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Make a dated copy of the complete E-Day save folder before installing or updating any mod. For the Steam version, the save directory reported by SteamDB is %USERPROFILE%/AppData/Local/MicrosoftGears of War E-DaySaves{64BitSteamID}, and it contains *.sav files. Copy that entire directory to a separate location, leave the original untouched, and only then install mods. Xbox App and Microsoft Store installations may use a different path, so do not apply the Steam location to those versions.
What to back up before modding E-Day
Your minimum backup is the complete local save directory for Gears of War: E-Day, including every .sav file and any subfolders. A folder-level copy preserves all campaign states rather than forcing you to identify one file by hand.
Keep the copy in a second, clearly named location and give it a date, for example E-Day-pre-mod-2026-10-19. The original folder must remain in its normal location; moving it or copying a replacement over it is not a backup. A USB flash drive or external SSD is useful because it leaves a copy outside the active game installation, although any separate, reliably accessible location works.
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This protects campaign progress if a mod changes a save, the game stops recognizing a profile, or you need to return to an unmodded state. It also gives you a known-good point from which to troubleshoot instead of repeatedly changing the only copy of your files.
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Why campaign save slots are not a file backup
The official Gears of War support page says the campaign allows up to five different campaign playthroughs or states. Those slots are convenient for keeping several in-game progress points, but they remain part of the game’s save system. They do not create an independently retained Windows copy that you can restore after a file is replaced or corrupted.
Use the slots to organize playthroughs and use a dated folder copy for recovery. Backing up the folder also captures every save file together, including files you might not recognize as the active slot.
First identify your storefront
Storage is tied to the build you installed. Confirm whether E-Day came from Steam, the Xbox App, or the Microsoft Store before searching for files. A path from another Gears game, another Unreal Engine title, or a different storefront may be wrong even when the game appears to use the same account.
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SteamDB lists this E-Day cloud-file path and a *.sav pattern:
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%USERPROFILE%/AppData/Local/MicrosoftGears of War E-DaySaves{64BitSteamID}
{64BitSteamID} represents the account-specific directory name. The path is under your Windows user profile, not in the game’s installation directory. Look for the folder in File Explorer’s address bar by pasting the path with the percent-variable intact; Windows expands %USERPROFILE% automatically.
Xbox App and Microsoft Store
There is no single official E-Day page establishing one universal Windows path for Xbox App and Microsoft Store installations. Epic Games Support warns that games can use different save folders, and Unreal Engine documentation says saved-game locations vary by platform. Treat the Steam location as Steam-specific evidence, not a cross-store guarantee.
For an Xbox App or Microsoft Store copy, use the game’s own support information, the installation’s documented save behavior, or a file search performed after creating a known save. Do not copy or delete random folders simply because their names resemble another Gears title. If you cannot verify the active location, stop before installing a mod that replaces saves and obtain the correct path first.
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Close E-Day before copying anything
Exit to Windows and confirm that the game is no longer running before you copy the save directory. Copying while a save is being written can produce an incomplete or inconsistent backup. This is especially important after completing a mission, changing a slot, or loading into a checkpoint.
Do not begin a backup by deleting, renaming, or moving the original. The safe sequence is to leave the active folder in place, create a second destination, and copy into that destination.
Steam backup: exact procedure
- Finish the current game activity. Save normally, return to a menu if appropriate, and exit E-Day completely.
- Open the Steam save location. In File Explorer, paste
%USERPROFILE%/AppData/Local/MicrosoftGears of War E-DaySaves{64BitSteamID}into the address bar. Replace the account-specific directory only if your installation shows a different 64-bit Steam ID folder. - Check the contents. Confirm that the directory contains E-Day save data, normally with a
.savextension. Do not assume a similarly named folder belongs to E-Day without checking its location and timestamps. - Create a dated destination. Make a folder on another drive or another clearly separate location named something such as
E-Day-pre-mod-2026-10-19. Include the date and, if useful, the storefront or mod state. - Copy the whole directory. Copy the entire E-Day save directory, including all
.savfiles and subfolders, into the dated destination. Do not drag the original away and do not overwrite the source with the copy. - Verify the copy. Open the destination and check that the expected files and subfolders are present. Compare the copy’s file count and approximate size with the source, then keep the destination unchanged.
- Only now install or update a mod. Keep the dated copy until the modified game has loaded your progress successfully and you are satisfied that you can return to the unmodded state.
If the Steam folder is missing
A missing directory does not prove that E-Day has no local saves. Launch the game, create or load a campaign save, exit completely, and check the expected location again. This creates a concrete file to look for and avoids searching for an empty directory before the game has written one.
If the folder still does not appear, confirm that you are checking the same Windows account and the same storefront installation you actually use. Do not substitute a path from another Gears title or treat a generic Unreal Engine folder as proof of E-Day’s location.
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What mod installation can change
E-Day mod workflows can involve more than campaign saves. The Nexus Mods E-Day Vortex extension documents installation of .sav files for the Steam version and places Unreal Engine 4 Substrate (UE4SS) LogicMod packages under a Paks/LogicMods folder.
That means a save-focused backup protects campaign progress, while a mod-content backup protects the files that make the mod run. Read each mod’s instructions and identify whether it supplies a save, a LogicMod package, or both.
Save files
A mod that distributes a .sav can replace or add campaign data. Preserve your original save directory before importing it. Never assume that an imported save is harmless because it is only one file; it may represent a different progression state or overwrite a file with the same name.
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LogicMod packages installed under Paks/LogicMods are content files, not a substitute for your save backup. Keep notes about which packages you installed and where they went. If you later need a clean test, you can remove or restore the mod-content files separately from the dated save copy.
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Choose the right backup scope
| Approach | What it preserves | Best use | Limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Save-folder copy | All E-Day .sav files and save subfolders |
Protecting campaign progress before a save or content mod | Does not automatically preserve installed mod packages or configuration files |
| Save folder plus mod-content copy | The save directory plus relevant files such as packages under Paks/LogicMods |
Keeping a reproducible pre-mod state for troubleshooting | Requires you to identify every mod file and its original location |
| Same-drive second folder | A separate dated copy on the current drive | Quick rollback when the drive is healthy | Does not protect against drive failure or accidental deletion of both folders |
| Separate USB drive or external SSD | A retained copy outside the active Windows drive | Stronger separation from mod changes and local file mistakes | Must remain connected or stored safely when you need to restore it |
| Manual copy | Exactly the files and folders you select | One-time backups with transparent contents | You must repeat the process and track dates yourself |
| Vortex-managed installation | Mod-provided .sav files for Steam and LogicMod packages when supported by the E-Day extension |
Managing supported mod packages through the documented extension | It does not remove the need to preserve your original save folder |
Restore a pre-mod save
If E-Day no longer recognizes your progress after a mod change, do not immediately delete the changed files. Preserve the current folder first; it may contain information needed to diagnose the problem or to return to the modified state later.
- Exit E-Day completely. Do not restore files while the game is open.
- Preserve the changed state. Rename or copy the current active save folder to a troubleshooting folder that includes the date and mod state.
- Locate your dated backup. Select the copy made before the mod installation, such as
E-Day-pre-mod-2026-10-19. - Restore the folder contents. Copy the backed-up E-Day save directory back to the active save location, keeping the folder structure and
.savfiles intact. Avoid overwriting your only backup. - Test the unmodded state. Start E-Day and check whether the expected campaign progress and save slots load.
- Retain the backup until confirmed. Do not delete the dated copy until the game has loaded the restored progress successfully and you have decided that the repaired state is stable.
The cited support pages describe making a copy, not a publisher-provided restore utility. The procedure above is ordinary file management: preserve the current state, put the known-good copy back in the active location, and verify the result before discarding anything.
Troubleshooting after a mod install
The game starts but campaign progress is missing
- Exit the game before touching files.
- Check that you restored the correct storefront’s save location, not a path from a different installation.
- Confirm that the restored directory contains the complete set of
.savfiles and subfolders from the dated backup. - Keep the post-mod folder preserved so you can compare timestamps and contents rather than repeatedly replacing files.
A save supplied by a mod overwrote my progress
- Stop launching the game if it may continue writing the replaced state.
- Preserve the current folder under a separate troubleshooting name.
- Restore the pre-mod directory, not just one file, so every campaign state from the backup is available.
- Read the mod’s installation instructions before trying again and determine whether it expects a new save, a package under
Paks/LogicMods, or both.
I cannot find any E-Day save directory
- Verify the storefront and Windows account.
- Create or load a campaign save, exit the game, and search again.
- For Steam, recheck the SteamDB-reported path and the account-specific
{64BitSteamID}directory. - For Xbox App or Microsoft Store, do not assume Steam’s path applies; use platform-specific documentation or support because locations vary.
The restored files are present but the game still does not load them
- Confirm that E-Day is closed during the copy and that the files were restored to the active location rather than a similarly named directory.
- Check that the folder hierarchy was retained and that the files still have their
.savextension. - Temporarily separate mod-content files from the test by following the mod’s removal instructions, while keeping both the original mod files and your save backup preserved.
- If the issue persists, retain both the pre-mod and post-mod folders for support or further diagnosis instead of creating new backups over them.
A repeatable pre-mod checklist
- Storefront identified: Steam, Xbox App, or Microsoft Store.
- E-Day closed completely before file operations.
- Correct save location confirmed for that storefront.
- Entire save directory copied, including every
.savfile and subfolder. - Copy placed in a dated second location and the original left untouched.
- Copy contents checked before any mod is installed or updated.
- Mod instructions reviewed for save files,
Paks/LogicModscontent, or both. - Backup retained until the modified or restored game loads the expected campaign progress.
Key source details
Epic Games Support’s backup guidance begins, “If you would like to make a copy of a local save game,” and also cautions that games can use different save folders. Unreal Engine documentation states that development-platform saved games use the .sav extension in a project’s Saved\SaveGames folder, while other platforms, particularly consoles, vary to accommodate their file systems. Those statements explain why the SteamDB path is useful for Steam but should not be presented as a universal E-Day location.
The official Gears of War support information establishes the five campaign-save-slot limit, and the Nexus Mods E-Day Vortex extension documents Steam .sav installation and UE4SS LogicMod packages under Paks/LogicMods. Together, these details support a two-part precaution: preserve the save directory first, then track any separate mod-content files.
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