Saving, loading and Safekeeping

Two ways to save

Biztopia saves when you ask it to. You choose when. A few things also save by themselves: some co-op item moves and some conversion checkpoints write a save in the background. Do not rely on them, save yourself.

1. Save from the pause menu

1. Press Esc (gamepad: Start) to open the pause menu.
2. Choose Save game.

This writes your current save slot and does not move the clock to the next day. A short "Game saved" confirmation appears. Use it often, for example before a risky drive or before you quit.

The pause menu also shows when you last saved. Before your first save it says "Not saved yet".

In co-op only the host saves. A guest sees the Save game button disabled, with the note "The host saves this game".

2. Save at the save area and go to the next day

When you stand inside the save area and use it, the save screen opens with a list of 9 slots. If you are outside the area the game says "Please get inside to save area". In co-op only the host can use it: a guest sees "Only host can save the current session."

1. Pick a slot. An empty slot says Empty. A used slot shows its day and the company or player name. The slot you are playing now is marked This game.
2. If you pick a different slot that already holds a save, the game asks "Overwrite slot N?" and you confirm with Overwrite. Your own current slot does not ask.
3. Choose Save and Next Day to save and start the next morning at once. The screen can also just save without moving to the next day.

While it is working you see "Saving..." and the slots and the close button are disabled.

Going to the next day is a kind of sleep, so it is only possible at certain times of the day. Outside them the button is disabled.

Starting the next day:

• fills the energy of every player in the game, see the Needs page;
• restores your motivation and lowers hunger a little;
• shows the daily report with your income and expenses. If there is nothing for that day it says "No report for this day yet."

Quitting

When you quit from the pause menu the game asks about unsaved progress, so read the question:

• To quit the game: Save and quit or Quit without saving.
• To go back to the main menu: Save and go or Go without saving.
• Before your first save it asks you to save now.
• A co-op guest is asked "The host keeps playing and saves the game." and chooses Leave the game.

Loading a game

On the main menu:

• Continue loads your newest playable save. It remembers if that save was last played online and starts in that mode. If that slot was recovered from a backup, the button reads Open backup.
• Load Game lists your saves, the slots first (newest on top) and then older preserved saves. Picking a card only selects it. Then press the button to play it:
• Load solo starts it as a single-player game.
• Host online co-op starts it as a hosted game, see the Co-op page.
• Cards for older versions are labeled "G1 progress (backup), day N" or "Older version (backup), day N".

Backups and damaged saves

Each time the game replaces a readable save, the old one is kept next to it as a backup. If refreshing the backup fails, the previous backup stays. A save that cannot be read is kept aside before it is replaced.

• If the main file cannot be read but a backup can, the game recovers from the backup and shows a notice with the backup's time, company, level and day. Check that everything looks as you left it, and save again. Open it with Open backup.
• If neither works, the card is marked Damaged save and says it has no backup. It cannot be loaded.
• Use this save on a preserved card puts that save into its slot. The save that was there is kept as a new preserved card, so nothing is lost.
• To delete a save you must hold the delete control: X or Delete on a keyboard, or the left face button on a gamepad. A quick tap does nothing, so you cannot delete one by accident. The top face button opens more actions for the selected save.
• If saving fails, the game says so. A full disk has its own message and tells you the previous save is unchanged. Free some space, open the pause menu and save again. The tablet also shows a failed save in its attention list.
• A slot that failed to load is protected from writes for the rest of that session.

Safekeeping

Safekeeping is an app on your tablet. It holds items you are not carrying, so you do not lose them: for example items of a co-op partner who left, and items a big update moved. It is not the Vault tab of the Finance app, which is for money.

1. Press B (gamepad: D-pad Right) to take out the tablet.
2. Open the Safekeeping app.

What you can do there:

• Items are listed in groups with headers: Food, Medicine, Boxes, Products, Shelves, Pallets, Warehouse equipment, Home items, and your co-op partners' items.
• Filters show All, Company or Mine. They only appear when other owners' items are present. For the host, Mine also includes company items.
• Choose Take 1 to take a single item out.
• Choose Take as many as fit to fill your free inventory space from that group. It is not shown for single items and pallets.
• A line shows "Inventory: X/Y free" or "Your inventory is full."
• Pallets can be taken even with a full inventory. "... was placed in front of you."

You can only take items out in the place the app allows. Anywhere else it says "Go to the warehouse to take items."

Some rows are not ready:

• "Ready after the next save": a fresh deposit, it cannot be taken yet.
• "Owner is playing": it belongs to a co-op partner who is online.
• "Unreadable": the item cannot be loaded.
• "The list changed, try again." Just press again.

An empty app says "Nothing in safekeeping.", or "Nothing here for this filter." when a filter hides everything.

I'm stuck

If your character is stuck or cannot move on, open the pause menu and choose I'm stuck. It asks "Teleport to the start?" and you confirm with Teleport. You see "Clean start, clear path!".

• On foot it moves you to a spot near the start of the game (guests land near the host).
• In a car it first tries to move the vehicle to an open spot and keeps you inside.
• It has a cooldown, so after you use it you wait a little before you can use it again.

Tips

• Save from the pause menu before long errands and before you leave the game.
• Use Save and Next Day when you are done with a day.
• Keep a few slots. Do not write over your only save when you try something new.
• If you see the recovery notice, save again right away.
• Take food and medicine out of Safekeeping at the warehouse before a long trip.
• In co-op the host should save before the group quits.

Screenshots needed:

• Pause menu with Save game and the last saved caption
• Save screen with the 9 slots, one marked This game
• The Overwrite slot prompt
• The Save and quit and Save and go questions
• Load Game screen with a selected card and the Load solo and Host online co-op buttons
• A recovered slot with Open backup, and a Damaged save card
• Safekeeping app with groups and the Take 1 and Take as many as fit buttons
• The Teleport to the start? question