Savefile Issue – Works for CDPR but Not on My PC

[Hellleon]

Hello everyone,

First of all, I want to thank the CDPR Tech Support Team for their incredibly fast response! I submitted my ticket on June 6, and today I already received a reply confirming that they looked into my issue.

My Problem:

For some time now, my savefile has been experiencing an issue—after about 2 minutes, the screen turns black, but the UI and sound remain visible. I can still move, but I can't see anything. If I save, then reload the save, I can see again for about 2 minutes or so, then it turnes black.

Steps I Have Tried:

Uninstalled GPU driver with DDU and reinstalled the latest Nvidia driver
Reinstalled the game
Verified the integrity of my game files

Unfortunately, none of these steps worked.


The Tech Support Team tested my savefile and said they couldn't reproduce the issue, meaning the save should be working fine on their side. I also tested the same save on my friend’s PC, and the exact same issue occurred. However, if I start a brand-new save, everything runs perfectly fine.


CDPR suggested I follow these steps:

• Backup save files to another drive.
• Disable Steam Cloud for Cyberpunk 2077.
• Uninstall Cyberpunk 2077.
• Remove all related folders, including:
  • Cyberpunk 2077 folder in Steam's directory.
  • Cyberpunk 2077 folder from %userprofile%\Saved Games\CD Projekt Red\.
  • REDEngine and CD Projekt Red folders from %userprofile%\AppData\Local\.
• Ensure hidden files are visible in Windows Explorer (View > Hidden items).
• Restart the PC.
• Reinstall Cyberpunk 2077 on an SSD (no mods).
• Install the game on the root of the drive (e.g., C:\Steam\steamapps\common\Cyberpunk 2077).
• Launch the game and test it.
• If fixed, copy save files to the newly created Cyberpunk 2077 folder.
• Re-enable Steam Cloud if necessary.

I carefully followed all these steps, but the problem persists. I’ve invested 90 hours into my save and would really prefer not to start over—I've completed nearly every side quest I could find and still haven't seen the endings for the main story or Phantom Liberty.

I find it interesting that the save works for CDPR, but neither on my PC nor my friend’s PC. Could localization settings be affecting compatibility?


My System Specs:

• Model: Thin GF63 12VE
• Manufacturer: Micro-Star International Co., Ltd.
• System Type: x64-based PC
• OS: Windows 11 Home (64-bit)
• OS Version: 10.0.26100
• CPU: 12th Gen Intel Core i5-12450H
• GPU: Intel UHD Graphics (Driver: 31.0.101.5592)
• GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU (Driver: 32.0.15.7652)

Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

If you want my save file aswell, just ask. I am not sure if save files in zip formats are allowed to post here.

Thanks!

 

[jeancastex]

I have no idea, but i would try to change to windowed mode (or full screen, if it's already the case), with low settings-no ray tracing, no dlss/fsr, and check if fps are dropping.
But installing with no mods might not be enough, maybe your savefile is corrupted by a mod you installed before.

 

[Hellleon]

I have no idea, but i would try to change to windowed mode (or full screen, if it's already the case), with low settings-no ray tracing, no dlss/fsr, and check if fps are dropping.

Already did everything. Windowed Mode / Full screen, low settings, ray tracing on/off, dlss on/of etc. Without success. Game turnes black after a couple of minutes.

But installing with no mods might not be enough, maybe your savefile is corrupted by a mod you installed before.

My Game is vanilla. I never used mods in Cyberpunk 2077.

Would be so sad if my save file is truly broken. Still it is super wierd that the technical support wrote to me that they could not recreate the issue.

 

[LeKill3rFou]

Still it is super wierd that the technical support wrote to me that they could not recreate the issue.

What do your friend and your computer have in commun?
(OS/CPU/GPU/RAM/...)
I mean, it's not that weird to be honest, it could depend of many things on PC

 

[devivre]

Is there any other program or hardware running in the background that might be able to affect graphics for whatever reason?
Did anything change on your computer before it started to show this issue? Maybe a driver or software you installed?

You could close every non essential program and see if that changes anything.

Other than that, no idea what could be the issue.

 

[LeKill3rFou]

Other than that, no idea what could be the issue.

Yes, that's weird... I remember a couple of people who encountered a kinda similar issue a while ago. But for all of them, the issue only occured during a specific quest and at a specific place (the second part of the heist) and sadly, from memories no one ever keep us in touch how they fixed the issue, if they fixed it...

 

[jeancastex]

The bug is weird, it's like the world is unlit, and we can only see UI elements and textures that are not affected by lights.
It looks like an engine bug, but what is the cause, I don't know. Maybe a problem with the 2 GPU? (I don't know anything about laptop gaming tbh).

 

[Wondray]

Does the problem only occur in Cyberpunk or do strange things happen in other games as well? Download a program to check the disk's operation. Also check the operation of the graphics card and, above all, VRAM. In the Nvidia driver options, disable image enhancement options or set all options to "application controlled". Let me know if any of the options helped, if not I will try to help you find a solution.

 

[Hellleon]

What do your friend and your computer have in commun?
(OS/CPU/GPU/RAM/...)
I mean, it's not that weird to be honest, it could depend of many things on PC

Our PC's don't have that much in common. He has a Desktop PC and I am on an MSI Thin Laptop.
Similar are the OS, we both have Windows 11 and of course our Language is the same. I am german and I keep mentioning the language because the person from the Tech Support who tested my save file was an english speaking person. I try to change the language of the game later tonight.
Everything else is different. I have a RTX 4050 Laptop GPU, he has a RTX 4070. I believe he has 32gb RAM and I 16gb RAM.

Is there any other program or hardware running in the background that might be able to affect graphics for whatever reason?
Did anything change on your computer before it started to show this issue? Maybe a driver or software you installed?

You could close every non essential program and see if that changes anything.

Other than that, no idea what could be the issue.

The Nvidia experience was running to optimize my graphic setting. Other than that only my browser might have been open as dar as I know
Yes. I actually did try out Linux Mint for a couple of days until I got issues there (first everything was fine, than the PC did overheat because of fan issues on Nvidia and linux). Then I did a clean install of Windows 11. I did not mention this because after the clean install of Windows 11 and Cyberpunk 2077, I had no issues at first. I could play for hours.

The bug is weird, it's like the world is unlit, and we can only see UI elements and textures that are not affected by lights.
It looks like an engine bug, but what is the cause, I don't know. Maybe a problem with the 2 GPU? (I don't know anything about laptop gaming tbh).

Yes it is exactly like the world is unlit. Now that you mention it, sometimes when I change the weapon or look through a scope of the weapon the light turns on for a split second.

Does the problem only occur in Cyberpunk or do strange things happen in other games as well? Download a program to check the disk's operation. Also check the operation of the graphics card and, above all, VRAM. In the Nvidia driver options, disable image enhancement options or set all options to "application controlled". Let me know if any of the options helped, if not I will try to help you find a solution.

Only on Cyberpunk. And only on the 90h save file. I did start a new one and played for about 10h without any issues.
I just tested The Outer Worlds Spacers Choice Edition, Sonic Mania, Nier Automata and Oblivion Remaster. All for 10 Minutes to 30 Minutes. No Issues. I also played Starfield and Baldurs Gate 3 when they were just released. No issues there either.
When I find the time I will follow your advice and download a Tool to check the disk's operation , VRAM and disable Image enhancement options. Probably tomorrow on Thursday.

 

[SpookyFX]

If it is only one save file and it is constant then the simplest answer (and thus usually the right one) is the file is corrupted. It sometimes happens. It may not be salvageable. But if you are on PC there are save game file editors. You might run it through one to try to Brut Force the bug out of it.

 

[northwold]

Have you tried using an older version of the graphics driver, if you can find one? Nvidia have become notorious this year for releasing truly awful driver updates so it would be worth discounting the possibility that for some reason their driver isn't playing nice with your system.

I haven't had your issue but for the last two months Nvidias drivers have been cutting my screen (throughout windows, not specific to cyberpunk) to black for a couple of seconds at random intervals. Before that, they were doing weird things at intervals to frame rates.

The other point I would check -- as someone else mentioned -- is that the game is actually using the Nvidia rather than Intel gpu. I don't have two GPUs so don't know how you'd go about verifying that.

Oh, and your power management settings to make sure the thing isnt stuck on some battery saving mode or something.