Finding my old mass effect save files
I recently went to continue an old game of Mass Effect 2 and was disappointed to find that all of my save files were missing.
That's Ok, I thought, I hadn't got that far in, I'll just restart the game with one of my Mass Effect 1 save files. That's when I found that they were missing too!
That's Ok, I thought, I'll recover them from backups. That's when I found that the directories where the Mass effect save files are now (C:\Users\...\Documents\BioWare\Mass Effect 2), were created when I recently opened the game, didn't exist before and thus there were no backups from that location!
So, how do I find my old Mass Effect save files? Did Steam once put ME1/2 save files in a different location? I.e has the location of save files changed? If so, where did they used to be?
Has anyone else experienced Mass Effect save files disappearing? If so, how did you recover your save files/where did you find them?
If it makes any difference, I think my upgrade to Windows 7 was after the last time I played either of these games, so I wonder if the OS change may have also affected the save game location.
As suggested, I installed MASGAU, sadly it only finds the current, empty save directory.
Best Answer
If you find yourself managing save files often, you could give MASGAU a try. It is a save-file manager that can scan your drive for saves, so you could use it to find your saves (if they are still existing).
Always make backups! (BTW MASGAU's primary function is backup & restore of save files).
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Where are Mass Effect save files stored?
The default save location is in the BioWare\\Mass Effect 3\\Save directory, inside of your My Documents folder. There will be individual folders for character you have, which contain all of the saves associated with that character.Does Mass Effect use previous save data?
Gamers will be able to play their old saves in Mass Effect Legendary Edition. Players will be able to import their old saves from Mass Effect 2 and 3 into the Legendary Collection (via GameSpot). On PC, the files can be transferred, though it only works for Mass Effect 2 and 3, and not the original.Does Mass Effect save carry?
Your game is saved and can be carried over to a New Game+. You can then explore the galaxy again. Shepard's level, talents, specialization and equipment all carry over, but Paragon / Renegade scales, weapon manufacture licenses, and medi-gel / grenade stock upgrades are reset, as are your Codex entries and assignments.Where are Mass Effect Legendary Edition saves located?
Save game data locationSystemLocationWindows%USERPROFILE% \\ Documents \\BioWare\\Mass Effect Legendary Edition\\Save\\Steam Play (Linux)<Steam-folder> /steamapps/compatdata/ 1328670 /pfx/ [Note2]Mass Effect - Can You Save BOTH Ashley and Kaidan on Virmire? (SECRET Cut Content)
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