How to Manage Steam Cloud Saves

Are you tired of dealing with unwanted save files in your Steam Cloud? Have you ever tried to delete them, only to find that they come back again? If so, you're not alone. Many gamers have experienced this frustration when trying to manage their Steam Cloud saves.

In this article, we'll explore the solution to this problem and provide a step-by-step guide on how to make all save files zero bytes, effectively deleting them from your Steam Cloud.

The Problem with Steam Cloud Saves

Steam Cloud is designed to store our game progress and personal data, making it easy to access our saved games across multiple devices. However, sometimes these saves can become unnecessary or even unwanted. Unfortunately, Steam doesn't provide an easy way to delete these files, leaving gamers no choice but to search for workarounds.

The Solution: Making Save Files Zero Bytes

To make all save files zero bytes, you'll need to use a text editor like Notepad++ or your preferred editor with a tab feature. This will help you navigate through multiple files more efficiently. Alternatively, you can use CMD/PowerShell, but using a text editor is more straightforward.

Here's how to do it:

1. Enable Steam Cloud and exit Steam.

2. Open the folder containing your game saves using a text editor like Notepad++.

3. Change each file size to zero bytes by clicking on the file and pressing 'Delete' or 'Backspace'.

4. Upload the zero-byte files to the cloud, which will subsequently delete them from the cloud.

Why This Method Works

This method doesn't delete the save files permanently, but rather sets their size to zero bytes. Steam Cloud will then download new copies of the files, effectively deleting the old ones. While this might seem like a temporary solution, it's currently the only way to manage unwanted saves without violating GDPR regulations.

Why Can't We Delete Save Files Directly?

Unfortunately, Steam doesn't provide an easy way to delete save files directly from the cloud. This is because Steam Support claims that deleting save files would be a GDPR violation, and they won't take any action to address this issue. As a result, gamers are left with no choice but to find workarounds like the one described above.

Where Are Save Files Stored?

Save files are usually stored in a different location than the game folder. You can find them by right-clicking on the game in Steam, selecting 'Properties', and then clicking on 'Local Files' > 'Browse'. The save file might be located in the Data folder or directly within the game folder.

Managing Steam Cloud saves can be frustrating, but with this step-by-step guide, you'll learn how to make all save files zero bytes, effectively deleting them from your cloud. Remember that this method doesn't delete the files permanently, but rather sets their size to zero bytes. While it might not be the perfect solution, it's currently the best way to manage unwanted saves without violating GDPR regulations.

Steam cloud saves