Wondering if anyone has experience or knowledge when it comes to forking or restoring an old save.

What I want to do is to take an older save slot from when I was still in Euclid and make it available to run -- without destroying the current state of the game.

I could, of course, swap out the entire %APPDATA%\HelloGames\NMS\DefaultUser directory which should restore the complete context to the time of the older directory (modulo ensuring that GoG sync doesn't overwrite it). What I'd rather do is to pluck just the one "save slot" from that backup and insert it into the currently running directory.

It looks like I should be able to take the older pair (save8.hg and mf_save8.hg), replace "8" with "9" and it will magically appear. But there's always a "however."

However, there are additional files storage.hg, storage2.hg, and storage3.hg (along with companion mf_storage...) that also appear to contain save state information and I have no clue how those interact with the save and mf_save files. And then there's all that stuff in the cache subdirectory.

The whole exercise is just intended to let me portal over to the Community Event planets, which I can't get to (except during the events, of course) since I'm now in Eissentam. Some of the bases constructed by HG for the events are interesting and I'd like to be able to poke around for some building ideas.

ETA: Nevermind about the storage & mf_storage files. Those are for the older save function (pre Atlas Rises). But they had timestamps in October so I thought they were current. October of last year though. Duh...

Not quite as straightforward as that (at least I couldn't find a way to save between instances) but using the save editor to copy the raw JSONs over from a slot in the old directory to a slot in the current directory seems to do the trick. Thanks!

Maybe try a new windows user login, and fresh install there, then move save into that roaming users app savegame dir. or run a compatible OS from off a mem card. They say thats a good way to game... dunno. Above me. Best of luck

Well, here's how I got it to work, given that the big picture goal was to extract a save from an earlier time in my current thread and make it playable.

GoG saves are stored at %APPDATA%\HelloGames\NMS\DefaultUser. Each of the five available save slots (N) is associated with two pairs of files, (saveX.hg, mf_saveX.hg) and (saveY.hg, mf_saveY.hg) where X = 2*N and Y = 2*N-1. The Y slots are for auto-saves and X slots for manual saves. For a given slot, the game launches whichever of the two is more recent. (exception: slot 1 auto is just "save.hg" and "mf_save.hg" without the trailing "1")

As always, make a backup before diving into something like this.

So, say that the directory was archived at 100 hrs of play in the fourth slot. Current play in that slot is at 200 hrs. Goal: make a new playable branch at 100 hrs while keeping the 200 hr branch alive.

The active save directory needs a sacrificial slot where the old branch will be loaded. Start a new game if there's an empty slot to use or pick one of the slots that's no longer needed. Note the time stamp on the in-game launch screen, since slots are ordered on the launch screen by date/time and not by slot numer. Don't want to pick the wrong one!

Exit the game, go to the save directory and identify the two file pairs both for the active (200 hr) branch and for the sacrificial branch.

Extract the archived save directory to some convenient location. The 100-hr branch should have the same names as the current active branch.

Launch the NMS Save Editor. Navigate to the archived save directory and select the slot associated with the 100-hr save. Be 100% certain you're in the correct directory and have picked the right slot.

The next bits are repeated, once for the lower numbered save file and once for the upper one.

Select Edit Raw JSON from the File menu. Click in the right pane, do a Ctrl-A then Ctrl-C to copy the contents to the clipboard.

Optional. Paste the contents of the clipboard into Notepad++ or some other text editor (not word processor). It's a little bit more persistent than the clipboard. No worries about losing it by an accidental clipboard op. Plus, you can stick both JSON files in Notepad++ and save some navigating. Optional, tho.

Close the JSON editor and navigate back to the real save directory.

Open the slot for the sacrificial save and choose the lower numbered save file. Again, be absolutely sure you've got the right slot & file.

Select Edit Raw JSON again. Click in the right pane. Do a Ctrl-A then Delete. Paste the clipboard (or refresh the clipboard from Notepad++ and then paste it) in to the editor. (The initial delete is not strictly necessary but that way it's obvious if nothing (or a muffin recipe)) got pasted into the editor.)

Click on Version in the left pane. That should prompt a save. Close the JSON editor. (Should get a save prompt here if Version wasn't clicked.)

Repeat for the other (higher numbered) save file.

Save changes. Close everything.

Launch NMS. The new files, from the old save, should show up as the top slot with a recent timestamp. The existing main thread should be there with the expected hours played and timestamp.

Launch each save and check that everything looks right.

Done.

Note: I think that this same technique can be used to share save files. No clue how the "persona" works, as in what name shows up, who gets credit for discoveries, etc. Use at your own risk.

That, my friend, deserves a honorary degree from MIT in Reverse Engineering.

What are you doing to free up the 2 slots? Delete the saves while in game? Or from inside File Explorer? I relize your backing them up, but I was worried about, the game itself, getting ruined. Not save files.

There is something kept, from a game file reload, the same thing which is saved or kept at a death reload. As opposed to or unlike an exit and a program restart. Not sure where that is saved at. More than just shadows are being processed at a virgin start. The trillion system world spline, has to be read and buffered.

You are freeing up one slot that has two pairs of files associated with it. Well, not really freeing it up but picking it to be overwritten. Most of this is put together from Goat Fungus' release notes and comments on the Save Editor. I'm taking his/her guidance that an existing slot should to be overwritten, not just new files added to the directory. Presumably there is additional metadata somewhere that the game uses to know what files to expect to find.

So if you had an old start from a year ago that had been played for an hour or so and then left to fossilize, that would be ideal. Don't even need to open it in the current release, just note the timestamp. There will be two files (a save*.hg and mf_save*.hg) with that timestamp and two others which are the companion save for that slot. If the timestamp files are odd, the companion will be the next higher even numbered save pair; if even, then the next lower numbered pair. Those are the ones to be overwritten by the contents of the save files you are trying to restore.

Easy peasy! ;-)

That makes sense. This save editor is a must have, for offline play without a windows time sync. NMS doesnt even work if system time service stops or slows, from a, malf. bios battery thats how poorly its code is written. Other games, without survivalistic permadeath code, work fine, saves reorder themselves based on timestamping, but NMS doesnt.

If this were my game, the two survival modes should both not save. With harder of them, not getting a multitool. Gotta mine with physical strikes, no laser.

HG goes out of its way to prevent scum saving. Seems to be why the saves are limited to 2 and placed in a hidden sub folder. Its a good design model, until it breaks down. Which it has. Devs are designing things, or allowing for methods, inwhich only scum savers can get to, example: 3hr iRL delay on space battles. Thats bad. I know I am not alone in saying I cannot wait for the modder who removes that awful hinderance.

A scum saver, can circumnavigate that hinderance. Which breaks all their ironman designs.