We need a save cleaner utility

[mejoff]

Save games get filled up with loose references and become unusable. Apparently starting NG+ fixes this, but I'm in no position to try even if I wanted to do that. 

 

Currently I can't save.

We've had utilities for previous Bethesda games that could clean up the broken bits in save files and solve issues like this.

Is there anything in anyone's pipeline along similar lines here?

[smr1957]

Save cleaners DO NOT work, despite what you may have read elsewhere or what some mod author may have posted.  This goes all the way back to the earliest of Bethesda games.  Data once written to a save is in it for good, and removing references is a surefire way to break the save even further or bork it completely - if it is not already.

[mejoff]

That's so funny to hear because I've had really positive results with them in previous games. Is it possible that you are universalising a negative experience that you've had?

[smr1957]

4 hours ago, mejoff said:

That's so funny to hear because I've had really positive results with them in previous games. Is it possible that you are universalising a negative experience that you've had?

No. I am basing it on literally thousands upon thousands of hours experience - tens of thousands, in fact - and in helping with issues regarding games (many brought about by using said tools), as well as what is also stated by the author of one of the best known tools - Fallrim Save Tool by Markdf - right on that mod's description page - and by what is known of how Bethesda saves work in their games - information that has been known and verified going all the way back to early Bethesda games.  In fact, any information I may post is based upon my experience in helping others and in study of the game itself over those very many thousands of hours, and not my own personal experience (except where that personal experience may exceed and surpass what is common usage and do so by an extreme amount).

 

But, it is your game to play or break as you choose, and the information posted by those who know can be ignored should a person so choose.

[HeyYou]

1 hour ago, smr1957 said:

No. I am basing it on literally thousands upon thousands of hours experience - tens of thousands, in fact - and in helping with issues regarding games (many brought about by using said tools), as well as what is also stated by the author of one of the best known tools - Fallrim Save Tool by Markdf - right on that mod's description page - and by what is known of how Bethesda saves work in their games - information that has been known and verified going all the way back to early Bethesda games.  In fact, any information I may post is based upon my experience in helping others and in study of the game itself over those very many thousands of hours, and not my own personal experience (except where that personal experience may exceed and surpass what is common usage and do so by an extreme amount).

 

But, it is your game to play or break as you choose, and the information posted by those who know can be ignored should a person so choose.

Any tool is a gamble.... Heck, just using mods in general is a gamble..... There are far too many ways to stuff your save file, or the whole game. Judicious use of the tools can actually SAVE your save..... I have direct experience with this..... But yeah, monkeying with the file directly CAN be dangerous, especially if you don't know what you are doing. And yes, as pointed out in Fallrim tools description, it is entirely possible for the cleaning process to break your save. Of course, if you are resorting to cleaning your save in the first place, I would expect that it is ALREADY broken.... Does this mean you should NEVER use the tools??? No, it most certainly does NOT. If the author of Fallrim tools didn't think people should be using it, why on earth would he PUBLISH it???