Skyrim, Baldur’s Gate 3, and other saves will come under risk as GOG will delete data

It’s hard to overstate how much cloud saves have changed my gaming habits. I used to have tons of folders of game saves, stored to make sure that if I reinstalled a game, I could pick up where I left off. With the advent of cloud saves that’s become a thing of the past. Now, I uninstall and reinstall with alarming abandon, trusting my progress will reappear by magic. Of course, the cloud doesn’t exist – it’s just someone else’s computer – and storage is limited. That’s why GOG is implementing new data limits which could see you have to prune your Skyrim or Baldur’s Gate 3 saves.

Cloud saves aren’t supported by all games but more often than not it’s become a staple especially with modern titles. A new announcement from GOG states that going forward, all games will be limited to 200mb of cloud data. For most games this isn’t a problem but a few, such as hefty RPGs like Skyrim or Baldur’s Gate 3, can easily breach this barrier.

GOG is advising that all users of the platform check their cloud saves and delete anything unwanted ahead of the new limit’s implementation. For those who primarily use GOG for old games, as was its original purpose, it’s unlikely this will affect you. For example, despite plowing hour after hour into 90’s RPGs like Albion and Dark Sun: Wake of the Ravager, my storage usage for these titles still comes under one megabyte for each. The only older game I can see in my list which may cause problems in the future is Star Trek: Elite Force 2, but even then it’s a distance off.

Some games, however, are beasts. Looking down my Steam cloud storage list, I can see several titles that breach 200mb – some of them considerably past that number. These include both versions of Skyrim, Baldur’s Gate 3, Divinity: Original Sin 2, both Pillars of Eternity games, and Fallout 4. So it looks like if you’re into RPGs you should definitely head over to GOG’s site and check the amount of storage you’re using.

GOG will start removing files from cloud storage after Saturday August 31. The company will start with non-essential files first before moving onto older save games, deleting until your saves fit under 200mb. Head over to the GOG site for the full announcement, as well as details on how to check your cloud usage.

Or you could also check out our guide to the best classic games you can play in 2024, or our best indie games guide to get you something small we’re sure you’re going to love.

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