Warning
This tool overwrites saves from other carts. Make sure you know what you are doing.
Controls
Instructions on which keys or buttons to press are displayed on screen at all times.
Note: pause menu is supressed in keyboard mode, hold ENTER or P for a second to display it.
Context
- PICO-8 executables save cartdata as text files in the cdata folder.
- BBS javascript, on the other hand, is limited to your browser's internal storage, which is a lot less convenient for users to access directly.
Purpose
This tool allows you to easily transfer your progress between PICO-8 installations, particularly from/to the BBS. It also allows you to edit your saves on the fly.
Cartdata ID
First you need to find out the cartdata ID of the save you want to access.
As an example, let's assume you are playing Tiny Tactics (my first cart) on the BBS. If you click the Code button below that cart and search the page for cartdata, you are going to find the API call.
The ID is the single parameter, quotes excluded. Enter that ID into Cartdata Editor to load your save.
Note: if you type a wrong ID, an empty save will be created. That's just how the API works.
Copy to clipboard
If you select copy to clipboard and paste the contents into a text editor, you will see the same format used by PICO-8 executables when storing cartdata as text files: 8 lines of 64 hex digits.
Saving this text file with the appropriate name in your cdata folder allows you to resume your game from PICO-8 executables.
The file name must match the cartdata ID, with the .p8d.txt extension. For example, Tiny Tactics' save file should be named ajt_tinytactics_1.p8d.txt.
CTRL-C on the BBS
If you select copy to clipboard on the BBS you will see the following message on the bottom of the screen:
This will only work if you are using a keyboard, obviously.
Paste from clipboard
Instead of saving the text file yourself, you can press CTRL-V while running Cartdata Editor on your destination environment, then select paste from clipboard.
Finally, select save changes. Think of it as saving the file in your text editor.
CTRL-V
paste from clipboard only works if you are using a keyboard, both on the BBS and on PICO-8 executables.
That's because PICO-8 only allows carts to read the clipboard after the user presses CTRL-V (for security).
Mobile clipboard
copy to clipboard and paste from clipboard are less convenient on mobile, because you need to connect a keyboard to your device.
It does work, though. You just need a bluetooth keyboard or OTG adapter. You can also use Phone Link on Windows to do it remotely.
Edit cartdata
You can edit your save with edit cartdata. Unsaved changes will be highlighted in orange.
After you are done, select save changes.
Save changes
Do not forget to save your changes or you will loose them.
paste from clipboard and edit cartdata only change a copy stored in USER memory.
You need to select save changes afterwards to actually overwrite your save.
Reset cart
Cartdata Editor only lets you edit one save at a time. If you want to load a different cartdata ID, just reset the cart.
Feedback
If you have any problems, drop a comment and I'll try to help.
I hope you find this tool useful!
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