START IT: The Place To Put Save Games

Yesterday I let out a clarion call to all developers and publishers to STOP IT when it came to confetti-scattering save games around our computers, and to keep them all in one sensible place. What I didn't add, it's been pointed out to me by a few developers since, was what that sensible place is. So I've picked one.

Clearly whatever you choose is going to lead to massive, world-changing controversy, and not everyone would be happy with any choice. But this, I think, is the best all-round.

C:\Users\[user]\Documents\My Games\[game name]\Saves\

No, it's not especially catchy, and yes, it looks at first like it's in that awkward \Users\ folder. But of course My Documents is something familiar to most users of a Windows PC, and certainly easily accessible thanks to Microsoft's belief that everyone will be compelled to use it to store all their everythings. (I've never used it for anything in my life, always preferring to store such files on a hard drive separate from my Windows install, but this is not what the majority does.)

Also, and correct me if I'm wrong, and I probably am, but I believe \Documents\ is one of the folders Windows is able to conflate with its XP counterpart, \My Documents\, which would perhaps get around the issues with having to support the two structurally different operating systems. And if I'm wrong, well, um.

At the same time, with this tidy system, things like .ini files that games just feel compelled not to store in their own installation folders can also be all sensibly put in the same place. If it's not where I installed it, then I know it's going to be in My Games.

So, there it is. The decision's made. RPS has declared it, and it shall be so. Every publisher and developer, indie to AAA, get on board with this, and just think about how much better the world will be. 0.0047% better. That's how much. So I say,