Burnout Paradise WARNING! Auto-save can corrupt data!

[Stephie_is_a_dork]

Last night, my whole PS3 froze every time I selected "Friends" from the easy drive menu. I could play offline and join random strangers in Freeburn, but I couldn't send or accept an invite.

I called EA this morning when they opened and the guy said my saved game data was corrupted, and that I should just delete it and start over. That option really sucks for me, since I only need 30(ish?) more events and a mugshot/smugshot before getting platinum.

I asked him how the data may have become corrupted in the first place, and he said it was the auto-save feature. He said I should turn it off and manually save and load the game, and do so less frequently. (BTW, I found the menu to manually save and load, but haven't found the auto-save off option. Does anyone know how to turn auto-save off?)

Then I asked the EA Support dude WHY they would leave auto-save in the game if they KNOW it corrupts data, his response was "Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn't." SERIOUSLY?!? That's all you got? You leave a feature with a known bug in your game because SOMEtimes it doesn't happen? This experience reminded me why I've never been a fan of EA.

So since I mostly bought this game to play with friends and the game broke itself through no fault of my own, I asked if they could give me a free DLC code for the Time Savers Pack to unlock the cars since it happened when I'm alllllmost done with the game. He said he they weren't able to do that, but he gave me a code for $20 off another overpriced crap-tacular EA game on EA.com. Just what I wanted. Frickin' great.

Moral of the story: Backup your game data, EA sucks, and if you already have Burnout Paradise, turn off auto-save...if you know how.




MODS: I'm going to link to this thread from the main Burnout Paradise thread, but I would really appreciate it if you waited like a week or so before merging it with the main thread. I'm hoping that the title will get more people to read this and disable auto-save, even if they don't check the main thread regularly.

[ShelbyGT500]

This is another reason why I back up my saves on a usb drive. Sucks this happened to you and I agree they should have compensated you better.

[sega_smasher]

they dont have 20 dollar psn cards at their store? lol. fer shame. i hope you find the option soon!

[silversnake]

You realize you just got 20$ off a new game off EA.com instead of nothing ... right?

I can understand your frustration but backup you game files regularly, i do. I know it sucks but there's nothing you can do about it.

EA does not suck IMO. Not only do all the games run smooth on the PS3 now they are one of the rare BIG companies taking huge risks with new IP's. (dead space , mirror's edge) They also gave you a discount off their games when they could have given you nothing except maybe "i'm sorry".

once again, i understand your frustration but let's not hate on a company just because of one bug. You are the first i've heard this happen to. Granted if they knew about the problem they should be spending time fixing it but in the end it's a business. It's cheaper for them to give you a discount than it is to pay the people it takes to fix a problem that doesn't happen often enough in their mind.

Sorry

[Stephie_is_a_dork]

Originally Posted by silversnake

You realize you just got 20$ off a new game off EA.com instead of nothing ... right?
They also gave you a discount off their games when they could have given you nothing except maybe "i'm sorry".

You are the first i've heard this happen to. Granted if they knew about the problem they should be spending time fixing it but in the end it's a business. It's cheaper for them to give you a discount than it is to pay the people it takes to fix a problem that doesn't happen often enough in their mind.

Yes, I got $20 towards a new EA game, but that means I'd have to pay the difference out of pocket, and frankly, there's not another EA game I want at the moment. As far as price drops go on EA.com, Burnout Paradise is the rare exception. There aren't any other decent PS3 games for $20 on EA.com. So WHY would I reward a company that doesn't fix a known bug because "sometimes it doesn't happen" by giving them $20-$40 MORE of my money? I just wanted to play with friends online, and now it looks like I have to delete all my data before I can do that again. Obviously, $20 off is more than the $4.99 Time Savers Pack I originally requested, but when you factor in the out of pocket difference I'd have to pay on a game I don't really want, it's not such a great deal after all.

Fiancée and I have both searched the 'net and found MANY, MANY reports of the same bug, from several difference forums. The earliest post I recall was dated September, but there could have been previous reports. You would think Criterion or EA would have at least acknowledged the issue by now and at least said "we're working on it" or suggest players turn off auto-save or something by now. LBP, for example, has had many issues and Media Molecule has at least suggested a fix or work-around and said something to the effect of "we know it's a problem and we're trying to fix it."

EA has publicly ignored the issue, and THAT is one of the things I'm most upset about. Especially since a friend bought this game a couple weeks ago because of MY recommendation. Had I known about this problem and EA's attitude about it, I would not have recommended Burnout Paradise. Likewise, I doubt most of the members of this site would have given Burnout Paradise a platinum rating in the "Rank your games people!" thread if this had happened to them too.

[aygie]

Sack off EA and contact Criterion direct i reckon

mailbag@criteriongames.com

PS.

Here's a list of known issues from their website:

I can't get the GT Nighthawk PlayStation 3 Trophy?

Something that only became apparent once the Legendary Cars went live is that if you already had the 2x Boost Chain Trophy it's impossible to get the GT Nighthawk one. There are a number of workarounds available online if you look for them but we'd rather you waited for us to fix it. We hope to get it done real soon and we'll message everyone via this site and the in-game Criterion Games Network once it's done.




Since I upgraded to v1.7 the game crashes when I select a car

This is an issue that some customers have reported and we are looking into.

In the meantime the best way to get around the problem is to enter the Junkyard and select whatever is the default car. Exit the Junkyard, then drive back in. You should now be able to change your car.

We will find a better solution ASAP!




I can't change the colour of my bike.

There is currently a known issue in Car Collections where the ability to change bike liveries will have been lost for any bikes unlocked after downloaded v1.7. We are looking into this and hope to have a fix in an upcoming update.




My game is freezing on the start line of an online ranked race

We're investigating this now and will communicate through the website and news pages when we have more information. This shouldn't adversely affect your rankings.




Some of my online stats have been reset

We've recently fixed a problem that left some players missing data if they upgraded to v1.7 and completed a ranked race.

All stats should now be working correctly. If they are not, report the issue to us via www.criteriongames.com/bugzilla/. This brings any potential issue to the attention of our test team directly, and you will be notified via email, when your specific issue has been resolved.
�




I have bought new cars but I can't always select them in the Junkyard

You first need to check that you have downloaded AND installed them.
Check your transaction history inside of the console store. If there is no record of you purchasing them you will need to contact Sony or Microsoft.
If you have purchased them, we suggest you re-download them, making sure that they install once downloaded. They should now appear in your Junkyard under the relevant menu.
We have found that in the vast majority of cases this fixes the problem.
However, if this doesn't fix your problem or you can see some of the new cars but not all of them you may be experiencing a rare bug we have seen with a handful of customers who achieved their Elite licence during a specific period of time last year.
We have found the cause of the problem and are in the middle of fixing it. We will alert you as soon as a fix is ready to be rolled out. In the meantime, the workaround is to backup your save, create a new one and your new cars will all be available. Switching saves will not affect your online stats and ranking as these are all saved on our servers.




My smashes and billboards have all reset. Help!

This looks like a problem that occasionally happens when you start a Party then re-enter Paradise City.
They aren't actually reset. If you restart the game again you'll see that everything is back to normal!

[fsavoie]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGT500

This is another reason why I back up my saves on a usb drive. Sucks this happened to you and I agree they should have compensated you better.

I wish there was a "copy all" option though 'cause its very long to copie all my saved game...

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by fsavoie

I wish there was a "copy all" option though 'cause its very long to copie all my saved game...

backup utility, every week, when you go to bed.

[CYMBOL]

Thanks for the info Stephie.

[fsavoie]

Originally Posted by caliblue15

backup utility, every week, when you go to bed.

yeah but I don't have an external HD... thats why I was using copy option to a memory stick

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by fsavoie

yeah but I don't have an external HD... thats why I was using copy option to a memory stick

Everyone should have one, as you should backup your computer ever week as well.

[Stephie_is_a_dork]

Thanks Aygie. While it's nice to see Criterion acknowledge that they're working on SOME problems, mine wasn't listed...even though the tech support guy for their parent-company, EA, knew exactly what I was talking about, since it has happened to many others.

Originally Posted by CYMBOL

Thanks for the info Stephie.

No prob. I'd hate to see it happen to any of you guys. If it did and I didn't warn you, I'd have to kick myself! I feel bad enough that a friend bought it because of my recommendation. Actually, yesterday I was thinking "This is how Cymbol must have felt." (Yeah...I remember your real name, but I learned it after talking to you as "Cymbol" for so long that it's still what I call you in my own head. In my head, you also look like a creepy cat-eyed sackangel with a heavenly sword. )

[Gamma_Winstead]

Well if it makes you feel better Stephie, I won't buy it because of this!

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by gamma626

Well if it makes you feel better Stephie, I won't buy it because of this!

Every auto save game has done this to someone... its very rare.

[Stephie_is_a_dork]

How do I disable auto-save though? When the guy told me to do that if I started over, he didn't say how. I didn't ask at the time because I didn't think it would be so hard to find. I did find the manual save and load, but not the option to disable auto-save in the first place...

[caliblue15]

Originally Posted by Stephie_is_a_dork

How do I disable auto-save though? When the guy told me to do that if I started over, he didn't say how. I didn't ask at the time because I didn't think it would be so hard to find. I did find the manual save and load, but not the option to disable auto-save in the first place...

I'm not sure there is a disable auto save.. i havent played the game in over two-three months.

[aygie]

Originally Posted by Stephie_is_a_dork

Thanks Aygie. While it's nice to see Criterion acknowledge that they're working on SOME problems, mine wasn't listed...even though the tech support guy for their parent-company, EA, knew exactly what I was talking about, since it has happened to many others.

Hey no probs, it might still be worth getting in contact with criterion, they might have a work around.

Shame cause the game rocks like no other. I haven't played since the updates but might give it a bash tonight...

[Grim Reaper]

Originally Posted by ShelbyGT500

This is another reason why I back up my saves on a usb drive. Sucks this happened to you and I agree they should have compensated you better.

+1

[PS3-Playb3yond]

Can't you turn auto-save off? That's what I did with GTA 4.

[jamclaur]

That sucks... I wonder why they didn't just ask you if you wanted some of the cars free... That's better than $20 off. But if you don't want the $20 off i'll give you $15 for it... lol. Or sell you an eye toy. !