YAZS Save Recovery: Restore Progress Before Retrying Sync
On PC, open Change Save Slot, select an empty slot, then press T on keyboard or Y on controller to import a backup. Check the recovered profile before replacing anything. Restoring progress and fixing a recurring Steam Cloud error are separate tasks.
First Decide What Has Gone Wrong
Before selecting a Cloud-conflict option or changing files, preserve separate copies of the current save and backup folders. Use the developer’s September 22 save-location guide ↗ (external) to find the folders for your setup. Avoid repeated launches while looking for an older backup: the guide says backups rotate when starting the game.
| Symptom | First check | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Levels or unlocks are missing | Which progress is actually absent? | Import a candidate backup into an empty slot and inspect that profile. |
| Cloud error, but progress looks current | Compare the loaded profile with your last completed run. | Record the warning and profile details. A sync prompt alone does not identify which copy is correct. |
| Recovery works, then another device loses progress | Record which machine last loaded each profile. | Keep copies on both machines and report the sequence; another import does not establish that sync is fixed. |
This order is our recovery decision guide. It avoids treating every Cloud warning as the same failure.
Import Into an Empty Slot, Then Inspect It
- From the main menu, open Change Save Slot and select an empty slot.
- Use T on keyboard or Y on controller. The September 18, 2026 PC hotfix announcement ↗ (external) documents these controls.
- In Browse Backups Files, choose a candidate and select Import. The developer’s updated guide describes choosing the backup with the most progress, or another preferred copy.
- Enter the imported profile. Compare Survival Level, unlocked Survivors and the Camp objectives you remember. Do not judge recovery only from a file timestamp or the slot summary.
- If it is still missing progress, preserve that result and check another available candidate. Do not overwrite your original copies merely because one candidate loads.
The first three steps are the developer’s menu route; the comparison checks are our suggested way to assess the result. The documented import is a PC feature, not a confirmed console recovery procedure.
What the October Player Reports Actually Establish
In the October 4–11 Steam Cloud thread ↗ (external), the developer gave the empty-slot import instructions on October 5. Spesis replied on October 7 that the backup was present. Apeling’s October 11 report describes restoring into an empty slot after losing a session, but says the sync problem returned when switching systems.
Those are two independent reports, with different outcomes: finding a backup is not proof that every lost run was recovered, and recovering one profile is not proof that Cloud sync is repaired. The same thread contains a player whose default-branch profile looked current despite repeated prompts. Exact build numbers were not supplied by these users.
If the error returns, record the platform, installed version, default or beta branch, whether the demo was used, which device was played last and the progress before/after import. Keep the preserved files for developer support rather than repeating an unexplained file change.
Recovery Questions
Can I recover every missing run?
Only an available backup can recover the progress it contains. Inspect the imported profile before treating the missing session as restored.
Why use an empty slot?
That is the destination specified by the official import instructions. It also lets you inspect the candidate separately before deciding which profile to continue.
Does a successful import fix Steam Cloud?
The October multi-device report shows why those checks must stay separate. Confirm the profile first, then investigate recurring sync errors.
Continue From the Recovered Profile
Once the profile contains the progress you need, use Camp mission checks to compare objectives, Survivor conditions for missing access, and the update guide for version-sensitive fixes.