The Failed to Save Game bug in Sid Meier’s Civilization VII has been frustrating players, preventing them from saving progress, usually through autosaves. This issue can lead to lost gameplay hours and disrupt long campaigns. So, the question is, have the developers released an official fix? Are there some potential workarounds that players have found helpful? If you are encountering this issue, this is just the guide you need.
This isn’t the first time Civilization players have run into save-related headaches—past games in the series have also had their fair share of saving bugs. And let’s be honest, there’s nothing more frustrating than making the perfect strategic moves, only to realize the game refuses to save your progress. Losing hours of gameplay to a bug like this is enough to make anyone rage-quit. So, is there a fix?
Sid Meier’s Civilization VII (Civ 7) Failed to Save Game Bug: Is there any fix yet
Players affected by this bug have been actively discussing the issue, sharing their frustration, and, thankfully, some possible solutions. While there’s no official fix yet, the community has come up with a few workarounds that seem to help in certain cases. If you’re dealing with this annoying save bug, don’t give up just yet!
Restart and Run as Admin
A player suspects that the issue is related to the Windows folder protection feature that might be preventing Civilization VII from saving your progress. If you’re facing this issue, try restarting your PC and then launching the game in administrator mode. To do this, right-click the game’s shortcut or executable, select Run as administrator, and then while in-game, attempt to save. If this works, you may need to adjust Windows’ Controlled Folder Access settings to permanently allow Civ 7 to modify files in protected directories.
Control Folder Access
Windows Defender’s Controlled Folder Access feature can prevent Civilization VII from modifying or saving files in protected directories, leading to saving failures. To fix this, you need to whitelist the game’s executable files. First, open Windows Settings and go to Update & Security > Windows Security > Virus & Threat Protection > Manage Ransomware Protection. In the new window, click on Allow an app through Controlled Folder Access, then select Add an allowed app. Navigate to the folder where Civ 7 is installed and add both CivilizationVII.exe and CivilizationVII_DX12.exe to the whitelist. This should grant the game permission to save files and resolve the issue.
Manually create a save folder
If you’re struggling with save issues in Civilization VII, the problem might be as simple as the game not creating its save folder in the My Games directory. Some players have found that manually creating a blank folder named “Sid Meier’s Civilization VII” in Documents > My Games instantly fixes the issue. If the folder is missing, just create it yourself, and the game should be able to save properly again. It’s a surprisingly simple fix, but one that has worked for many players!
Use cross-platform saves
If nothing works out, one workaround is to manually save using the “Cross Platform” option (the middle selection in the save menu). Some players suspect that installing the game on a non-traditional drive, like an SSD labeled as Drive Z, might be causing the problem, as the game may not have been designed to account for this setup. So a reinstall on usual drives like C and D is worth a try.
We hope that one of the workarounds helped you save your progress without any further issues in Sid Meier’s Civilization VII. Speaking about Civ 7, you can click here to find out if there is any fix yet for the installation issue that some players are facing. Also, make sure to visit DigiStatement daily for more gaming content like this.
