The bad save system ruined my whole mission

[LKBD]

I was about to finish the second map (Kolchak Harbor) in full stealth, avoiding all guards and killing nobody except the targets. I just completed the last objective on the icebreaker, I was going to the extraction point, I throw a rock to distract a guard but of course he turns the wrong side and spots me. I reload the last checkpoint and what happens... the game puts me in a position where I'm spontaneously killed by guards that even weren't there when the game previously saved...

So I lost more than 2 hours of game, my whole mission is ruined. Just because the save system of this game is stupid and badly done ><
CI Games I like and appreciate all the effort you're putting to improve game after game, and I really like this new installment. But here is an important feedback for you: if the game makes automatic saves (or checkpoints) then it has to do it only at some precise and predefined points on the map, and never after a certain amount of time. This is a stupid game design decision, and even more in a game where guards have patterns that could change after a reload. Checkpoints must be a safe spot for at least a few seconds, so the player can have time to react when the game just loaded.
Otherwise give the player the possibility to make manual saves or quicksaves, even limited in number.

If there's something I really hate in videogames, it is when a game ruins my progression due to a bad saving system. And that's the case of this game.
I liked playing this game in stealth and peaceful mode. I was used to play it like that on my first run and then go full sniper and lethal on my second one. But now I'll give up the peaceful mode, I don't want to risk losing more of my time.

[Huck Farris]

agreed. They should allow 3 manual saves.

[Kris]

Originally posted by LKBD:

I was about to finish the second map (Kolchak Harbor) in full stealth, avoiding all guards and killing nobody except the targets. I just completed the last objective on the icebreaker, I was going to the extraction point, I throw a rock to distract a guard but of course he turns the wrong side and spots me. I reload the last checkpoint and what happens... the game puts me in a position where I'm spontaneously killed by guards that even weren't there when the game previously saved...

So I lost more than 2 hours of game, my whole mission is ruined. Just because the save system of this game is stupid and badly done ><
CI Games I like and appreciate all the effort you're putting to improve game after game, and I really like this new installment. But here is an important feedback for you: if the game makes automatic saves (or checkpoints) then it has to do it only at some precise and predefined points on the map, and never after a certain amount of time. This is a stupid game design decision, and even more in a game where guards have patterns that could change after a reload. Checkpoints must be a safe spot for at least a few seconds, so the player can have time to react when the game just loaded.
Otherwise give the player the possibility to make manual saves or quicksaves, even limited in number.

If there's something I really hate in videogames, it is when a game ruins my progression due to a bad saving system. And that's the case of this game.
I liked playing this game in stealth and peaceful mode. I was used to play it like that on my first run and then go full sniper and lethal on my second one. But now I'll give up the peaceful mode, I don't want to risk losing more of my time.

Hi, sorry to hear that you had so many problems with save system. I’m not in office yet but once I arrive there I will discuss it with designers and we might be able to modify the save you mention.

Regarding manual save - we don’t have them and that was a design decision. Manual saves are some kind of exploits - allowing players to save before each action an never fail. We want players to learn how to play and sometime even adjust theirs playstyle to situation they are in.

Sorry again, we might be able to improve the game thanks to your feedback.

Cheers!

[Huck Farris]

Originally posted by Kris:

Originally posted by LKBD:

I was about to finish the second map (Kolchak Harbor) in full stealth, avoiding all guards and killing nobody except the targets. I just completed the last objective on the icebreaker, I was going to the extraction point, I throw a rock to distract a guard but of course he turns the wrong side and spots me. I reload the last checkpoint and what happens... the game puts me in a position where I'm spontaneously killed by guards that even weren't there when the game previously saved...

So I lost more than 2 hours of game, my whole mission is ruined. Just because the save system of this game is stupid and badly done ><
CI Games I like and appreciate all the effort you're putting to improve game after game, and I really like this new installment. But here is an important feedback for you: if the game makes automatic saves (or checkpoints) then it has to do it only at some precise and predefined points on the map, and never after a certain amount of time. This is a stupid game design decision, and even more in a game where guards have patterns that could change after a reload. Checkpoints must be a safe spot for at least a few seconds, so the player can have time to react when the game just loaded.
Otherwise give the player the possibility to make manual saves or quicksaves, even limited in number.

If there's something I really hate in videogames, it is when a game ruins my progression due to a bad saving system. And that's the case of this game.
I liked playing this game in stealth and peaceful mode. I was used to play it like that on my first run and then go full sniper and lethal on my second one. But now I'll give up the peaceful mode, I don't want to risk losing more of my time.

Hi, sorry to hear that you had so many problems with save system. I’m not in office yet but once I arrive there I will discuss it with designers and we might be able to modify the save you mention.

Regarding manual save - we don’t have them and that was a design decision. Manual saves are some kind of exploits - allowing players to save before each action an never fail. We want players to learn how to play and sometime even adjust theirs playstyle to situation they are in.

Sorry again, we might be able to improve the game thanks to your feedback.

Cheers!

you should allow players to play any way they want!!! We are the ones paying for the game with OUR money. If the situation above happened to me, it would make me want to stop playing the game. I, myself can't even launch the damn game anymore after playing for 25 hours!!!! It just stopped working, crashes after the CI screen. Tried everything, even reinstalling 5 times, and nothing.

[LKBD]

Originally posted by Kris:

Hi, sorry to hear that you had so many problems with save system. I’m not in office yet but once I arrive there I will discuss it with designers and we might be able to modify the save you mention.

Regarding manual save - we don’t have them and that was a design decision. Manual saves are some kind of exploits - allowing players to save before each action an never fail. We want players to learn how to play and sometime even adjust theirs playstyle to situation they are in.

Sorry again, we might be able to improve the game thanks to your feedback.

Cheers!

Hello,
Thanks for reacting to my thread. Apparently I'm not the only one who had a problem like that where we got spotted and instantly killed when we reload the last checkpoint. I guess it's a more common problem for maniac players like me who like to go full stealth and kill the least guards possible, haha.
Anyway I hope you'll be able to fix that problem, it will be a great news.

I understand your point about the manual saves and I respect that even if I disagree.
@teakwood1975 => I wish we had manual saves as well, but as a player I always prefer to respect the developers vision and experience the game they way they wanted to.

Have a good day, cheers.

PS: sorry if I sounded p*ssed off in my original post, it was not my point. I wrote that right after it happened.

[Huck Farris]

Originally posted by LKBD:

Originally posted by Kris:

Hi, sorry to hear that you had so many problems with save system. I’m not in office yet but once I arrive there I will discuss it with designers and we might be able to modify the save you mention.

Regarding manual save - we don’t have them and that was a design decision. Manual saves are some kind of exploits - allowing players to save before each action an never fail. We want players to learn how to play and sometime even adjust theirs playstyle to situation they are in.

Sorry again, we might be able to improve the game thanks to your feedback.

Cheers!

Hello,
Thanks for reacting to my thread. Apparently I'm not the only one who had a problem like that where we got spotted and instantly killed when we reload the last checkpoint. I guess it's a more common problem for maniac players like me who like to go full stealth and kill the least guards possible, haha.
Anyway I hope you'll be able to fix that problem, it will be a great news.

I understand your point about the manual saves and I respect that even if I disagree.
@teakwood1975 => I wish we had manual saves as well, but as a player I always prefer to respect the developers vision and experience the game they way they wanted to.

Have a good day, cheers.

PS: sorry if I sounded p*ssed off in my original post, it was not my point. I wrote that right after it happened.

don't apologize for being pissed off. It's your right. I'm VERY pissed that I can't open the game anymore.

[Stan]

The only hint i can give is that in order to trigger automatic safe is either back track the same way you come in, make sure that someone is not looking for you (alert or even semi where enemys are red) or just simply walk around until it happens.

And yes it have sometimes happend to me too that enemys spawn in different place than they ware originally when game save itself but that is a challenge we have to deal with. :)

[LKBD]

Originally posted by teakwood1975:

don't apologize for being pissed off. It's your right. I'm VERY pissed that I can't open the game anymore.

Your case is way different from mine, it's normal for you to be p*ssed off.
Did you verify the integrity of game files ?

Originally posted by Stan:

The only hint i can give is that in order to trigger automatic safe is either back track the same way you come in, make sure that someone is not looking for you (alert or even semi where enemys are red) or just simply walk around until it happens.

And yes it have sometimes happend to me too that enemys spawn in different place than they ware originally when game save itself but that is a challenge we have to deal with. :)

I'm not against guards having different patterns when we reload the game, on the contrary it's a nice addition to replay value. Anyway it has to be done efficiently because first we don't all play the game the same way, and as I said before reloaded checkpoints must be a temporary safe spot.

[LKBD]

@Kris
Or why not giving the player the possibility to choose between the three last checkpoints ? Instead of having the game always reloading the last one and only that one. If I remember well some games already do that, like the recent Deus Ex and Styx games.
It wouldn't solve the problem but it could temporarily be a solution which would avoid a big frustration like the one I experienced.

[Pyrocumulous]

Ditto for fast travel that lands you right on top of a guard. Loading the last checkpoint takes you right back to that same fast travel location... so you have to quit the contract, as there is no playable save.

[RMJ]

Let me Guess ?

WINDOWS 10= how did I know

DEV's do not use 10 to CODE!

Most "true" gamers use 7 x64

so this is why you see so many with issues on 10

[RMJ]

I finished the game 2 times , Only major bug I found was snipers saw me through the rocks- mountains= silly!

[RMJ]

I made missions for ARMA real Bullistic's every weapon was 100% correct.

But his game is very fun for single player .

Hope they make a COOP next!

[Huck Farris]

Originally posted by RMJ:

Let me Guess ?

WINDOWS 10= how did I know

DEV's do not use 10 to CODE!

Most "true" gamers use 7 x64

so this is why you see so many with issues on 10

did anyone ever tell you that you are very full of yourself?

[MTL5]

The developers are trying to stop people from save scumming. When something goes wrong they want to stop you from loading the last save so you can get some perfect stealth playthrough. They want you to actually respond to the situation. Think on your feet. Stuff like that. One of the biggest frustrations of developers working on series like Dishonored is that a lot of players refuse to "let it ride". What's the point of having complex AI and the potential for situations to play out in different ways if some players are going to play in the stodgiest way possible?

Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts is kind of a spiritual successor to Project IGI, I think. And Project IGI, like GoldenEye before it, has zero saves during a mission. The fact you even get checkpoint saves in Contract is the kind casual pandering that was not really a thing back in 2001-ish. (Note that I consider this kind of concession to be a good thing. You should be tough but fair on players.)

However, there does look to be a bug where you can spawn in the middle of a group of NPCs. They should definitely fix that. Basically just delete any NPC standing within a certain distance of the player when they fast travel. Or move them away if they're a critical NPC.

[RMJ]

I finished the game 2 times

Only bug I found was snipers saw me through rocks - YES , I run 7 X64!