Your Early Access saves carry over to Enshrouded 1.0. Keen Games’ launch FAQ says you “can absolutely use Early Access saves,” and the 1.0 changelog says the game backs up your old saves and then converts them to a new format the first time you load them. Every character’s skill tree is reset, and Keen still encourages starting a fresh world at least once, because the opening hours have changed so much.
Updated October 16, 2026: Enshrouded 1.0 is out, and Keen has confirmed that Early Access saves carry over. We have added the official migration details from the 1.0 changelog, the new save folder location, and what to do if a character is missing, after hotfix 1.0.0.2 fixed a rare crash with corrupted character saves.
Below we lay out exactly what Keen has said, how the migration works, what to do if something is missing, where your files live now, and whether to keep your old world or start fresh.
What Keen Has Said About Saves in 1.0
Keen answered the question directly in its launch FAQ on October 13: “You can absolutely use Early Access saves once the game releases in 1.0. Our save format is improving, so saves will be converted to a new, more efficient format.” Our story on the launch FAQ covers the rest of it.
The 1.0 changelog, published on October 14, fills in the details:
- A new save format. Saves are smaller, and the save data folder has a simpler structure.
- Backup first, then migration. When 1.0 detects a save created with version 0.8 or earlier, it backs up the existing save data and then migrates it to the new format automatically.
- Local and Steam Cloud tabs. The character and world selection menus now have separate tabs for a local save folder and the Steam Cloud folder. If a character or world you expected is not there, check the other tab.
- A read-only warning. The game now warns you if a world or character save cannot be overwritten, which can happen if the files are set to read-only in Windows.
- A skill tree reset. The first time you play 1.0 with an existing save, the skill tree is reset. Keen’s 1.0 combat post from September 23 had already warned: “Don’t step out of your base without investing your points, or you’re gonna have a bad time.”
Our guide to what changes in Enshrouded 1.0 covers the new skills you will be spending those points on.
If a Character Is Missing After the Update
Keen’s hotfix 1.0.0.2, released on October 16, fixed “a rare crash during save game migration” that happened when the game tried to load a corrupted character save. The fix stops the crash by skipping those characters: “such corrupted characters will not be migrated.” Keen says it is working on a fix that will migrate and repair them at the same time, and its message to affected players is: “if you are missing a character in your character list in the current version, please be patient – help is on the way!”
Before you assume a character is one of those, check both the local and Steam Cloud tabs in the character menu. If it is in neither, keep your old save files where they are, and contact Keen’s support team through its support site, which the hotfix notes point to for any remaining problems.
What Past Updates Did to Existing Saves
1.0 follows the pattern of Keen’s Early Access updates, which converted old saves rather than deleting them:
- Forging the Path (Update 8, April 2026) rebuilt the skill tree. Its patch notes say that “when loading an existing savegame from update 7 or older, the skill tree is reset. All available skill points are refunded for redistribution.” Non-Common loot armor in older saves was converted to Common quality, and players with many unlocked items got an XP boost when loading their save.
- Wake of the Water (Update 7, November 2025) reworked water pouches, and existing stacks “have been converted while keeping the amount of water.”
The one time Keen did break compatibility, it said so plainly: its support FAQ states that saves from the Alpha, Beta and Demo builds are incompatible with Early Access. The 1.0 notes contain no such warning for Early Access saves.
Where Your Saves Live Now and How to Back Them Up
The 1.0 changelog gives the new location for locally stored saves on Windows:
C:\Users\WINDOWSUSER\Saved Games\keen games\Enshrouded\default
Replace WINDOWSUSER with your Windows user name, or type %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\keen games\Enshrouded\default into the File Explorer address bar. To make your own backup:
- Quit Enshrouded completely, so nothing is writing to the files.
- Open that folder in File Explorer.
- Copy it to another drive, a USB stick or cloud storage.
- If you use Steam Cloud, Keen’s support article links Steam’s remote storage page for Enshrouded, which lists your synced save files.
Keen’s support article on save game management was last updated in April and still describes the Early Access layout: saves in %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\enshrouded, each world in a file with a fixed hexadecimal name (World 1 is 3ad85aea), and 10 rolling copies per world with an “-index” file that records the latest. If you made a backup of that old folder before 1.0, keep it until your migrated worlds and characters have loaded correctly. Keen’s advice before touching any save files still applies: “it is highly recommended to create a copy of all save files.”
Running a dedicated server? Keen’s server FAQ says character progression is stored only on the players’ own PCs, while world progression is stored on the server. Stop the server and copy its savegame folder (the “saveDirectory” in your server config, ./savegame by default) before you update it, and ask everyone in your group to back up their own characters. Hotfix 1.0.0.2 also fixed a server crash when fighting a very large number of enemies.
Keep Your World or Start Fresh
Both work, but Keen leans one way. Its launch FAQ says it has made “many improvements to the world and first few hours of the game, so if you’re up for it, we strongly encourage you to start over!” The changelog backs that up: the early game in the Springlands and Revelwood has more chests, clearer roads and reworked crafting recipes.
Keen’s FAQ, written for the Early Access build, says a character can move between worlds and keeps its “entire equipment and inventory, as well as levels / skills unlocked,” plus map memory, personal crafting recipes, Shroud roots already collected, lore texts and towers you found yourself.
What a character does not take into a new world:
- Most crafting recipes, because they depend on the survivors and crafting stations you unlocked in that world.
- Survivors available to summon. You have to rescue them again.
- Towers that other players found and shared with the group.
So a new 1.0 world with your old character skips the grind of levels and gear but makes you rebuild your settlement and rescue your survivors. Keeping your old world keeps your bases. Keen has not said whether an existing world gets every 1.0 map change, so if the reworked opening matters to you, a fresh world is the safe way to see it. Our guide to the Enshrouded 1.0 unlock time covers when 1.0 went live.
Moving From PC to PS5
The PS5 version launched on October 15 alongside 1.0 on Steam, but Keen has not announced any way to transfer Steam saves or characters to PS5, and its launch FAQ says the game “will not be cross-platform at launch.” If you switch platforms, plan on starting over.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will Enshrouded 1.0 wipe my save? No. Keen’s launch FAQ says Early Access saves work in 1.0, and the game backs them up and converts them to a new format the first time you load them. Your skill tree is reset, so spend your points again.
Does Enshrouded 1.0 reset my skill points? Yes. Keen says the skill tree is reset the first time you play 1.0 with an existing save, because skills were added and moved. Spend your points before leaving your base.
Where are Enshrouded save files on PC? In 1.0, local saves are in %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\keen games\Enshrouded\default, according to Keen’s changelog. Early Access saves were in %USERPROFILE%\Saved Games\enshrouded. Dedicated servers keep worlds in their savegame folder.
Why is my Enshrouded character missing after 1.0? First check both the local and Steam Cloud tabs in the character menu. Hotfix 1.0.0.2 skips corrupted character saves during migration to stop a crash, and Keen says a fix that migrates and repairs those characters is on the way.
Can I use my Early Access character in a new 1.0 world? Keen has not said otherwise for 1.0. In the Early Access build, characters kept their equipment, inventory, levels, skills and some recipes between worlds, but not most crafting recipes, rescued survivors or towers others found.
Can I transfer my PC save to the PS5 version? Keen has not announced cross-save or any save transfer between Steam and PS5, and it says the game is not cross-platform at launch.