Saves and cloud saves

Universe backs up a game’s saves after each session. GOG and Epic games can also sync their saves with the store’s cloud.

A backup after every session

Back up after playing, in Settings › Game defaults, is on by default. Each game keeps its last five backups.

When Universe can’t find a game’s saves, its Data and saves page says why. When the save database, ludusavi, knows the game under another title, set that title from a terminal, as in universe set hollow-knight saves.name="Hollow Knight".

Some emulators, such as Eden, Ryujinx and PCSX2, keep every game’s saves in one shared folder. The Data and saves page shows it as Every game’s, and nothing backs it up.

Backing up and restoring

The game menu (Start on a game) › Manage › Data and saves has:

• Back Up Now;
• Restore the Latest Backup, which replaces the saves on disk;
• Export the Backups, which writes every backup into one zip in your home folder;
• the list of backups, where A restores one, after asking.

Restoring is refused while the game runs.

Cloud saves

Cloud saves are off by default, and only a Windows build run through Proton or Wine syncs. Turn them on for every game of a store in Settings › Stores › GOG (or Epic Games), or for one game in the GOG or Epic Games card of its Game settings.

The saves then come down before each session and go up after it. The Cloud Saves row of the game’s Data and saves page says how the last sync went.

Settling a conflict

When the saves changed both here and in the cloud, Universe touches neither: the game starts on the saves here, and the row reads Changed on both sides until you pick one side.

• Keep the Saves on This Device replaces the cloud’s saves with these.
• Keep the Cloud’s Saves backs up the saves here, then replaces them.

Steam Cloud

Universe doesn’t sync Steam Cloud. The Steam page says where those saves stay.