Corrupt saves, corrupt maps, game crashes....

Windows support forum for Eschalon: Book II
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theanonymy
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Corrupt saves, corrupt maps, game crashes....

Post by theanonymy »

I've already posted in a couple other peoples' threads, but this is hoping a dev sees it...

Steam versions. I will see if there are similar problems on the boards there; I wonder if the constant updates have something to do with the corruption of all my files! Disappearing maps, disappearing save folders, so that I can not save; either by pushing F2 or by clicking the save dialogue box....sure as sh@t, when I check the AppData, the folders are indeed missing suddenly. Disappearing merchants and npc's vital to quests....map resets no longer work....and the worst one (so far) is trying to enter the Ironwood Dam door from the Greenriven Lake map....the door is clearly open, but the instant you try to enter, the game just quits...instantaneous desktop....no loading or stuttering in any way. I've tried several different map 'fixes'; none seem to pertain to that door. I've been in there before; after talking to Minus and Brudo, I'd retreated when the skeletons were too tough for me....now I'm stronger and would like to tie up that area, but no go. The Gods are against me (or is it The One?).

Somebody help before I lose my sh@t, please. Thank you. :(
"You laugh at me, because I am different; I laugh at you, because you are all the same."

--Unknown (though sometimes contributed to Jonathan Davis, for some reason)
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BasiliskWrangler
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Re: Corrupt saves, corrupt maps, game crashes....

Post by BasiliskWrangler »

I'm not sure what the problem is with your game, and I think it is fair to consider a possible hardware or 3rd-party software problem on your end. Reasoning: we have sold thousands of copies of Book II, and there are relatively very, very few complaints of saved game corruptions. Certainly we will always look at ways to improve the stability and reliability of our game-save protocol, but in reality there are only a couple commands used to read and write game data; these functions either work or they don't. When 99.8% of people never have a problem with saving their game, we have to consider what is going on with the 0.2% who report problems.

One suggestion that we have provided to people is for them to go in and delete .map files to reset specific zones. This is a very dangerous suggestion and we do not recommend it unless there is no other option. Deleting the wrong files could be catastrophic and ruin multiple save positions.

When deleting .map files, we also suggest removing two other files associated with the map: the .ent file and the .opq file. These 3 files (.map / .ent / .opq) should always be deleted together to properly and fully reset the map.

Likewise, if anyone tries to manually alter data inside a saved game file, it will very likely result in unrecoverable corruption. This is why we do not support or recommend any 3rd-party character or map editor.

In the end, we will always work with customers to improve the process and help them when problems arise. In your case @theanonymy, I would recommend making a copy of your saved game folders (such as copying it to your desktop), then remove the entire saved-game folder structure: delete the "Book 2 Saved Games" folder and everything inside of it. Restart the game and let it rebuild all those folders. Ensure the game is working okay. Then, go into your backed-up saved games and attempt to copy a save over to the newly rebuilt folder structure. Only copy the contents of one saved slot, not the entire previous saved game structure. Start the game and see if that one game loads. If any of these instructions sound complicated or confusing, don't do it!! You might really wreck something on your computer if you don't know what you are doing.
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theanonymy
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Re: Corrupt saves, corrupt maps, game crashes....

Post by theanonymy »

Hiya; I have been deleting all three map files...it just resets the map...doesn't re-trigger the Brudo conversation (even after talking to Minus again about him/the password) that gets me into the lower dam. Just can't get past that damned porticullis!!

Anyway; I've been scanning my boot/hard disks all night, (even with the myriad anti-virus/malware programs I've got) and am now running the 'sfc /scannow' command, just in case. Something did come up in the AppData/Roaming folder called 'msmsgs.exe', though not specifically in the Basilisk/EB2 subs. I'm hoping that killing it has fixed the issues. If not, I'll try your fix suggestion. Yes; I'm fine with your instructions, so I thank you.

I didn't mean to sound shitty in my rant...just that a few of the problems I've been having were literally, y'know, right there in the last few posts in the support forum. I just thought since others were having similar issues... *shrugs*

With any luck I'll be able to play now. Or after your suggestion is implemented. Of course, I may have to just start again. Worse things have happened. :?

And just for the record, the save files thing is very specific....either I can quicksave with F2 and not anyway or anywhere else...OR... I can't use F2, but can save in say, slot 2, but nowhere else (every attempt erases another slot/folder). Weird, no? Exasperating! Also, I don't use any editors of any kind; I like the game as written very much, so no...I've not changed the file structure in any way.

At any rate, thank you for the reply. Regardless of the outcome, it is appreciated. :mrgreen:


:wink:

EDIT: I don't suppose there is any way to reset npc dialogues or quests? It seems I'm in more need of that than the map resets. All I see are merchants in the save files....I think I'll have to start anew. Not only can I not finish Ironpool, but Xed has disappeared, so I can't finish that either...?
"You laugh at me, because I am different; I laugh at you, because you are all the same."

--Unknown (though sometimes contributed to Jonathan Davis, for some reason)
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