Biggus

In addition to whitelisting, make sure to install the game on C:. That solved my remaining problem.

I figured I'd try one more thing before asking Jeff. I usually install games on E: because it has more space. When the game didn't work at first I uninstalled and reinstalled on C but that didn't work. When whitelisting seemed to work, I uninstalled again and reinstalled on E:. Today I uninstalled and reinstalled on C. That seems to have fixed the problem. My guess is that the game uses an incomplete path to the "header" file so sometimes it looks on the wrong drive. This problem and the anti-virus problem would both be solved by using the same path for data and executables. There's no need to use My Documents.

1. Geneforge 1: Mutagen 2. Windows 3. Epic Games 4. Not a graphics issue 5. No mods, no edits. I have rebooted, uninstalled, and reinstalled. I reported the problem in the Geneforge 1 - Mutagen forum. The error message when trying to save is "Couldn't open the header file." I am unable to save at all after entering the second town. The game quicksaves when I move from the first town to the second town, but after that it won't quicksave a second time, so my progress is locked.

Press command, type "virus" into the search box, and then select "Virus and Threat Protection" Under "Virus and Threat Protection Settings," click on "manage settings" Scroll down to "Exclusions" and click on "Add or Remove Exclusions" After that it's self-explanatory. If you want to confirm the process name press ctrl-alt-delete to bring up the process manager. Or just whitelist "geneforge mutagen"

A key symptom of the OP's problem is that he can't save the preferences file. I had the same problem initially. Whitelisting "geneforge mutagen" with his antivirus software should fix the problem. The developers really should reconsider the file location for saves and settings. Computer security has evolved. My Documents now has a level of security that is not needed for games. A well designed game should not require whitelisting. Frequently the game gets into a state where it can't open the header file for saves. Normal saves, quicksaves, and autosaves don't work. Overwriting old saves doesn't work. This makes the game essentially unplayable. I am playing the Epic Games version in case that matters.