More website updates

So the last update that went up at the same time as the release of Chapter Four has solved some issues but caused a few more it seems.
We have been working on identifying the root causes and implementing solutions.

I'll try to explain what's been causing some of the specific issues and tell you all about what we are doing about it.


Lost game saves
A few users have reported that previously saved games are no longer showing up in their user profile on the dsp3000.games website.
This is generally caused by the way the games were previously categorized/named when passed onto the database.
Previously for example, if you started playing from Chapter 1 but didn't save until the end of Chapter 3, the save would be classed as a Chapter 1 save and wouldn't show up in your Chapter 3 saves.
Instead it would appear as a Chapter1 save, usually with incorrect variables.

Solution
The update changes the way game saves were categorized so they always referenced the correct save point rather than the start point.
We also removed the ability to bypass save points and play straight through.
Another update which will be implemented over the weekend will add in a secondary way for saves to be checked and displayed.
This means older saves should be correctly identified and displayed in the correct area of the user profile page.


Corrupted saves and incomplete load-ins
This has been an interesting one to get on top of, but we are confident we have identified the root cause of the problem.
To explain, when you complete a chapter your achievements will be displayed, reflected what you have just done.
This part has been mostly accurate and without issues.
When you click the save button, all the cookies/variables get passed into a data string which gets saved with a date stamp into your account on the database.

So far so good.

However, the problem appears to be mostly when loading saved games back in.
There is often a delay passing the data string back from the database to the website and opening up the array of variables to repopulate the game.
If there isn't enough time for the data to be passed over then you end up seeing an incomplete set of achievements.
One simple way to correct this is to hit refresh a couple of times.
But... the time delay has been seen to effect saves too so occasionally an incorrect save gets passed in too.
If you continue on to the next chapter you end up just resaving incorrect data at the next save point.

Solution
To remedy this we are implementing a time delay and checks in the coding to ensure that complete data strings are saved and then loaded in.
What you will see is an obvious time delay and accompanying graphic while this process occurs.
Your internet connection may have some bearing on how long this takes, but I anticipate that it should take no longer than 10 seconds for the save and load in process to complete successfully.
You won't be able to continue until your game has been completely saved or fully loaded.


Saves being overwritten
This issue appears mostly related to the database delay.
However it often seems related to users with a large number of saved games in their  account.
It makes sense that the greater the amount of saved data, the longer it will take for that data to load in correctly.
While it may appear that saves are being overwritten, it generally appears to be a case of incorrect data being loaded in due to the previously described database delay.

Delete unwanted saves
One new feature that will be added with the update is the ability to delete any unwanted saved games.
This means that you won't end up with hundreds of near identical saves and will allow you to delete any older saves with obvious errors.
Clearing out superfluous data will also speed up your game save and load-ins. 


IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT BONUS SCENES
When you unlock a bonus scene it gets stored separately from your saved games.
If you delete the saved game where you unlocked the bonus, you don't delete the record of unlocking the bonus.
Even if you delete all of your game saves you will still retain your unlocked bonus scenes.
The next time you play and get to the start of the bonus scene it will be unlocked so you can play it again.
In other words you should only ever have to pay to unlock any of the bonus scenes once!

A note about browsers
Once again it's probably worth reminding everyone the we don't recommend using Google Chrome when playing the game because of the way it hangs on to cookies.
Generally, playing in Mozilla Firefox in Incognito yields much more stability and reliability.
Also if you open the website in more than one browser window or tab simultaneously, it can seriously screw up game functions.
Basically what happen is that the game picks up the cookies and variables from all the open windows or tabs so you can end up with wildly inaccurate scoring and achievements.

That's all for now. Fingers crossed for a successful update.

Thanks again for all your support and patience.

dsp3000