Really NO manual save? :-(

[farinelli1800]

...

[StuartAce]

What is it with games these days and not being able to save your game?

[Trickst3r83]

Originally posted by smasterman:

What is it with games these days and not being able to save your game?

Gamers turned into basic casuals nowadays...guess the more the tech, the dumber the people get, thanks all these hand holding games that have been dominated the last few years or even a decade

[farinelli1800]

Originally posted by Skitzo:

Originally posted by smasterman:

What is it with games these days and not being able to save your game?

Gamers turned into basic casuals nowadays...guess the more the tech, the dumber the people get, thanks all these hand holding games that have been dominated the last few years or even a decade

And what does that have to do with the fact that there is no manual save? I do not like it when a game dictates how long I have to play it. And if I break it off, I allways have to play a lot again

[Nasenbaerus]

Ok, not buying it then. Thanks for the info :)

[farinelli1800]

Originally posted by Nasenbaerus:

Ok, not buying it then. Thanks for the info :)

No, buy it! Its a phantastic game! I also dont like games without manual save but this game is so good, I can live with it.

[renboy]

Manual save is one thing, I would even accept save points like in final fantasy or such - but at the moment there is no way of telling when the game actually saved last, and when you want to take a break, you have no idea how much progress you will lose by exiting the game...

[Ladyy]

Does it not save after every loading screen?

[Cleverbyte]

Hey there.
I understand that some players (and I count me into that) prefer to be able to save a game whenever they like.
State of Mind is very story focussed and immersive, so saving in the middle of a crucial scene and restarting at that point after a break might makes the scene less effective or less understandable. That is why the saves are set at the beginning of a scene or "level". So you got time to get hooked back into the story and the scene you are in. We believe that even if you have to replay a little bit of a scene you already saw, it will greatly increase the game experience for you.

Regarding the question when the game actually saves: On every loading screen, identifiable by the triangle-saving icon. In rare cases the game saves in the middle of the scene. If that is the case, it also displays the triangle-saving icon.

[cyanic]

Originally posted by SteveeToGo:

Regarding the question when the game actually saves: On every loading screen, identifiable by the triangle-saving icon. In rare cases the game saves in the middle of the scene. If that is the case, it also displays the triangle-saving icon.

I actually never realized that's when it saves. Not sure how your level loading and game saving systems are set up, but I thought it was the loading icon because it always corresponds exactly with the loading screen. A lot of games have the icon either actually reflect when saving occurs or linger around a bit after the level has loaded to avoid that impression. The saving icon was probably mentioned on the title screen, but I was too busy wondering why the game's giving me Steam Controller prompts when I don't even have the receiver plugged in.

[SkyRat]

How long is it between loading screens? And are you able to manually trigger one like you can in Life is Strange by exiting and re-entering an area?

On the subject of why saving anywhere matters to some people. Many of us are unable to dedicate 20+ minutes to a single game session. Or we think we can, but then get interrupted anyway. Causing us to lose 5 or 10 minutes of progress, that must be replayed over and over until a play session actually lasts long enough to complete the area. Which may be several times.

Or much more likely, we GIVE UP on the game entirely and go play something else.

And that is the decision I'm trying to make right now: should I buy State of Mind? I really like the premise. If it's only 5 minutes between loading screens then I can deal with that. Or if I can trigger a save by running in and out of a room. Can anyone please answer?

[Hozzenplozz]

@SkySkrapper: I just started the game and played for just 15mins and it saved twice.

[SkyRat]

@Hozenplozz Thanks for the answer. I actually went ahead and purchased the game a week or so ago. So far I've been able to play with minimal loss of progress.

Early in the game most scenes are 5 minutes or under (that's as far as I've gotten). Plus most of the content is skippable, you can just run to the person you know you need to talk to if you've already played the area and know what happens. Lastly in most areas you can easily trigger a manual save by walking in and out of the area. Not all areas let you do this though.

So the save system isn't too bad in State of Mind.

Changing subject entirely. I wish more developers understood the time restraints some gamers have. If I hear the save system in a game is poor, I simply don't buy the game. What's the point? If you know you won't be able to finish it.

At least that's not the case with State of Mind.

[Psyringe]

Originally posted by Cleverbyte:

State of Mind is very story focussed and immersive, so saving in the middle of a crucial scene and restarting at that point after a break might makes the scene less effective or less understandable. That is why the saves are set at the beginning of a scene or "level". So you got time to get hooked back into the story and the scene you are in. We believe that even if you have to replay a little bit of a scene you already saw, it will greatly increase the game experience for you.

I know that this post 1 year old now, but there's a reason why I'm replying to it now. When I read this post last year, it made me skip a planned purchase. The game looks interesting, but if a feature that I regard as important for my enjoyment is missing, then that simply knocks down the price I'm willing to pay. So instead of buying this game last year for 30 bucks, I bought it today for 6. I obviously can't tell how well the game sold so far, but in case it didn't meet your expectations, the importance of basic convenience features might be worth investigating. With manual saves, I would have bought the game earlier, paid more money, and might have recommended the game to several dozen other gamers within the past year.

In case you - the dev ;) - actually reads this, please take a moment to rethink your approach. You are basically saying that _removing_ the convenience of manual saves creates a _better_ experience. I think that this is a rather short-sighted perspective, and I'll explain why:

1. Players differ vastly in how well they remember past scenes, how quickly they forget details, and how easily they can get back in the mood from when they stopped playing. For some players, replaying a scene or chapter is indeed helpful. But for other players, who still remember the past scenes very well and have no problems getting back in the mood, being forced to replay content that they remember amyway is just annoying and a waste of their time.

2. If you provided manual saves as well as autosaves for "last scene start" and "last chapter start", players could easily choose the option that gives them the best experience. If I played just a few hours ago, then I definitely don't need to replay content to remember the details. If I continue a save from 2 months ago, then yes, being able to go back to the chapter start will be better.

3. When you say that "no manual saves" creates a better and more immersive atnosphere - can you see that this attitude, no offense, comes across as rather patronzing for the players who don't _need_ the forced repetition every time to remember the details and feel immersed? You are talking like a parent to a kid - the "kid" is complaining about something they don't like, but you, the "parent", believe that you know better and that the cause for the complaint is actually something beneficial for them, which the kid just hasn't understood yet. However, here's the thing: your customers (mostly) aren't kids. Your customers may be people like me, who have been playing literally thousands of games in the past 40 years, who know from experience that they don't need forced repetition to feel immersed, and who scratch their heads in bewilderment whenever a developer assumes to know better than themselves what creates a good experience for them.

If you provide manual saves but also give me the _option_ to load an autosave from a scene or chapter start, then you're showing me that you respect your players and care for their experience. If you provide no manual saves and force me repeat content, then you're showing me that you either don't care about your players' experience, or targeted your game at an immature audience that isn't capable of deciding themselves in which cases a content refresher would be good.

Let's say you're watching a movie from a DVD or streaming service, and the director found a way to block the "pause" and "rewind" features. Which he does, because he believes it "creates a more immersive experience", and now the only way to rewind is to go back to the last scene or chapter start. What would you think about that as a consumer? It's exactly the same reasoning as yours for not providing manual saves ...

[corbo]

There is no excuse whatsoever for the absence of free save.
Only a reason: Incompetence.

Devs don't learn, devs don't earn.

[Faedrill]

There is no need for manual saving except you want to see every outcome of every decsion without replaying the game.
You loose maybe 5-10 mins if you quit before the next savepoint.
This isnt a action game there you have to watch the same unskippable 2 min cutscence over and over just because you die at the bossfight.