Steam games data loss

[Hjalte_TL]

I just reset my pc back to factory condition because it had been lagging alot recently. After the reset i downloaded some steam games to see if it was still lagging or not. And it wasnt lagging wich is great but the problem is that the data from the two games i tryed was gone. I really need help with this because if this is the case with all of my steam games then thats about 900 hours lost. So if you know how to recover that data please help.

[Cathulhu]

Do you mean lost savegames? Or game files?

[Zekiran]

If you did not back up your data and saves, the only way to fix that is to revert back to a restore point that does have them, or hope that they're available as cloud saves.

Also: are you positive that you're on the correct steam account? Because many games people put that many hours into are multiplayer, which are stored server side, not client side.

[Hjalte_TL]

Cathulhu the savegames

[Hjalte_TL]

And Yes zekiran it is 100% the correct account

[Zekiran]

Which games are you looking for? Are they free to play games that you put many hours into? Or are they paid games? Have you asked in the game forum hubs about where their save files are supposed to be located?

What specifically happens when you try and play these games? If they were free to play, you will need to find them on the store and reinstall it. If your steam account is properly connected to whatever game it is, that SHOULD find your info online. If they were entirely offline games, you had to have backed up the info before doing a restore...

[Yasahi]

If the games are not using Cloud saves, the save files can be located in multiple different locations on your HDD/SSD. Formatting the computer etc. can remove them all in that case.

Some games save for example to: C:\Users\%username%\Saved Games while others save to: C:\Users\%username%\Documents

I'd start by asking in the game hub or checking with a Google search where the game saves are located.

[DC-GS]

Originally posted by Zekiran:

to fix that is to revert back to a restore poin

I would expect a factory reset to delete the restore points too. It SHOULD delete every and all private data from the pc, everything installed post factory.
Sure, he could check for that, but he should not expect to find anything.

Pure online games (for example GTAO) all stuff is stored on remote servers and are bound to your steam profile. This progress isnt lost until the developer decides to nuke your profile.
Single player games (for example GTA5) store all progress local. The progress isnt bound to your steam profile but your windows profile, which is stored on the pc. (Very few games store data in programm files directory, not windows profile).
As mentioned, there are exception: Steam cloud. Some games support Steam cloud. If enabled, your progress is stored additionally in your steam account and can be synced back.

So it all depends on the games you are playing.

[Hjalte_TL]

Okay well, there is no way to recover the data but huge thanks to all of you for trying to help. Have a nice day

[nullable]

You want want to consider backing files up that are important to you before major changes, like a factory reset. I use game save manager and backup save games to dropbox regularly.

Or could could do proper backups of your system too.

You have options to be a bit safer in the future.