Bug with Cloud auto Saves

[hepsik2000]

So if you have tried using any of the auto saves, especially while in a challenge, you will have noticed that it looks like your game progress gets set to almost non-existent. I have figured out what I believe is the reason for this.

Local saves, the .dps files, are SHA encrypted on some of the variables in the base64 save file. Those values aren't going into the Cloud Saves for some reason, but I have no idea if that's something configured in the game's scripts or if that's an issue with Steams cloud save functions. (I know SHA and hash encryption because I work with SNMP monitoring and have no idea how it applies to game coding.)

[76561198300029324]

Yes, it does use SHA encryption . I've noticed it sometimes will seem to corrupt my save file for the normal game in Challenges. I haven't been able to track it down where exactly it happens and how, but I think it relates to sometimes the Challenge itself doesn't save the game correctly like you stated.

The save file (.dps) is made up of a "game=" and a "challenge=" parts. The Game appears to be the base game and the Challenge of course is the Challenge version of the game. If the Challenge string gets encoded incorrectly or not encoded at all it will just crash it on load/start of the game and go into a fail over state. At that state is just loads up the game as a fresh start. I believe this happened and was reported previously in other bugs when people were doing Challenge 3s and couldn't claim Rank15 without it crashing out the game.

-EDIT since I have more time now-

I feel like if the auto save or whatever could be fixed that's great. At the very least the loader for the save file should not go into a full fail over state if game= decrypts correctly and the challenge fails to decrypt. I feel like the more graceful option would be to load up the base game and then just prompt out to the user that Challenge has failed due to a save issue. I mean at least that way people aren't just left without a save. Yeah, failing a challenge after putting in 2-12 hours sucks, but not as much as losing your entire game and then not having a backup (because even though the game does prompt not everyone makes backup files regularly).

[hepsik2000]

Yeah. I'd rather lose the Challenge time than lose all the main game stuff. Especially since the only crystals that get saved come from DLC purchases and they're not really saved so much as just forced back onto you if the DLC check notices you never received any. (If you buy crystals do a backup save immediately and definitely don't use an older save or Hard Reset afterwards. :( )

Seeing as the Autosaves, when in a challenge, set you back to Main game with the Challenge progress instead of your Main progress. I'm guessing those are either missing the challenge= section or the SHA is wrong when the decode check is done. No idea since I have no clue how to pull those files out of the Steam cloud and save a local copy.

[hepsik2000]

Figured out how to kind of see what the cloud saves look like. The Auto Save category is also propagated by a Local Save every time you make one. So to see what happens I loaded my challenge save, saved it to a new file, and then opened the Auto Save that matched my timestamp. (Should be newest as long as you didn't happen to local save right before the auto save timer went off.)

That of course dropped me out of challenge and in the main game with my challenge progress. I saved to a new file and took a look at that save file. Sure enough the Challenge section is gone and the Game section has my challenge variables, including my green crystal count. Which it shouldn't have.

Good News: Sha isn't the issue.

Bad news: Cloud saves definitely do not know how to handle 2 variable groups or Cloud Load doesn't do a proper check for Challenge like Local Save does. Hard to tell without being able to just directly rip a cloud save out before it's loaded in.

[hepsik2000]

Found a typo in the resource collector. Searched to see how bad it might be.

"52 results in 11 code entries for "chellange""

That might be a problem. :(