"Saved date is damaged and cannot be loaded"

[GusVIII]

I play on PC. Recently I've started to get this error. Every new save I make is damaged and I can't reload my progress. I've tried removing a ton of stuff from my inventory and deleted a lot of older saves. Nothing is working. I've tried to go back to my most recent, undamaged save. That seems to fix the issue for a while, but then it starts happening again. I feel like it might be time related. It feels like the same amount of time always passes before I start getting corrupted saves again. Does anyone have any idea how to fix this?

 

[LeKill3rFou]

First, do you use or used mods?
Then if possible, can you check the size of the save which appear as "damaged"?
Because there is a "size limit" (12MB). If a save exceed this limit it appear as damaged no matter what

 

[GusVIII]

Sorry, should have mentioned that. I don't use mods

 

[LeKill3rFou]

Ok, I'm pretty sure your save appear as "damaged" because it exceed the size limit (12MB), not sure why
If you don't use mods and if it's not already done, you should contact the support ("contact us" button). This category should be fine:

I am unable to save the game — Cyberpunk 2077 | Technical Support — CD PROJEKT RED

Welcome to CD PROJEKT RED Technical Support! Here you will find help regarding our games and services, as well as answers to frequently asked questions.

support.cdprojektred.com

 

[GusVIII]

Thanks. I checked my save files. The newest ones are 12mb. I've contacted technical support like you requested. Hopefully they can do something about this.

I also just sold and broken down a ton of stuff in game. As well put most of my iconic weapons in my stache. It isn't making a dent.

I've got about 350 hours in this game. Do the save files just grow the further you progress through the game?

 

[LeKill3rFou]

I've got about 350 hours in this game. Do the save files just grow the further you progress through the game?

Possible, I can't say
But if you played 350 hours in one single playthrough, it's a lot... I would say that it's no longer "progressing through the game" (I never exceed 200 hours for one playthrough and I never used TP, explored every corner of the map on foot and completed everything possible on map^^).
If you have a "damaged" save, keep it, support will probably ask you to share it.

 

[eddie-eerie]

I had the same problem arise a while back, it can happen when you do TONs of crafting, breaking down weapons etc, slowly but steadly it increase the save games size until it reaches over 12mb, then it fails and cannot be loaded. I usually recommend that one keeps crafting to a minimum and only break down enough stuff that you need(just not hoarding 10000 items) Its hard to solve; i couldnt do it, so i hade to restart the playthrough, This was a file i used for diffrent testing tho, it had over 500+ gamehours on it!

 

[tavellone]

Honestly there's not much you can do. This problem has always existed but the file size limit was something like 4mb. CDPR expanded it to 12mb and stated that any save file exceeding 12mb will have corruption problems. I don't know why this is and why they don't increase it further, but it is what it is. The issue is mainly caused by crafting and breaking down items.

 

[Polaris.849]

Hello, any update on this one? I see very similar problem that I have encountered and it happens that I have the very same 350+ hours of gameplay. I am stuck since September and nobody was able to help me to fix the issue. It was rejected because "Modded". I requested to make investigation because it could be a general problem, but it was ignored. As this is NOT modded game, then I suspect this problem is a Dead on Arrival issue and maybe everyone is affected, but NOT everyone do a lot of disassemble and many play hours into the game. Please let us know the outcome as I still have A LOT of content and gameplay up ahead - 100+ more hours or so. So I don't want to start a new playthrough and encounter the same problem in the future even with not modded game. Also keep in mind that I do A LOT OF disassembly to harvest resources as well, walking in the game instead of running, thus the reason why 350+ hours into the game. Symptoms are the same and I think it is not mod related issue.

 

[LeKill3rFou]

Strange because my playthroughs are all between +150 hours, I'm used to loot every single item I find and to dismantle every single item for components, except iconics.
I never encountered any issue with my saves. But I'm on Series X, so might be a "PC only issue", who know.

Edit : And if I remember your previous posts, you did used mods on this +350 hours saves. So even if don't have in mod on your game now, your save is "permanently" modded no matter what you could do.

 

[Polaris.849]

I would not exclude it for PC issue only as I was doing the same tings as you on PC and encountered 0 problems with saves. I think it could be related to total hours into the game (heavily unsure though). I was too not disassembling iconics. So here we are on par. I would really like to know the outcome as I am playing now something else and was hoping that somebody have similar issues as I have and now I found one.

 

[LeKill3rFou]

It was rejected because "Modded". I requested to make investigation because it could be a general problem, but it was ignored. As this is NOT modded game, then I suspect this problem is a Dead on Arrival issue and maybe everyone is affected, but NOT everyone do a lot of disassemble and many play hours into the game.

Just to know, because according to your previous posts, you did used mods on this +350 hours saves. Which means that even if don't have any mod on your game now, your save is "permanently" modded no matter what you could do.
In that case, you can't exclude a "mod issue" anyway, which wouldn't have anything to do with the game and something that CDPR wouldn't be able to fix.

 

[Polaris.849]

That I understand, I did not start new playthrough as that means I would have to play again from scratch and unmodded with new saves. That is another 350 hours of gameplay which I am not willing going through again now. I am lucky that someone else is having the same symptoms as I am experiencing and not using mods whatsoever. I now pray that CD Projekt RED will investigate and find something...

Post automatically merged: Nov 23, 2024

"Responding to the sentence you wrote, that my save is modded and that there is nothing I could do."
The whole reason is to investigate if there is that general problem, because now I wait for patch to increase Save File Size and I bet that once that is done I can continue on with my playthrough no matter if it's modded or not as so far I stand for my statement that it's NOT mod related issue. I could be also very wrong, but then again - this issue is happening for no modded game as well.

 

[SigilFey]

"Responding to the sentence you wrote, that my save is modded and that there is nothing I could do."
The whole reason is to investigate if there is that general problem, because now I wait for patch to increase Save File Size and I bet that once that is done I can continue on with my playthrough no matter if it's modded or not as so far I stand for my statement that it's NOT mod related issue. I could be also very wrong, but then again - this issue is happening for no modded game as well.

There's a number of issues here that are not directly related to one another, but they will entangle to cause potential issues in the game.

1.) I've no knowledge of any plans to increase the save file limit for the game. That's budgeted to ensure that the game works reliably on all platforms, as RAM requirements for loading a save file are strictly limited by the amount of RAM available on various platforms. The engine also needs to be able to cope with the number of assets being loaded into RAM at any given moment, or conflicts will arise and weirdness will ensue.

2.) When you state that the problem also occurs on an non-modded game, does that mean that you have uninstalled all mods, repaired/verified the installion, and begun a new playthrough in a new save slot with a 100% vanilla installation of the game? If you removed mods then simply loaded a prior saved game without the mods running, that is going to contain the existing reference data in the save state as well as be extremely likely to introduce new issues, as that reference data no longer has access to mod files it relies on, creating potential holes in the codes and scripts. (This is one of the most likely ways to create bigger issues with a save file.) Additionally, starting a new game in a save slot that once contained a modded save file will likely contain the existing reference data, as there's no way for the program to recognize it and remove it when the overwrite is made. That creates the same problem as I describe above, despite the fact that it's a vanilla installation and a brand new playthrough. The new playthrough needs to be made in an empty save slot to 100% ensure there is no reference data conflict. Can you confirm how the "unmodded" playthrough was begun?

So far (though this is still somewhat speculation on my part), it sounds as if you may not be running a 100% vanilla save state. The issue does sound like something that would be introduced by a reference data conflict, leaving the game with no way of reconciling the present data against the existing strings of code in the save state from a formerly modded save. And/or, there is still modded data somewhere in the installation that no longer connects to the mod files it relies on. It still sounds as if this is almost definitely mod-related.

Easiest way to ensure we can see if it's account or system-related is to:

• back up all saved games
• uninstall all mods
• uninstall the game itself
• reinstall the game in new directory path (so there's no chance it will re-path to any existing data that may be affected by prior mods)
• begin a brand new character in an empty save slot, ensuring there are no prior saved games that are recognized on the system

That will ensure a 100% vanilla environment, and we can see if the problem crops up there. (You can just reinstall mods and restore saves later on, so you lose nothing. Except time. Our most precious commodity.)

 

[Polaris.849]

Hi,

1. So are you saying that there is no possibility whatsoever to have this save file size limit extended on PC platforms only?

2. The originator of this post - "GusVIII" is the one who claims that he encountered the same problem as me, but on a non-modded PC game run (Parameters/Symptoms: 350+hours played, way too many disassembly, hoarding stuff in a big quantity, done every side quest and playing...well...played...Phantom Liberty - I am stuck in here due to size limitation). So the question goes mainly to him. As for me, I am just simply waiting for some resolution to this problem as my game is heavily modded and thus my save file as well. I am not planning to play this game from scratch and unmodded in the future. I am simply here to find out if its a general problem and thus excluding modded save file issue.

 

[GrimReaper801]

Hi,

1. So are you saying that there is no possibility whatsoever to have this save file size limit extended on PC platforms only?

No possibility? No but realistically, it's extremely unlikely to happen.

CDPR has moved on to other projects. There might be another patch in the works but no one knows with any certainty.

With that in mind, the chances of them making system specific fixes is highly unlikely. What fixes might be in the works would likely be applicable on all systems to maximize the effect of investing resources into a project they're done with.

2. The originator of this post - "GusVIII" is the one who claims that he encountered the same problem as me, but on a non-modded PC game run (Parameters/Symptoms: 350+hours played, way too many disassembly, hoarding stuff in a big quantity, done every side quest and playing...well...played...Phantom Liberty - I am stuck in here due to size limitation). So the question goes mainly to him. As for me, I am just simply waiting for some resolution to this problem as my game is heavily modded and thus my save file as well. I am not planning to play this game from scratch and unmodded in the future. I am simply here to find out if its a general problem and thus excluding modded save file issue.

I've been modding for over 20 years now. Many of these years as a creator too. Over those years, I have helped/tried to help a ton of people with issues and one thing I learned is that a lot of people will say their game is unmodded when it absolutely is. I have seen people outright say they had never modded their game while simultaneously providing logs that clearly showed they did.

CP2077, so far, has not been an exception. I've stopped counting the number of time people came to this forum with XYZ issue claiming their game was unmodded only for them to later reveal they had only "deactivated" mods.

That's not even counting people who literally forgot they modded their game. Like some people running an unmodded game after reinstalling but they forgot that they had CET files in there from a previous install with no clean uninstall in between. Or just people who don't know that a regular uninstall doesn't remove modded files. Hell, it doesn't even remove all official files.

Point being, don't take people at their words on the internet. At some point you do have to give benefit of the doubt of course but only after specific questions have been asked and answered.

Notice how @LeKill3rFou asked "use or used" and the answer was "I don't use mods". Not "I don't and never used mods" or some variation of that. It's an important distinction.

I'm not saying the OP isn't running a vanilla game. I'm just saying, don't assume he is just because he says so.

It's also important to understand games have limitations. Even if the limit was upped to 20mb. You would eventually hit it. Simply put, CP2077 wasn't meant to be played for 350 hours. My longest running, heavily modded save, was a bit under 120 hours. I had seen and found everything. Dismantled everything. Hoarded everything. Did everything that's available in the game really.

To get to 350 hours played and still claim you have possibly 100+ hours to play... you are playing in a way that's very specific to you. There is nothing wrong with that but you can't really expect studios to cater specifically to a playstyle that is most likely extremely rare.

Also, do note that even if CDPR was to increase the limit again it would not fix your save file. Once damaged, they're gone forever. That's what happened when they increased the limit from the original 8mb. You would, at the very least, have to reload from a previous save.

 

[SigilFey]

^ All of that.

The save limit being increased, while certainly possible, would be very difficult to support. If it's official, it has to be supported, and that's a can of worms. It would likely mean an entire team dedicated to new issues that arise with the additional data in the save files. So, yes, I would say it's extremely unlikely to happen.

And, affirming what @GrimReaper801 mentions above. There's a huge difference between an unmodded game...and a game in which mods have been installed and later removed. The latter state is the most likely way to end up with issues.

 

[Notserious80]

Notice how @LeKill3rFou asked "use or used" and the answer was "I don't use mods". Not "I don't and never used mods" or some variation of that. It's an important distinction.

Yea has happend way to meny times, spending time looking for a fault to then find out mods were used but deleted. Clean saves is sadly impossible in games like these if you use mods. Learned that the hard way in Skyrim when i modded it like crazy, you really cant remove mods without starting over (sometimes you get lucky but its rare and depends on what type of mod).

This is why i generaly dont have a issue with making a new character in games nowdays Its just 100h wasted on that, delete start over

 

[Polaris.849]

2 questions:

1. Can CDPR find out from Save File that the game was modded? If the user Gus did post it for investigation, then I guess they should know.
2. What are the odds, that another person is having the very same issues after 350+ hours as me? (And yes the only other logical answer would be that he is using one of the mods I am using)

And this comment: "Simply put, CP2077 wasn't meant to be played for 350 hours." --> Like really? Sorry but if this would be true, then it would be an interesting find and the only game in the world which has gameplay limitations and should be categorized as extended Demo max 350 hours In that case I would ask for refund, which is not happening, but I think you get my point.

"Also, do note that even if CDPR was to increase the limit again it would not fix your save file. Once damaged, they're gone forever. That's what happened when they increased the limit from the original 8mb. You would, at the very least, have to reload from a previous save." --> No worries, I have an undamaged Save File ready to go. Which will most probably not happen if your words are true and nothing will be done about size limit. But then again...I would still like to know official statement, however I am in disadvantage as I am a person who modded the game and I simply pray that it would be investigated, or forgotten and with no choice, but to try play it later again anew. However with so many choices made in this game to go with a torture like hacking all the time, or hearing music in literally all places in the city....I simply cannot play this game unmodded.

 

[GrimReaper801]

2 questions:

1. Can CDPR find out from Save File that the game was modded? If the user Gus did post it for investigation, then I guess they should know.

Most likely they do. It's not unusual for developers to add variables to detect whether a game has been modified. Either through modding or piracy. This has been going on for a very long time. Black and White 2 (2005) for example had introduced an intended bug for people who pirated the game - your villagers wouldn't age. So people would come on the forum asking for help about this "RIDICULOUS" bug not knowing they were simply admitting they had pirated the game.

So, yes, CDPR most likely has various methods of knowing if a game is vanilla or not. Not to mention the additional data hooks that would unavoidably be in a saved file that aren't supposed to be there.

All of that with the intent of not wasting time trying to troubleshoot non official files. Game developers only owe us support on official files.

2. What are the odds, that another person is having the very same issues after 350+ hours as me? (And yes the only other logical answer would be that he is using one of the mods I am using)

No, it's not the only logical answer because that's not how modding works. You could have two very different mods creating the same or highly similar issues. Sometimes the end result is the same but the way it happens is different making it look entirely the same without being the same. A lot of stuff happens under the hood of modern day games, stuff that you aren't ever going to be aware of from simply playing the game.

And this comment: "Simply put, CP2077 wasn't meant to be played for 350 hours." --> Like really? Sorry but if this would be true, then it would be an interesting find and the only game in the world which has gameplay limitations. Just say a word and when this goes official, then I want refund

Yes, really. Every single game out there has limitations and ways you aren't "supposed" to play. That's literally why they have Q&A and playtesters. To find various ways people will play and break what the studio didn't catch because we all play differently. If you go to such an extreme that it isn't something they ever thought to account for, that's going to limit you. That's some very basic stuff.

Let's say they increased the limit to 30mb. Suddenly, you're happy, you just got your extra 100 hours out of the game. Maybe 200? But what if I play differently? What if I like repeatedly killing the exact same gang members over and over and over and over and over again ad infinitum dismantling their gear every time and did so for 800 hours on top of another 300 hours to go through the game's story! Now I reached that 30mb limit. Do I have a right to support catering to my very specific playstyle which likely no one else in the world shares? No, I don't. Studios cannot be expected to cater to every single playstyle out there. That would be a ridiculous expectation.

It's really nothing new. Skyrim for example had major issues with save file size. The limit was higher because, well, Skyrim being what it is it required it. Both in terms of content and how terrible the engine was at managing all of it but once you reached 90mb+ (which was only attainable with mods).... Hot damn, it was a coin flip every time you saved whether that save was going to be corrupt or not and even if the saves weren't corrupt, things could very wonky. Simply put, they never expected people would really play for 2K hours on a single save and throw hundreds of mods at the game.

Every game has limitations and every single player game, at some point, is over.