Should You Start a New World for Enshrouded 1.0?
Decide whether to restart Enshrouded for 1.0 or continue an existing world, with separate advice for solo, co-op, characters, and servers.
Last updated: 2026-10-16
You do not need to decide that every player should restart for Enshrouded 1.0. A fresh world is best for players who want to experience revised onboarding and progression in order. Continuing is reasonable for players whose main priority is preserving a large base, collection, or shared server—provided they make a safe backup first.
Confirmed (official): all character skill trees reset at 1.0. Early Access saves remain usable and convert to the new format, according to the October 13 FAQ. Read the skill-tree reset explanation before choosing whether to restart.
What is known
- Enshrouded 1.0 released October 15, 2026.
- Existing worlds and characters are separate parts of progression.
- 1.0.0.0 released October 15; legacy tool data still needs verification.
- Update 8 previously reset character skill trees and refunded points when its progression systems changed.
- Keen published the complete 1.0.0.0 changelog on October 14; read the summary before converting important saves.
What remains unconfirmed
Keen confirms that Early Access saves remain usable and convert to a more efficient format. The FAQ does not detail every quest transition, dedicated-server step, or changed point of interest. Do not treat general Early Access expectations as a guarantee that every old world will behave identically after launch.
Reasons to start a fresh world
Start fresh if you want to:
- experience the final onboarding and regional progression in order;
- see revised quests and discoveries without an old world's completed state;
- learn the final skill and crafting systems gradually;
- begin a synchronized co-op campaign with new players;
- avoid wondering whether an unusual quest state came from Early Access history.
A fresh world does not necessarily require deleting a favorite character. Keep separate backups and decide independently whether the group also wants fresh characters.
Reasons to continue an existing world
Continue if your priority is:
- preserving a detailed or long-running base;
- keeping a shared storage economy and crafted infrastructure;
- returning directly to higher-level exploration;
- maintaining a community server's history;
- comparing changed content against familiar locations.
Continuing should begin with a copied save, not the only copy of the world. Follow the backup and migration guide before opening it in a new major version.
Solo recommendation
For a solo player, the safest flexible approach is to keep the old world and create a new one alongside it. Begin fresh for the launch experience, then test a copy of the old world after reading the changelog. There is no reason to delete either save in advance.
Co-op recommendation
Agree on the decision before converting or replacing the shared world. A group with one new player usually benefits from fresh characters and a fresh world. A building-focused group may care more about its shared base than repeating progression. Record active quests and have each regular player back up the relevant character data.
Use the Quest Tracker to record important progression and the 1.0 Post-update Checklist to coordinate the safety steps.
Dedicated-server recommendation
Server administrators should preserve three things separately:
- the last known-good pre-1.0 world;
- the current server configuration with secrets removed from shared copies;
- a test copy used for the first 1.0 startup.
Update client and server versions together. Do not convert the only production copy first, and do not overwrite the pre-launch archive during normal backup rotation.
The practical answer
Choose a fresh world for the cleanest final progression experience. Choose a copied existing world when preserving builds and community history matters more. Save compatibility is confirmed, but keep both options available and preserve a pre-conversion backup.
Track confirmed information in the Enshrouded 1.0 guide, follow the site's launch verification status, or use the Getting Started guide for a fresh route.
Source update: Keen Games launch FAQ, October 13.
Release source: Keen Games 1.0.0.0 changelog.