Schedule I Infinite Loading Screen: Fixes to Try

First: which version are you on?

As of Oct 11, 2026, the latest version of Schedule I is v0.4.7 “Special Customers”. TVGS’s Oct 9 post announces it as a full release (“Today we’re pleased to be releasing the special customers update!”), three weeks after its open beta started on Sep 19. The version before it was v0.4.6f13 (Aug 14, 2026). Check which branch you’re on under Properties > Betas in Steam.

Save warning for v0.4.7. TVGS changed how player appearances are saved. The v0.4.7 beta post warned: “If you switch back to the default version of the game after playing this beta, any appearances that have been converted to the new format will not load properly.” The Oct 9 release notes list the same change (“Rebuilt the avatar appearance system from scratch”) but don’t repeat the warning. Our reading, not confirmed by TVGS: the risk now applies to going back to v0.4.6, for example on the “default-previous” branch (step 3). TVGS hasn’t posted a way to undo the conversion, so stay on v0.4.7 with a save you’ve already loaded there. Our v0.4.7 page has the full list of changes.

The game already backs up your save. Since v0.4.0 (Aug 2025), Schedule I “will automatically generate a backup of your save file when you first load it on a new version of the game.” It’s on by default, under Settings -> Other. TVGS didn’t say where the backup is stored.

Back up before you try anything

Some fixes below touch your save files, so copy them somewhere safe first. The guides we used point to a TVGS folder under AppData\LocalLow: DigiStatement gives LocalLow\TVGS\Schedule I\Saves\SaveGame_1. The quickest way there is to type %userprofile%\AppData\LocalLow\TVGS into File Explorer’s address bar. TVGS hasn’t published the save location, so treat it as the community’s answer.

Stuck when loading a game (solo)

1. Look for the permissions pop-up

In March 2025, TVGS wrote: “There have been a few saving/loading issues, and I think this is primarily due to Windows permissions preventing Schedule I from writing files during the save process.” Patch #4 added a check that will “display a pop-up in the main menu that provides instructions to resolve the issue.” If you see that pop-up, follow it before anything else. This is the only loading fix TVGS itself has given.

2. Verify the game files

Appuals: “The game may get stuck on the loading screen if there are corrupted or missing files in its installation directory.” MiniTool gives the same steps. In Steam: right-click Schedule I > Properties > Installed Files > Verify integrity of game files.

3. Stay on one branch

Appuals puts “Opt Out of the Beta Branch” first, saying beta builds “can introduce instability or bugs that aren’t present in the stable release.” GamerBlurb: “Make sure both players are on the same version”. Read the v0.4.7 save warning above before you switch to an older branch.

If a new default version is the problem, TVGS keeps the last one available: “We’ve also set up ‘default-previous’ and ‘alternate-previous’ branches, which will respectively hold the last major default and alternate release” (v0.4.3, Feb 2026). TVGS hasn’t said whether saves carry back safely, so back up first.

4. Let the game make a fresh save folder

Appuals: “Renaming or deleting the folder forces the game to generate fresh default data, which can often fix issues like getting stuck on the loading screen.” MiniTool: “You can delete or rename the save file folder and launch the game to recreate a new one.”

Rename, don’t delete. If the game loads with a fresh folder, the problem is in your save data, not the install. Rename the folder back to get your saves in the menu again. The two guides don’t point to the same folder (Appuals names Steam’s userdata folder for the game, MiniTool the TVGS folder), which is one more reason to back up both before you start.

5. Reinstall, last

MiniTool, Appuals and DigiStatement all put reinstalling last. DigiStatement says to back up the TVGS folder first, as a precaution.

Stuck on “Loading World” or “Spawning Player” in co-op

Start with the basics from our authentication failed guide: be Steam friends with the host, run the same version on the same branch, and verify files. Then:

Host first, invite through Steam

DigiStatement: “try having the host load into the game first and send an invite directly through Steam instead of using the in-game invite system.” Xboxplay.games also suggests sending the invite from the Steam overlay (Shift + Tab) instead of the in-game button.

Save-data leads (one source each)

These come from one guide, DigiStatement (May 2025, when the game was on v0.3.x). We couldn’t find a second independent source we could read, so treat them as leads, not confirmed fixes. Back up the save first; some of them delete files.

• Empty the drying racks before your friend joins. “if you have any items inside them, try emptying them before your friend joins the session. This has reportedly allowed players to bypass the stuck loading screen.”
• Clear active deals. “Removing all active deals before trying to join a session seems to resolve the issue for some.”
• Employees. The guide suggests deleting the employee folders from the save, or “firing all employees in-game (if possible)”. Since then, TVGS “Added some extra safety in the loading code to prevent loading the same object or employee twice” (v0.4.2, Dec 2025), so this may no longer apply.
• Mixing stations. The guide says some hosts got the game loading again by deleting the mixing station files from the property’s save folder. This is the most destructive step here; try everything else first.

Two more from a single guide each: GamerBlurb suggests turning off Steam Cloud sync for the game temporarily, and disabling overlays (Steam, Discord).

What TVGS has already fixed around loading

This is our own list from Schedule I’s Steam announcements. If the forum thread you’re following is older than the fix, its cause may already be gone. For the co-op join fixes (invites, timeouts, the v0.4.6 rewrite), see the table in our authentication failed guide.

What the list shows: none of these notes calls a single cause “the” infinite loading bug. The fixes are spread over many save and loading edge cases, which is why the community fixes are so varied.

Still stuck?

Use the in-game bug report tool and leave “include save file” ticked, so TVGS can load your save. You can also post in the Schedule I Bug Reports forum on Steam with your version number and branch.