First, let’s be clear, the best way to enjoy video games is to play them the way you want to. The idea that any kind of cheating in a single player or co-op video game invalidates your personal enjoyment of a game is complete rubbish. From the early times of video games there have been many examples of so called “cheating” and where to draw the line often becomes a hotly debated topic among gamers. Is it cheating to use Game Genie, Gameshark, or Action Replay? Is it cheating to use the codes programmed into the game ala the Konami code? Is it cheating to use a turbo controller officially sold by Nintendo? Is it cheating to use a quarter on an arcade cabinet to be able to push two buttons at the same time? We’re here to tell you that it doesn’t matter if it’s “cheating” or not. What matters is that you’re enjoying the experience because of the method you’re using. Most recently, within the topic of emulation, a vocal group of the gaming community has spoken out against the use of save states. Most specifically stating that beating a game that doesn’t include the function inherently means that you have not truly beaten the video game. Forget for a moment that beating a video game is a personal achievement and should mean whatever it wants to you. In this article we’d like to focus on some clear uses of save states that could actually enhance your overall enjoyment because of their usefulness.

Save Progress In A Game Without Saves

It’s so obvious that we probably don’t even think about it anymore. Let me set you the usual scene: It’s a Saturday, you’ve been playing Ninja Gaiden for an hour and suddenly you hear you Mom calling your name letting you know it’s time to get in the car and head to your Aunt’s house. Let me remind you, Ninja Gaiden on NES has no password/save system. Hopefully the power doesn’t go out while you’re at your aunts. Or worse yet, hopefully your parents let you leave it running for hours on end.

Thankfully, most of us never have to think of situations like this ever again because of save states. This method of using save states is nothing more than an extended pause. You’re not being dishonest in your achievement in anyway because other than potentially giving your fingers or mind a rest, the gameplay session otherwise remains the same. The ability to have this extended pause is also a great benefit to those of us with minimal continuous playing time or those of us who prefer to play many games at the same time. If I had to beat Ninja Gaiden in one sitting, it would require a lot more than one sitting anyway. I could assure you that much.

Saving Only At The Start of a Level

The most common save in the history of video games. You reach a new level or area in a game and the idea of a new “checkpoint” is established. Which is weirder: You die in Super Mario Bros 4-3 and start back in world 4-1 or you die in Super Mario Bros 4-3 and start back in word 1-1. If you answered for 4-1 I rest my case. If however you answered 1-1 did you do so because that is the established mechanic of how Super Mario Bros. handles dying? Imagine you’re playing Super Mario 64 and you die in Tall, Tall Mountain. Should you really have to start with 0 stars because of that death? Of course not. You shouldn’t have to reclaim all progress just for running out of lives. You’ve already proven you can complete the challenges in previous stages/levels. Save States at the beginning of a level keep the challenge relevant rather than repetitive.

Establishing Your Own Checkpoints

Alright, now we’re climbing up a slippery slope. Hopefully we don’t fall down. What does it mean to create your own checkpoints. We’ll that could mean that every time you make a successful jump in Super Mario Bros. you decide to make a save state. I’m not worried about that kind of assessment because it’s not practical at all. Even if you try to save state before every jump, battle or decision in a video game you’ll likely realize the futility of your own decision before you get very far. Save states with your own checkpoints becomes a more reliable function in games that do not have established levels/areas. For instance, in a game like Nobunaga’s Ambition, it may not be clear when you have reached the next “level.” This doesn’t mean you can’t save state fairly. You can save state at pre-determined points that you deem fair. For example, in Nobunaga, after every year. The important part of the plan is to establish checkpoints before you approach them. If I just decide to save state every 2 minutes in Castlevania, that’s not really as effective as save stating every time I enter a new room. Don’t be arbitrary with your checkpoints.

Save Stating for Practice

This is basically how people learn to speed run games. Why play through Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out each time just to have your butt on a platter when it comes time to face Tyson? Mike Tyson isn’t a rouge like game where each time you face him you slowly get better at dealing with him or gaining new abilities that allow you to be more prepared for the fight. Use a save state if you get to Iron Mike to learn how to deal with him. Arguably, this is the closest to the pure experience of playing an NES back in the day, because once you conquer that section you can attempt to beat it the original intended way later on. All you really did was save the time it takes to constantly get to the point you’re struggling with.

Save State Whenever and Wherever You Like

Now the article has really jumped the shark. You read everything else so far and now I’m just telling you that save states are always OK. Heck, create a macro on your computer that just constantly creates save states 60 times per second. Truth be told, this was the point of the whole article. Talking about WHEN it’s okay to use save states is just silly. Play video games the way you enjoy playing them. Whether that’s some mix of all the strategies outlined above or just making a save state after every encounter in Dragon Warrior. The point is, video games are an interactive medium so you really can’t have a wrong point of view on how to play your favorite games.

The Rewind Function

You probably noticed that I haven’t mentioned the “rewind” ability found in many modern day emulators. The function allows you to rewind time so that the second you realize you have died by jumping into a pitfall or losing your last heart you just simply rewind to the point that. Rewinding and Save States are not the same thing. Save States act as a point of progress that you have made in a game so far. Rewinding corrects your mistakes so that you play perfectly. Essentially, rewinding is more of a debugging feature for testing certain strategies or skill feats quickly. Rewinding comes with no stakes of losing progress or failure. You’re simply a god to the game, where nothing they throw at you really matters. Save States lock you to a point of progress that you actually delivered on.