The save is not tied to your account
The 17-digit number in the path is a folder name, not a lock. What to copy, and the order that stops Steam Cloud from undoing it.
Why the SteamID is not a restriction
Phantom Blade Zero stores saves per account by making a folder named after the SteamID64. Nothing inside
PBZSaveGame.sav records which account wrote it, and the loader does not compare the two. That is the whole
reason downloaded starter saves work at all: you are not defeating a check, there just is not one.
Moving to another account on the same PC
- Copy your current 17-digit folder somewhere outside the game directory.
- Sign in to the other Steam account and launch the game once, then quit. This creates that account's folder.
- Drop the copied
PBZSaveGame.savinto the new folder, replacing what is there. - Launch and load. If nothing appears, the fixes page covers the three usual causes.
Moving to another PC
Copy the entire 17-digit folder across, not just the .sav. On the target machine, run the game once to
create the folder structure, close it, then paste. The subfolders matter because they are the only built-in backups:
| Copy | Why |
|---|---|
PBZSaveGame.sav | The save the game loads. |
1RealTime | Newest rolling backup. Your undo when an edit goes wrong. |
2Hourly | Older rotation, still useful. |
3Daily | Oldest rotation. |
Do not bother copying GameUserSettings.ini unless you also want the graphics settings, it lives in
%LOCALAPPDATA% and is machine-specific in a way that can make the game boot at an unusable resolution on
different hardware.
Making Cloud cooperate instead of overwriting you
Steam Cloud decides by comparing timestamps. The reliable sequence when you are moving or editing a file:
- Close the game on every machine.
- Turn Cloud off for this game on the machine you are about to change.
- Copy or edit the file.
- Launch once, confirm the save loads, then quit normally.
- Turn Cloud back on so your version is uploaded.
Only then touch the other machine. If both machines have Cloud on and both sit on different versions, whichever syncs last wins, and that is not always the one you meant.
Two things that do not travel
Achievements and playtime. Both are account-level records held by Steam, so a transferred save unlocks nothing retroactively and does not add hours to the account that downloaded it. If you are moving a save to keep progress, that works; if you are moving one hoping to inherit completion, it will not.
Questions people ask
Is PBZSaveGame.sav locked to one Steam account?
No. The 17-digit SteamID64 in the path names the folder the game reads; it is not embedded in the file and not checked when the save loads. A save from another account loads once it is inside your own folder.
Can I take my save from one PC to another?
Yes, and there are two ways: let Steam Cloud carry it, or copy the whole SteamID folder across by hand. Copying by hand is the one that works when Cloud is off, offline, or has already decided its copy is newer.
What do I have to copy besides PBZSaveGame.sav?
Nothing that the game needs in order to load, but copy the whole SteamID folder anyway: the 1RealTime, 2Hourly and 3Daily subfolders are the game’s own backups and are the only undo you get if something goes wrong.
Will editing a save on one machine sync to the other?
Only after the edited file becomes the cloud version. If you edit on PC A while PC B still has the old file synced, whichever machine syncs last tends to win. Edit, launch once on that machine, quit, and let it upload before touching the other one.
Does moving a save move achievements?
No. Achievements live on your Steam account and unlock from what you do in-game, not from what a file says. A save full of weapons will not retroactively grant the achievements tied to earning them.