Editing Saved game (section)

==Types of saved games==
===Autosave===
{{Main article|Autosave}}

Game saving does not need to be manual. Some video games save the game in progress automatically, such as after the pass of a fixed amount of time, at certain predetermined points in the game as an extension to the save point concept, or when the player exits.<ref name=Geerts>{{cite thesis|url=https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/handle/1874/351188/Dissertation_Final_FLGEERTS_2017_Final.pdf|title=Saving the Game is Shaping the Game: Defining and Understanding the Save Mechanic|last=Geerts|first=Femke Lucienne|publisher=[[Utrecht University]]|date=2017|access-date=2021-11-17|page=13–14, 20–21|hdl=1874/351188|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117084748/https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/handle/1874/351188/Dissertation_Final_FLGEERTS_2017_Final.pdf|archive-date=2021-11-17|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Some games only permit "suspend saves" in which the game is automatically saved upon exiting and reloaded upon restarting. The aim of a suspend save is only to allow the gameplay to be temporarily interrupted; as such, suspend saves are erased when the player resumes the game. This concept was popularized by ''[[Rogue (video game)|Rogue]]'' and [[Roguelike|the namesake genre]], which are known for employing the mechanic such that if the player were to die in the game, their save file is deleted and the game must be restarted. The term "perma-death" would come to refer to the concept used for that purpose. It is possible to cheat the system by copying and reusing suspend save files in an act of what is considered to be a form of savescumming.<ref name=Geerts/><ref>{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ni_wDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT55|chapter=6.1 Permadeath Defined|title=Exploring Roguelike Games|last=Harris|first=John|publisher=[[CRC Press]]|date=2020|access-date=2021-11-17|page=55|isbn=978-1-000-16949-2}}</ref>

===Checkpoints===
[[File:Supertux-checkpoint.png|thumb|[[Tux (mascot)|Tux]] passes a checkpoint (the yellow bell) in the video game ''[[SuperTux]]''.]]
"Checkpoints" are locations in a video game where a player character [[spawning (video gaming)|respawns]] after death. Characters generally respawn at the last checkpoint that they have reached. A respawn is most often due to the death of the in-game character, but it can also be caused by the failure to meet an objective required to advance in the game. Checkpoints might be temporary, as they stop working when the player loses their last life, completes or quits the level, especially in platform games.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Rogers|first1=Scott|date= 2014-04-16|title=Level Up! The Guide to Great Video Game Design |chapter=A nice little calm spot|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UT5jAwAAQBAJ&q=checkpoint+video+game|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-1118877197|access-date=2014-11-26}}</ref> Most modern games, however, save the game to memory at these points, known as [[Autosave|auto-saving]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ernest|first1=Adams|date= 2010-04-07|title=Fundamentals of Game Design|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-BCrex2U1XMC&q=checkpoint+warp+game|publisher=New Riders|page= 403|isbn=978-0132104753|access-date=2014-11-26}}</ref>

Checkpoints might be visible or invisible to the player. Visible checkpoints might give a player a sense of security when activated, but in turn sacrifice some [[immersion (virtual reality)|immersion]], as checkpoints are intrinsically "gamey" and might even need an explanation of how they work unless they are [[diegetic]]. Invisible checkpoints do not break immersion but may make players unsure of where they will respawn, if the [[HUD (video gaming)|heads-up display]] does not give a visible indication that a checkpoint was reached.

===Quick-saving===
Quick-saving and quick-loading allow the player to save or load the game with a single keystroke. These terms are used to differentiate between the traditional saving mechanism where the player is required to invoke a menu or dialog box, issue save the order, specify a title for the game being saved and, if applicable, confirm whether an old saved game file with the same title should be overwritten. The term "quick save" may be used in video games that lack the traditional saving mechanism altogether.

The advantage of quick saving is its low burden: The player only has to press a button and, if applicable, wait a few seconds. The disadvantage is the automatic loss of the previous quick-saved game. Games that only offer quick saving may be impossible to play by two different players (or more) unless there is a mechanism to distinguish players, such as [[user accounts]]. Leaving the decision of when to save up to the player increases the likelihood that a save will be made during a less than favourable game state. A quicksave shortly before an event which kills the player creates what is known as a death loop.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thegeek.games/2019/01/02/deathloop-what-is-zenimax-planning/|title=Deathloop: What is Zenimax planning?|first=Angyal|last=Aniko|publisher=The Geek|date=2019-01-02|access-date=2020-02-13}}</ref>

===Password===
Passwords are a form of saved game not stored on [[non-volatile memory]]. Instead, everything needed to reconstruct the game state is encoded in and displayed on-screen as a string of text, usually comprising random alphanumeric characters, and the player can then record or memorize it. The player may later resume play from that point by entering the same password. Passwords were widely used by home console games before the advent of non-volatile memory and later internal and external storage.<ref name=Lowood-Guins>{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5F4pDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA385|chapter=45 Save|title=Debugging Game History: A Critical Lexicon|last1=Lowood|first1=Henry|last2=Guins|first2=Raiford|publisher=[[MIT Press]]|date=2016|access-date=2021-11-17|pages=385–387|isbn=9780262331951}}</ref>

===Save states===
A "save state" is a form of a saved game in [[emulator]]s. A save state is generated when the emulator stores the contents of [[random-access memory]] of an emulated program to disk. Save states enable players to save their games even when the emulated game or system does not support the feature. For instance, save states may be used to circumvent saving restrictions or as a savescumming technique. An associated concept is '''save state hacking''', the practice of which uses a [[hex editor]] to modify the save states to alter gameplay conditions, usually in favor of the player. Save states are comparable to [[Snapshot (computer storage)|snapshots of a computer system's state]] or [[Hibernation (computing)|hibernation]] in computing, with save states being a limited form of snapshots.<ref name=Lowood-Guins/><ref>{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GVDpCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA312|chapter=8 Tool-Assisted|title=I Am Error: The Nintendo Family Computer / Entertainment System Platform|last=Altice|first=Nathan|publisher=[[MIT Press]]|date=2015|access-date=2021-11-17|pages=312–313|isbn=978-0-262-32840-1}}</ref>

Save states have started to receive mainstream usage in the early 2010s with Nintendo's Virtual Console. Some [[Wii U]] and [[3DS Virtual Console]] titles allow players to save a "restore point," which is like a quick save but has no restrictions on reloading.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://30plusgamer.com/restore-point-or-no-restore-point/ |title=Restore Point or No Restore Point |last1=Cazares |first1=Sergio |website=30PLUSGAMER |date=2013-12-15 |access-date=2015-05-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528200641/http://30plusgamer.com/restore-point-or-no-restore-point/|archive-date=May 28, 2015}}</ref> Although likely derived from quick saves, restore points are functionally identical to save states, and can be used for many of the same purposes.