Hi, I hope someone can help on this. I've read a number of other posts about the game freezing during saves and I am experiencing that - however mine are all repeatable, not random. First a few things that I know; it is the GOTY Edition that I'm playing, I have tried the remove game data fix, the disc is scratch free and clean (I bought it and the only places it goes is in the case or in the machine - it's well looked after) and I know it's not my PS3 overheating as I can leave it off for a week, turn it on and make it freeze inside 2 minutes. I've amassed roughly 370 hours of game play and over that time I might have had 4 random freezes, mostly after long periods of play.

My problem occurs in one spot and one spot only - Brellach during the main Shivering Isles quest. After "Rebuilding the Gatekeeper" I went back to the palace and spoke to Sheogorath, he tasked me with the new quest and I left the palace (it autosaved) - I fast travelled to Camp Hopeful where it autosaved and then I went North to Brellach. I arrived and spoke to the Golden Saints and then tried to enter Brellach - the screen goes black and freezes (but I can hear the water) - no amount of waiting helps - it's locked up solid and it's time to hold the touch button on the front to reboot. So first I thought it was a glitch (I had been playing for a bit). So I reload the autosave and repeat exactly - same result. Now I figured I would see if I could determine the problem.

So I reload the autosave and try to manually save right away at Camp Hopeful - works fine. Start to head North, fight a couple of battles, shut down an Obelisk - try the manual save - works fine., As I approach Brellach I see the usually notation at the bottom "loading area" - I try to manually save after it disappears - nothing - frozen again. So now I think I'm hooped and will not be able to finish the Isles. So I do some reading and first try the remove game data - no changes (and by the way I can go anywhere else and play for a while and manually save - just not in the Brellach area). Next I learn about turning off the "autosave" so I do and BANG - it seems to work - I can enter Brellach now and move around - I tried to manually save and it froze - so I figured that I would go through it all, go back to the Palace and save there. So I reload - enter Brellach, complete the quest and walk back to the Palace - talk to Sheogorath, get tasked with the next part oft the quest, leave the Palace and try to manully save on the Palace grounds and it freezes. It seems now that once I enter the Brellach area - no more saves are possible - period. If I avoid the area - the game operates as you would expect.

This is frustrating and disappointing after all the time being put into it. Anyone have any ideas or help at all? the only other bad problem I had was that I lost my skeleton key on the Isles when I went to prison (the cave) and it wasn't with the rest of my gear in the chest - I thought it would be - so it's lost forever but I can live with that - but I wanted to finish the game and now it appears that I cannot.

Thanks.

Before doing the quest, go hide somewhere for three and a half days. Save at that point, then try and complete the quest, and see if the issue is resolved. I am suspecting a borked spawn there, and its goofed up data is what is killing your saves. Waiting for the three and some change days will have the area "refresh"..... and might clear up the problem.

Ahhhh - never thought of that - thanks. I'll give it a whirl tonight and let you know if it works.

1000 thanks - that worked perfectly. I went back to Camp Hopeful and waited for 4 days to be sure - and now everything is good and the saves work fine (and I can continue to play).

Thanks again.

Awesome!

Have fun storming the castle.

As a side note - it DID work. However I found later on during the next part of the quest the area involved in that stage did the same thing. The same fix worked though - after doing it all and losing it - waited 4 days and repeated and it worked. Now the one thing I noticed I did in each case was deactivate an obelisk of order on my way to the next tower/cave/dungeon (which I avoided during the times it worked). I'm not sure if those things are screwing me up or not. I came across one and when I went to put a heart in it - it told me it was deactivated (which it wasn't) and then opened a screen like it was a container and inside there were various items but I couldn't take any of them. I just left it and went on my way. So I've completed half of the staff portion and now I'll wait 4 days and go to the Howling Halls to finish it. Seems a little odd that the data is still getting crapped out - but who knows - at least I can keep playing.