The save loop and autosave

Saving on leave works — until it doesn't. If a player's game crashes, the app closes, or the server shuts down unexpectedly, PlayerRemoving may never fire, and their progress is gone. The fix is autosave: write the data regularly, not just at the end.

#Save on leave

PlayerRemoving fires when a player leaves the server:

Players.PlayerRemoving:Connect(function(player)
    local coins = player.leaderstats.Coins.Value
    coinsStore:SetAsync(player.UserId, coins)
end)

This is the safety net for clean exits — pressing Leave, or finishing a round. It's the moment you know the player is done, so it's the natural place to write their final state.

#The autosave loop

A clean exit isn't guaranteed. Autosave covers the gap: every N seconds, write everyone's data.

task.spawn(function()
    while true do
        task.wait(60)  -- once a minute

        for _, player in ipairs(Players:GetPlayers()) do
            if player.leaderstats then
                coinsStore:SetAsync(player.UserId, player.leaderstats.Coins.Value)
            end
        end
    end
end)

• Players:GetPlayers() — a table of everyone currently in the server.
• The if player.leaderstats then guard skips players who haven't been set up yet.
• task.spawn keeps this loop running alongside the rest of the script — it never blocks the game.

#Saving in bounds

Two habits keep autosave from causing trouble:

• Rate limits. DataStores have limits on how often you can write. One save per player per minute is gentle and safe for a beginner game.
• Check before you write. Only save players who have data set up — if player.leaderstats then — so you never save a nil folder.

Players.PlayerRemoving:Connect(function(player)
-- save their coins
end)

#Common mistakes

• Relying only on PlayerRemoving. It can be skipped by crashes. Autosave is the belt-and-suspenders backup.
• Autosaving every frame. DataStore writes are rate-limited and slow. Every minute is plenty for a beginner game.
• Saving before data exists. Guard with if player.leaderstats then so early joins don't write nil.
• Starting the autosave loop without task.spawn. A plain while loop at the top of the script would block everything after it. Wrap it.

Next: the uncomfortable truth about who you can trust.