Can someone explain what happened to me (DuckStation Save)

[DreadToaster]

I think I remedied the issue but I want to understand what happened in the first place. I'm playing a fan translation of Persona 2: IS on DuckStation. Some context, I first started the game in 2023, got a few hours in and stopped playing. I picked up the game again this year and started a new file. When I went to start it up this time, my old save files were not visible in-game which worried me a little bit but I figured it'd been a few years so maybe a firmware update wiped them or I deleted them and forgot, something like that.

Last night when I was playing, I messed up the visual settings, and being new to playing around with emulators, selected "Restore Default Settings" and despite a warning that it would restore all default settings, I pressed it anyway...just thinking it would fix the graphics filtering (it did!) When I went to save, my old save files from 2023 were there, my 2026 files (which I was playing) were now gone Thankfully, I was able to save over them so this 2023 file now has a record of my 2026 playthrough. After that, I went into the DuckStation memcard folder and found two files; Persona 2 - Innocent Sin (T-EN)_1.mcd (this one is my 2026 save) and Persona 2 - Tsumi - Innocent Sin (Japan)_1.mcd (my 2023 save). After setting the BIOS back up, I loaded Persona 2 back up and it was pulling from the 2023 save. What happened here? And why did it happen? Should I worry about booting the game up and not seeing my data again? I learned my lesson - no tweaking the knobs during gameplay!!

One key detail; the .bin/.cue file I'm working for is Persona 2 - Innocent Sin (T-EN)

 

[LiberoVulpesLiberoVulpes's icon]

As far as I can tell, it doesn't have to do with you resetting the settings.

Most emulators handle saves in a literal case sensitive basis, always wanting to match the save file to the specific rom so to speak. In all those years you probably changed the version you are playing without realizing.

Going by the save names, I'd guess you are playing different roms, so if you open say the original Japan version and save in it, then the save will be for that one, but, if you were to open say a fan translation (which has a different name), the save for the Japanese one wouldn't register because its linked to another rom of the same game.

Eg. Assuming the game is: Persona 2 - Innocent Sin (T-EN)_1.cue
Then its save is: Persona 2 - Innocent Sin (T-EN)_1.mcd

Assuming the game is: Persona 2 - Tsumi - Innocent Sin (Japan)_1.cue
Then its save is: Persona 2 - Tsumi - Innocent Sin (Japan)_1.mcd

I don't know exactly how duckstation handles saves, but I'd hazard this guess.

 

[Onicat]

Since the emulator doesn't have a feature to save/restore custom profiles in the settings, I don't want to reset my own settings to default and test it sorry :)

But just in case, what's set as the save path for memory cards? Maybe in 2023 you were using the default save paths but in 2026 you had already specified custom paths? And when you reset the settings, everything reverted to the 2023 paths.

 

[RageBurner]

I have no idea what the problem was, but know that Duckstation expects game filenames to match the respective memory cards exactly. If you rename one, you have to rename the other. Also you need to append the slot the virtual card will slot into into the filename in the following manner:
gamename_1 or gamename_2.mcd.

What could have happened is resetting settings made the emulator look for the memory cards in the default folder.

 

[Rocket2049]

yeah sounds like you just said " use the default save folder" when you reset everything.
when you go to the game settings (right click game, properties, before launching game)
the circled button here goes to the current memory card location for that game.
if you wanna make backups of game saves manually thats the quick way to get to it.
also use save states on top of the in game saves, you never know, one or the other gets messed up, lost, overwritten or etc. more different saves can save your life lol.