Getting multiple game profiles to read from the same save files

[Taiyaki]

Is it possible to get multiple profiles of the same game to read off from a single unified save file?

The reason I ask is because I've created profiles for the default audio and for MT-32, sometimes additional soundfonts etc. I enjoy going back and forth and playing games I love with different audio profiles, but the problem is that then the saves are independent from each other, getting names such as tentacle, and tentacle-1, tentacle-2 etc.

Was hoping maybe there's something I can modify in the entries of such games in the ini to get them to search for the same save files. Is there any such thing?

Thank you for your time on my admittedly unusual request.

[Praetorian]

I am not sure there could be a safe way to implement this, since especially with SCUMM games, the save game format differs when you play under different sound settings and it's not cross-compatible with other sound settings (eg. MT-32 is not compatible with Adlib). Other engines could have this restriction too.

You can "force" a game profile to load saved games from another game profile by creating copies of the saved games and renaming to match the game id of the target game profile. But, as mentioned, this may lead to a crash or unforeseen issues with the game when loaded in a profile it was not saved in.

Note that in recent dev builds, and for the SCUMM engine game, there's an additional popup warning that informs the player if a game was saved under different sound settings that the current ones, and that a crash is possible if you proceed.

[LogicDeLuxe]

The original SCUMM DOS executables handle this by just stopping the music until a new music is about to play when loading a savegame made with different sound settings. On rare occasions, this can result in a deadlock indeed. One example is the coffin lift on Scabb Island where the script waits for certain beats to synchronize a musical cue. Without music, those beats never come. Such a savegame can be rescued by loading it with the original setting, so the music doesn't stop, or with music disabled completely, in which case, the script skips that synchronization part.
That particular script could be improved by not checking, if there is supposed to be music playing, but by checking if it actually is playing. There are probably similar examples throughout the games.

[Taiyaki]

Thank you to both of you for your replies.

Does this also occur when saving through in game F5 saving too? I had been doing that trick of duplicating and renaming existing saves and so far haven't encountered any issues, but that's good to know and I'll remember it going forwards.

I guess one really does have to decide which audio setting one prefers for most games and just stick to it. :/