Hollow Knight provides four clear profile files and also creates useful backup copies, making it a strong candidate for careful manual recovery. The key is to keep the entire LocalLow folder rather than only user1.dat: each slot can have a .bak file, older-version backups may appear after patches, and some global preferences/unlocks live elsewhere. SaveEditor therefore describes both the slot files and the boundary of what they do not contain, which avoids misleading a user who restores progress but still sees old global settings.
Start with the least destructive explanation
When Hollow Knight progress appears missing, first verify the active PC location: Windows: %USERPROFILE%AppDataLocalLowTeam CherryHollow Knight ; Microsoft Store progress can also involve the package WGS area documented by PCGamingWiki.. Expected files/folders: user1.dat through user4.dat; user#.dat.bak1 backup files and older-version copies may also exist.. Many apparent save failures are actually profile, storefront, path-redirection, or cloud-selection problems rather than damaged game data.
Preserve every surviving copy
Back up the entire Hollow Knight LocalLow directory, not only one user#.dat. Keep the corresponding .bak files so the game-created recovery copies remain available. Before renaming, moving, replacing, or opening candidate backups, copy them outside the live directory. Do not use the only surviving file as the test specimen for repair or editing.
Check launcher and cloud state
Storefront context: Steam, GOG, Microsoft Store. The main Windows profile files are under LocalLow. Some preferences/unlocks are stored separately, so replacing user1.dat does not necessarily reset every game-wide flag. Cloud notes: Steam Cloud, GOG Galaxy, and Xbox Cloud are documented. A sync client can reintroduce an older or newer version after a manual restore, so recovery work should keep local and cloud copies conceptually separate until the wanted progress is confirmed.
Use format and compatibility clues
The four player profiles are individual user#.dat files. The game also keeps automatic backup/older-version files, while some unlock/preferences data lives outside the main save files. A profile file is not the whole application state. Steel Soul/Godseeker-style unlocks and settings can be stored outside the slot file, so slot restoration may not reproduce or erase those flags. If the file exists but is ignored, compare the complete directory structure, slot/profile naming, game edition, mods/DLC, and any companion metadata. Do not assume an extension change or generic checksum tool can repair a game-specific container.
Game-specific troubleshooting
If a profile is corrupt or missing, try the matching game-created .bak only on a copy and preserve the current directory first. Verify the slot number before renaming files. If a known-good backup works, preserve it and create a fresh in-game save before further experiments. If no copy works, prefer read-only inspection and source-backed game-specific tooling over repeated writes.
Verification context: Reviewed against current PCGamingWiki Hollow Knight data plus the Hollow Knight Wiki Save Data page for user#.dat and .bak naming.