Hi there,

I downloaded Arena fromn this site:

http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Arena:Arena#Downloads

which includes the DosBox stuff. It's working wonders, but I wanted to back up my save games. Now, the 10 save game files files (which I understand end with .00 to .09) are nowhere to be found... Can anyone point me in the right direction pls?

Many thx - pdesbois

I found mine right in the ARENA directory.

name of the file is SAVEGAME.##

ctrl-F or apple-F it.

You might want to also backup SAVEENGN.## and SAVEFACE.$$$

Just a hunch, but I think they're related to the save games.

Well, one possibility I suppose is that if you have Vista or Win7 and installed under "Program Files", then the OS stashed them away under your appdata directory.

For newer windowses, seems like it's best to install those older programs that write to their own directory outside of "Program Files".

many thx to both - i will make sure i search in other directories i havent yet searched.

i wanna save these files, coz i am enjoying the game (even more than before!), and if something happened to the files... hours wasted

No, actually.

If you spend hours on an RPG character, only to lose the files forever, that's very zen.

You'll be more enlightened after the experience.

ha ha ha ha!
stuff like this happened to me back in the 90's... my dark elf assassin, gone down the drain...

So, you're already on the path to Nirvana.

Well, one possibility I suppose is that if you have Vista or Win7 and installed under "Program Files", then the OS stashed them away under your appdata directory.

Not a chance. Arena didn't reckon with Windows; it was straight-up a DOS game. Making it work under Windows 95 was actually a minor challenge.

I know it's a DOS game, but I thought people generally ran it under dosbox, which means it's essentially running as a windows application. But maybe I got that all wrong, I use Linux so Windows is just weird to me.

ok - i wanna thank u folks for the replies, but just to let u know... in case anyone is a noob like me in the ways of Windowsness:

I am using Windows 7, so under the 'Arena' directory u have to pay attention to the 'Compatibility' column, which you have to click to see what is stored / hidden there (I myself have no clue what this is), but the savefiles are there - along with others.

Now - I have just one question: if I wanna save my savegame files, do I have to just backup the ones that are titled 'SAVEGAME.00' thru 09 ? Or do I ahve to do so with the 'SAVEENGN.00' too? I notice there are other diles as well ending by .00 (SPELLS, LOG, CITYDATA)... As in all they add up to just about 4 Mb, I have no problem storing everything...

:)

if I wanna save my savegame files, do I have to just backup the ones that are titled 'SAVEGAME.00' thru 09 ? Or do I ahve to do so with the 'SAVEENGN.00' too? I notice there are other diles as well ending by .00 (SPELLS, LOG, CITYDATA)... As in all they add up to just about 4 Mb, I have no problem storing everything...

"Everything" is always a good idea, since you mention it. However, to directly answer your question, for the first slot, save *.00, i.e., every file with a ".00" extension. For the second slot, *.01, etc. To restore a slot, first delete all files with that extension, then copy back the files with that extension. (Delete first, because some files are not created until certain things happen, and you don't want to muck up your game with those files. Probably it doesn't matter, but it's safer to delete 'em.)

I know it's a DOS game, but I thought people generally ran it under dosbox, which means it's essentially running as a windows application.

This is going to sound nit-picky, but to understand is always better.

In general, no app can run "out of the box" on an OS on which it was not designed to be run. The only way to make this happen is with an emulator, which is what DOSBox is: a DOS emulator. Ergo, Arena is not running as a Windows app; DOSBox is the Windows app. Arena is still running as a DOS app via Windows app DOSBox. That's why DOSBox has to exist; Arena would be thoroughly confused by Windows, as it is an OS that Arena was never designed for.

It is true that you might be able to run Arena in XP or W7 if you know the proper DOS emulation settings that are built in to Windows. If you can succeed in that, you don't need DOSBox. No guarantees that it's even possible, though.

I know I probably sound like Sister Mary Elephant here, but hey, it's what I do.

I understand computers pretty well, been programming since 1975. But I don't understand Windows very well, since I hardly ever use it.

My point was that Arena writes to its own directory. Since Vista, "Progam Files" is protected for security. I believe it's the case that older programs that assumed they could write to their own directory now actually write to a separate appdata space outside of program files. It sounds like that's what happened to pdesbois, since he found his save files under the compatibility tab. My suggestion is that all older programs, such as Arena, be installed and run (under dosbox) outside of "program files" to simply avoid issues like this.

But if pdesbois did not install Arena under "Program Files", then I'm wrong and nevermind!

i installed arena under C:\Program Files (x86)\Bethesda Softworks\Arena

I understand computers pretty well, been programming since 1975.

O.K. then!