

[cloudropis]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

[Cave Waverider]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

I've seen it happen in cases where you loose connection or kill steam during the synchronization process, but that can happen with all Steam games that use the cloud. The best idea is to choose the steam server you got the best connection to.

[Apost Khan]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

[Cave Waverider]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

Well, it's just a case of the file on the cloud being corrupted. All you need to do is restore a non-corrupt save while Steam is off, then start Steam in offline mode and the game in offline mode, then save the game in offline mode, exit the game, exit steam, then restart Steam in Online mode and when prompted, upload the save from the computer to the cloud.

[Apost Khan]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

Well, it's just a case of the file on the cloud being corrupted. All you need to do is restore a non-corrupt save while Steam is off, then start Steam in offline mode and the game in offline mode, then save the game in offline mode, exit the game, exit steam, then restart Steam in Online mode and when prompted, upload the save from the computer to the cloud.

That doesn't work for WWE though for some weird reason. I know Pozzum had the same issue. They will load offline, but once you go online they corrupt again. I've never had it happen with any other game.

[Tidal]

Try deleting any uncompressed/zlib/bak versions of the save file in the remote folder before restoring, another thing I tried was making sure the corrupted save was "permanently deleted" not just moved to trash. I did both of these at the same time so I'm not sure which one worked but I got my save working in the end.

[cloudropis]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

Well, it's just a case of the file on the cloud being corrupted. All you need to do is restore a non-corrupt save while Steam is off, then start Steam in offline mode and the game in offline mode, then save the game in offline mode, exit the game, exit steam, then restart Steam in Online mode and when prompted, upload the save from the computer to the cloud.

That doesn't work for WWE though for some weird reason. I know Pozzum had the same issue. They will load offline, but once you go online they corrupt again. I've never had it happen with any other game.

Maybe the game servers see the save as it was just before the corruption (for CC and multiplayer purposes I assume), so when you switch to an older backup client-side it detects an uncompability and everything gets thrown out of whack?

It would be cool to ave 2k acknowledge this somehow, but, yeah...

[Cave Waverider]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

Well, it's just a case of the file on the cloud being corrupted. All you need to do is restore a non-corrupt save while Steam is off, then start Steam in offline mode and the game in offline mode, then save the game in offline mode, exit the game, exit steam, then restart Steam in Online mode and when prompted, upload the save from the computer to the cloud.

That doesn't work for WWE though for some weird reason. I know Pozzum had the same issue. They will load offline, but once you go online they corrupt again. I've never had it happen with any other game.

Maybe the game servers see the save as it was just before the corruption (for CC and multiplayer purposes I assume), so when you switch to an older backup client-side it detects an uncompability and everything gets thrown out of whack?

Yes,that's the case. And that's why you have to follow the steps in this guide exactly when trying to restore a backup of a save game, so you can overwrite the corrupted savegame in the cloud.

Edited April 26, 2016 by Cave Waverider

[cloudropis]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

Well, it's just a case of the file on the cloud being corrupted. All you need to do is restore a non-corrupt save while Steam is off, then start Steam in offline mode and the game in offline mode, then save the game in offline mode, exit the game, exit steam, then restart Steam in Online mode and when prompted, upload the save from the computer to the cloud.

That doesn't work for WWE though for some weird reason. I know Pozzum had the same issue. They will load offline, but once you go online they corrupt again. I've never had it happen with any other game.

Maybe the game servers see the save as it was just before the corruption (for CC and multiplayer purposes I assume), so when you switch to an older backup client-side it detects an uncompability and everything gets thrown out of whack?

Yes,that's the case. And that's why you have to follow the following steps exactly when trying to restore a backup of a save game, so you can overwrite the corrupted savegame in the cloud:

1. Start Steam in Offline mode.
2. Exit Steam.
3. Delete your \Steam\userdata\<steamUserId>\385730\ savegame folder.
4. Copy your working Backup of the 385730 folder to \Steam\userdata\<steamUserId>\ (or leave it without the folder if you wish to create a clean new save instead).
5. Start Steam in offline mode.
6. Start WWE 2k16 in Offline mode.
7. The save should now load and not be corrupted.
8. Save the game (by making a small change like changing the brand of a Superstar in MyWWE).
9. Exit the game.
10. Exit Steam.
11. Start Steam in Online Mode.
12. Start WWE 2k16.
13. Steam should tell you that your save is newer than the one in the cloud. Choose to upload the save on your computer to the cloud.
14. You should now be able to get into the game and load the save properly.
15. Save the game just in case.
16. Exit the game and make a backup of your save just in case.
17. Make regular backups of the whole \Steam\userdata\<steamUserId>\385730\ folder (not just the remote sub-directory!) and whenever you need to restore a backup follow the steps 1.-16 exactly, don't leave out any of them.

Some tips to avoid save game corruption: 
- Always exit the game properly, do not kill the game especially when it's saving or loading.
- Don't crash the game while it's saving/loading (this one is out of your control, of course)
- Avoid downloading broken CAWs and other broken things from Community Creations (impossible to tell which ones are, I know, but if one Creation download corrupts your save you'll know not to try to download it again)
- Do not try to create CAW Alternate attires for modded wrestlers that don't support it (some will work, but others might crash when loading the creation suite and thus corrupt your save).
- Don't try to use the in-game entrance editor to change an entrance of a modded wrestler that uses hidden entrance animations, etc. that aren't available in the in-game entrance editor as that could lead to crashes when loading/saving/editing, too.
- Do not shut down your computer/kill Steam while it's synchronizing (always wait for the cloud synchronization to finish and exit Steam normally)
- Choose a fast and reliable Steam server in Steam Settings->Downloads (depends on where you are, but the ones closest to you may not always be the best, you need to test a bit which one in your general area is the fastest and most reliable for you).
- Ensure that you are using a save game created for your Steam account, not another one.
- Some also say to keep the file count in the save folder below 1000.
- Make sure there are no extra files that haven't been created by the game in your save folder.
- If you use a program that manipulates your save games, like Xpacker, never let it manipulate your actual live save game, especially while Steam is running. Use a copy of the save game in some other folder instead and never copy the additional files that such programs may create to your actual save game directory.
- Only copy any save files while Steam is not running.

Great post, this goes in my bookmarks hoping I won't need it

What qualifies as "program manipulating saves"? Do tools like Pozzum's NPC unlocker/match select/the one where you can edit superstar health and stamina mid-match? Or just pac injectors like Xpacker?

[Cave Waverider]

Did you turn off Steam cloud sync? I was having horrible save file issues, but since turning off cloud sync I haven't ran into the corruption bug once.

Has this been proved in some way or form? I don't see how save sync could lead to save corruption since it's just a file upload to the cloud, if any something happened before the game being closed that caused a corruption and Steam Cloud is blameless.

It was more geared toward the issue he was having, where you get caught in a loop of corrupt saves because your corrupt file gets backed up to the steam cloud and prevents you from using local backup files. It's just with some games, the cloud save does more harm than good. It's not Steam's fault, it's just an odd happenstance.

Well, it's just a case of the file on the cloud being corrupted. All you need to do is restore a non-corrupt save while Steam is off, then start Steam in offline mode and the game in offline mode, then save the game in offline mode, exit the game, exit steam, then restart Steam in Online mode and when prompted, upload the save from the computer to the cloud.

That doesn't work for WWE though for some weird reason. I know Pozzum had the same issue. They will load offline, but once you go online they corrupt again. I've never had it happen with any other game.

Maybe the game servers see the save as it was just before the corruption (for CC and multiplayer purposes I assume), so when you switch to an older backup client-side it detects an uncompability and everything gets thrown out of whack?

Yes,that's the case. And that's why you have to follow the following steps exactly when trying to restore a backup of a save game, so you can overwrite the corrupted savegame in the cloud:

1. Start Steam in Offline mode.
2. Exit Steam.
3. Delete your \Steam\userdata\<steamUserId>\385730\ savegame folder.
4. Copy your working Backup of the 385730 folder to \Steam\userdata\<steamUserId>\ (or leave it without the folder if you wish to create a clean new save instead).
5. Start Steam in offline mode.
6. Start WWE 2k16 in Offline mode.
7. The save should now load and not be corrupted.
8. Save the game (by making a small change like changing the brand of a Superstar in MyWWE).
9. Exit the game.
10. Exit Steam.
11. Start Steam in Online Mode.
12. Start WWE 2k16.
13. Steam should tell you that your save is newer than the one in the cloud. Choose to upload the save on your computer to the cloud.
14. You should now be able to get into the game and load the save properly.
15. Save the game just in case.
16. Exit the game and make a backup of your save just in case.
17. Make regular backups of the whole \Steam\userdata\<steamUserId>\385730\ folder (not just the remote sub-directory!) and whenever you need to restore a backup follow the steps 1.-16 exactly, don't leave out any of them.

Some tips to avoid save game corruption: 
- Always exit the game properly, do not kill the game especially when it's saving or loading.
- Don't crash the game while it's saving/loading (this one is out of your control, of course)
- Avoid downloading broken CAWs and other broken things from Community Creations (impossible to tell which ones are, I know, but if one Creation download corrupts your save you'll know not to try to download it again)
- Do not try to create CAW Alternate attires for modded wrestlers that don't support it (some will work, but others might crash when loading the creation suite and thus corrupt your save).
- Don't try to use the in-game entrance editor to change an entrance of a modded wrestler that uses hidden entrance animations, etc. that aren't available in the in-game entrance editor as that could lead to crashes when loading/saving/editing, too.
- Do not shut down your computer/kill Steam while it's synchronizing (always wait for the cloud synchronization to finish and exit Steam normally)
- Choose a fast and reliable Steam server in Steam Settings->Downloads (depends on where you are, but the ones closest to you may not always be the best, you need to test a bit which one in your general area is the fastest and most reliable for you).
- Ensure that you are using a save game created for your Steam account, not another one.
- Some also say to keep the file count in the save folder below 1000.
- Make sure there are no extra files that haven't been created by the game in your save folder.
- If you use a program that manipulates your save games, like Xpacker, never let it manipulate your actual live save game, especially while Steam is running. Use a copy of the save game in some other folder instead and never copy the additional files that such programs may create to your actual save game directory.
- Only copy any save files while Steam is not running.

Great post, this goes in my bookmarks hoping I won't need it

What qualifies as "program manipulating saves"? Do tools like Pozzum's NPC unlocker/match select/the one where you can edit superstar health and stamina mid-match? Or just pac injectors like Xpacker?

Actually, bookmark this guide instead as I'll update it there.

Well, any program that manipulates the files in the save game directly, X-Packer has features that do so (although not all). The other tools you mentioned just edit the saves directly in memory which is safer (it can also lead to corruption if a crash happens while things are injected, but it's "safer").

Edited April 26, 2016 by Cave Waverider

[The Brand]

Just to double down, I purposely broke my save just now and did every step for good practice.  Works like a charm.  Though I obviously do not recommend intentionally breaking a save.

Edited April 26, 2016 by BrandScott