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Save States, what's your opinion on them?

I've been using them before dungeon bosses in Oracle of Ages/Seasons lately. I don't have the patience to make my way over there again if I die (mainly because it takes me a couple of minutes to find out how to beat it and in the meantime I lose all my hearts).
I suck at 2D Zelda

Also when I'm trying to figure out a puzzle that requires seeds or bombs. If I run out before I figure it out I just reload my save state and do the trial and error thing again...

My opinion would be: very practical. I don't mind "spoiling" some of the experience if they're like the ones I mentioned.
 
I use them, but feel guilty most of the time because they are not in the original design structure for the game.

The 3DS Virtual Console eases this guilt considerably, however.
 
I vehemently disapprove of save states. It is one of the worst design choices universally implemented into games (and retroactively, with emulators). I don't feel like getting into it right now, but I'm sure others will.

One thing that needs to be said is that most people who are against save states are fine with temporary saves (or a form of constant saving) that allows people to drop the game and pick up where they left off.
 
It depends on how you use them. They're certainly preferable to leaving the console on overnight like you had to with certain games back in the day.
 
I don't like their modern-day cousins seen in games like Fallout 3 where they just promote save scumming... I like them in older games though, since they tend to be a lot harder than new games. I am currently playing Game & Watch Gallery on 3DS and I can safely say I would not be able to get 1000 points on these horrible ports of Fire and Manhole without the restore point feature.
 
I don't think I could beat Super Mario Bros 2 if I didn't have save states ha ha.
I know it's pretty much cheating but I try and limit my self to the start of levels when I use it and not use it every-time I jump over a pit or something.
 
I've been playing Oracle of Ages. Honestly, I've been using the restore points a bit, really before a potentially complicated puzzle (if I'm going to stop; otherwise I can just leave the screen and start anew), dungeon entrance, or at a mini-boss or a dungeon boss. It's been rather convenient.

I had to laugh because I totally abused the Wii U save state to win the quick-draw bonus stages in Kirby's Adventure. Had to reload the save a few times before I'd win the match.
 
I was a big fan of Dead Rising' save system. What does that tell you?
 
Risette said:
They're for scrubs.
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This. It is no different than opening up a memory editor and giving yourself infinite health.

Emulator save states have also retroactively ruined a lot of older games for new people getting into them who maybe don't understand this is not how these games are meant to be played.
 
I agree with the aforementioned DOA Max Payne case. Save anywhere, limited saves, high difficulty. Best saving type, as it involves some strategy.

But generally, it's up to the game designer. If a game has a particular save system (whatever it is), live with it. Otherwise, you distort the game's logic. I don't like thinking about the save system as a different entity; it's integrated into the game, it is what it is, no questions asked.

In emulation cases, yes it's kind of like cheating, as I prefer to play old games with their original save system.
 
I quick save, which is similar, alot, sometimes too much. I just hate repeating what I've already done. Save state however can be abused alot more, like after every hit on a boss. That's just ridiculous, spoils the fun. There are some older games that I wouldn't even attempt to play again without save states however but I wouldn't go ott.

Suspend saves however, are completely non-controversial and should be mandatory on all games. They're there for when real life rudely interrupts your gaming.
 
Save states are great. Say you just want to go back to a game and play a specific level? Save states let you do this without having to reach it all over again.
 
I would love it if all games were MUCH more modifiedable in their options for these kinds of things. SO if you chose hard you couldn't use particular types of saves and the option for that game was removed. So you could sort of tailor it.
 
Karak said:
I would love it if all games were MUCH more modifiedable in their options for these kinds of things. SO if you chose hard you couldn't use particular types of saves and the option for that game was removed. So you could sort of tailor it.
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bad options are bad though

edit: actually, sorry didn't read all of this through. removing quick save options on higher difficulties is not a bad idea. ideally it should just be relegated to "cheat" status though or not in the game at all.
 
They're definitely good for some older games which have archaic designs. Playing through oracle of seasons with them is good and has probably saved me a good 4 hours overall playtime from just grinding repeat sections over and over. With less time on my hands, im all for that.
 
Love them.

I'm not a hardcore gamer, I don't play for challenge and hate hard games, and I loathe replaying sections over just to get to a tough spot where I keep dying.

So I love being able to save right before a tough spot so I can just keep trying, and save right after so I'm sure to never have to suffer through it again! :D

There probably should be some limits on them--I like how some WRPGs you can save anytime other than combat. So you at least have to get through a battle--but can still save right before it so you don't have to repeat stuff, and right after beating it so you don't have to do it again if there happens to be another way to die before the next check point etc.
 
Stumpokapow said:
There are games where quick saves (save states) make the experience more enjoyable for me; games where I wouldn't want to use them at all...

... and games where my better instinct is to not use them, but I do anyway, and contribute towards ruining my experience d'oh.
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If the only way to make a game enjoyable for you is by cheating (save states), maybe you should be playing better games (or games more attuned to your taste, that you can play without having to make your own game out of it to make it enjoyable).
 
I don't really mind save states, if anything I just don't like hearing people say "I could only beat the game with save states," or something along those lines because then I realize that they're playing the games through emulation. I just feel like anyone who only experiences classic games through emulation just isn't really getting the true experience, and I also kind of see it as "cheating" from a collecting standpoint.

Aside from that, it depends on the game though. I remember playing this one Genesis platformer that I couldn't beat because it had like 100 levels or something ridiculous like that with no saving. I think save states are nice if you want to quit and come back to the game later for multiple segments if you can't sit through the entire game. Watching people Let's Play a game and just abuse save states endlessly is one of the most infruitating things in all of LPing though.
 
Play the game the way you want to play it. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. I use save states all the time. I mostly do portable gaming now, so I want to be able to jump in and out whenever I want. If it makes the game easier, so be it. PEACE.
 
Save states (defined as just suspending play, like a quicksave) are convenient in a busy world that often demands attention be directed away from the game.

Restore points (differ from savestates because they can be reloaded repeatedly ), however, are too often used as a form of save-scumming. To repeatedly reload a tough section goes beyond the spirit/intent of many games.

Whatever is fun for you is the recommended way to play!
 
I think it's cheating but I use it all the time on Wii U. Like on F-Zero I had to save state a lot because I suck. lol
 
Do people think the Vita chambers in Bioshock, Bio-Reconstructors in System Shock 2 and their like are nearly or just as bad?
 
Pimpwerx said:
Play the game the way you want to play it. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. I use save states all the time. I mostly do portable gaming now, so I want to be able to jump in and out whenever I want. If it makes the game easier, so be it. PEACE.
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Yes it eventually boils down to what makes you feel better. Gaming, at least on a personal level, is about having fun and not about winning a contest or something.

It's like cheating in GTA. I am pretty sure at least 99% have cheated in San Andreas, and most importantly, got so much fun out of it. I can't imagine fooling around for hours in that game without cheating.
 
I think it's better to play the game how it's supposed to be played. I only use it when I have to exit the game, so that I don't have to leave the game on until I get back.
 
Save states are just a dumbing down of the industry, as part of the natural progression we've seen for the past 2 decades. They are a cancer on the industry, but they are here to stay.
 
PAULINK said:
Are you a hardcore kind of guy who has to play the game without save states, in order to experience the game the way it was meant to be played
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No. No no no. Depending on the game - some developers will use saves as a crutch for gameplay. The way its "meant" to be played is the way it shipped. Believe it or not, devs do alter gameplay based on saving, checkpoints, etc.
 
I'm in the FOR camp since I'm not a fan of losing progress.

Understand and accept both sides of the argument for/against quicksaves/save anywhere/save-states but at the end of the day my support goes to whatever's convenient/fun for the gamer.
 
ASTROID2 said:
I think it's cheating but I use it all the time on Wii U. Like on F-Zero I had to save state a lot because I suck. lol
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Do you mean Restore Points? Savestates on the WiiU are what happen automatically when you pause/home the game to go on miiverse or browse...aren't they?
 
KnightSlyder said:
Do you mean Restore Points? Savestates on the WiiU are what happen automatically when you pause/home the game to go on miiverse or browse...aren't they?
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When you press ZR a menu comes up to make a save point.

EDIT: Yes restore points.
GjuLoy4.jpg
 
Depends on how their done.

I love how Nintendo uses them on the Virtual Console.

Hate how emulators on your PC use them.
 
They are a great way to ruin a game that isn't built around them and it's often a shame when games are built around them. This has been pretty well-covered in other threads, lol.

LiveFromKyoto said:
They are the only way I will ever see the end of Super Ghouls n' Ghosts.
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Nah man, stick with it. Game is rough but not that rough!
 
Depends on the game, If you're using them in Mario you're cheating. Being able to endlessly replace from any point a gauntlet should not be possible.

Save *anywhere should be the default

*anywhere, A location without an immediate threat. I don't want to have to spend 20 mins walking to a save point in Skyrim but I don't want to save mid Boss battle and resume from that point later because its too simple for people to abuse.
 
MTMBStudios said:
If the only way to make a game enjoyable for you is by cheating (save states), maybe you should be playing better games (or games more attuned to your taste, that you can play without having to make your own game out of it to make it enjoyable).
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what on earth
 
Savestates are fine in moderation. If I had the option, I would always use a savestate during a lull in the action, like right after a cutscene (LOOK AT ALL THAT JUICE) so I don't have to watch the cutscene every time I load up.

Using savestates during a bossfight, even between forms of a bossfight, is a bitch move for people who have no skill.
 
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