PSA: DO NOT USE THE MICROSOFT STORE TO RUN YOUR GAME.
Hello!! This is the hero Piros the 3rd, here to kick the baddies’ bad asses out into orbit!
After hours and hours of troubleshooting, I have discovered that the Microsoft Store detects the PSO2 update files as files that should not exist, and tries to move them to the hidden location of:
C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\MutableBackup
This can cause the launcher to try and re-download the update files over and over again, creating more and more backup files. I have also discovered that it seems to do this passively in the background, so the game will still run sometimes but be unstable because it’s gradually missing more and more files!
Download the PSO2 Tweaker [Here!] This is a fan-made tool that’s been helping the JP version of the game run properly for years. IMPORTANT: Use the Tweaker EXCLUSIVELY to update, file check, and run the game!
Many people report that minor problems with the game can be solved with changing the permissions of the C:\Program Files\ModifiableWindowsApps file. The tweaker can do that automatically for you!
1. Problem: Even though you’ve already downloaded all the update files, the Tweaker says you need to download 80,000+ files!
->Solution:
First, MAKE SURE YOU SAY NO TO LETTING IT DOWNLOAD FILES. Make sure that the tweaker believes the install location is C:\Program Files\ModifiableWindowsApps\pso2_bin\data. By default, it says the install location should only be pso2_bin, not the data subfolder. This seemed to have helped me!
2. Problem: I downloaded all the update files and made sure the directory was OK, but tons are still missing from C:\Program Files\ModifiableWindowsApps\pso2_bin\data ! And my hard drive still has the same amount of space taken up!
->Possible Solution:
Access C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\MutableBackup . If you can’t find the file, directly copy+paste the file location into your file explorer location bar. A pop-up will tell you that you do not have access. Follow [THIS GUIDE] on how to gain permanent access.
-Next, open each file. A lot of them will look the same inside.
-Copy+paste the single files and .exes, !!!!!!NOT FOLDERS!!!!!!, into C:\Program Files\ModifiableWindowsApps\pso2_bin
-Open up the folders within the MutableBackup folders until you find normal, non-folder files. Copy+paste them into a mirror of the location in C:\Program Files\ModifiableWindowsApps\pso2_bin . If Windows asks you if you want to replace individual files (!!!NOT FOLDERS!!!) because there’s already files of the same name, select Yes.
-If any folders exist within the Mutable Backup folders that do not exist in C:\Program Files\ModifiableWindowsApps\pso2_bin , copy+paste them over. Basically, we want to avoid replacing files as much as possible, while also making sure the most files are together in the same place of pso2_bin.
-Run the PSO2 Tweaker and file check. This should solve the problem.
....Now, addressing the Microsoft Store problem....
We basically want to tell the Microsoft Store to fuck off as much as possible. The more access it has to your files, the worse off you’re gonna be, and the more PSO2 files that will be regularly corrupted. Unfortunately, I still do not know a completely foolproof way to tell it to fuck off. If anyone wants to add to this post some tutorials on how to disable the Microsoft Store permanently, please feel free to add them.
Possible solutions I’ve found (and frankly, you should be doing all of them and more):
Inside the Microsoft store, click the three dots in the upper-right part of the screen and select Settings from the dropdown. Disable “Update Apps Automatically”.
Type “Background apps” into your Windows search bar. From there, disable the Microsoft store.
We must work together to destroy the evil corruption known as the Microsoft store! Please share this and help your fellow players!
